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A NEW GENERAL
DICTIONARY
O F
ARTS AND sciences:
O R
CompleatSyftem of Univerfal Knowledge.
Exhibiting, together with every other Branch of Ufeful Learning,
Agriculture
Fluxions
Hydroftatics
Painting
Algebra
Fortification
Law
Perfpedtive
Anatomy
Gardening
Logic
Philology
Architefture
Gauging
Maritime Affairs
Philofophy
Arithmetic
Geography
Mathematics
Phyfic
Artronom/
Geometry
Military Affairs
Rhetoric
Book-keeping
Grammar
Mechanics
Sculpture
Botany
Gunnery
Merchandize
Statics
Chemiftry
Heraldry
Metaphyfics
Statuary
Chronology
Hiftory
Mufic
Surgery
Commerce
Horfemanfhip
Navigation
Surveying
Cofmography
Hufbandry
Optics
Theology, &c.
Poetry, Criticism, Grammar and Theology,
By the Reverend JAMES SCOTT, M. A.
Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge.
The Mathematical Branches
By Mr. CHARLES GREEN,
Late Obferver at the Royal Obfervatory, Greenwich.
Naval and Marine Affairs, and Naval Architecture'
By Mr. WILLIAM FALCONER,
Author of the Shipwreck, and Purfer in the Royal Navy.
Botany and Gardening
By Mr. JAMES M E A D E R,
Gardener to the Right Hon. the Earl of Chefteifield.
And the various other Branches of Literatupe,
By a SOCIETY of GENTLEMEN,
Many of whom are Members of the Society for the Encouragement of
Arts and Sciences.
LONDON:
Printed for J, COOKE, at Shakespear's Head, No. io, Pater-noster-Row.
MDCCLXVII.
*At-
NiPT
N /' i
To THE PUBLIC.
AS there are already fevcral Dictionaries of Arts and Sciences extant, it may
perhaps feem unneceflary to trouble the World with another. But we flatter
ourfelves that this Objedion will vanifli when it is remembered that, notwithftanding
v/hat has been already performed, there is ftill ample room for prefenting the Public
with a Work of this kind far fuperior to any Diftionary yet known in the Republic
of Letters.
If this be granted, the only Queflion remaining will be. Whether the Authors are
equal to the tafk, and capable of putting into the Hands of their Readers a Syftem
of Literature, in which the various Branches are more fully explained, and the diffe-
rent Arts and Sciences enriched with more Difcoveries, and more important Obferva-
tions, than thofe of any other Performance of the fame Kind ?
In order to anfwer this Qiieffion, we would beg Leave to obferve, that feveral of the
Gentlemen concerned in this Work are already known in the Republic of Letters ;
«nd that their Labours have more than once obtained the Approbation of proper
Judges. And. as they are determined to -exert their utmoft Abilities on this Oc^afion,
they have fome Reafon to flatter themfelves that their Readers will not be difiippointed.
They would alfo humbly hope, that it will be unneceflary to obferve any thing far-
■ther with regard to the Articles reladng to Poetry, Criticifm, Grammar, and Theo-
logy, than that they will all be executed by the Hand of the ingenious Mr. Scott,
Tellow of Trinity-College, Cambridge.
Afl:ronomy, in all Works of this nature, is, perhaps, more defefcive than any other
■Science. Nor will this appear furprizing, wlien it is remembered, that the Perfons
■who have hitherto undertaken the Aftronomical Articles have not been refident at the
■Royal Obfervatory at Greenwich, and confequently could not have rccourfe to thofe
•valuable InftrumeJits and Machines neceflTary for elucidating that important Branch of
Science. Thefe Inftruments and Machines have been furnifiied by the State at an im-
-menfe Expence, and are not to be equalled in any Part of Europe. Mr. Green, who
refided many Years at the Royal Obfervatory, as Obferver, with the late eminent Royal
Aflrronomers Dr. Bradley and Mr. Blifs, in confequence of his Office had the chief Ufe
of thefe Inftruments, together with free Accefs to the Writings of his Predeceflbrs,
•whole Difcoveries have done fo much Honour to their Country ; the Reader
may, therefore, be aflfured that the Aftronomical Articles will excel any hitherto
publiflied : And that among feveral other valuable Improvements, the twelve Plates
of the Zodiac will be given, in which the Places of all the Stars to the fourth Magni-
tude, inclufive, will be inferted, as fettled from aftual and accurate Obfcrvations.
^
04 S7S7
To THE PUBLIC,
We would alfo beg Leave to add, that Mr. Green was lately fent to Barbadoes, by
the llight Hon. the Lords of the Admiralty, as a proper Perfon to make Obfervations
for fixing the Longitude of that Ifland, in order to determine the Merits of each
Candidate for the Reward offered by Parliament for the Difcovery of the Longitude.
Mr. Falconer, the Conducflor of the Naval and Marine Department, is a Gentleman
who has been trained to a Naval Life, whofe Knowledge of the Marine is evidently
dilplayed in a Poem called the Shipv/reck, and whofe Abilities, wc apprehend, will be
able to Hand the Teft of Scrutiny.
The Articles relating to Botany and Gardening have alfo been hidierto executed in a
very fuperficial Manner, being merely copied from preceding Treatifes. But we
will venture to promife the Reader, that what relates to thefe Particulars will be per-
formed in a very different Manner in this Work, Mr. Meader purpofing to enrich his
Department with the latell Difcoveries and Improvements in that Science, confirmed
by the Prr.6lice of the moft eminent Botanifts and Gardeners. The Abilities of
Mr. Meader are fo well known to the Botanifts and Gardeners of thefe Kingdoms, that
the Reader may expert to meet with ample Satisfa61:ion.
We will venture to add, that the Articles relating to the other Arts and Sciences,
will be executed in the lame mallerly Manner, and Improvements added in every Branch
of Literature.
With all the Advantages above-mentioned, it is not to be doubted but the Public
will, for their own fake, as well as to reward Merit, purchafc with Avidity a Vv^ork fo
evidently calculated for their Advantage and Emolument, and which will refiefi: fo
much Honour on thefe Kingdoms.
It has been the common Practice for Authors to fuppofe their Readers have
acquired fome degree of Knowledge in the Arts and Sciences before they ven-
ture to confult their Dictionaries : And hence many have been difappointed in their
Hopes of attaining a competent Knowledge of the Arts and Sciences, after they have
talcen the Pains to perufe afiiduoufly fuch voluminous Writings, We therefore pro-
pofe to purfue a very difitrent Method : To treat of the Arts and Sciences without
fuppofing the Reader has previoudy attained any Knowledge of them ; and to make
the various Articles mutually explain and illuftrate each other. And hence we have
Reafon to hope, that the Diftionary we now offer to the Public will fupply the Place
of a Library ; aflift in afcertaining and improving Pluman Knowledge ; and by in-
creaiing tiie Number of the truly learned, real Artifts, and judicious Admirers, diffufe
many new Advantages over our native Country. May Pofterity, on confulting our
Work fay. Such was then the State of the Arts and --Sciences in Great Britain ! May
fucceeding Artifts add to the Difcoveries we have regiftered : And may this Di6lionary,
with the Improvements of future Writers, remain a Sanftuary to preferve Human
Knov.'ledge from the Ravages and Revolutions of diftant Ages !
L 1ST
O F T H E
SUBSCRIBERS
To this WORK.
John Addey, Efq;
Mr. Adkins, Balderton, Nottingham/hire,
Mr. John William Anderlon, Charter-houfe
Square.
Captain Henry Alt.
Mr. Allen, Bripl
Mr. John Allen, Thames Jlreet
Mr. AUcock, Five-foot-lane
Mr. John Artiton, Rutnford, EJfex
Mr. Thomas Auther
Mr. William Abbot, Bedford Row
Mr. Samuel Alhby
Mr. John Arney
Mr. Henry Allibon, Knight'' s -Bridge
Mr. Akerman, Fenchurch-fireet
Mr. Anderfon, Strand
B
FRancis Turner Blythe, Efq-, of Salop
The Reverend Mr. Bateman, Trinley
The Reverend Mr. Bernard; of Little Bartjield
William Boulton, Efq-, 'Thrift fireet
Benjamin Bogie, Efq; Berkjhire
The Rev. Mr. Thomas Baldwin, L. L. B.
Mr. Richard Beaumont, Stocks-Bridge
Mrs. Mary Biddlecomb
Mr. Beftiand
Mr. Broughan, King's College, Cambridge .
Mr. Barrack, of Old Shoreham.
Mr. Richard Bull
Mr. Samuel Berry, Briflol
Mr. John Baker, ditto
Mr. George Bifiiop, ditto
Mr. William Beach, ditto
Mr. James Barton, ditto
Mr. BulTey, I'ork
Mr. Edward Benftyn
Mr. William BlackftafFc, Wood-fir eet, SpitaU
Fields
The Book Club at Hatesworth, Suffolk
Mr. Bokenham
Mr. Stephen Bevens, Hachiey
Mr. William Bennet
Mr. Robert Bugg
Mifs Ann J Maru Browne, Difs, Norfolk
Mr. Browen, IVorceficr
M. John Bay ley, Beitnondfey-fireet
Mr. Daniel Ballard, Stroud
Mr. Thomas Baker, of Derby
Mr. Richard Bruce
Mr. Peter Burnet
Mr. Abraham Brown
M.--. Robert Burnet, Junr. Blacks-fields
Mr.
A LISr of SUBSCRIBERS.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr:
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
M'.
Mr.
M-.
Mr.
Mr,
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Benjamin Beardfall, in Snows-fields
Barr, Charterhoufe Square
Francis Briitan, of Sutton
Robert BecK
Bower
Thomas Barrow
'BuUivant
, Michael Babbs, Holborn
. John Booth, Bromley^ Kent
Francis Bcvil, Stony-ftreet^ Southwark
John Beezcly of Edmonton
Thomas Barton
Brown, of Holback
Daniel Byine
John Bawtree, Sr. Martin's- Lane
Thomas Bcllemy jiinr.
. Ann Bowers, Hound/ditch
Jofeph Bolter
Jofeph Boughton, Gloucefierjhire .
Ben net, JVorkfop
B. Blnny, Chew Magna
Thomas Brown, Long Parijh
Baker, at Canterbury
Birch, ALlermaHbnry.
Barlow, IVhiUihapel
Barlow, in Gracechurch ftreel-
Ealdero, Cheapfide
B ro m w i c h , L udgate hill ■
Brown, Salijbury Court,
LOrd George Henry Cavendish
Mr. William Clay, Southwell, Notting-
hamjhire
The Rev. Mr. Chambers, Bafingham, I.in-
cohjloire
Mr. Alexander Knight Cheflel, Portfmouth
Mr- Stephen Colvs, Alderfgate-JtreeJ .
Mrs. Chamberlain, Norwich
Mr. George Claridge, %cwcefier.
Mr. Jdhn Caniplin, Briflol
Mrs. Cha.ppell
Thomas Carter, Curjiter-Jlreet^ Gent.,
Mr. Noah Chi vers, Holborn
Mr. Edward Cle nentfon, Maltcn Mowbray
Mr. William Colles
Mr. Jacob Cloakc, Mcorfields
Mr. Daniel Carfwell, Brentwood, Ejjen
Mr. Co.n, Wybunlury
Mr. Edward Chdlkres, Nottingham
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mx.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
, Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
h
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Lawrence Cole, Hackney
Cheflel, at Portfmouth
Robert ChafTereau, Oxford Road
Anthony Collins, of ll'hitney
Willatt Cowley, of Broughton
Thomas Collin, of Sutherland
Edward Clark, of Great IValtbam.
John Coulthurft, at Leyton Stone
Timothy Corney, at Surfieet,
Benjatnin Carter
William Cotton
Edward Clementfon
JohT Cock, Pater -nofter Row
Thomas Clutton, Saffron-Hill.
Samuel Clark, Sc. Micbael's-Jlky, Corn-
ill
Collin Campbell in Lei c eft er -fields
James Collins, of Cambridge
William Clay, Peter-ftreet
John Cale, Fetter-lane
Vincent Campart
John Clarke, of Staines
Thomas Cannington of Briftol.
Thomas Collins, of Aldermafton
Cooper, of Henley
Cantwell, of Bennetts Hill
Cartwright, Lad-Lane
Gierke, Cornhill
Colcroft, BifJoopfgate-ftreet.
Chilberry, Gracechurch-ftreet
Crampton, Cock-Spur Jtreet
Coward, Smithfield.
Henry Cowling
/ Mrs
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
D
Eaxton Dickcnfon, Efq; Scarborough
Mr. John Dale, Briftol
. Sarah Dyer, Briftol
John Dawes, Taviftock
Davy, Jonr.
Dunn, Junr.
John Drewry, Derby
Davies, Longham, Suffolk
Robert Dcby ley
Thomas Doming of Sutherland.
Darwin, Oxford Road.
John Dight, Little St. Martin's-lane
Thomas Doublcdav
Diirrant, Robert's Bridge
Thomas Draper, JVcftmtnfter
Mr,.
A LlSr of SUBSCRIBERS,
Mr. John Davie, Dehenhmn
Mr. qamuel Davie, Debenham
C. ptain James Dew, of Brijlol
Mr. Delafield of Briftol
Mr. Day, Arundd-Jlreet
E
SIR Henry Edwards, Bart, of Salop
Henry Eaton Efq; Raynham, EJfex
The Rev. Mr. Eckley, rcflor of CredenhiH,
Hereford/ljire
Mr. Thomas Eveleigh, Brijlol
Mr. John Eaton, Sbelicu, Chejfoire
Mr. William Edge
Mr. Richard Evans
Mr. Frances Eaden, Birvungham.
Mr. James Earley
Mrs. Sarah Earley
Mr. Parfons Edgecumbe, of 'Tichmarjh
Mr. Namlefs Edmonton
Mr. Emmerfon, Ho'u-ndfditch
Mr. Thomas Edmonds, of Jylejlury
Mr. Samuel Errington
Mr. Ellis, IVood-ftreet
Mr. Earle, Charterhoufe fquare
Mr. Emblins, Strand
F
DEnton Fuft, Efq; C.ifton
Mr. Faulkner, Surgeon, Scuibzvell
i^ottinghampire
Mr. William Fofter, ffiHj-'j College, Cambridge
Mr. Thomas Furmage
Mrs. Elizabeth Fifher, Mare-Jlreet, Hackney
Mr. George Franklin, Talbot Conrty Crace-
Chiirch-Jlreet
Mr. Lewis Figget, Thames-ftreet
Mr. Fallows, of Leominjler
Mr. Nicholas Forftcr, Poultry
Mr. Charles Forder
Mr. Richard Forfter, IVarmingham
Mafter John Field, zr. Pender's End
Mr. Francis Floyd, at Cajlle Eacre
Mr. John Farrel, St. Mildred' s-Court
Mr. Richard Flower
Mr. Henry Farmer, Junr. of St Jameses
Mr. Nicholas Forfter
Mrs. Elizabeth FiQier, Hackney
Mt. John Flood, ^leenjireet
Captain Phillip Fall
Mr. Fallows, of Leomlnfler
Mr. John Fowler of Oxford
Mrs. Penning, Harwich
Mrs. Flaherty of Brijlol
Mr. Figgins, Lomhard-Jlreet
Mr, Fuller, Birchin-Lane
Mr. Franklin, Cracechurch-Jlreet
G
Pierce Galioard, Efq; of Tottenham
John Grant Efq; of Lonymculhy
The Rev. Mr. Gomond, Redor of Little
Birch, Herefordjhire
Mr. Newman Gray, Newgate Jlreet
Mr. William Gilborn, Serjeant major, of ma-
rines, at Plymouth
Mr. Jofeph Gillard, Brijlol
Mr. James Godlon, I'ork
Mrs. J. Grellier, Miftrefs of the French Board-
ing School at Tooting
Mr. Glenton, Nantwich
Mr. Chriftophcr Gum
Mr. William Gorton, Brick-Lane, Old Jlreet
Mr. Charles Gardener, CheapJide
Captain Thomas Gilbert
Mr. Newman Gray, London
Mr. John Glover, of Cambiidge
Mr. Grafton, Whitechapel
Mr. George Wood, Beverley
Mr. George, AJl)
Mr. Grant
Mr. Graham, oiKingJland
Mr. William Green, Bookfeller, ztBury, three
fetts
Mr. Henry Golding, JFallingford, Berks
Mr. Jofeph Greated, TFeJl-SmithJield
Mr. Jofeph Griffin of Battel
Mr. Graham, of Kingjland .
Mr. John Grinke
Mr. Richard Gates, Egham ■
Mr. John Gates, Egham
Mr. John Gaisford, of Axbridge
Mr. William Grant, of Reading
Mr. Thomas Green, of Dorcejler
Mr. Gatcficld, Newgate Jlreet
A
H
Tkinfon Haldin, Efqj Nswark, Not-
tingkamjhire.
James
A LIST of SUBSCRIBERS.
James Hamilton, Efq-, TVool-wich
William Hoach, El'q; ditto
The Rev. Mr. Harper, Bockleton
The Rev. Mr. Harper
Mr. Hutchings, at Southwell, Nottinghamflnre
Mr. John Hudlon, Woolwich
Mr. Richard Hutton, Beverley
Mr. John Hargrave, Hull
Mr William Heys, a.t Brsckholes ncSiT Prejlon.
Mr. Hillman of the Clife
Mr. John Herbert, Oxford
Captain Henrv, T'owcfjler
Mr. Hartley, Tadcq/ler
Mr. Hudfon, D'Jncomb Park.
Mr. James Hefcltine
Mr. Meredith Hughes Sala
Mr. William Hutchinfon, Air-ftreet
Mr. Thomas Hawkins, Market-lane
Mr. John High:, Blackbeath
Mr. Hatcen, IVorce/ler
Mr. Thomas Hill, Junr. Forty-Hill
Mr.Jofeph Hopwood, Long Acre
Mr. Harfty,Junr.
Mr. Harper, OMy
Mr. Thomas Hurrel, Sutherland
Mr. Hugh Harper, Oakly, StaffordJJjirt
Mr. Adam Hamilton, Enfield Highway
Mr. Holgate, of 1'horgemhy
Mr. Luke Hunt, Clerkcnwell
Mr. Uolland, of Stepney
Mr. John Hodgkinlbn
Mr. Richard Hiil
Mr. Peter Hodgfken, St. JohrCs-Jlreet
Mr. y.ifeph Hewitt
Mr. "Hodges, Brijlol
Captain Holbrook, Brijlol
Mr. Hurle, Brijicl
Mr. Hatolock, Southminjier
Mr. Holmes, Chelnnf.rd
Mr. Harrifon, Bread-fireet
Mr. Harrifon, Hound/ditch
Mr. Hawkes, Aldgate High-ftreei
Mr. Harvey, Whitecrofs-Jtreet
Mr. John Hall, Dunjtan's-hill
Ichard Jones, Efq-, UJk^ Monmouthjhire
Richard Jones, Efq;
The R'vV. Mr. James, Braintree
The Rev, Mr. Jenkins, Redor of Llangdrt',
haval, Denbighjhire
Mr. Jackfon, St. Catharine'^
Mr. Philip Johnfon, Briftol
Mr. Richard Joy, Jngel- Alley, JVbitechnpet
Mr. Nathaniel Jowctt, Manningham
Mr. Jones, Weohly
Mr. James, Chaljlry
Mr. Jackfon, Oxford Roa-d
Mr. William Johnfon
Mr. Richard Reuben Judkia
Mr. Jones, Chalejlry
Mr. William Jewett
Mr. James Iwebell, Woodfetts
Mr. James Inman
Mr. William James, Briflol
Mr. Jaggers, Burnham
Mr. William Joblin, Alderwnflon
Mr. Ingham, 'Throgmorton-Jlreet
Mr. Ingham, Houridf ditch
Mr. Jones, Minories
Mr. Johnfon, Crofs Cotirt
Mr. Samuel Jephfon, Savage Gardens
K
R. Thomas Kirby, IVorkfop, Notting-
hamjhire
John King, of the Cuftom Houfe
William King, of the Cujlom-Houfe
Kitchen, Tork
Gilbert King, Great Maddox-Jlreet
John Killick, Leng-lane, Seuthzvark
John Knowles
JofephKirkc
King, of Lee Grainge
Thomas Kirland, LeiceJlerJInre
ain John Knox, late in the g^th Regiment
Samuel Kilby, fFhitechurch
Knight, Clements court, Aiilkjlreet
Kettle, Ludgaie-ftreet
Mr
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Capt
Mr,
Mr,
Mr,
THE Rev. Mr. Robert Lewis, M. A.
}^een's College, Cambridge
I'he Rev. M^ Lewis, Hackney
The Rev. Mr. Le Anwyl, A. B. Vicar of
Abergcile
Mr. William Lundie, Beverley
Mr.
A LIST of SUBSCRIBERS.
Mr. John Lunt, Standijh
Mr. John I.indley, PontefraEl
Mr. William Lock, Howdcn
Mr. Thomas Linney, Burton, near Malton,
M.wbray
Mr. David Lamb, Hat ton Garden
Mr. Samuel Lawrence
Mr. William Ladd, Hackney
Mr. Lafforeft
Mr. Benjamin Lockyear, Rctherhithe
Mr. Long, Upton, Wcrcefierjhire
Mr. William Lakin, Ivlarlborough
Mr. Leverfage, Nancwich
Mr. Robert Lock
Mr. William Lock
Mr. Lloyd Pittel Edwards, UJk, Monmouth-
Jhire
Mr. Benjamin Lyon^ Si. John's Square
Mr. Paul Lceke
Mr. John Lifter, Charlotte -ftreet
Mr. James Lauder, Hay-market
Mr. Thomas Lozano
Mr. Robert Law, Kenfmgton
Mr. Law, Kmfington
Mr. Daniel LathwalU Aylejbury
Mr. Francis Lamoert
Mr. William Lockwood, Watlingftreet
Mr. Robert Law, Kenfmgton
Mr. James Lanton, Sivanington
Mr. Jofcph Lloyd, Gloucefier jhire
Mr. Henry Lawman, A'>zy//.?fw^^/'
Mr. Liverits, Cnteaton-Jtreet
Mr. Lifter, JVooddreet
M
THE Rev. Mr. Miller, Manchefter
Edward Metcalfe, Efq; Feaiher-ftone
Buildings
The Rev. Mr. Marker, Bury St. Edmonds
The Rev. Mr. Morns, Clenn^ in Shropfihe
The Rev. Mr. Miller, Moncejler, PVarwick-
flnre
Mr. faac Mather, Bijhopfgate-lireet
Michael Mdllcv, Greenwuh, Gent.
Mr. William Merrick, Brifiol
Mr. William McUens, ditto
Mrs. Meredi tn
Mr. John Mathyfon
Mr. William Mitchell, Chandois-Jlrett
Mr. John Maclane, Great Newport-Jlreet
M ; s . M a u n fcl , Thorp Mulfor
Mr. Edward Menweuring, J ur\r. Chejer
Mr. Danitl Morier
Mr. Francis M ricr
Mr. Thomas Marfh, Brick-lane, Old-jlreet
Mr. Francis Murrilis
Mr. T. Merril, Cambridge
Mr. J. Merril, ditto
Mr. Thomas Mafon, Holborn
Mr. Drothy Mario w, Staines
Mr. James Moore, ditto
Captain Richard Mackalon, Egham
Mr. Magar, B'oomfield
Mr. Moliox, Cateaton-Jireet
Mr. James Mills, Coleman ftreet Buildings
N
J Ames Nelthorp, Junr. Efq; Lingfordhali
Mr. James Nori is. Grocer, Pert/mouth
Mr. Harry Ncwth, Borough
Mr. Nicholfon
Mr. James Newton
Mr. John Norris, Shoreditch
Mr. Samuel Nicall Ediine, College-ftreet
Mr Wi,liam Nutting, IFomfy, Hereford/hire
Mr. Jacob Necdham, of Reading
Richard White Newport, Battle Sujfex
O
RAlph Ogle, Efq; Low Hurtb,nezx New
caftle
Edward Owen, Efq; Lonymouthy
Mr. John Ockendon, Junr. Waltham Abbey
Mr. Oliver, Clapton
Mr. Hubert Ord
Mr. Eubule Owen, Lomand's-Po7id, South-.
wark
Mrs. E. Oldner, Miftrefs of the French Board--
ing School, Tooting
Mr. Anthony Orwin
LOrd Prefton, Battle Sufex
The Re?. Mr. Thomas ProlTer, Srtoxvd-
hill, Herefordfiire
Jofcph Pske, Efq; Cambridge
Thomas Powis, Efq-, Berwick-
B The
J LIST of SUBSCRIBERS.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
The Rev. Mr, Peacock, Siainton
Mr. Pool, Hinkky, 3 lets
Mr. Thomas Pnce, Pengivcrn-kall, Denbigh-
Jlj'ire
Mrs. Ann Prefton, Brijlol
Mr. Biiffcy Prince, Torx
Mr. Francis Pound, Wimhleton
Daniel Pettingall
Peter Pickernall, Pimlico
William Page, Hackney
Pitch, Sr. J/imes's
Mils Pain, Hereford
Mr; Phillips, Long IValk, South-ivark
Mr. John Poincon, Shfjjield
Mr. Samuel Pearfon, Sheffield
Thomas Plows, Ntwington-Butts
William Prince, 2'ork
Roiycrt Pouker
Prichard, Godalniing
Matthew Povvel
John Po'.vel
Gabriel Pitt
Paverl/, CladenhiUs
James Peers, Braintree
Pettlt, Saling-hall
W^illiam Paine
Lewes Prellon, Rotherhithe
John Pertfinlbn, Hoxton-fquare
Thomas Proudlove, Bromley^ Kent
Pendock Gierke Price, Snow-hill
J<ihn Pawtr^e, Rathbone-Place
William Pollexfen, Penfound, Devon
John Prior, Cambridge
Mr. Richard Palmer, Ibfiocl
Mr. Thomas Pooley
P. Parnall, Junr. Lincoln
Parfons, Briffol
I. O. Parker, Chelmsford
Pbipps, Leadenh:dl Hreet
Parker, Cripplegate
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mrs
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr. WiUiam Brit Qiiinton,
R
TH E Rev. Mr. Rofe,
Mr. John Robinfon
Mr. Danic-l Rich, Brisfol
Mr. David Roberts, 7^ork
Mr. Jol'eph Riddington
Gravil-ffreet
Fornham Suffolk
Mr. Stephen Roberts
Mr. Ruifel, Guilford
Mr. Rofs, Bolion-flreet
Mr. Robert Facer Roberts, North Wales
Mr. Thomas Wick^-tr, Compton-ffreet
Mr. James Reynolds, Fleet-market
Mr. John Robinfon, Pater-nofler-Rov}
Mr. George Robinfon, Strand
Mr. John Reader
Mr. William Randell, Rat cliff highixai
Mr. RacclifFe, Litchfield
Mr. Robinfon, Glou eflerfhire
Mr. Rowley, Ne-ivgate-Hreet
Mr. John Roberts, 'Tower
lUiam Sandham, Efq-, Sandburif
Robert Stephenfon, Hfq; Newton,
Cambridgefoire
The Rev. Mr. Salmon, Audkm
P. Shaw, Efq-, Tottenham .
Dr. James Sutton, T'^/^/i^j, Lincolnfmre
John Shepherd, Kelham NcttinghamJIjire
Simpfon, Thoujly, Nottinghamjhirs
George Smith, London Affurance
John Swift, Oxford
James Sparks, Brisfol
Nicholas Simpfon, Briffol
WiUiam Slocombe, Briffol
Thomas Socket, Richmond, 2'orkJJnre
George Sagg, Malt on
Spencer, York
John Sherwood, Jermyn Jlreet
Thomas Smith, Edmonton Parijlj
John Sowells
Henry Sandys
Harriot Scaniforth, Firbtck
Ifaac Sanders, Eltham Kent
Mr. George Sharplefs, Gainfborough
Charles Scoles, Gent.
Mr. Thomas Smithurrt, Sheffield
Mr. Tiiomas Smith, Bermondfey-ffreet
Mr. Sutton, Doddington
Mrs. Rebecca Spalding
Mr. Benjamin Shirman
Salter, Gofport
Shepherd, UJk, Monmoiithfhire
Thomas Sturrel, Stockton
Thomas Stracey, fFallingford
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mrs
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr. John Stadart
Mr.
A LIST of SUBSCRIBERS.
Mr. William Speakeman, Reading
Mr. Shutter, Algate High-Hreet
Mr. Stainbank, Junr. Clifford's-Lin
Mr. Francis Sk\.\xTy, Bockijigtdn, Scmerfet
Mr. Edmund Smith, Swallozv-nreet
Mr. John Smith, Great Aladdjx-flreet
Mr. Jofcph Sheffield Rotherhithe
Mr. Benjamin Skelton, Junr. Daventry
Mr. John Smith
Mr. William Sydenham, Ccrnhill
Mr. James Stanton, Rothe<hithe
Mr. William Skirvin, Grcik-flrect, Soho
Mr. John Stocker, Bank fide
Mr. Jofeph Smith, Bloomjhury,
Mr. Stewart, Lothbury
Mr. John Swain, Leeds
Mr, John Sutton
Mr. Smith, Drury-Iane
Mr. Sofield, Clements-Inn
Mr. Anthony Stephens, Clerkenwdl
Mr. Charles Spike, Knightjhriage
Mr. Thomas Sutton, 'Tower-Dock
Mr. Thomas Stracy, JVallingford
Mr. Peter Shaw
Mr. William Slarke, Egham
Mr. Spall, Anchor Smith, Ipfwich
Mifs Harriot Stanifort, Firbeck
Mr. Southey, 5r//?o/
Mr. James Sparks, Brijlol
Mr. Thomas Stokes, Pangbourne
Mr. William Simmons, Benfon
Mr. William Saunders, Alton
Mr. John Slighiby, NorthEnd
Mr. Thomas Scott, Tottenham
Mr. John Stanley, Edmonton
Mr. Spratling, Lombard-Jlreet
Mr. Sarney, Sutter- lane
Mr. Smith, Long- acre
Mr. Shrader, Neivport-Ifreet
Mr. Smith, St. Martins lane
Mr. Robert Shackleton, 5^i;f« Z)/^/j
Mr. Stephenfon. j^ieen-flree-t
HEnry Tuckfield, Efq;
The Rev. Mr. Thomas, Cardijland
"William Thyats, Efq-, Hulhamfiead
The Rev. Mr. Thomas, Eardtjland
The Rev. Mr. John Tindal, Redor oiChehns-
ford
Mr. Tonge, Stalleford, NcttinghamJMn
Mr. Samuel Turner, BriHol
Mr. Thirle, Z?r//?c/
Mr. William Trays
Mr. David Thomas, Hackney
Mr. James Twible
Mr. Nicholas Trift, Cent.
Mr. Francis Tudor, LeominHer
Mr. George Thomfon, Carlijlc
Mr. Taylor
Mr. Richard Thompfon
Mr. Samuel Thompfon, Whitccrofs-flreet
Mr. William Staples I'urner, Seven Oakes^
Kent
Mr. Tatham, near Aylejlmry
Mr. Richard Tallemalh, Staines
Mr. Henfon Thirby, IVorkfop
Mrs. Trapp, Briffol
Mr. Tyley, Bri§lol
Mr. Taylor, BriHol
Captain Tindal, Chelmsford
Mr. Trift, Arundel ffreet
Mr. William Tucker
V
MR. Vial, Norwich
Mr. Viger, Briflol
Mr. Vaughan, Lecminfler
Mr. Vincent, Guilford
Mr. Benjamin Varall
w
HEzekiah Walker, Efq; Lincolns-Inn New
William Williamfon, Efq; Fenzvick-court,
Holborn
The Rev. Mr. Whalley, Kington
Mr. Richard White, Newport
Mr. William Wickes, Long Stratton, Norfolk
John Wright
Julius White
Peter Wilder, Brislol
Mr. Whittingham BrisJol
Mr. William Wray, Middleham
Mr. Wharton, Tork
Mrs. Elizabeth White
Mr. Whiting, Southwark
John Wright, Earn
John Wo 3d, Horfe Phyfician, Chefhunt
James Wood, Marlborough
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
Mr.
A LIST of SUBSCRIBERS.
Mr. Richard Wickftead, Nantwich
Mr. John WaQing
Mr. James Wood
Mr. Watfon, Clargis- Street
Mr. Tames Barber Wliice, Marlborough- ff reel
Mr. Thomas Wright, IVallingford
Mrs. Williams, Gloucelfer
Mr. William Williams, Hampftead Heath
Mr. Thomas Watfon, Fonders-End
Mr. J.'WiWdon, Princes- ff reel, LeiceSfer-Jields
Mr. John Wills, Mowjhoie, Cornwall
Mr. Thomas Withers, Knightjhridge
Mr. Withers, Knightfiridge
Mrs. Watfon, tkehuril
Mr. Wefton, Robert' s-bridge
Mr. John Wilmott, Cambridge
Mr. John Williams
Mr. Thomas Withers, Knightjhridge
Mr. Edward Williams, Orchard- Sir eet
Mrs. Mary Ward, Egham
Mr. Wandey, Bristol
Mr. Waliham, Burnbam
Mr. Thomas Watts, A. K -Oriel College
Mr. William Williams, Reading
Mr. Thomas Wright, Peterjield
Mr. Warne, ^leen-Slreet
Mr. Wakefield, Lad-lane
Mr, Ware, hombard'-Street
Mr. Wilfon, Arundel- Street
Mr. Walter Dench
Mr. Richard Yenn, LeiceSlerJlnre
A GENERAL
DICTIONARY
O F
ARTS and SCIENCES.
j$oc^<:^cj30i{pc^o5ooJooi5oc;$3(^ojDO^^
A
A The firft letter, and firft vowel, of the
Englifh alphabet, as well as of moft other
^ ancient and modern languages : the rea-
fon of which, according to Scaliger, is,
that it is the fimplell and moft eafy of all founds ;
and as fuch, is firft dictated by nature to infants.
Even dumb perfons have been taught to pronounce
it : for it does not depend on a due conftrudtion of
the mouth, tongue, or nofe ; but is formed, when
the lips are open, by the leall: motion of the throat.
It feems indeed to be the language of nature ; for
wemake ufe of it on everyfudden and violentfally of
the mind, to exprefs our fear, furprize, and anguiih ;
as well as on gentler occafions, when we fhew our
love, admiration, and joy.
It is obfervable that this letter hns three different
founds in Englifh : in the words what, have, Jhall,
i5'c. it is fiiort; it is long in hate, cave,Jiale, &c. and
at other times it is broad, as in Jiall, talk, call, i5c.
No nation pronounces this letter fo clofe as the Eng-
lifh ; which in the generality of our words has
fcarcely fo open a- found as the E neuter of the
French.
A, has been made ufe of as a numeral letter, but
not by the ancients ; for it appears to have been
introduced in the days of barbarifm. It fignified
500, and by the addition of a dalh Qn the top, "^
llood for 50CO.
A, was employed by the Romans as the firft of the
eight r.und!na!ei litera, and afterwards adopted into
the Julian calendar, as the firft dominical letter.
It was alfo made ufe of in the Roman fenate,
when fdffrages were given to rejed: or enaiSt a hw.
Vol. I. N° L
A B
Each voter was furniflied with two ballots, on one •
of which was marked the letter A, and on the other
U. R. The former ftood for anti qtt.tm volo, or I
antiquate or reject it ; the latter fignified uti rogas,
or you have my afl'ent. In the trials of criminal
caufes it denoted abfolution; whence Cicero, in his
oration for Milo, calls it litera falutaris, or the fav-
ing letter. See Voting.
It is alfo an abreviature; and on ancient marbles,
&c. ftands for Augujlin, Jger, aiunt; when doubid
or triple it denotes Augiifli duo, or tres. After the
wordiW/'A'i, lildore fays it fignifiesyoung. Amongft
logiciarts,. it denoted an univerfal affirmative propo-
fition : and v/ith chymifts, when thus written A-;
A. A. fignifies an amalgania, or the procefs of amal-
gamation.
A, a, or a a, is ufed by phyficians as an abbre-
viation of amt, and fignifies an equal quantity of the
ingredients hmnediately preceding it in the pre-
fcription.
AAM, or Haam, a rneafure of capacity, ufed at
Amfterdam. See Haam.
AB, according to the Jewifli computation, was
the name of the eleventh month of the civil year,
and the fifth of the facred. The Ilraelites made ufe
of two computations: the civil year, according to
the epoch of the Canaanites, and Egyptians, began
at the autumnal equinox. But the facred year, by
which their fafts and feftivais,and all other religious
a<3:s were regulated, commenced at the vernal equi^-
nox.
This month anfwer3, according as the lunations
happen, to the latter part of July, and thfe begiii>-
B- niug
ABA
rilng of Augufi:. On the firfl: day of this month
the Jews fait, in memory of Aaron's death • and
on the ninth, becaufe upon that day the temple of
Solomon was burnt by the Chaldeans, and the fe-
cond temple, built after the Captivitv, by the Ro-
mans. It is believed by the Jews, that thofe who
were fent as fptes into th; land of Canaan, return-
ed on this day to the camp, and engaged the people
in rebellion. This too was the day on v/hich, ac-
cording to their traditions, the edidt of Adrian was
if.iicd out, forbidding them any longer to continue
in Judea, or even to lament the defolation of Je-
rufaleni. They fafl on the eighteenth of this month,
becaufe in the time ofAhaz the lamp of the dinftu-
ary was on-that night ex tinguiflied.
ABACK, in naval affairs, a fituation of ar-
ranging the fails of a fliip, in which they are flatted
againft the mafts by the force of the wind, to eftedf
a fudden retreat or backward motion, in order to
avoid fome danger difcovered before the fhip in a
narrow channel, &c. See Backing the Sails. It
is likewife common to fpread fome fail aback In the
hinder-part of afliip,when fhelies in a road, to keep
her at a proper diftance from her anchor, that {he
may not run over it, and entangle it with flack
cable. See Cable.
ABACOT, a cap of ftate, in the figure of a
jdouble crown, and worn in antient times by our
Englifh kings.
ABACTORS, in law, are thofe who drive a-
way, or rather fleal whole herds of cattle, in which
they are diflinguiflied from fures, or thieves.
l"he word is Latin, and derived from ahigo, to
drive away.
ABACUS, among the ancients, implied a kind
of cupboard, or buffet.
The word is Latin, and derived from the Greek
ACcit,-, which fignified the fame thing.
Abacus, in architefture, is the upper mem-
ber of the capital of a column, and to which it
ferves as a kind of crown.
Vitruvius tells us, that the abacus was original-
ly intended to reprefent a fquare tile laid over a
baflcet. An Athenian matron happening to place
a bafket, covered with a fquare tile, on the root of
an acanthus, which grew on the grave of a young
Corinthian lady, the plant fhooting up the follow-
ing fpring encompafled the bafket, till meeting with
the tile, the leaves turned back in a kind of fcrolls.
Callimachus, an ingenious ftatuary of Athens, was
pleafed with thebeautiful novelty, and executed a ca-
pital on this {)lan, reprefenting the tile by the abacus,
the leaves of the acanthus by the volutes or fcrolls,
and the bafket by the vafe or body of the capital.
It IHIl retains its original form in the Tufcan,
Doric, and ancient Ionic orders; but not in thofe
of the Corintliian and Compofite; its four fides or
faces being arched inwards, with fome ornament,
as a rofej ike. in the middle of each arch.
ABB
, Scanpzl uP^s the word abacus to fignify aconcavc
moulding in the capital of the Tufcan pedeftai.
Abacus, among the ancient mathematicians,
implied a fmall table {frev/ed over with dull, on
which thej drew their fchemes and figures.
Abacus, in^arithmetic, dje comrfjon multipif*-
cation table. - ■ -^ ' ■»
ABADIR, in mythology, the ftone which Sa-
turn fwallowed, believing it to be his infant fon
Jupiter.
ABADDON, the name by which the king of
the locufls, mentioned by St. John in the Revela-
tions, is called. The word is derived from abad, to
confume.
ABAFT, in naval affarirs, further aft, or nearer
the {fern ; as the barricade is fituated abaft the
main-mafl., i. e. further aft than, or behind the
main-maff.
ABAPTISTON, a jiame given by the ancients
to the perforating part of the trepan. See Trepan.
The word is formed from the Greek a. priv. and
^at/ju, to fink under, becaufe the inffrument is
by its confl:ru£tion prevented from finking fuddenly
into the brain.
ABARTICULATION, in anatomy, the {^ame
with diarthrofis. See Diarthrosis.
ABAS, a weight ufed in the Ealt-Indies for
weighing pearls. It is equal to feven-eighths of the
European carat.
ABASED, or Abaisse, in heraldry, is applied
to the wings of eagles, &c. when the tip or angle
tends downwards ; or when the wings are fhut : the
natural way of them being fpread, with the tip point-
ing to the chief, or the angles.
A chevron, a pale, a bend, &c. are alfo faid to
be abafed, when their points terminate in, or be-
low the center of the fliield. And an ordinary is
faid to be abafed, when it is placed below its proper
fituation.
ABATEMENT, in heraldry, implies fome-
thing added to a coat of armour, in order to di-
ininiih its proper value and dignity; and indicate
fome difhonourable adlion, or ftain, in the charac-
ter of the bearer.
But it is very juilly obferved, by the la{l editor
of Guillim's heraldry, that as arms are infignia iio-
bilitatis Is! honoris, they cannot admit of any mark
of infamy, without ceafmg to be arms, and becom-
ing badges of difgrace, which all would covet to lay
afide.
Abatement, in law, fignifies an intrufion, or
entry on lands before the heir, by a perfon who
has no right to make fuch entry.
Abatement, alfo implies the fruftrating, or
fetting afide a fuit, on account of fome fault either
in the matter or manner of proceeding.
ABB, among the woollen manufadurers, im-
plies the yarn of a weaver's warp.
ABBESS, the luperior of an abbev, or convent
of
ABB
of nuns, over whom fhe prefidcs, and is inverted
with the fame privileges as the abbots regular.
She cannot indeed perform any of the fpiritual of-
fices of the pricfthood herfelf; but there are in-
flanccs of fome abbefles who have the privilege of
commiffioning a prieft to aJl for them..
We read of fome abbeilbs who had formerly a
right of confcfling their nuns ; but they abufed it
fo much, through a vain and immoderate curiollty,
that it was found necefTary to deprive them of it.
ABBEY, a m.onaftery, or kind of catholic col-
lege, into which peribns retire from the world, to
fpend their time in floth and folitude. The infti-
tution of thefe religious houfes was certainly firft
of all pious and ufeful ; as they were intended for
feminaries of religion, and afylums to faniSity : but
like many other good things, they have been wret-
chedly perverted. Henry the Vlllth having ap-
pointed vifitors to infpe£t the behaviour of the ab-
bots and monks, found them fo loofe and diffolute,
fo prone to idlenefs and pride, fomenting quarrels,
and fpiriting up rebellions againlc the government,
that he diilolved the order, and converted their re-
venues, which amounted to 2,853,000 1. per ann.
into lay fees.
Abbeys differ only from priories, as thofe are
under the government of an abbot, and thefe of a
prior.
ABBOT, or Ahbat, the fupcrior of an abbey
or monaflery of monks, erected into a prelacy.
The word appears to be derived from the Hebrew
<j^, which f'lgnifies father : from this canie the Sy-
riac or Chaldasan abba, which we find made ufe of
by St. Mark, and St. Paul in Romans viii. 15.
where he fays, " we have received the fpirit of
" adoption, v/hereby we cry abba, i. e. father."
The monafteries, in the earlier ages of Chri-
ftianity, were built in fequeftered and defart places,
fitted for fludy and contemplation. They were go-
verned by men as remarkable for their plainnefs and
fim.plicity as for their learning and religion ; who
contented themfelves with the management of their
own houfes, without interfering at ail in ecclefi-
aftical affairs. They were fubjecl to the bifhops ;
and if they were too remote to attend the public
worfhip at the parifh church, a priefl was lent to
them, to adminifter the facraments. But they did
not always contiiiue thus humble and unambitious:
for being men of letters and fcience, they were
called from their folitary abodes, to oppofe the
rifmg herefies of the times ; and were firfl fixed
in the fuburbs, and tlien in the cities themfelves.
From this period they began to degenerate : they
(hook off by degrees their dependency on the bi-
fhops, were goaded with the lull: of power, and
afye(5ted titles of honour and diftindion. Hence
srofe different orders and fpecies of abbots ; fome
were called mitred abbots, from the privilege of
wearing the mitre, and had a full epifcopal auiho-
ABD
rity within their feveral precinils ; others were
termed crofured abbots, from bearing the crofier, or
paftoral ftalf : fome again were ftiled cecumenical
(i. e. univerfal) abbots, in imitation of the patri-
archs of Conftantinople, fuch as John the Faftcr,
and Cyril his fucceflbr ; others were called cardinal
abbots, either from being fuperior to all others, or
the principals of monafteries, which came to be fe-
paratcd.
Abbots are at prefent chiefly dillinguifhed into
regular and comm.endatory : the former are real
monks, who have taken the vow, and wear the
habit of the order : the latter are feculars ; though
they have undergone the tonfure, and are obliged
by their bulls to take orders, when they come of
age. Tho' they are faid to hold their abbeys only
in commcndam, which means but for a few years,
yet they continue, and reap the fruits of them for
life, as the regular abbots do.
Before Henry the V Ill's time, there were in
England elefti\e and prefentative abbots ; fome
mitred, and others not. The mitred were invefted
with epifcopal authority themfelves, but the others
were fubjedf to the diocefan in fpiritual matters.
The mitred abbots were lords of parliament, as
were fome of the priors, who were called lords
priors. Sir Edward Coke fays there were twenty-
feven parliamentary abbots, and two priors.
The ceremony whereby abbots are created, is
called benediction, and confifts in cloathing him
with the cowl, giving him the paftoral ftaff, and
the fhoes, called pedules.
ABBREVIATION, or Abbreviature, a
contraction of a word or pafl'age, by dropping fome
of the letters, or by fubftituting certain marks or
characters in their place.
The word is Latin, abbreviatio, and derived from
brevis, fhort.
Lawyers, phyficians, &:c, ufe a great number of
abbreviations, a lift of the principal of which, in
the feveral arts and faculties, the reader will find
under the article Character,
ABBREVIATORS, officers in the Roman
chancery, whofe bufinefs is to draw the pope's
briefs, and reduce petitions granted by that pontiff
into form.
• ABBREVOIRS, in m.afonry, imply certain
fmall channels or trenches, made with a proper
tool, in the joints and beds of ftones, in order to
receive the mortar or cement, and bind them the
firmer together.
ABBUTTALS. See Abuttals.
ABCEDARY, or Abcedarian, an epithet
applied to fuch compofitions, whofe parts are com-
pofed in the order of the letters of the alphabet.
The ancient Hebrew writers often compofed their
writings in this manner ; and hence we have abce-
darian pfalms, hymns, lamentations, &:c.
ABDEST, among the followers of Mahomet,
2 implies
A BD
implies the lotion or wafhing conftantly ufed before
prayer, entering the niofque, or reading the alco-
ran.
ABDICATION, the aft v/hereby a magiftrate,
or perfon in fome office, renounces or gives up his
. authority, before the legal time of his fervice is ex-
pired.
It differs from refignation, in being done purely
and fimply ; whereas refignation is done in favour
of a third perfon.
Abdication, among civilians, fignifies a fa-
ther's difcarding his fon, and expelling him from
the family.
ABDOMEN, in anatomy, a cavity of the hu-
man body, containing many of its principal parts,
and often called the lower venter, or belly, ex-
tending from the thorax to the bottom of the
pelvis.
Anatomifls divide the abdomen into three ante-
rior regions, and one pofterior ; the anterior are •
the epigaftric or upper, the umbilical or middle,
and the hypogafoic or lower region ; and the po-
Iterior is called legio lumbaris.
Each of thefe regions is likcwife divided into
three parts, two lateral and a middle one. Thus
the two lateral parts of the epig-iltric region are
called the right and left hypochondrium : the
middle part of the umbilical region is tenned um-
bilicus, and its lateral parts lumbi, or loins : and
in the hypogaflric region, the middle part is cal-
led pabes, and its two lateral parts the inguinae, or
groins.
The cavity of the abdomen contains the fto-
mach, the alimentary du£t, the mefentery ducft,
mefocolon, omentum, liver, gall-bladder, fpleen,
pancreas, mefenteric glands, the ladeal velTels, re-
ceptaculum chyli, kidneys, renal glands, ureters,
bladder, and the internal parts of generation in
both fexes. See each under its proper article.
The abdomen forms a kind of oblong convexity,
refembling an oval vault, feparated from the cavitv
of the thorax by the diaphragm. It is lined on the
infide by a ftrong but foft membrane called psrito-
nzeum, which furrounds and contains all the vif-
cera. On the outfide it is guarded by the mufcles
called obliqui afcendantes and defcemlentes, too-e-
ther witli the redus tranfverfalis and pyramidales.
ABDUCTION, in logic, a form of reafoning,
called by the Greeks apagoge, in which the greater
extreme is evidently contained in the medium, but
the medium not fo evidently in the leiFer extreme.
The following fyllogifm is. of this kind :
All whom Ciod abfolves are free from fin ;
But God abfolves all who are in Chrift :
Therefore all that are in Chrift are free from fin.
Here the major is evident ; but tlie minor, or af-
fumption, not fo, unlefs proved by fome other pro-
pofition : as, God received fatisfaflion for fin by
the fuffering of Chrifl.
ABE
Abduction, in furgery, a kind of fraflure,.
where the bone being entirely broken near a joint,
the two flumps recede confiderably from each
other. See Fracture.
ABDUCTOR, or Abducent, an epithet ap-
plied to feveral mufcles of the human body, on ac-
count of their office, which is that of pulling
back, or opening the parts to v/hich they arc
fixed.
Abductor aurkularis, or of the little-finger^
arifes from the annular ligament, and the third and
fourth bones of the carpus in the fecond rank, and
is inferred into the firfl bone of the little finder.
It ferves to draw that finger from the reft, and alfo
to bend it a little. — In l<:>me fubjetfts it appears di-
vided into two or three mufcles, confilling of fo
many different feries of fibres.
Abductor indicis, or of the fore-finger, arifes
from the infide of tlie bone of the thumb, and is
inferred into the firft bone of the fore-finger,
which it draws from the reft towards the thumb.
Abductor 7ninimi digiti manus. The fame with
abiuc'lor auricularis. See Abductor aurkularis.
Abductor minim: digiti pedis, or of the little-
toe, arifes from the outfide of the os calcis, near
the exterior bone of the metaiarfuc, and is inferred
laterally into ths outfide of the fecond bone of thai
toe, which it pulls from the reft.
Abductor ocuH, or of the eye, is one of the
four refti, or of the ftraight mufcles, arifing from
the bottom of the orbit, and fpread over the firft
proper tunic ; ferving to draw the eye towards the
outer canthus.
Abductor pallia's, called alfo thenar, arifes
from the annular ligament, and firfrbone of the
carpus ; from whence pafTmg to ths thumb, it
forms that flefliy body called mons lunas : it draws
the thumb from the fingers.
Abductor polUcis pedis, or of the great-toe,
arifes from the in.'ide of the os calcis, and the
greater os cuneiforme ; and is inferted into the out-
fide of the exterior os fefamoideum pollicis : ie
draws the great-toe from the reft.
ABELE, in botany. See the article PoptAR-
TREE.
ABELIANS, Abelgnians, or Abeloites,
a feft of heretics during the reign of Arcadius,
near Hippo in Africa, whofe diftmguifhing tenet
was to marry, and yet live in a profeiled abftinence.
The learned ha\'e taken great pains to afcertain
the reafon of this denomination ; but after all their
labours, it appears that they took their name from
Abel, for no other reafon than becaufe, like that
patriarch, they had no iffue.
ABERRATION, in aftronomy, an apparent
motion of the fixed ftars, firft obferved by Dr. Brad-
ley, royal profefTor of aftronomy.
That able aftronomer, in the year 1725, together
with M. JVIolineux, began a feries of nev/ oblerva-
tions.
i^^TE jr.
tV^Mr^^ .i^cj-ralion .
ABE
tions, fimllar to thofe which Dr. Hook communi-
cated to the public about fifty years before, in or-
ilsr, if pofTible, to difcoycr the parallax of theearth's
annual orbit. — The fuccefs of the undertaking
greatly depended on the accuracy of the infirument,
for which they v/ere obliged to the ingenious Mr.
Graham, who compleated Mr. Molineux's para-
lactic feiSlor of twenty-four feet and a half, about
the end of November, 1725 ; and on December 3,
following y Draconis was for the firft time obferv-
cd at Kew, as it pafied near the zenith of that place.
Similarobfervations were made on the fifth, eleventh,
and twelfth days of the fame month ; when they
thought it was needlefs to continue the obfervations
ajiy longer at that feafon, it being part of the year
when no fenfible difference of the parallax of that
ftar could be expefted. — Dr. Bradley, howeverj
whole natural genius was continually prompting
liim to make obfervations^ remaining at Kev/, ad-
jufted the inftrument as ufual, and obferved the
"fame ftar on December 17 ; when^ in comparing
the laft: with his former obfervations, he found it
had paffed more foutherly that day than when ob-
ferved before. — He attributed the caufe of this ap-
pearance to the uncertainty of the obfervations j and
concluded, that either this or the foregoing were
not fo exact as they before had fuppofed ; for which
xeafon,on December the 20th, they repeated the ob-
fervations again, in order to determine from whence
this difference proceeded; and found the ftar now
paffed more foutherly than before: about the 26th
of March following they fourid the ftar 20' more
foutherly than at the firft cbfervation ; after which
it was obferved to be ftationary for fome time ; but
about the middle of April it appeared to be return-
ing back : and about the beginnin.g of June it paf-
fed at the fame diftance from the zenith as it had
done in December, when nrft obferved. In Sep-
tember following, it appeared 39" more noitherly
than it was in March; the contrary way to what it
ought to appear by the annual parallax of the Ihirs.
From September the ftar returned towards the fouth,
till it arrived in December to the fame fituation it
was in at that time twelve montlis, allowing for the
difference of declination arifing from the preceftion
of the equinox. This was a fufficient proof to con-
vince them that the caufe of this apparent m.otion of
the ftar was not owing to the inftrument ; and to
find one adequate to the effe£t feemcd a difficulty. A
■nutation of the earth's axis firft offered itfelf on this
occafion, but v/as foon found ini'ufficient : for fho'
the change of declination of y Draconis might have
been accounted for; yet it would not, at the lame
time, agree with the phenomena in the other ftars ;
particularly in a fmail one almoft oppofite in right
ai'cenfion to ^Draconis, at pearly the fame diifance
from the north pole of the equator; for tho' the ftar
feemed to move the fame wav as a nutation of the
earth's axis would havem;:de it; yet it changed its
ABE
declination but about half as much as y Draconi*
in the fame time, as appeared upon comparing the
fame obfcn-ations made upon the fame days at dif-
ferent feafons of the year. This plainly proved that
the apparent motion of the ftar was not occafioned
by a real nutation ; fince, if that had been the cafe,
the alterations in both ftars mult have been nearly
equal.
The great regularity of the obfervations left them
now no room to doubt, but that there was fome re-
gular caufe that produced this unexpected motion,
which did not depend on the uncertainty or variety
of the i'cafons of the year. Upon comparing the
obfervations with each other, it was difcovered that,
in both the before-mentioned ftars^the apparent dif-
ference of declination from the maxima was always
nearly proportionable to the verfed fine of the fun's
diftance from the equihoftial point. This was an
inducement Co think that the caufe, whatever it
was, had fome relation to the fun's fituation with
refped; to thcfe points. But not being able to frame
any hypothcfis at that time, fufficierit to folve all the
phenomena, and being very defirous to fearch a
little farther into this matter, Dr. Bradley began to
think of erecting an inftrument for himfclf at Wan-
ftcd; (which inftrument is now at the Royal Obfer-
vatory,) that, having it always at hand, he mighty
with the more eafe and certainty, enquire into the
laws of this new motion. Accordingly, by the con-
trivance and help of the fame ingenious Mr. Gra-
ham, his inftrument was fixed up the igch of
Auguft 1727. As the place v/here his inftrument
was hvmg in fome meafure determined its radius,
(which was 12' feet); fo it likewife determined
the length of the arc or limb, on v/hich the divi*
fions were made to adjirft it; for the arc could net
conveniently be extended farther than to reach 6" ^
on each fide the zenith. This indeed was fufficient,
fince it gave him an opportunity of making choice
of fcvcral ftars, very different both in magnitude
and fituation ; there being more than two hundred
inferted in the Britifh Catalogue, that may be ob-
ferved with it.
He had not been long obfervihg before he per-
ceived, that the notion they before had entertained
of the Itars being fartheft north and fouth when the
fun was about the equinoxes, was only true of thofe
that were iiear the folftitial coloure. And after he
had continued to oblerve fome months, he difcover-
ed what he then thought to be a general law ot-'
feryed by all the ftars, namely, that each of them
became ftationary, or was fartheft north or fouth
when it paffed over his zenith at fix of the clock,
either in the morning or evening. He perceived
likewife, that whatever fituation the ftars were in
with rcfpe6t to the cardinal points of the ecliptic,
the apparent motion of every one tended the fame
way, when they paffed his inftrum.ent about the
fame hour of the day or night 3 for they all moved
Q ' fouthwarij
ABE
ABE
fouthward while they pafied in the day, and north-
ward when in the night : lb that each was farthcft
north when it came about fix o'clock, in the even-
ino-, and fartheft fouth when it came about llx
o'clock in the morning.
Though he afterwards difcovered that the maxi-
ma in moft of thefe liars do not happen exactly when
they pafs at thofe hours ; yet, not being then able to
prove the contrary, and llippofing that they did, he
endeavoured to find out what proportion the great-
eft alterations of declination in different ftars, bore
to each other; it being very evident that they did
not all change their declination equally. — It has
been already mentioned, that it appeared from ob-
fervation, that y Draconis altered its declination
about twice as much as the aforementioned fmall
liar, almoll: oppofite to it : but examining the
matter more particularly, he found that the great-
eit alteration of declination of thofc ftars was as
the fme of the latitude of each refpeftively. This
made him fufpcft that there might be the like pro-
portion between the maxima of otherftars; but here
he found obfervations to difagree with fuch an hy-
pothefis, and deferred any farther enquiry till he
Ihculd have made a feries of obfervations in all parts
of the year.
When the year was completed, and he had
thoroughly examined and compared his obfervations
together, he was convinced that tlie apparent mo-
tion of the ftars was not owing to a nutation of the
■earth's axis, nor to any alteration in the plumb-
line with v.hich the inftrument was conftantly rec-
tified. Refraction was alfo confidered ; but here
alfo nothing fitisfaftory appeared. At laft this in-
genious artronomer conjectured, that all the phe-
noma hitherto mentioned proceeded from the pro-
t^reflive motion of light, and the earth's annual mo-
tion in its orbit; for if light be propagated in time,
he perceived that the apparent place of a fixed ob-
ject, would not be the fame when the eye is at reft,
as when it is moving in any other direftion than
that of a line paffing through the eye and objeft;
and that when the eye is moving in different direc-
tion, the apparent place of the objed would be
different.
The late ingenious Mr. T. Simpfon of Wool-
wich has given us the following propofitions and
corollaries, in his Mifcellaneous Tracts, and which
fully and concifely explain this phenomenon.
PROPOSITION I.
If the velocity of the earth in its orbit bears any
fenfible proportion to the velocity of light, every
ftar in the heavens muft appear diftant from its true
place; and that by fo much the more, as the ratio
of thofe velocities approaches nearer to that of
equality.
For if, while the line CG (plate I. fg. i.) is de-
fcribed by a particle of light coming fiom a ftar in
that dire(El:ion,the eye of an obferver atTbe carriecf,
by the earth's motion, thro* T G; and CT be a
tube made ufe of in oblerving; and a particle of
light, from the laid ftar, bejuftentring at C the
end of its axis; then when the eye is arrived at ■£/,
the tube will have acquired the poiltion vTi parallel
to T C, and the faid particle will be at the point
w, where the line C G interfefts the axis of the
tube; becaufe GT : GC : : Tv:^m. Let now
the tube, by the earth's motion, be brought into
the pofition Etf ; then becaufe GT : GC : : Tfc :
C?;, the particle v/ill be at w, and therefore is ftill in
the axis of the tube: therefore when it enters the
eye at G, as it has all the time been in the axis ot'
the tube, it muft confequently appear to have come
in the direifion thereof, or to make an angle with
"^I'H, the line that the earth moves in, equal to
CTH, which is different from what it really does,
by the angle GCT : whence it is evident that, un-
lefs the earth always moves in a right line direftlv
to or from a given ftar (which is abfurd to fuppofe)
that ftar muit appear diftant from its true place ;
and the more fo, as the velocity of the earth (ia
refpeiSt of that of light) is increafed. And the fame
muft neceffarily be the cafe v/hen the obfervation is
made by the naked eye; for the fuppofition and ufe
of a tube neither alters the real nor apparent placs
of the ftar, but only helps us to a more eafy de-
raonftration.
PROPOSITION IL
To find the path which a ftar, thro' the afore-
fiiid caule, in one entire annual revolution of the
earth, appears to defcribc.
Let ATBA (plate I. /^, 2.) be the orbit of
the earth ; S the fun in one focus ; F the other
focus ; T the earth moving in its orbit from A to-
wards B ;. DT « a tangent at T ; and SD, FE
perpendiculars thereto: Let QjwKRQ^be part
of an indefinite plane parallel to that of the eclip-
tick, paffing thro' R the centre of the given ftar ;
and take T n to TR, as the velocity of the earth
in its orbit at T, to that of a particle of light
coming fi'om the faid ftar : Let T m be parallel ta
hR; PnV perpendicular to AB; and Q_R K pa-
rallel to PhV: Then from the foregoing propofi-
tion it is manifeft, that a ray of light coming from
R to the earth at T, will appear as if it proceeded
from m, where the line T »;, produced,. interfcvEls
the faid parallel plane ; and therefore, becaufe T m
is parallel to R ;/, and any parallelogram, inter-
fedting two parallel planes, cuts them alike in exerv
refpedt, it is. evident that R m muft be equal to T 7i\
and Q_R 7n to V«D; wherefore, fince D and ?
are equal to two right angles, DSP and DnP
muft be equal, alfo, to two right angles, and con-
fequently Q_R ;« ( = V « D ) = D S P = A F E. But
'1" ;7 or R OT, ervpreffing the celerity of the earth rj:
J", is known to be Liiverfely as SD; or becaufe
SD
ABE
S D X F E is every v/herc the fame, dircclly as F E ;
wherefore tlic angles AFE, (YR'" being every
where equil, ani Rrn in a conftant proportion to
FE, the curve QjnK. defcribeJ by w, the apparent
place of the ftar in th. faid parallel plane, will, it is
manifeft, be fimilar in all rcfpeds to A E B defcnb-
c-d bv the point E : but this curve is known to be a
circle; therefore QjnK. muft likcwife be a circle,
whofe diameter Q_R fC is divided by R, the true
■place of the ftar in the fame proportion as the tranf-
vcrfe axis of the earth's orbit is di\ided by either
of its foci. Wherefore, forafmuch as a fmall part
of the circumjacent heavens may, in this cafe, be
confidered as a plane pafling perpendicular to a line
joining the eye and liar, it follows, from the prin-
ciples of orthographic projedlion, that the fl:ar will
bi {een in the heavens as defcribing an ellipfis,
whofe center (as the excentricityof the orbit is but
fmall) nearly coincides with the true place of the ftar,
except the faid place be in the pole or plane of the
ecliptic; in the former of which cafes the flar will
appear todefcribea circle, and in the latter an arch
of a great circle cf the fphere, which, by reafon of
its fmallnefs, may be confidered as a right line.
Butthefe conclufionswill perhaps appear more plain
from the next propofition, where, for the fake of
cafe and brevity, the earth is confidered as moving
in an orbit perfedlly circular, from which her real
orbit does not greatly differ.
PROPOSITION III.
Having given, from experiment, the ratio of
the velocity of light, to that of the earth in its
orbit, and the true places of the fun and a ftar, to
find the apparent place of the flar from thence
arifing.
Let Ar Q_A (plate I. fig. 3.) be the earth's orbit,
confidered as a circle ; S the fun in the center there-
of ; r tht earth moving about the fame from A to-
wards Q_, re a line, which being produced, fhall
pafs through the ecliptic place of the given ftar, AS
parallel and g r peipendicular thereto : let (/ be
perpendicular to the plane of the ecliptic, fo that
ry being equal to Sr or radius, re may be the co-
fine of the latitude of the given ffar : this being pre-
mifed, it is manifeft that the true place of the ffar
from the earth will be in the direflion rf, and with
refpedt to the ecliptic, in the line re; therefore
the angle S re (:=Q_Sr) being the difference of
longitudes of the fun and flar, is given by the que-
Ition. Let rg, the fine of the fupplenient of this
angle, be denoted by b, its cofine S g, by c, the fine
of the given latitude or fe, by j ; and the radius Sr
or fr by unity; and, while a particle of light is
moving along fr, let the earth be fuppofed to be
carried in its orbit from r to p, over a diftance fig-
nified by r, and pe; pf being drawn, make r«
and H m perpendicular thereto : then, becaufe of the
ABE
exceeding fmallnefs of p r, it may be confuiered at
a right line, and we fhall have i (S r) : A (ry) '; ;
r [p r) : rb {:=: p n.) ; and i -.r :: c:rc ( = »' r,), by
the fimilarity of the triangles prn, Srg, whence as
I (//>) to s (fe) fo is rb, to rbs =: {"'") the fine
of the ang-le nfm : but fince the fin,', or tan-
gent, of a very fmall arch differs infenfibly from
the arch itfelf, thefe values re and rbs may be taken
as the meafures of the angles rffi, and «y'"«: hcnca
we have, as the femiperiphery A r Q_ ( = 3.14159,
is'c.) to 648000 (thefecondsin iSodegrees) foisr^
648COO re J • . ,
to -rr- (the number of feconds in the angle
3.14159, y^.^
rfn) ; and as 3.14159, cft. : 648000 :: rbi :
648000 rj 6
7T~= 'i fni : therefore, as the earth moves
from r to />, while a particle of light is defcribing
fr, it is manifeft from what has preceded, that the
flar will appear removed from the great circle, pafl-
ing through its true place, and the pole of the eclip-
, 64Sooorf . , , , ...
tic by —!^ — - feconds, and to have its lati-
J • 648000 r s b r^ t^
ude increafed bv iy~ feconds. Q. E. I.
^ 3.i4i59,^f. ^
C O R O L. I.
Hence, if C (fig. 4.) be the true place of the ftar,
S C F its parallel of latitude, and about C, as a
center, the ellipfis FPSTE, and circle FHS OF
be defcribed fo, that F C may be=-i '—r- ani
3.14159,^5^.
TC, the femiconjugate axis, in proportion thereto
as i to I ; and, if the angle S C H be taken equal
to the difference of longitudes of the fun and itar,
then in the point P, where the elliptical periphery
is interfeiSled by the right line H Q__, falling per-
pendicularly on F S, the flar will appear to be po-
fited. For as i {radim) : b (fine of Q.CH) : : C H :6
xCH=:HQ_; but bv the relation of the two
curves C H:CT: :i xC H ( = H Q.) : PQ_; thatis,
, no- 6480OG r , 648000 r..-^
by conltruction, i : j : : ^r— x b : — ^
3-H'S9'^''- 3-'+'59'^''"
= P Q_; again, as i [radim] : c (the cofine of QC H)
648000 i: 648000 r c _^^ .
:. r^(=v_Hj: 7 =CQ; which
3.i4i59,c5c. 3.i4i59,c5c-. ^
exprefiions are the very fame with thofeabove deter-
mined.
C O R O L. IL
Therefore it follows, that while the fun appear>
to purfue his courfe through the ecliptic, the flar
will be feen as moving from F towards L and S-,
and fo on till it hath defcribed tlie whole elliptic
periphery FLSTF, that its latitude v.ill be ths
leaft at T, and its apparent longitude the grcateft
poiBble, when the angle S C H, fliewing the di-
ftance of the fun and liar in the ecliptic, is equal ta
two right ones. It alio follows; that the greater
ABE
axis of the ellipfes, which all fiars appear to de-
fcrib?, ore equal, and found byobfervation to amount
to 40' feconds of a great circle. The term
20", 25, which frequently occurs in the prac-
tical rules hereto annexed, being put for the
half thereof. It follows, moreover, that the
greateft aberrations, or maxima, in longitude, will
be as the cofmes of the latitudes inverfcly ; and
the maxima in latitude, as the fines of the fame la-
titudes diredlly.
C O R O L. iir.
Hence may alfo be found, the flars apparent right
afcenfion and declination; for let ECP be the pa-
rallel of the ftar's declination, P the apparent place
of the ftar, wlien in that parallel, make C A per-
pendicular to CH, ABD to SF, and BE to PC,
and let HK, or the angle H C K, be any didance
gone over by the earth in the ecliptic, while the flar
by its apparent motion moves through the corre-
sponding diftance PL : let K w n G be parallel to
H C, and Lri; to PC: then, forafmuch as KL
is parallel to HP, the triangles GKL, CHP, muft
be equiangular; and therefore GL:CP: :KL
: HP ; but K L is to H P, as L I to QP, by the
property of the curve, whence it will beGL:CP
■.■XV.'QJ ; wherefore the fides GL, IL, CP,
QP, about the equal angles GLI, CPQj, being
proportional, the triangles GLI, CPQ_ muft be
fnnilar, and therefore the angle GIL a right one;
and confequently the right line S F, the locuS of
the point G. Therefore, as the angles n,m,r,v,
are all given, or continue invariable ; let the angle
SCK, or the ecliptic diftance of the fun and ftar
be what it will, the ratio of Cm to C G, will al-
ways be given; but the ratio of CG to C r is
given : therefore the ratio of C w to C r is likewife
given: hence bccaufe rv is parallel to CK, the
ratio of Cm to Ev will be given. But E ^.■ is the
dift'erence of the true and apparent declinations ;
and C m, as the fine of the angle H C K : whence
it is manifeft, that the aberration of declination,
at any time, is as the fine of the fun's elongation
from either of the two points wherein he is, when
the true and apparent declinations are the fame ;
and therefore Cm will be to E z', or AC to E B,
the greateft aberration, as Q_H to F/;; that is, as
the fine of HCF to the fine of PCCL: but
PCQ_, being equal to the angle of pofition, is
given, whofe tangent, it is ob^■ious, is to the
tangent of HCF, as Q_P to QH, or as CT
to CO, or laftly (by conftrudion), as the fine of
the ftar's latitude to radius : hence the angle HCF
is given, from which, by help of the foregoing
theoicm or proportion, the required aberration of
declination at any time, and in any cafe, nia\ be
readily obtained.
The Public are obliged to the ingenious and ce-
lebrated aftronomcr Dr. Bevis, for the following
ABE
PRACTICAL RULES
For finding the Aberration in longitude, latitude,
declination, and right afcenfion.
SYMBOLS.
A, the aberration at any given time ; IVT the
greateft aberration, or maximum; O) the fun's
place in the ecliptic, when the ftar's apparent longi-
tude, latitude, declination, or right al'ceiifion, be-
ing the fame as the true, tends to excefs ; P, the
ftar's angle of pofition ; Z, the fun's elongation
from its neareft fyzygy with the ftar, at the time
of O . _
For the aberration in longitude.
O is always three figns after the ftar's true place
in the ecliptic.
Prob. I. To find M.
Cofinc ftar's latit. : rad. : : 20 : M.
Prob. 2. To find A.
Rad. : fine fun's elongat. from © : : M : A.
Otherwifc, without M.
Cofin. ftar's latit. : fin. fun's elongat. from q ; ;
20": A.
For the aberration in latitude.
O is always at the ftar's oppofition to the fun,
Prob. r. To find M.
Rad. : fin. ftar's latit. : : 20" : M.
Prob, 2. To find A.
Rad. : fin. fun's elongat. from :: M : A.
Otherwife, without M.
Rad ^. fin. ftar's latit. xfin. fun's elongat. from<5
: : 20" : A.
Otherwife,
Cofec. ftar's latit. fin. fun's elongat. from Q ;'.
20" : A.
For the aberration in declination.
Prob. I. To find O-
Sin. ftar's latit. ; rad, :: tang. P: tang. Z.
Then if the ftar (in refped of that pole of the
equator which is of the fame denomination as the
fear's latitude) be in a fign
1. Afccnding, and P be acute, Z taken from
the oppofite to its true place, gives G-
2. Afcending, and P be obtufe, Z added to its
true place, gives ©.
3. Defcending, and P be acute, Z added to the
oppofite to its true place, gives ©.
4. Defcending, and P be obtufe, Z taken from
its true place, gives O.
I'rovided in all thefe cafes that the ftar's decli-
nation and latitude be both north or both fouth ;•
but if one be north and the other fouth, then, for
its true place, read oppofite to its true J tacc, and vice
\ erfi.
Prob. 2. To find M.
Sin. Z :nn. P :: 20 : M.
Prob.
\
ABE
Prob. 3. To find A,
Rad. : fin. fun's elongat. from O : ; M : A.
Otherwife, without M.
Rad. )< fin. Z : fin. fun's elongat. from O X fin. P
::2o";A.
For the aberration in right afcenfidn.
Prob. I. To find Q.
Sin. ftar's latit. : rad. :: cotang. P : tang. Z.
Then, if the ftar (in refpedt of that pole of the
equator, which is of the fame denomination as the
ftar's latitude) be in a fign
1. Afccnding, and P be acute, Z added to its
true place, gives Q.
2. Afcending, and P be obtufe, Z taken from
its true place, gives O.
3. Defcending, and P be acute, Z taken from
the oppofite to its true place, gives 0.
4. Defcending, and P be obtufe, Z added to
the oppofite to its true place, gives ,
Prob. 2. To find M.
Cof. ftar's dec!, x fin. Z : cof. P X rad. ; ; 20" : M.
ABE
Prob. 3. To find A.
Rad : fin. fun's elongat. from G :; M : A.
Otherv/ife, without M,
Cofin. ftar's declinat. x fin. Z : fin. Ain's elongat.
from Q X cofin. P : : 20" : A.
REMARKS.
1. That Vf, ::?, H, 'r, «, n, are figns afcend-
ing in refpeft of the north pole, and defcendint*
in refpeft of the fouth pole of the equator. And
25» SI-, "E, ■^j t>l, X, are afcending in refped o(
the fouth pole, and defcending in refpcdl of the
north pole of the equator.
2. i'hat if the fun's place be in that femicirclc
of the ecliptic which precedes Q, A muft be taken
from the ftar's true longitude, latitude, declination,
or right afcenfion, to (hew the apparent ; but if he
be in the femicircle following O, A muft be added*
3. That the rules give the values of M and A
always in feconds and decimals of a degree.
From the preceding rules the following table is
calculated. Which v/ill be found of the greatcft ufe
to aftrohomers and navigators.
A TABLIi of the Aberration in right afcenfion
f fixtecn principal ftars
, to every ten days in the year.
C
ci
Xi
<
1.
.s
u
u
I
u
t
X
3
1
"3
«
u
'a,
CO
to
3
u
3
t-.
<
CO
<
U
rj
cr
<
C
1}
3
G
Jan. 10
+15.°
+ ^3.5
+ 16,8
+ •8.4
+ 20,5
+23.6
+ '9,9
+ 22,6
+ •5,6
+ o,i
-4,6
-«5,6
-24,9
-•9,9
-26,3
-14,1
10 Jan.
ac
•=•.3
20,3
14,6
16,6
19,3
23,2
'9,7
22,4
•7.3
3,5
— •jO
• 2,6
23,4
19 S
27,1
• 6,7
20
3<=
9.*
16,5
11,9
14,3
17,6
21,9
•8,7
21,4
18,6
6,8
+ 2,5
9.2
2'>3
19,0
27,1
i8,S
30
Feb. 9
, 5'9
12,1
S,9
ii,6
•5-3
•9,9
'7,1
19,6
•9,2
9.5
6,0
5,6
• 8,4
•7,6
26,4
20,4
9 Feb.
'9
+ 2,3
7,4
, 5.6
S,5
12,5
•7,4
'5,'
'7,3
•9.3
• 2,4
9,3
— ^,0
»5.o
•5,7
24.7
21,3
'9„
Mar, I
— 1.3
+ 2.5
+ 2,1
5-2
9,5
•4,4
12,6
'4,5
18,8
•4.7
12,2
+ 2,0
• 1,1
<3,4
22,4
21,5
I Mar.
II
4,8
— 2,4
— ',4
+ ..»
6.1
10,9
9,7
">3
17,7
• 6,5
14,8
5,8
6,9
•0,5
•9.3
21,0
• I
21
8,2
7,3
4,8
- •.s
+ 2,6
7.1
6,6
7,8
16,0
•7,9
17
9,3
— 2,6
7,5
'5.6
20,1
21
3'
".3
11,9
8,'
5,2
— 1,0
+ 3,3
+ 3,2
4,0
'3-9
•8,7
18,5
12,6
+ ^,8
4,1
• 1,6
18,4
3^
Apr. 10
14,1
16,1
",'
8,4
4,';
— 0,9
- 0,2
+ 0,2
•■,4
18,8
19,6
'5,5
6,2
— 0,7
7,2
• 6,2
loApril
20
16,4
19,9
>3.8
"1,4
7,9
4,9
3.5
- 3,7
8,6
18,6
20,0
• 7,9
10.3
+ 2,6
— 2,7
.3,6
20
30
18,2
23,1
'5,8
'4,i
IM
8,?
6,8
7,4
5,5
17,7
'9 9
19,8
'4,'
5.9
+ ••9
10.5
7 '5
May 10
19,6
25.&
'7,9
'f'5
f3.9
12,2
9,8
io,S
+ 2.4
•6,3
• 9,4
, 21,1
•7-5
9.0
6.5
1:1
10 May
20
20,3
^7,3
19,2
iS,i
16,1
'5,5
•2,4
•4,1
— 0,9
•4,5
• 8,1
= ',7
20,4
.1,8
10, 8
20
30
20, 5
aS,2
10.9
•9.4
lS,2
18.2
'5,°
• 6,8
4,^
n
• 6,4
21,8
22,6
•4,3
•4.9
— 0,2
30
June 9
20,2
28,5
20,1
20,0
'9,1
20,5
17,0
'9,'
7,2
•4,3
21,4
244
16.4
1S,5
+ 3.4
9 June
19
19.3
27,8
IQ.8
20,2
20,5
22,2
iS,5
20,8
10, 1
7,0
",7
20,3
25.3
18,0
2', 5
6,8
'9
29
i-,8
a6,6
iS,9
19,8
20,8
J3,2
•9.5
22,0
12,6
4,0
8,8
18,6
25,6
•9,2
24,0
10,1
29
July 9
15.S
24,6
17,4
19,0
20,1;
23,6
19,8
22,5
•4,9
+ 0,0
, 5.7
•6,5
252
19,8
25,8
•3,'
9 J"iy
'9
13.4
21,6
'5,5
•7,4
19,8
23,4
'9.7
22,4
16,8
- 2,3
+ 2,4
•38
24,1
•9,9
26 9
'5.7
'9
29
10,6
18,2
13,1
•5,4
1 3,4
22,5
19,2
21,9
lS,2
iA
-^ 1,0
10,8
22,3
•9,5
27,2
•7,9
29
Aug. 3
7,6
• 4,4
10,4
• 3,1
16,5
21
18,0
20.5
19.6
8,3
4,3
7,5
'9.9
• 3,4
26 9
•9,7
8 Aug.
18
4.3
10,1
J.4
'°>3
•4,1
.8,9
.6,2
i8,-
'9,3
11,0
7,5
3,9
• 69
16,8
25,8
20,9
iS
2S
— 0,8
5,4
4,1
7,2
11 4
16,2
'+,•
16,3
192
•3,4
•0,5
+ 0,2
13.4
.4.8
23,8
21,4
28
Sept. 7
+ 2,6
— 0,6
- 0,7
3>9
8,2
'3.1
»i,5
t3,4
• 8,4
• 5.4
'3,3
— 3>5
9.6
12,3
21.3
2t,4
7 Sept.
17
6,0
+ 4.2
+ 2,6
*- c,5
4-9
9,5
8,6
10,1
•7,'
•7.I
'5.7
7.^
5 4
9-5
• 8,0
20, S
•7
■ ^ *7
9.3
9.0
6,0
+ 2,9
— 12
5,7
5,4
6,5
•5.3
'8,3
'7,6
10,5
+ i.o
6,4
•4,3
•9,5
''^ ^r.
oa. 7
i:.3
>3-5
§,2
6.3
+ 2,2
— 1,7
— 7,1
— 2,7
13. 1
•8,7
19,1
'3,7
• 6,4
- 3.3
+ 30
10,2
•7,7|
7 Ofl.
17
15.0
17.5
12,1
9,5
5,8
+ 2,3
+ lA
+ 1,2
10,4
18,8
•9,9
7.7
— o,i
5,6
'5. 3, '7
27
17,2
21,2
14,8
•2,5
9.2
6,4
4,8
5,^
7-5
•8,3
20, J
• 8,7
••,7
3,8
+ 0,9
• 2,5,27
Nov. 6
.8,9
24,2
16.9
•5,'
•2,2
10,2
8,1
S,S
4-2
•7,2
19,3
20,4
'^•5
18,9
7,2
- 3,8
9,2 6 Nov.
16
20,0
26,4
iS,6
17,1
•5.^
,3.8
11,2
•2,3
— 0,8
•5 5
iS,8
21,4
10,3
8,3
5.7'6
26
20,4
28,0
19,6
• 8,9
•7-3
i6.9
• 3,9
'55
2,5
•3,5
•7,3
21,9
21,7
•3,'
12,9
+ 2,026
Dec. 6
20H
28,5
20,0
• 9,8
•9,1
19,6
16,2
18,2
5,9
10 9
•5.2
21,7
23,7
•5.6
17,0
— ',8
6 Dec.
16
I9>7
28 2
20,0
20,0
20,4
21,0
18,0
20,3
9,'
3,0
•2,7
20,S
25,0
• 7,6
20,5
5,6
16
26
l3,2
27,0
192
21,0
20,7
22,9
•9,3
21,7
",9
4,9
9,8
19,1
25.6
•8,9
23.4
9,2
26
3'
17.3
26 I
iS,6
•■«,,7
20,7
23,3
19,6
2?, 2
>3-3
3,2
8,0
iS,i
25,5
•9,4
24,5
10,931 1
Ufcof this Table. — Suppofe the Aberration of Caftor is wanted for Augull 18- In the angle of
meeting, under Caftor and againft Aug. 18, is found 18", 9, which is to be fubtradted (having the negative
fign) from the ftar's mean right afcenfion, which gives the apparent.
.1 D Aberra--
ABE
Aberration' of the planets. Tliis is always cqu-il
to the geocentric motion of the planet during tlie
time which light takes up in coming from the
planet to us.
The fcjllowing demonftration is taken nearly
from a paper of Mr. Clairaut, among the A'Icmoirs
of the Royal Academy of Sciences at Paris for 1764.
It i.s well known that a force a£ting .according to
the diagonal of a parallelogram, is equal to two
forces according to its two fides ; it is likewile
known, that the motion of a planet, feen from the
earth, or the motion of the earth fcen from a pla-
net, are exa(ftly the fame ; fo that if a planet ap-
pear to move one degree a day to an inhabitant ot
the eiuth, the ear'.h appears to an inhabitant of that
planet to move juft one degree alfo in the fame time.
This fuppofcd, let P (Al-5-) be the planet, which
Ave will regard as immoveable, APT the apparent
motion of "the planet tranflated to the e.irth : in the
Intcrxal of time in which light comes from P to T,
the earth having advanced from A to T is ftruck
by the ray of light, according to the direiftion PT,
;iik1 alfo Ihikes the ray, according to the direftion
AT, with the fame velocity and force, as if the
ray itfelf had met the eye with the velocity C T ;
thus the eye receives two comprefTions of the light,
one according to PT, the other according toCT:
and fo, by a jingle impreffion, compounded of two
others, it refers the planet to the diagonal B T :
but the angle PTB is equal to the angle APT,
which we have taken equal to the geocentric mo-
tion of the planet ; therefore the abberration is
equal to the motion which the planet has during
the time v/hich light takes up in coming from the
planet to the fpeclator's eye.
For example, light takes up 8' Y'k °f ^^^ '"
coming from the fun to us; the fun's motion in
longitude, during that interval, is %o" of a degree,
whence it follows, that the fun has conftantly 20"
of abberration in longitude; and as the abberration
caufes the planet to appear on the fame fide the
earth is going, and oppofite that towards which
the planet appears to be moving, it follows that if
ihe longitude, for example, of a planet be increa-
fmtx, the abberration muft diminifh it; the fame
holds good of latitude, right afcenfion, and decli-
nation.
On this principle Mr. Clairaut conftructcd the
following table. — It contains the aberration of the
planets according to their diurnal motion, and their
diftance from the earth, by only adding the con-
llant logarithm 9,5292 to thofe of the planet's di-
urnal motion in minutes, and of its diltajice from
the earth, putting that of the fun = 10,, the fum
will be x\-)£ logarithni ff the aberration ; which
aberration is alv>/ays to be added te the mean or com-
puted longitude, latitude, right afcenfion, or decli-
V.ation, to obtain thofe pofitions, fuch as they
fi-'Ould appear on obfervation, when they arc de-
A BE
crcafmg ; but to be fubtradted whon they arc In-
creafiniT.
A TABLE of the aberration of the planets in
longitude, latitude, right afcenfion, or decli-
nation.
Planel'j
diurnal
motion.
D. M.
Diftance from the earth, that of the fun being lo..
2 _
3-
4-
;•
6.
7-
Sec.
8. 1 9.
lO.
Sec.
°^9
Sec.
bee.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec. 1 Sec.
Sec.
8
0.8
I.I
1.4
1.6
1.9
2.2
2.4
2-7 :
0.16
I.I
..6
2.2
2.7
3-2
3.8
4-3
4.9
S-4
0.24
1.6
2.4
3 2
4.1
49
5.6
6.5
7-3
8.1
32
2.2
3.2
4-3
?-4
6.5
7-5
8.7
97
10.8
0.40
2-7
4.1
5-4
6.8
8.1
9-4
10.8
12.2
'3-5
0.48
3-2
4.9
b.^
8.1
9-7
1 1.3
12.9 I4.6|i6.2f
56
S.8
•I-?
7.6
9.4
II. 4
13.2
it;.l|i7-o
I8.q
1.00
+••
6.1
8.1
10.1
12. 1
14 2
i6.2!i8.3
20.3
I. 4
4'S
^5
8.7
10.8
12.9
15.-.
17.3 19.5
21.6
1. 8
4.6
6.9
9.2
II. 5
13.8
16. 1
18.4 20 7
23.0'
1.12
4.9
7-3
9-7
IZ.2
146
17.0
19.5 21.9
24.4
1. 16
5-1
7-7
10.3
12.9
15.4
18.0
20.1 23. 1
25.7
1.20
v4
8.1
10.8
'3-S
16.2
189
21.6 24.3
27.1
1.24
?-7
«■?
11.4
14.2
17.0
19.9
22.7
29.6
28.4
I.2S
5 9
8.9
11.9
14.9
'^9
20.8
23.8
26.8
29.8 "
1.32
b 2
9-3
12.4
i;.6
18.7
21.8
24.9
28.0
3i>
1.36
64
9-7
ro.2
13.0
'3-5
16 3 19.5
22.7
26.0
29.2
32.^
33.8
1.40
6.8
16.9
20.3
23-7
27.1
30-4
1-44
7.0
10.6
.4.1
17.6
21. 1
24.6
28.!
3i7|3S-2|
1 48
7-,3
1 i.o
14.6
18.3
21.9
25.6
29.2
32-9
36.5
I 52
7.6
II. 4
15.2
189122.7
26.6
30-3
34»
37-9
..56
7.8
8.1
.1.8,5.7
19.6
0-3
23';
27.5
3'-4
32.^
35-3
36-^
39.2
40.6
2.00
1 2.2
16.2
24.4
28.4
2. 4
8.4
12.6
16.8
1.0
25.2
294
33-<^
37-7
41.9
2. 8
«.f
"3 °
17.3 21.6
26.0
30-3
34-''
1,9-°
43-3
2.12
8.9
■3-4
17.922.3
26.8
3'-3
3?-7
40.2
44.6
2.16
9.1
,3.8
18.4 23.0
27-6
32.2
36.8
4>-4
6.0
Add to the obferved or apparent pofition, and
fubtrad from the mean pofition, when they are ■
increafing.
Subtradl from the obferved place, and add to
the computed place, when the planet's motion is
diminifliing.
Although this table goes no farther than to the-
diftance 10, equal to that of the fun, yet it may.
be extended ad libitum, by fimple multiplication :.
For example, if a comet, twice as far from thcr
earth as the fun, that is 20, has i degree of diur-
nal geocentric motion retrograde; take, in the CO-.
lumn of 2, the abbenation for i degree, which isi
4", r, and multiply it by lO; the produft will :be
4i",o, to be fubtracled froiji the obferved- place oE
th.e comet.
We fiiall fubjoln two tables more for the abber-
ration, of the planets, whofc ufe is ftill more eafy^
AberKi-
ABE
ABE
tloiigaluin, ur
(lillance, from
the fun, fcen
(rutn the eanh.
Aberration in longitude.
Mjr5 Ijupitcr
S.iturn
Elongation
Ven'is
Sans Dcz.
Set.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
o.Xll c
-36
-28
-26
bup. 6
-43
15
.35
28
25
15
41
I . XI
.S2
2b
23
30
34
15
28
22
20
45
19
II. X
23
18
16
Greatefl: digr.
14
15
17
14
II
45
9
III. IX
12
8
6
30
15
7
.■?
I
15
+ 3
IV.VIII
3
+ I
+ 4
Infer. 6
3
15
5
8
V.VII
+ 2
8
II
J5
.3
10
13
vr.vi
4
11
13
Mercury
's aberration in
lonsjitud
e-
Diftante of th
2 fun.
Aphel.
Mean dift
Perihel.
Ucg.
Sec.
Sec.
Sec.
Superior part
of the orbit.
5
JO
-49
48
46
-51
59
48
-55
54
49
15
20
43
38
43
33
3«
Greatefl: digre
irion
30
17
"18
19
25
20
5
+ I
+ 4
;;
Inferior part
of the orbit.
15
10
5
7
5
9
+ 10
5
9
9
II
12
14
16
When Mercury is fome degrees from his greatefl
digreflions, his geocentric motion fhould be care-
fuUy had from altronomical tables or cphemerides,
and his aberration be made out from the fuft: table
of the planet's abberration.
Mercury's abberration in latitude, at his defcend-
ing node is 4"^ ; that of the other planets is not
near fo much. — The fun's aberration is conflantly
20" in longitude ; but may alter its declination 8''
near the equinoxes, and is nothing about the fol-
ftices. — The moon's aberration, never amounts to
one fecond.
Aberration, in optics, a deviation of the rays
of light, refracted by a fpherical lens, or reflected
by a fpherical fpeculum, and therefore cannot unite
in one and the fame focal point. See Specu-
lum, Lens, and Focus.
ABETTOR, in lav^', implies a perfon who en-
courages another to perform fome criminal a£lion,
or who feconds and alTifts him in the performance
itftlf. See the iirticle Accessory,
But though t!)cre may be abettors in felony,
murders, 6ic, there can be none in treafon ; the'
law confidering every iridividual concerned in trea-
fon as a principal.
ABEYANCE, Abeiakce, or Abhayance,
in law books, fignifies fomething that exifts in ex-
pectation or remembrance only.
Thui if a church becomes vacant by the death,
of the incumbent, the freehold is faid to be in
abeyance, till a nev/ reftor, &c. is appointed and
induiited ; for the patron has not the fee, but mere-
ly the right of prefenting to it, the freehold itfelf
being in the incumbent thus prefented, and confe-
quently, till fuch prefent.ition is made, in nobody.
ABIB, the name given by the Jews to the lirft
month of their facrcd or ecckfiallical year : it was:
afterwards called Nifan. It commenced at th^
vernal equinox, and, according to the courfe of
the moon, by which their months were regulated,
anfwered to the latter part of Mrach and the be-
ginning of April.
Before the Jews were led away captive into
Egypt,, their year began in die month Tifri, which
is our September. But afterv/ards when they came
out of Egypt, it was ordained by God, that the
fucred year, or calendar of ftafts, and ceremonies,
kc. Ihould commence in the month Abib, which,
is the feventh mouth of the civil year.
This word is Hebrew, and fignifies an ear
of corn : this month was probably fo called^
becaufe at that feafon the fuft corn was ripe in
Paleftinc,
ABIES, the fir-tire. See the article FiR-
AB-INTESTATE, in the civil law, is applied
to a perfon who inherits from one who died in-
teftate, or without a will. See Intestate.
ABISHERING, in old Law books, implies the
bein^ exempt from all amercements, and tranf-
greflions of any kind.
ABJURATION, in our ancient cufloms, im-
plied an. oath taken by a perfon guilty of felony,,
and who had fled to a place of fancSuary, whereby
he folemnly engaged to leave the realm for ever.
Abjuration is now ufed to fignity the re-
nouncing, difclaimiug, and denying upon oath^
the pretender to have any maniiei; of right to the
throne of thefe kingdoms.
Abjuration of Heresy, the fokm;i recanta-
tion of fome doctrine as falfe and wicked.
ABLACTATION, the ad of weaning a child
from the breaft. See t'ne article Weaning.
Ablactation, in horticulture, is a term for-
merly ufed for a particular method of graftings
called, by modern gardeners, inarching, or grafting,
by approach. See Grafting by approach.
A'BLAQUEATION, in gardening, the art of
removing the earth, and laying bare the roots oi
trees in Vvinter, that they may be more readily ex-
pofeii
ABO
p«>f(^d to laiiio, fnovv, air, &c. which was former-
)y thought neceHIiry fcr their future welfare ; but
cxpeiicnce has fliewn it to be a dangerous pra£lice,
ufpeciall)-, where the trees are much expofed to the
winds, particularly the fouth-weft, which are ge-
nerally the moft violent : and it is in a great mea-
fure laid afide in the prefent pradice of garden-
ing.
ABLATIVE, in the Latin grammar, is the
name of the fixth cafe, and peculiar to that lan-
guage.
It is oppofed to the dative, which exprefles the
sclion of giving, and the ablative that of taking
away.
ABLUENTS, in medicine, are the fame with
diluters, or fuch remedies as diffolve and carry ofF
acrimonious and rtimulating falts, from any part of
the body, efpecially from the flomach and in-
teltines.
ABLUTION, in antiquity, a religious cere-
mony, praftifed by the Romans, and confided in
wafhing the body before they began the facrifice.
The Romans, in all probability, learned this
ceremony from the Jews ; fmce we read in Scrip-
ture, that Solomon placed at the entry into the
temple which he erected to the honour and fervice
of the true God, a capacious laver, which the text
calls a brazen fea, where the priefts waflied them-
felves before they offered facrifice ; having previ-
oiifly fanftified the water, by throwing into it the
afhcs of a vidlim offered in facrifice.
The Mahometans ilill ufe the ceremony of ab-
lution.
Ablution, in chemiftr}', fignifies the wafhing
away the (alts of any body, by frequent aff ulions
of warm water.
ABOARD, Ital. abordo, Fr. aborde, any part
on the deck or infidc of a fliip : hence any perfon
tvho afcends a fliip's fide, to go on the deck, or
into the apartments, is faid to go aboard.
ABOLITION, in a general fenfe, implies the
act of defraying a thing, or reducing it to jiothing.
Abolition, in law, fignifies the repealing any
law or ffatiitc.
ABOMASUS, or Adomasum, in comparative
anatomy, one of the ftomachs, or ventricles, of
ruminating animals, or fuch as chew the cud.
All ruminating animals have four ftomachs, viz.
the rumen,' or Itomach, properly fo called, the
reticulum, the omafus, and the ahomafiis.
The abomafus, or laft of the four ftomachs, is
vulgarly called the maw ; being the receptacle
where the chyle is formed, and from which the
food dcfcends immediately into the inteftines,
/ABOMINATION, in the facrcd writings, is
generally uil-d to cxprcfs idols and idolatry. Thus
in I: zek. xx. 7. " Cnft ye away every man the
" abominations of his- eyes, and defile not yourfclvcs
■' with the idoh 0; r.gypt." And again in Exod.
ABO
viii. 26. Mofes fays, " We (hall facrifice the al^
" minatioM of the Egyptians to the Lord." It is
not at all to be wondered at that idolatry (hould be
called an abomination, as it was accompanied with
licentious ceremonies, and the vileit and moft abo-
minable practices. The Ifraelites, who were fhep-
herds, are faid, in Gen. xlvi. 34. to be an abomi-
nation to the Egyptians, becaufe they facrificcd
their idols, or their facred animals, to which they
paid divine worfliip. The abomination of defola-
tion (mentioned by St. Matthew xxiv. 15. " When
" therefore ye (hall fee the abomination of defola-
" tion, fpoken of by Daniel the prophet, ftand
" in the holy place,") means the enfigns of the
Roman army, on which were painted the images of
animals, as well as of their gods and emperors :
at the lalt ficge of Jerufalem, which was carried
on under Titus, thefe enfigns were lodged in the
temple, when the city was taken.
ABORIGINES, in geography, a name given
to the original or firft inhabitants of any country,
in contradiftindlion to colonies or new inhabitants
from fomc other part of the earth.
The term aborigines is famous in antiquity ; and
tho' at prefent taken as an appellative, it was ori-
ginally the proper name of a certain people of Italy,
who inhabited the ancient Latium, or country now
called Campagna di Roma, when yEneas, with his
Trojans, came into Italy.
In this fenfe the Aborigines are diftinguifhed from
the Janigen.Te, from the Siculi, from the Grecians,
and from the Latins, v/hofe name they afterwards
affumcd.
Authors arc greatly divided with regard to thefe
Aborigines ; fome will have them to be the original
inhabitants fettled there by Janus, or by Cham,
foon after the difperfion at Babel ; fome think they
were originally Arcadians, parties of whom were
brought into Italy at different times ; and others de-
rive this nation from the Laceda-monians, who fled
into Italy from the fevere difcipline of Lycurgus.
Some again will have them to have been rather of
Barbarian than Grecian original, and to have come
cither from Scythia or Gaul; -while others believe
they were defcended from the Cnnaanites, whowere
driven out of their own country by Jolhua.
ABORTION, in medicine, an untimely or
premature delivery of the foetus.
An abortion may proceed from various caufcs ;
as immoderate ev.icuations, violent motions, lud-
den pallions, frights, &c. It may alfo happen at
any time of pregnancy; but if before the lecond
month, it is ufually called a falfe conception.
A continual or intermitting fever generally pre-'
cedes an abortion, together with a pain in the loins
and head; a hcavinefs in the eyes ; a bearing down
and conftri£lion of the abdomen; and vi'hen the
time of mifcarriage is juft at hand, the pains are
much the fame with thofe in labour; and felt prin-
I cipally
ABR
cipally about the os pubis, and os facrum. The
breafts, which were before turgid, now fubfide and
become flaccid; the patient is apt to faint, and a
fcrous humour ouzes from the uterus.
If the time of pregnancy be far advanced, fo that
the foetus mull needs be large; if the caufes of
abortion were violent; if the patient be itrongly
convulfed; if a large hemorrhage either precede or
follow ; if the patient be of a weak conllitution ; if
the foetus be putrefied ; or if the woman was never
delivered of a live child; the cafe may be confider-
ed as dangerous: but, with other circumllances,
abortion very rarely proves mortal.
Upon the firft appearance of the fymptoms of
abortion, the patient mull: be put to bed, and the
paffions of the mind kept calm and moderate. The
food fhould be eafy of digeflrion. The liquor may
be wine, diluted occafionally with water: but in
cafe of a diarrhoea, large floodings, &c. the white
decoftion appears to be the moft proper liquor. In
other refpefts, the diet and regimen mull be fuited
to the particular fymptoms which happen to attend
abortion; whether they are collivenefs, a tenefmus,
vomiting, &c.
An habitual weaknefs, or laxity of the uterine
veffels, fhould be treated as the fluor albus; but ex-
cept the patient be of a thin or hedtical conftitution,
a deco£tion of guaiacum, will, in this cafe, prove
very fer\'iceable.
When the flooding is attended with the breaking
out of the waters, and violent pain at the bottom
of the abdomen, the time of abortion is judged near.
.In this cafe, the ufe of aftringents is to be omitted :
as the abortion is natural or unnatural, the midwife
is to perform the part adapted to a natural or unna-
tural birth : the fame external and internal medi-
cines, which tend to bring away the fecundines,
and promote lochia, being proper in both cafes.
ABORTIVE, in a general fenfe, implies any
thing which comes before its proper time, or mil-
carries in the execution.
Abortive vclom, that made of the ficin of an
abortive calf. See Velom.
ABRA, a filver coin ftruck in Poland, and near-
ly equal in value to an Englifh (hilling.
ABRACADABRA, a magical v/ord, which
being written in a cer-tain form, a certain number
of times, was, in the ages of ignorance and fuper-
ftition, fuppofed to have the virtue of a charm or
amulet, in curing agues.
ABRAHAMITES, were an order of monks,
who, in the ninth century, were exterminated by
Theophilus for idolatry. It is thename alfo of a fc6t
of heretics, who renewed the errors of Paulus and
his followers.
ABRASION, in furgery, the a61; of wearing a-
way the natural mucus which covers the mem-
branes, particularly thofe of the ftomach and in-
.teftines, by corrofive medicines, .&c.
ABR
ABRASAX, or Abraxas, a myftical term thai
occurs in the antient theology and philofophv of
certain heretics, particularly the followers of Ba-
filides. Some moderns, on the credit of Tertul-
lian and Jerome, have affirmed that this arch-
heretic called the Supreme Being by the name of
Abraxai ; but this is not very probable, as Ireneus
tells us, that the Bafdidians gave no name what-
ever to the Almighty, but fay that the Father of
all things is ineffable, and without name.
It feems as if this word denoted Mithras, or the
fun, which was the God of the Perfians. For by-
computing the value of each letter, as the Greeks
were wont to do,
A
e
P
2
lOO
I
200
1
60
365
we come by the number 365, which is the num-
ber of days contained in a folar year.
In the 17th century two talifmans were found,
on one of which was the word ABPACA2 in Greek
capitals, and on the other, which is ftill to be feen
in the cabinet of St. Genevieve, the following in-
fcription : ABPAcAS- AAHNAI. AAIMONaN.
AE2IAI. ATNAMEIC. ^-'^--AASATE. OTAHI-
AN. nATAEINAN. AHO. nANTOC. KAKOT.
AAIMONOc. which is," Abrafax, lord of demons,
propitious powers, preferve Ulpius Paulinus from
eveiy evil demon." The word Adonai being made
ufe .of here immediately after Abrafax, clearly"
points out that it is of Oriental, and not of Greek
extraction : for which reafon, what Beaufobre has
faid is rather ingenious than true, that Abrafax is
compounded of two Greek words, of which he
makes a^po; and ao-cc^ or a-ct the other ; and fo
proves the meaning of it to be the beautiful, or the
mag-ii'ifuent Saviour, and applies it to the fun. No-
thing has puzzled the learned more than the origin
and fignification of this enigmatical term : we
fhall prefent our readers with a few of their expla-
nations, and then leave them to judge for them-
felves. One fays that Abrafax is compounded of
the initial letters of feveral words, three Hebrewj
and three Greek, in the following manjier :
A ftands for Ab, the father
B Ben, the fon
R Rouacb, the fpirit
A Acadofch, holy
S Soberia, falvation
A Apo, by
X Xulou, the tree, or wood.
This it muft be confefled is a very orthodox ex»-
planation, but fo wild and improbable, that it could
E j\wct
A BR
acfter ha\ e entered into any one's hcaj, except that
of an ecclefiaftic vifionary. Another writer, who
adopts the plan above, and improves upon it,
thinks tliat the letters A. S. A. X. ftand for
£:;'9f)»7rEf cuuav ti.yiu Eu^a. There is another dif-
ferent account of it given by M. Bafnage, in his
Hiflory of the Jews. He afferts, that the word
Abrafax took its origin from the Egyptians ; be-
caufe there are a great number of amulets to be
found, on which is an Harpocrates, the Egyptian
God of Silence, fitting on the lotus, and the
fcourge in his hand, with the word Abrafax. This
is certainly a true account of it : for the word,
Abracadabra, which is recommended as a chaim
by Serenus Simonicus, who was a follower of
Bafilides, is evidently taken from Abrafax.
ABREAST, in nav.il affairs. On the different
occafions of attack, purfuit, or retreat at fsa, the
fquadrons or divifions of a fleet are often obliged
to vary their difpofiticns, and yet obferve a proper
regularity, by failing in right or curved lines ;
when they fail at a proper diftance from each other,
and are all equally foi"ward, they are then faid to
iiave formed the line abreail, the commander in
chief being ftationed in the center ; and the fecond
^nd third in command, if there be any, in the
center of their divifions, on each wing ; there
being no van or rear in the manoeuvre. See
i>INE a he fid.
ABRIDGING, the fliortening or contrailing
any book, writing, &c.
Abridging, in algebra, is reducing a com-
pound equation to a more fimple forai. See Equa-
tion.
ABRIDGMENT, an abftraft or epitome of a
larger work.
Critics and ftudents, who are commonly the
greateft enemies to abridgments, pretend,, that the I
euflom of making them was not introduced till a
]ong tim.e after thofe happy ages when the arts and
Iciences flourifhed in Greece. In their opinion,
abridgments were the firft fruits of idlenefs, when
thofe times which fuccecded the fall of the empire
were flirouded in the darknefs of barbarifm.. Men
of learning, fay they, then only endeavoured to
fhorten their labours and ftudies, efpeciaUy in
reading the hifforians, philofophers, and lawyers,
either for v/aiit of leifuro or courage to perufe the
originals.
Some authors have thought, that feveral of the
books of the Old Teftament are only abridgments
«f the books of Gad, Iddo, and Nathan, of the
writings of. Solomon, the Chronicles of the kings
of Judah, &c. The lawyers com.plain, they owe to
this artifice the Ipfs of above two thoufand volumes
«f the firft writers in their profefaon, as Popinian,
the 'three Scsvo!as> Labenus, Ulpian, Modeili-
nus, and feveral ethers, v/hofe names are well
known. By the fame m?ans a great number of
A BR
[the Vvorks of the Greek fathers, from Origenv
I or Irenaeus, down to the time of the fchifms and
divifions of the church, liave perifhcd : during
which period a great variety of authors wrote upon,
the books of Scripture. The extradls which Con-
ftantinus Porphyrogenitus made from feveral excel-
lent Greek and Latin hifforians, relating to hiilory,
politics, and morality, tho' in other rcfpefts highly
commendable, have occafioned the lofsof the uni-
verfal hiftory of Nicholas of Damafcus, great part
of the books of Polybius, Diodorus Sicidus, Dio-
nyfius Halicarnaffus, &c. Nor have we any room,
to doubt but that Juftin has occafioned the lofs of
the entire hiflory of 'I'rogus Pompeius, by the
abridgment he made of that v/ork ; and it may.
juftly be faid, that the fame tiling has happened ia
all other branches cxf literature..
It may, however, be alledged in favour of abridg-
ments, that they are convenient for fuch as have,
neither leifure to confult the originals, ability ta
procure them, nor talents to underiland them tho-
roughly. Befides, Salmafius has remarked, that
the moft excellent works, both among the Greeks,
and Romans, would infallibly have perifhed in the
times of barbarifm, had it not been for the induftry
of the authors of thefe abridgments, who have, at
leaft, faved us fome planks out of the general
fliipwreck, and no ways prevent our confulting the
originals whenever they can be found.
Abridgment, in law, implies the fliortening
a plaint or declaration.
ABROGATION, fignifies the repeaLng and
abolifhing a law.
ABROTANUM, fouthernwood, in botany.
See the article Southernwood.
ABRUS, American bitter-vetch, called gli-
cine by Linnaeu'^, a kind of kidney-bean, growing
in the Eafl: and Weft-Indies^ in Egypt, and othec
parts of the world.
It is ufed in the Eafl: and Weft-Indies, with the
fame intention as liquorice, and increafed by feeds
fown in the fpring ; but being a tender plant, it
requires a hot-houfe in this climate.
ABSCESS, infurgery, an inflammatory tumour,
containing purulent matter, pent up in a fleflij^
jxirt.
An abfcefs is always the effe£l of an inflamma-
tion, which may frequently be difcuffed without
coming to a fuppuration, or. before the abfcefs is
formed.
But when the proper remedies ta difperfe the
humour have been too long negledled, or ufed in
vain, the utmoft expedition Lhould be ufed to bring
the humour to maturation. The proper medicines
for prcrr.oting this intention are fuch as increafs
cbe motion in the pait, and have a tendency to
create a gentle fever ; fuch as fomentations, and
fhimtdflling medicines. Suck compofitions alfo as
confine tlie heat excited in the part aflecled, b]^
A BS
A B S
pre^'criting an exceflive perfpiration, are alfo pro-
per. The fimple aromatic gumi, and ihe cmo!-
iieiit, relaxing, and moiftening medicines, arc
therefore proper for maturating the pus.
This method mufi: be purfued till the abfcefs has
actjuired a fufficient degree of ripenefs, which may-
be known by the foftnefs of the part, and the fluc-
tuation of the tumour when preiled ; its white-
nefs, the remiffion of the pain, heat, rednefs, ten-
fion, pulfation, and fe\er ; the pointed apex of
the tumour, and a fenfe of weight fucceeding the
pain, are likewife figns that the pus is ah'cady
formed, and fit for e\acuation.
When thefe figns indicate the maturity' of the
tumour, the knife is to be introduced into its in-
ferior, fofteft, whitcli, and moit prominent part,
till the pus flowing out evinces that a fufficient
penetration is made : then let the knife be railed
equably upwards, fo as to make a large incifion ;
or forcing its point through the oppofite part of
the abfcefs, let the intermediate integuments be
divided, taking care to avoid the fibres and veffels.
Then let the ulcer be cured by cleanfing, fup-
purating, digeftive, deterfive, and drying medi-
cines, which muft be varied according to the ftate
of the part. See the article WoLfND.
If the patient be afraid of an incifion, let a
cauftic be applied to the part, the efcar feparated,
and the cure performed, in the fame manner
as before.
ABSCISSE, or Abscissa, in conic feclions.
See Parabola, Ellipsis, and Hyperbola.
ABSCISSION, in rhetoric, a figure of fpeech,
whereby the fpeaker flops fhort in the middle of
his difcourfe, leaving the hearer to draw what con-
clufion he pleafes.
ABSINTHIUM, wormwood, in botany/ See
the article Wormwood.
ABSIS, in aftionomy, the fame with apfis. See
Apsis.
ABSOLUTE, in a general fenfe, denotes fome-
thing that is unconnefted with, or independant on
another.
Absolute, is alfo an epithet applied to things
which are free from limitation, or condition.
Absolute Equatim, in allronomy. See Eq^ja-
TION.
Absolute Number, in algebra. See. Num-
ber.
Absolute Motion, t t Motion.
Absolute Space, ( Seev S.^ace.
Absolute T;«f, 3 {Time.
ABSOLUTION, a term fynonimous with pan-
don or forgivenefs.
Pardon is in ccnfequence of an ofFence commit-
ted, and relates principally to the offender ; it de-
pends upon the party offended, and produces a re-
conciliation when it is fincerely alked, and fincerely
granted. Forgivenefs ia in confequence cf a crime.
and has a particular relation to the punifhnicnf
which the crime defenes: it is granted either by a
prince or a magiftrate, and arreits the uplifted arm
of juftice.
Abfolution therefore is in confequence of an of-
fence or crime, and properly concerns the flatc of
the guilty : it is pronounced either by the civil
judge or the ecclefiaftical minifter, and reinflatej
the accufed, or the penitent, in the rights of inno-
cence.
Absolution, in law, is a fentence whereby the
party accufed is declared innocent, and confequcnt-
iy faved from the punifhment infli£led by the lav/s,
for the commiflion of the particular crime or oftcnce
with which he is charged.
l^he general method of trial, whether the accufccF
were guilty or innocent, among the Romans, was
generally this : After the caufe had been pleaded on
both fides, the prastor pronounced aloud the won?
dixerunt, the parties have faid what they have faid,
or what they have to fay. Then three billets were
immediately diftributed to each judge, one marked
with the letter A. for abfolution, another with C.
for condemnation, and the third with N. L. for
non liquet, it is not clear, to require a refpite of
judgment ; and accordingly as there was a majorit/
of this or that mark, the accufed was abfolved,
condemned, or refpited. When the votes were
equally divided on the fides of abfolution and con-
demnation, the accufed was abfoh-ed, from a maxim
fuppolcd to be founded on the law of nature.
At Athens the praftice- was different ; criminal
caufes were carried before the Hel;ca:a, or the tri-
bunal of judges called Heliafla?, from «ai^, the
fun, becaufe they held their aflemblies in a place
uncovered. Whcnfummoned by theThefmothetes,
they aflembled in a large number, fometimcs a-
mounting to fifteen hundred, and ga\e their fufFra-
ges in the following manner : A large vefTel cover-
ed wit-h wicker v-^as placed in the middle of the
aiTembly, and on it two urns, one of copper and
the other of wood ; in- the lids of thofe urns was a
long but narrow aperture, in the form- of a paral-
lelogram or long fquare. The wooden urn was
called ■n.vv'^, being that '-^Xo whichtlie judges cafl
the fuffrages for condemning the accufed ; while
that of copper was named hlm;;, and recci\ed the
fufFr.iges of^ abfolution.
As foon as the caufe had been pleaded, tv/o pieces
of copper were diftributed to e.^ch of thofe mn'^l-
flrates, the one plain, and the other with a hole in
it; the foiTner implied abfolution^, and the latter
condemnation; and according to the m.ajority of
pieces found in the one or the other of thefe
urns, the party accufed was' abfolved or con-
demned;
Absolution', in the canon law, implies the
niiniflerial power of remitting fins, vcfled by Chrifl:
in. the apoliks, and liom tkciH-derived to th;'c!i:.TcR. -
Tiiiis
A BS
A BS
This is all that the primitive church ever pre-
tended to, leaving the abiblute, fovereign, inde-
pendent, irrcverfible power of abfolution to God
alone.
The ancients enumerated five kinds of abfolu-
tion : I. Baptifm. 2. The eucharilt. 3. The
word and dotl:rine. 4. The impofition of hands
and prayer. 5. The reconcilement to the com-
munion of the church, by a relaxation of her cen-
fures.
The two firft may be called facramental -, the
third declaratory ; the fourth precatory ; and the
fifth judicial. The firft had no relation to peni-
tential difcipline, being never given to perfons
who had once received baptifm. The fecond had
fome relation, but did not folely belong to it ;
for it was given to all baptized perfons in gene-
ral, whether they had ever fell under penitential
difcipline or not : and in both cafes was called
TO TiMioe, the perfeftion or confummation of a
Chriftian. By the third, the minifters of the
church made public declaration to men of the
.terms of reconciliation and falvation. The fourth
was ufod as a concomitant of moll other abfolu-
tions : and by the fifth penitents were finally reftored
to the peace and full communion of the church.
But during the firif ages of the church, the form
jof abfolution always run in this manner, Cbriji
ahfolve thee ; the indicative form, 1 ahjolve you,
having never been heard of till the twefth century,
a little before the time of Thomas Aquinas, who
was the firft perfon that wrote in defence of it.
The judicious Hooker, fpeaking of the abufe
of .nbfolution in the Romilh church, fays, " They
" flrangely hold, that whatfoever the penitent
" doth, his contrition, confeUion, and fatisfa£tion,
*' have no place of right to ftand as material parts
" of this facrament, nor confequently any fuch
" force as to make them available for the taking
away of fin, in that they proceed from the pe-
nitent himfelf, without the privity of the mi-
nifter, but only as they are enjoined by the mi-
" nifter's authority and power : — except there-
" fore the prieft be willing, God hath by promife
" hampered himfelf fo, that it is not now in his
" own power to pardon any man : — he hath no
" anfwer to make but fuch as that of the angel to
" Lot, I can do nothing." This able writer
then defcribes the true nature and efFefts of abfo-
lution, and adds, " The fentence therefore of
" minifterial abfolution hath two effects : touch-
" ing fin, it only declareth us freed from the
guiltinefs thereof, and reftored unto God's fa-
vour ; but concerning right in facred and di-
vine myfteries, whereof through fin we are made
unworthy, as the power of the church did be-
fore eftedtually bind and retain us from accefs
unto them ; fo, upon our apparent repentance,
it truly relbreth our liberty, loofeth the chains
4C
*' wherewith we were tied, remitteth all whatfo-
" ever is pall:, and accepteth us no lefs returned,
" than if we had never gone aftray."
ABSORBENT VeJJeh, in anatomy, are thofe
which abforb the fluids of the body. Thus the
laiSteals, whole mouths open into the inteftines,
and imbibe the nutritious juice, are called by this
name. The pores diifufed over the v/hole body
are fometimes alio filled abforbent Veffels, becaufe-
they imbibe the air, effluvia, &c.
Absorbent Medicines, among phyficians, are
fuch as have the property of drying up the redun-
dant humours, whether taken inwardly, or appliei
externally to ulcers, &:c.
All the teftaceous powders, boles, chalk, cal-
cined bones, magnefia alba, &c. are efteemed
powerful abforbents.
ABSORPTION, in the animal ceconomy, im-
plies the adl whereby the open orifices of the vef-
fels imbibe the juices they meet with in the cavities
of the body.
ABSTEMIOUS, an epithet applied to perfons
who ufe great temperance both in eating and
drinking, efpecially thofe who abftain from wine.
The word is Latin, ahjiemius, and compounded
of ahs, from, and temeium, wine.
ABSTERGENTS, in the materia medica, are
remedies of. a faponaceous nature, capable of dif-
folving refinous concretions. Caftellus has con-
founded them with abluents.
ABSTINENCE, abjiinentia, the refraining
from fomething we have a propenfity to, or in the
enjoyment of which we find fatisfa(£tion.
Several are of opinion, that mankind before the
flood abftained from fleih and wine, becaufe the
Scriptures exprefly mention, that Noah, after the
Deluge, began to plant the vine, and that God
permitted him to ufe the flefti of animals for food ;
whereas he had given Adam only the fruits and
plants of the earth for his fuitenance. There are
however many learned interpreters who maintain
the contrar)', and believe, that mankind before
the Deluge did not deny themfelves the pleafures of
either wine or animal food. Indeed the Scriptures
themfelves aflure us, that all flefh had corrupted
his way ; and therefore tho' the Almighty did not
allow Adam to ufe either flcfh or wine, his im-
pious defccndants gave themfelves little trouble to
obferve the prohibitions of their Maker.
The priefts among the Jews were commanded
by the law to abftain from wine during the whole
time they v/ere engaged in the iervice of the
temple ; and the fame prohibition extended to the
Nazarites, as long as they continued fuch.
The ancient athlets obferved a perpetual ab-
ftlnence from all kind of fenfual pleafures, in or-
der to render their bodies more hardy and robuft.
When Orpheus had foftened the manners of
men, he eftablifhed a kind of life fince called the
Orphic i
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Orphic ; one of the chief tenets of which was,
not to eat the flefli of animals. In all probability,
Orpheus, after making the firft people fenfiblc of
the laws of fociety, reftrained them from eating
meat, in order to wean them entirely from their
primitive fiercenefs : and this pradlice being after-
wards adopted by fuch as were defirous of leading a
more perfeiSl life than others, the ancients called
it Of^iyji ?>ioi, the Orphic life, which is men-
tioned by Plato in his Epinomis, and in the fixth
book of hii Laws.
The Phenicians and AlTyriuns, who were neigh-
bours to the Jews, had their facred fafts. The
Egyptians, according to Herodotus, facrificed a
cow to Ifis, after they had prepared themfelves by
fading ; and he attributes the fame cuftoni to the
women of Cyrenc. Among the Athenians, the
Eleufinian myfleries, as well as the Thefmophores,
were attended with rigorous fallings, efpecially
among the women, who paiTed a wliole day fitting
on the ground in a mourning habit, and without
taking any fuftenancc. They had alfo fettled fafts
at Rome, in honour of Ju[)iter; and hiftorians
alfo mention thofe of Julius Csefar, Auguftus,
Vefpafian, Marcus Aurelius, he.
The Pythagoreans, or at leaft thofe among
them who profeffed the grcateft perfei^fion, and va-
lued themfelves for having attained to the greateft
degree of their mafter's theory, never tafted either
fiefli or fi{h. This abftinence from whatever had
life, was a confequence of the metempfychofis ;
tho' it is difficult to fay from whence Pythagoras
imbibed the averfion he had to beans, mallows,
wine, &:c.
Abstinexce, in medicine, has a very exten-
five fignification : for by this word we underftand
ji refraining from all fucculent aliments.
Tho' abftinence is not fufficient to cure dif-
eafcs, yet it greatly affifts the operation of the me-
dicines, and is a prefervative againft many difor-
ders, efpecially thofe which refidt from gluttony.
We ought to regidate the quantity of aliments
we take, according to the lofs of fubftance we
fuftain by means of exercife, and tlie time during
which perfpiration is more or lefs plentiful ; and
alfo to abftain from fuch aliments as we have ob-
ferved to difagrce v/ith our conftitution.
The kinds of abftinence to which we ought to
confine ourfclves, both in ficknefs and health,
fhould be regulated by the laws of diet and regi-
men. See the article Regimen.
Several writers relate wonders of the effects c»f
abftinence in the cure of many diforders, and in
protracting the time of life. The noble Venetian
Cornaro, after every method had proved in vain,
fo that his life wasdefpaircd of at forty, recovered,
and lived to near an hundred, merely by abfti-
nence.
Jt ii indeed furprifmg, to what a great age the
2..
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primitive Chriftians of the eaft, wlio retired from
the perfecution into the dcfarts of Arabia and
Egypt, lived, healthy and chcarful, on a very little
food. Caftian afl'ures us, that the common quan-
tity for twenty-four hours was twelve ounces of
bread, and mere wa:er ; and that St. Anthony, on
that portion only, lived to the age of an hundred
and five years ; James the hermit, an hundred and
four ; Arfenius, tutor to the emperor Arcadius, an
hundred and twenty ; St. Epiphanius an hundred
and fifteen; Simeon the Stylite, an hundred and
twelve; and Romauld, an hundred and twenty.
We can indeed equal, nay evsn excel, thefe in-
ftances of longevity, from the fame caufe, at
home. Buchanan tells us, that one Laurence pre-
ferved his life to an hundred and forty, by the
mere force of temperance and labour ; and Spotf-
wood mentions one Kentigern, who lived to an
hundred and eighty-five by the fame means. See
LoNGiEVITY.
Moft of the chronical difeafes, the infirmities
of old age, and the untimely deaths of Englifh-
men, are, according to Dr. Cheyne, owing to re-
pletion, and may be prevented by abftinence.
Among the brute creation, we fee extraordinary
inftances of long abftinence. It is natural for va-
rious fpecies to pafs four, five, or fix months every
year, without eith.r eating or drinking. Thetor-
toife, dormoufe, ferpent, &c. are obfer\cd. to re-
tire regularly, at certain feafons, totheir refpeclive'
cells, and there hide themfelves ; fome get into the-
aiverns of rocks, or ruins ; fome dig holes imder'
ground ; fome retire to the woods, and lay them--
felves up in the clefts of trees; and others bury
thcmfeh'cs under water.
The ferpent kind bear abftinence to a miracle..
We have feen rattle-fnakes that have fubfifted many-
months without food, and ftill retained their vi--
gour and fiercenefs. Dr. Shaw mentions, in his-
travels, a couple of ceraftes, a fort of Egyptian-
ferpent, which had been kept five years in a bottle-
clofe corked, without any fort of food, unlefs a'
fmall quantity of fand, wherein they had coiled
themfelves up in the bottom of tb.e veilel, may be'
reckoned fuch ; yet when he law them, they had''
jL^ft caft their fkins, and Were asbrifk and lively as
if juft taken. Li fhort, feveral fpecies of birds,
almoft the whole tribe of irfeils, and many
among the other tribes, are able to fubfift during-
the winter, without food, and many of them with-
out rcfpiration. This furnifhes an admirable in-
ftance of the wifdom of the Creator : the proper
food of thefe creatures, efpecially of the infedl
tribe, being then wanting, aprcvifion is made for
them to live without it. When the fields are di-
vefted of their flowery carpet, and the trees and
plants are ftripped of their fruits, what would be-
come of fuch animals as fubfift whoily on the pro--
duce.of the fpring and fummer ? and when the air ii
E gi;awn :
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grown rigid-and chilly with the fro{l,what wouldhc-
come of thofe tender fpeciep, which are impatient
of cold ? 7"o prevent the total deftruclion and ex-
tirpation of many fpecies of animals, the author of
jiaturc has provided, that creatures thus bereaved of
their food, ihould be likev/ife impatient of cold,
to lead them thus to fhelter themfelv£s from dan-
ger ; and that when arrived ia a place of fecurity,
the natural texture and vifcidity of their blood
ihould difpofe it, by a farther degree of cold, to
ilagnate in the veffels : fo that the circulation flop-
ping, and the animal fun6tions being in a great
jneafure fufpended, there is no fenfible wafte or
confumptioii of parts, but they remain in a kind of
drowfy neutral ftate, between life and dcatli, till the
warm fun revives both them and their food toge-
ther, but thawing at once their congealed juices
and thofe of the vegetables on which they teed.
The fleep of fuch animals is but very little dilTer-
ent from death, and their waicing from a re-
furreftion; for if life doth not confift in a cir-
culation of the Wood, vvc know not in what it
does confift.
Hence it is no wonder that tortoifcs, dormice,
ScC. are found as fat and flefhy, after fome months
,abiHnence, as before. Sir George Ent weighed
his tortoife fe\-eral years fucceflively, at its going
to earth in October, and its celling out again in
March, and found that out of four pounds four
-ounces,"it only iifed to lofe about one ounce. Nor
are there wanting inftances of men who have paf-
;led feveral months in as ftrift abfthience as other
creatures. The records of the Tower mention a
Scotfman imprifoned for felony, and ftriiStly
watched in that fortrefs for fix weeks, during
which interval he had not the leaft fiiftenance ot
any kind, and on that account obtaitied his par-
don. The German Ephimerides iJDeak of a wo-
man called Martha Taylor, who, from a blow on
•the back, lofl: her appetite to fuch a degree, that
the only fuftenance fhe took during thirteen
months, was only a few drops from a feather.
This was indeed a morbid and unnatural cafe,
for file flept very little during the whole inter-
val.
We may add the inftance of S. Chilton of
Tinfbury, near Bath, who, in the years 1693,
1694, and 1695, ilept fometimes four months,
-and fometimes above fix together, with very little
food, and fix weeks with nothing more than a fmall
quantity of tent, conveyed v/ith a quill ijito his
-mouth, through a hole in his teeth.
It is added, that in moft of the inftances of long
abflinences related by naturalifts, there were ap-
parent marks that the texture of the blood was fi-
milar to that of fummer bcafts and infefts. It is
indeed no improbable opinion, that the air itfelf
may furnifh fome kind of nutriment ; for it is cer-
iaiu .there are fubllances of all kinds, animal, ve-
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gctable, &c. floating in the atmofphere, which
niuft be continually taken in by refpiration.
ABSTINENTS, a name given to a fed of
Heretics, who fprang up in France and Spain, at
the end of the third century, when the Chriftians
were perfeciited by Dioclefian and Maximian.
They were a kind of Gnoftics, or Manicheans ;
they decried marriage, condemned the ufe of meals,
as if created by the Devil, and degraded the Holy
Spirit into the clafs of created Beings.
ABSTRACT Lka, am.ong logicians, implies
the idea of fome general quality or property con-
fideied fimply in itfelf, without any regard to a
particular fubjeft : thus magnitude, equity, &c.
are abftracl ideas, when we confider them as de-
tached from any particular body or perfoii.
Abrtra6l ideas are of two kinds, abfolute and
relative. The former contain ireneral and univer-
fal conceptions of things confidered in themfelves,
as b.'ing, elTence, exiftence, a<5f, power, fubftance,
mode, (k'c. The latter compare feveral things,
and confider merely the relations of one thing to
another, without confidering whether the fubje£ts
of thofe relations be corpcvral or Ipiritual ; fuch
are our ideas of caufe, efled:, likenefs, unlikenefs,
fubjecf, objedt, identity, &c.
All things that exift, fays Mr. Locke, being
particulars, it may perhaps be thought reafonable,
that words, which ought to be conformable to
things, fliould be fo too : but we find it quite the
contrary ; for moft words in all languages are ge-
neral terms ; nor has this been the efFedt of ne-
gleiSf or chance, but of reafon .and neceflity.
Butfince all things that exift are only particular,
how came we by general terms ? or where do wc
find thofe general natures they are fuppofed to re-
prefent .^ Words become general, by being made
the figns of general ideas : and ideas become ge-
neral, by feparating from them the circumftances
of time, place, and other ideas that may determine
them to that or this particular exiftence. By this
method of abftradlion they are rendered capable of
reprefenting more individuals than one, each of
which having a conformity to that abftradl idea, is
of that fort.
But it may not be amifc to trace our notions
and names from their beginning, and obferve by
what degrees we proceed from our infancy, and
enlarge our ideas to general ones. It is evident,
that the firft ideas children acquire are only parti-
cular, as that of nurfe or mother, and the names
they give them are confined to thofe individuals ;
afterwards obferving, by time and acquaintance,
that there are a great many other things in the
world that refemble them in fome common a^ree-
o
ment of fliape and other qualities, they frame an
idea which they find thofe many particulars in-
clude ; to this idea they give, with others, the
name man, for example ; in this they make no-
thing
ABS
ithing new, but only leave out of the complex idea
they had of Peter, John, &c. that which is pecu-
liar to each, and retain only what is common to
all ; and thus they acquire a general name, and a
general idea. By the fame method they advance
to more general names and notions ; for obferving
Icveral thino'S that differ from their idea of man,
and cannot therefore be comprehended under that
name to agree with man in fome certain qualities ;
and uniting them into one idea, they have another
more general idea, to which giving a name, they
make it of a more comprehenfive andextenftve na-
ture ; thus, by leaving out the ihape, and fome
other proportions fignified by the name m.an, and
retaining only a body with life, fenfe, and a fpon-
taneous motion, they form the idea fignified by the
name animal. By the fame way they proceed to
"body, fubflance, and at lafl to being, thing, and
■ fuch univerfal terms, which ftand for any ideas
•whatfoever.
AbilraiSt ideas are not however fo ob\'ious or eafy
:to children, or the yet unexerciled mind as particu-
lar ones. If they feem fo to men, it is only becaufe
•they are rendered fo by confont and familiar ufe :
For when we attentively refledt upon them, we fhall
find that general ideas are fiiftions and contrivances,
-tliat carry difficulties with them, and do not fo
eafily offer themfel\es as we are apt to imagine.
Does it not, for example, require fome p;iins and
fkill to form the general idea of a triangle ; fince
it mufl be neither oblique nor reiStangular, neither
equilateral nor fcalenon, but all, and none of thefe
.at once. In elfeiS:, it is fomething imperfed;, which
cannot exilf, an idea wherein fome parts of feveral
•different and inconfiflcnt ideas are put together. It
is true the mind, in this imperfeft flate, has need
■of fuch ideas, and hailens to them for the conve-
niency of communication and enlargement of know-
ledge, to which it is naturally very much inclined.
There is however reafT:>n to fufpect that fuch ideas
-are marks of our imperfeftion, at leaft that the mofl
.abftraft ideas are not thofe which the mind is firlf
.and mofl eafjly acqi:aiflted with.
In the next place, it muft be confidered what is the
proper figniiication of general words. It is evident
they do not barely fignify one particular thing; for
then inflcad of being general terms, they would be
. proper names : neither do they fignify a plurality,
for then man and men would fignify the fame.
General words therefore fignify a fort or fpecies
of things ; and confequently the efTences of the fort
or fpecies of things, are nothing tlfe but abflrraft
ideas. The meafure, or boundary, of each fort, or
fpecies, whereby it i.s conftituted that particular
fort, and diftinguifhed from others, is v.'hat we call
effence, which is nothing but that abflraca: idea to
which the name is annexed ; whence it is eafy to
obferve, that the effences of the fpecies of things,
• and confequently the fort ing of things, is the
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workmanship of the undcrflanding that abftrads
and makes thofe general ideas.
Thefe cfiences or abllracS ideas are diflinfl: f])e-
cies. Thws a circle is as effentially different from
an oval, as a fliecp from a goat ; and rain is as
eficntially different from fnow, as water from
earth ; that ablhad idea, which is the elTcnce of
the one, being impofTiblc to be communicated to
the other. And thus any two abftracl ideas, thac
in any part vary from one another, with two dii-
tindl: names annexed to them, conflitute two dif-
tinft forts, or, if you pleafe, fpecies, as effentially
different, as any two the mofl remote or oppofite
in the world. Propofitions concerning any ab-
flraiSl ideas, that are once true, mufl needs bs
eternal verities.
Such i.s the excellent Mr. Locke's account of
abflradl ideas, and it is now generally allowed,
that the mind has -the power or faculty taf forming
abftra<fl ideas, or general notions of things. The
late learned Dr. Berkley has however called thi,>
doftrinc in queffion. " I will not affirm, fays
" that ingenious v--riter, that other people have not
" this wonderful faculty of abftraiting their ideas ;
" but I am confident I have it not myfelf. I
" have indeed a faculty of imagining or reprefent-
" ing to myfelf the ideas of thofe particular
" things I have perceived, and of varioufly coni-
" pounding or dividing them. I can imagine a
" man with two heads, or the upper parts of a
" man joined to tiie body of a horfe. I can con-
" fider the hand, the eye, the nofe, each by it-
"" felf abftrafted, or feparated from the refl of
" the body ; but then, whatever hand or eye I
■" imagine, it muft have fome particular fhape and
" colour. So likewile the idea of a man, that I
" frame to myfelf, mufl be either a white, or a
" black, or a tawny, a ftrait, or a crooked, a
" tall, or a low, or a middle-fized man. I can-
" not by any effort of thought conceive, the ab-
" flraiSl idea of a triangle above defcribed ; and it
" is equally impoffible for me to form the abftradt
" idea of motion, diftinit from the body moving,
" and which is neither fwift nor flow, curvilinear,
" nor re£tiline:ir ; and the fame may be faid of all
" other abflradt general ideas whatfoever."
Words, according to Mr.-Locke, become gene-
ral by being made the figns of general ideas. But
Dr. Berkley fays, words become general by being
made the fign, not of an abflraft general idea, but
of feveral particular ideas, any one of which it in-
differently fuggcfts to the mind. Thus, when it is
faid, for example, " The change of motion is pio-
" portional to the impreffed force ;" or, *' What-
" ever has extent is divifible ;" the propofitions
are to be underftood of motion and extenfion in
general ; but it will not therefore follow, that they
fuggeft to my thoughts an idea of motion without
a moving body, or any determinate dire6li»n, ve-
locity.
A B S
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locity, &c. or that we inuft coiicch-c an abftrait
general idea of extenfion, v/hich is neither line,
liirface, nor folic! ; nor great, jior fmall, black,
white, nor red, &:c. It only implies that what-
ever motion we confider, whether it be fwift or
flow, perpendicular, horizontal, or oblique, or in
whatever obje£t, the axiom concerning it holds
equally true ; as does the other of any particular
extenfion, it matters not whether it by a line,
furface, or folid, whether of this or that magni-
tude, figure, &c.
Abstract Terms, in logic, are fuch as denote
thofe objecSs which exilt only in the imagination.
Thus beauty and uglinefs are abftra^S terms.
There are fome objects that pleafe and appear
agreeable to us ; whereas, on the contrary, there
are others that afl-'cit us in a very dilagreeable man-
ner : the former we call beautiful, and the latter
ugly ; and yet there are no fuch real fubftances in
nature, as beauty and uglinefs ; they fubfiit in our
imagination only.
Abstract, or pure Alatlhinatia., are thofe bran-
ches which treat of magnitude, or quantity, con-
fulered abfolutely, and in general, without reflric-
tion to a particular part. Geometry, Algebra,
and Arithmetic, are therefore abftraiSl Alathe-
matics.
Abstract Numbers^ are afTemblages of units
confidered in themfelves, and not applied to denote
any colledLlons of particular and determined things.
Thus, 5. is an abftradt number if confidered
fimply in itfelf ; but if v^'e fay 5 feet, or 5 pounds,
then 5 becomes a concrete number.
ABSTRACTION, an operation of the mind,
whereby we feparate things naturally conne&d
together, and confider each fmgle relation, or pro-
perty of the fubjecS fmgly by itfelf.
This operation is performed three ways : i.
The human m.ind can confider any one part of a
thing, as really difiiniS from it ; as the arm, with-
out confidering the reft of the body. 2, The
mind can, by abftra(£lion, confider the mode of a
fubftance, omitting the fubftance itfelf; or con-
fider feparately the difFereiU modes, which exift
together in the fame fubjeit, I'his fpecies of
abftraiStion is ufed by. geometriciap.5, when they
confider the length of a body feparately, and
which they call a line, omitting the confideratioa
of its breadth and depth ; and then its length and
breadth together, v/hich they call a furface. By
the fame fp>ecies of abflraftion, we can diftinguifh
the determination of a motion towards whatever
place direiEted, from the motion itfelf. 3. By
abftraftiori we omitthe modes and relations of any
particular things, in order to form an univerfal
idea.
It is this facu'tv, or power of abftraftion that
makes the grciit difference between man and brutes.
-The latter .fecm to reafon about, particular objedls
and idea? ; but there does not appear in them, the
kail indication of abllrailion.
Abstractions, among chemifts, imply the
native fpirits of aromatic vegetables, to diftin-
guifh them from fpirits produced by fermen-
tation.
ABSTRUSE, fomething deep, hidden, or far
removed from the common apprehenfion, and
methods of conceiving ; in oppofitioa to what is
obvious and palpable.
The word is Latin, ah/lrufus, and compounded
of abs, from and tiudo, to thruft-.
ABSURD, an epithet which is applied to any
thing that contradiifls reafon, or the evidence of
one's fcnfes. It is too often m.ade ufc of in reli-
gious controverfies, when a point is difcuffed that
is above human comprehenfion : but in fuch cafes
improperly ; for though it would be abfurd to affirm
that four and five make only three, or that two and
one are equal to nine, as clafliing with a felf-evi-
dent propoiition ; yet in religious matters, that are
above the reach of human reafon, it fhould never
be applied, as the mind is too narrow to compre-
hend e\'ery thing that may be.
ABSURDITY, a kind of error or offence
againft fome evident, and generally received truth
or principle. The greateft of all abfurdities is.
the contradiSlion. See Contradiction.
Absurdity, in behaviour, figiiifies the very
contrary of wit. It is next to that, of all things
in the world, the moft proper to excite mirth..
What is foolifh, is the object of pity; but ab-
furdity, generally proceeds from an opinion of
fufHciency, and confequently is an honeft occa-
fion for lau2hter.
ABUNDANCE, in mythology. See the ar-
ticle Plenty.
ABUNDANT Nmnbersy with arithmeticians^
are fuch whofe aliquot parts added together is
greater than the number iUelf, as 20, whofe ali-
quot parts are I, 2, 4, 5, 10, and make 22.
See Aliquot, and Number.
ABUSE, in a general fenfe, implies the per-
verting fomething from its true defign, purpofe,
or intention.
The word is Latin, ahitfus^ aud compounded of
aby from and tifus, ufe, q. d. contrary to the true
ufe.
Abuse of zvordi, implies the ufing words with-
out any clear and diftinft ideas ; or, fometimes,
without any idea at all.
Language being the conduit,, whereby men con-
vey their difco\'eries, reafonings, and knowledge,.
from one to another ; he that makes an ill ufe of
it, though he does not corrupt the fountains of
knowledge, which are in the things themfelves ;
vet he does, as much as in him lies, to break or
Ifop the pipes whereby it is diftributed for the
public ufe. and advantage of mankind ; and may
ABU
'be looked upon as an enemy to truth and know-
ledge.
For as we are let into the knowledge of things
by words, fo wc arc oftentimes led into error or
miftake by the abufc of words ; flowing from thcfe
two caufes, viz. the natural and iina\oidablc imper-
fe<3io;i of languages, and the wilful faults and neg-
leds of men.
In order therefore to guard againfl fuch miftakcs,
as well as to promote our improvement in know-
ledge, it is neccffary to acquaint ourfclvcs a little
with the abufe of words, which men are fo often
guilty of. I . They ufe words without clear and
diftinft ideas ; or, which is worfe, figns without
any thing fignified : inftances of this kind may be
taiily had from tlie fchoolmcn and metaph) ficians.
2. Inconllancy in the ufe of words ; it being hard
lo find a difcourfe on any fubjcft, wherein the fame
words aj'c not ufed fomctimcs for one colleftion of
ideas, and fomctimes for another. 3. An affected
obfcurity, either by ufing old words in new fignifi-
tations, or by introducing new and ambiguous
terms, without defining them, or putting them to-
gether fo as to confound their ordinary meaning.
4. The taking of words for things ; though this in
fome degree concerns all names in general, yet it
more particularly affects thofe of fubftances; 'Ihus
in the Peripatetic philofophy, fubftantial forms, ab-
hcrrences of \acuum, &c. are taken for fomcthing
real. c. The /etting them in the place of things^
which they can bv no means fignify : thus v/e may
obferve, that in the general name of fubftances,
whereof the nominal cfTcnces are only known to
lis, when wc affirm or deny any thing about them ;
we do, very often, tacitly fuppofe, or intend, they
fhould ftand for the real effences of a certain fort
of fubflances : but to fuppofe thefe names to fland
for a thing, having a real elfence on which the pro-
perties depend, is a plain abufe; fince wc would
hiake them ftand for fomethinrr, which not bcins;
in our complex idea, the name we uie can no ways
be the fign of.
He therefore that hath names without ideas,
wants meaning in his words, and fpeaks only
empty founds: he that hath complex ideas without
ramcs for them, wants difpatch in his exprelTions :
he that ufes words looielv and unlleadily., v;iil either
not be mindedi, or not underftood : he that applies
his names to ideas different from their common
I'fe, wants proprietv, and fpeaks gibberifh : and he
that hath ideas of fubflances cifagreeing with the
real exiflence of things, fo far wants the mate-
rials of true knowledge in his underflanding, and
has inllead thereof chimeras.
To rcniedv the above-mentioned abufes of
fpcech, the following rules m.av be of ufe :
I. A man fhould take care to ufe no word with-
out a fignification ; no name without an idea
which he makes it ftand for.
A BY
2. Thole ideas he annexes them to fliould he
clear and diftiniit, which, in complex ideas, is by
knowing the particular ones that make that ccm-
pofitlon.
3. He mufl: apply his words, as near as may
be, to fuch ideas as common ufe has annexed tc)
them.
4. Whcji common ufe hs left the fignification
of a v/ord uncertain and loofe ; or ;A'hcre it is to be
ufed in a peculiar fenfe ; or where the term is liable
to any doubtfulnefs or miflake, there it ought to
be defined, and its fignification afcertained.
5. The lafl rule is, that in all difcourfes %vhere-
iii one man pretends to inflrutSl or convince ano-
ther, he flifiuld I'.fe the fame word conflantlv in
the fame fenfe ; if this were conflaiuly done
(which no body can refufe without great difin-
genuity) many of the books extant might be
fpared ; many of the controverfies in difpute v/ould
be at an end ; feveral cf thole great volumes^
fwollen with ambiguous v/onls, now ufed in one
fenfe, and by and by in another, would fhrink in-
to a very narrow compafs. Lsc/n: en Human Under-
Jlandlr.g.
ABUTTALS, the boundaries of a piece of
land.
ABUTILON, in botany, a plant of the mal-
lov/ kind, bearing a flower, that confifls of five
diftinift petals ; from the center of which arifcs a
number of united filaments, whofe tops are orna-
mented with round antherre, and a fhort fingle
Itvle. When the fiov.'er is decayed, the fruit ap-
pears, containing a number of cells, each of which
when open difccvers a kldney-fhaped feed. There
are feveral varieties of thefe plants, fome of which
produce round feed ; but moft of the forts being
natives of the Weft Indies-, require more heat than
this climate can naturally afford them.
ABYSS, in a general fenfe, fignifies without a
bottom : and is derived from the Greek a, priv.
Pyj-fl-©', a bottom.
In a particular fenfe it means that imracnfe
cavern of the earth into which God collevTted all
die waters on the third day, to ferve as a refervoir
for the fupply of his creatures. Dr. AYoodv/ard
conjeiSlurcs, that there is a mighty mafs of waters
enclofed in the bowels of the earth, conffitut-
ing a vaft orb in the central parts of it ; and over
the furface of this water he imagines the ter-
reflrial ftrata to be formed; Thisj according to
him, is what Mofes calls the great deep, and what
moll authors render the great abyfs. Ho fays, that
the fea has a communication with thefe waters, hy
means of cliafms in the earth : v.'hich conjecture
appears not altogether groundlefs, as it would be
difficult to account any other way for the v.-ift in-
flux of waters into feveral lakes, as well as into the "
Cafpian fea, from which no cfBux has ever yet
been obferved.
G Aby!J»
AC A
A C A
Abyss, in Scripture, fignifies alfo iicll, or that
iminenfe fpiice where, according to the opinion ot
the Jews, the giants arc fuftcring the- punifliment
of their fins. It is there that the Rephaims, or
ancient giants of Canaan, are bound, with all
thofe Icings of lyre, Babylon, and Egypt, whole
pride and cruelties have been recorded in the Pro-,
phets.
Thefe abyircs arc the dreary and difmul abode of
the impious and unjull. " 1 faw," fays St. John
in the Revelations, " a ftar fall from heaven unto
" the earth : and to him was given the key of the
" b'AtoniLfi pit : that pit, where the migodlv //W/
" fc(k clccitb, and Jhall not find it ; and Jhall dijire to
" die^ cind death /Ijall _flec from ihcni."
ACACIA, in botany, the f]gyptian thorn.
'I'here are feveral fort;: of this genus of plants ;
but all claflcd by Dr. Linna;us with the Mimofa^
or fenfitive plant. The principal difference between
the acacia and mimofa is, that the leaves of the
acacia will not fall at the touch, whereas thofe of
the mimofa will, fo as to appear withered : the
foit which is beit known by the name of the
Egyptian thorn is very common in England, and
produces a tree of a tolerable fize ; the leaves of
which are placed oppofite to each other in pairs ;
the flowers, which grow in bunches, confift each
of one leaf, flightly divided at the extremity into
five parts; the tilamcnts are hairy and longer than
the Ityle ; from the flower a pod is produced which
contains feveral flat oblong feeds. The branches
of mod: ot the forts are armed with Itrong fharp
thorns. From this plant the gum arabic is
taken.
Acacia Gcrmanica, an infpifTated juice, made
from wild floes before they are ripe.
ACACIANS, in ccclefiaitical hiilory, the name
cf feveral ie£ts of heretics; fome of whom main-
tained, that the fon was only of a fimilar, not the
fame fubftance with the father ; and others, that he
was not only a diftinct, but alfo of a diflimihir
fubftance.
ACADEMICS, a fed of ancient philofophers,
the difciples of Socrates and Plato, fo called from
Academe, which was a garden or villa near Athens,
v/here Plato and Socrates ufed to converfe and dif-
pute on philofophical fubjefts. The particular te-
nets advanced by thefe fages were, that all know-
Ii-dge is at beft uncertainty, and that truth is dii"-
ftcult if not impoflible to be attained. They did
not however carry thefe opiiiions to that extrava-
gant pitch which the Pyrrhonians did, who doubt-
ed of every thing, hut confined them to phyfics.
It is true, indeed, that Socrates profeifed that he
knew nothing ; but it v/as partly through modcfty
thut he fpoke thus, and partiv to ridicule the pride
and vanity of his brother philofophers, who fool-
ifhly imagined there was nothing that they did
not know. If we excufe in thc'Acr.demlci this
affectation of ignorance and difiidencc of thcm-
felves, we fhall find little or nothing in their doc-
trines but what is pure and praife-worthy. The
writings of Plato are full of wifdom and truth :
he taught, in the fweeteft and moft eloquent (lile,
fuch doctrines as feein to be beyond the reach of
human wiidom ; which have occafioned his being
upbraided with plagiarifm, as if he had iloleii
them from the books of Alofes. It mull be con-
fcfled, that it is difficult any other way to account
for fome parts of his fublime knowledge ; as that
there is one infinite and eternal God, the father
and creator of all things ; that he made the world
out of nothing, according to a certain exemplar
c/r model in his own mind ; that man was born of
the earth ; that he was naked ; that he enjoyed a
truly happy ftate ; with feveral points befides, fo
abhorrent from the heathen, and agreeable to the
Jewifli philofophy, that he got tlie name of the
Attic Mofcs.
Notwithflanding Plato recommended to his dif-
ciples a diffidence of thcmfelves, and inftructed
them to doubt of every thing ; yet he feems to
have done it in fuch a manner as if he did not in-
tend to leave them fluctuating between truth and
error, but to put them upon their guard againit
rafli and precipitate dccifions, and teach them to
accuftom their minds to examine every thing freely
and wiithout preiudiee, as being the only means of
fecuring thcmfelves from error. It were to be
wifhed that the fame could be faid of thofe who
fucceeded him in his philofophy, namely Aj"cefilas,
Carncadcs, Clitomachus, and Philo. But they
feem to have carried his erroneous notions much
hiaher ; for they do not only affirm that we know
nothing, but even that we do not know whether
we know any thing.
We read of five difFerent academies ; the firft
under Socrates and Plato ; the fecond under Ar-
cefilas ; the third under Carneades ; the fourth un-
der Philo, the difciple of Clitomachus ; and the
fifth founded by Antifchus : but they feem rather
to be branches cf the fame root, than fo many
diflcrent trees ; unlefs indeed we except the fifth
academy, in which the Stoic doctrines were drelled
out in the old academic fur.
ACADEMY, a delicious garden or villa, with-
in a mile of Athens, fo called from one Academus,
or Ecademits, a citizen of Athens, to whom it
originally belonged. Plato tells us, that it was a
kind of gymnafium, or ])lace of exercife, in the
fuburbs of that city, watered by a gentle fpring,
and furroundcd with groves of olive and plantane.
It was the favourite retreat of the philofophers and
fages of Athens, but particidaily of Socrates and
Plato ; for which reafon the fe£t founded by thena
was ftiled academic. Alilton gives us a beautiful
defcription of it in his Paradifc Regained, Book i\-.
1. 244.
bee
A C A
Sec tlicre the olive grove of aciuk'mfc
PJato's retirement, where the Attic biid
Trills her thick warbled notes the fumnicr long ;
'I"here flow'ry hill Hyiiiettus with the found
Of bees indurtrious murniur oft invites
'['o Ihidious nmfing ; there Ililllis rolls
His whifpering llream. ■
Cicero had a villa, or place of retirement, near
Tuzzuoli, to which he gave the name of academy,
where he ufed to entertain his friends with what
the poet tails, " The feaft of rcafon, and the flov/
of foul." It was there that he compofed his Acade-
mical ^ijejikns., and his book Dc Natura Dcorum.
Academy, among the moderns, is generally
ufed to fignify a fociety or company of men of
letters, eitabliflaed for the culture of the arts and
fciences.
Some authors have confounded the word aca-
demy with that of univerfity ; and it is indeed
Ibmetimes ufed for a fchool, or place of inflruction,
where the arts and fciences are taught. We have
in England two royal academies of this kind, one
at Woolwich, and the other at Portfmouth, be-
i'ldes a great number of private fchools called aca-
demies : but in the proper I'enfe of the words they
are really different ; the former implying a fociety of
learned men, who meet to confer and communi-
cate their lights to one another, for their mutual
benefit and the improvement of the arts ; and the
latter a body compofed of graduates in the feveral
faculties ; of profeflors who teach in the public
Ichools ; of regents or tutors, and of iludents who
learn under them, and afpire likcwife to degrees.
See the article University.
Charlemagne has the honour of being the firft
that eftabliflred an academy in Kurope. It was
compofed of the chief wits of the court, and the
emperor himfclf was one of the members. In their
academical conferences each perfon was to give an
account of what ancient authors he had read, and
each academician aflumed the name either of fome
ancient writer, or fome celebrated perfon of anti-
quity.
At prefent moft nations have their academies,
RuHia not excepted ; but Italy excels in this re-
fpect, at leaft in point of numbers. Wc have but
few in England ; the chief of which are the royal
fociety, the antiquarian fociety, the fociety for
the encouragement of arts, and the academy of
painting. See Royal Sodrty, Antiquarian
Society, and SociETYyir the Encouragement of Arts.
There is alfo a literary fociety eilablifhed in Scot-
land. See Edinburgh Society.
The French have feveral flourifhing academies
of all kinds, particularly the following :
French Academy, a fociety inftituted In the
year 1635, for perfc(3ing the French language.
Fhey mett at the Old Louvre three tiaics a week.
A C A
diirit)^' the wiiote year; but have tic public aflem-
blies, except thofe in which they receive fome new
academician, and that which Ls held on St. Louie's
day, when they diiiribute the prizes of cloquer.cc
and pociry, each of which confifts of a gold me
dal. 'J'hey have already publiflied a dictionary, in
tituled, LciD it lio'iiiairede I' Academic Franco ife. 'Fhcir
motto is, A I'Immortatitt.
Royal Academy of Scitrices was founded at
Paris in the year )666, and confirmed by the
king in 1699, for the improvement of phyfics,
mathematics, and chemiftry.
The academy at firft confifted of ten honorary
academicians ; eight itrangers, affociates ; twenty
penfioncrs, fellows ; twenty eleves, or fcholars ;
and twelve French afTociates.
But in the year i6g6, the academy received a
new regulation ; by which it was compofed of ten
honorary members, twenty penfioners, three
geometricians, three aftronomers, three mcchanits,
three anatomiils, three botanifts, three cliemiits,
a trcafurer, and a fecretary, who are both perpe-
tual ; twenty alTociates, twelve of whom muft be
inhabitants of France, and eight foreigners ; and
twenty eleves, each of whom muft be attached to
one of the penfioncr acaJemifts.
In the year 1716, the duke of Orleans, then
regent of the kingdom, thought proper to make
fome amendments to this regulation ; and accord-
ingly, the clafs of cloves was fuppreiTcd, it ap-
pearing to be attended with fome inconveniences,
particularly that of making too great an inequa-
lity among the acadamicians, and being produc-
tive of fome animofitles among the members. At
the fame time he created two new dalles, one con-
lifting of twehe adjunch, and the other of fix free
ailociates.
Ever fince the eftablifhment of this academy in
the year 1699, they have been very exaft in pub-
liftiing every year a voliune in quarto, containing
either the works of Its own members, or fuch me-
moirs as have been compofed and read to the aca-
demy during the courfc of the year. To each
volume is prefixed the hlftory of the academy, or
an extract of the memoirs, and. In general, of
whatever has l>een read or fald in the academy : at
the end of the hlflory are the eulogies of fuch aca-
demlfts as have died during the coiu-fc of that
year.
The late Mr. Rouille de Meflay, counfellor to
the parliament of Paris, founded two prizes, one of
two thoufand fi\'e hundred livrcs, and the other of
two thoufand, which are diftributed alternately by
the academy every year ; the fubjeifts for the firft
muft relate to phyfical aftronomy, and thofe for the
latter to na\ igation and commerce.
'i'he motto of this academy is, Invenit Isf
pcrficit,
Riya! Academy of Jnfcyiptions ami Belki Lettret,
was
A C A
v/as eftabliflicd by Lewis XIV. In the year 1663,
and focn after tlicir inftitution, they undertook 10
compofe, by means df medals, a connefted hilto.'y of
the principal events of that prince's reign.
In the year 1701, tliii academy received a new
regulation ; by which- it waj to confift: of ten ho-
norary members, ten pcnfioncrs, tcii aflbciatcs,
and ten eleves ; but the lall have been fince fup-
prefled and united to the affociates. The fecrctary
and treafurer are both perpetual ; and the academy
liave publifhed fereral volumes, which contain, bc-
ildes the memoirs which arc thought proper to ap-
pear intire, extracts made by the fecrctary from
ie\-eral others, together with the eulogies of the
dcceafed members. The academy diftributes every
year a gold medal of four hundred livres value, as
a literary prize founded by M. Darcy de Noinvillc,
'i'heir motto is, VeUit ?iiori.
Royal Academy of Sciences and Belles Lcliies of
Prtijfia, a flourifliing academy eftablifhed at Ber-
lin in the year 1700, by Frederic I. King of Pruf-
lia. This academy has publifhed feveral volumes
of memoirs, containing fe\cral curious and ufeful
papers in various arts and fciences.
Imfrnal Academy of Peterjlurg, a fociety of
learned men, ellablifhed at Peterfturg in the year
1726, by the Czarina Catharine ; fince which time
they have publifhed thirteen volumes of memoirs
wrote in Latin, feveral parts of which, efpecially
the mathematical papers, are ^■ery valuable. The
motto of this academy is, Paulatim.
Roydl Spanijh Academy is an academy for cul-
tivating the Caflilian tongue, eftablifhed at Madrid
on the model of the French academy. The defign
of this fociety was laid by the duke d'Efcalona,
and approved of by the king in 1714, who de-
clared himfelf its protestor, ft confdls of twenty-
four r.cademilb, including the director and fecrc-
tary. Its device is a crucible on the fire, with this
r.;otto, Limpia fija y da cfpleudov.
ii-CADEMY of Natura Curiofi, in Germany, was
f.ift founded in 1652, by Mr. Baufch, a phy'fician,
nnd t-tken, in 1670, under the protection of the
fmperor Leopold,
Italy alone has mere academies of note than all
the rcil: of the world ; not a city but furniflies a
fot of learned pcrfons for an academy, which to
them fecms an cfTcntial part of a regular conftitu-
tinn. Jarckius has given us a fpecimcn of their
hiflory, printed at Lcipfic in 1725.
Jarckius's account goes no farther than to the
ficidemics of Piedmont, Ferrara, and Milan ; in
v/hich lull cjfy he reckons twenty-fiC ; but adds
a lid of ail the rcf}, to the number of five hundred
and fifty.
Academy of Pahiting, is a public fchool to
which the paiitters refort, either to draw, or paint,
and where the fculptors model after a naked pcr-
foHj which they call a model.
A C A
The royal academy of painting and fculpture at
Paris took its rife from the difputes that hap-
pened among the mafler-painters and fculptors in
that capital. This induced Lc Brun, Sarazin,
Corneille, and others of the king's painters, to
form the defjgn of a particular academy ; and,
Iiaving prefented a petition to the king, they ob-
tained an arret, dated the 20th of January, 1648.
Their meetings were at firfi: held in the apartments
of M. Ciiarmois, fecretary to the m-arfha! Schom-
bcrg, v/ho drcv/ up the firft body of flatute^ for
the academy.
Afterwards tbe academy conferred in the hoi:fc
of a friend of M. Charmois, fituate near St. Eufc-^
chius's ; from whence they removed to the hotel
dc Cliflbn, where they continued their exercifes
till the year 1653, when the academifls removed
into the ilreet des Dechargeurs. In the year 1654,
and towards the beginning of 1655, they obtained
from cardinal Mazarine a brevet and letters patent,
which were regiflered in parliament ; and, in
grateful acknowlcgement for this favour, they
chofe the cardinal for their protedtor, and the chan-
cellor for their vice-protector.
It is remarkable, that the chancellor had, from
the irrll: inftitution of the academy, been named
its proteftor ; but, in order to make his court to
cardinal Mazarine, he declined that title, and con-
tented himfelf with that of vice-protc£tor.
In the year 1656, Sarazin granted to the aca-
demy an apartment which he at that time had in
the galleries of the Louvre ; but they were obliged
to quit it in the year 1661 : and M. de Ratabon,
fuperintcndant of the buildings, removed them to
the Palais-royal, where they remained one and
thirty years. At laft the king gave them an apart-
ment in the Old Louvre.
In the year 1663, the academy obtained, by
means of M. Colbert, a penfion of 4000 livres.
This academy confifts of a protestor, a vicc-
proteflor, a direftor, a chancellor, four reflors,
adjuncts to the rectors, a treafurer, forty profcllbrs,
one of which is profeflbr of anatomy, and another
of geometry ; feveral adjunvfts and counfellors, a
fecrctary and hiftoriographer, and two ufhers.
The academy of painting holds a public af-
fembly every day for two hours, after noon, to
which the painters refort, either to defign or paint,
and where fculptors model after a naked perfon.
There arc twelve prcfeflbrs, each of whom keeps
the fchool for a month ; and there are twelve ad-
juncts to fupply them in cafe of need. The pro-
feflbr upon duty places the naked man, who is
called the model, in fuch a pofition as bethinks
proper, and feis Ifnn in twi) different attitudes
every week : this is what they call fctting the
model. In one week of the month he fets two
models together, v.diich is what they call fetting
the groupe. The paintinj.'s and models made after
this
A C A
this model, as well a: the copies made from them,
are called academies, or academy figures. They
have like wife a woman who flands for a mode! in
the public fchool. Every three months, three
prizes for defigii are diftributcd among the eleves,
or difciples, as are two others for painting, and two
For fculpture, every year. Thofe who gain the
prizes of painting and iculpture, are fent to Rome,
at the king's expence, to ftudy there, and com-
pleat themfelves in their art.
Befides the royal academy, there are two other
fchools, or academies, of painting in Paris ; one
whereof is at the royal manufaifture of the Gobe-
lins : this fchool is under the direiSlion of artills,
to v/hom the king allows an apartment in the
royal hotel of the Gobelins, and who generally are
members of the royal academy. The other is the
academy of St. Luke, which is maintained by the
company of mafter-painters and fculptors, and
was eftabliflied by the provoil of Paris, on the 1 2th
of Auguft, 1 39 1. Charles VII. in the year 143c,
granted to it feveral privileges, which were con-
lirmed in the year 1584, by Henry III. and in 16(3,
the companies of painters and fculptors were
united. This company hath at prefent a houfe
near St. Denis de la Chartre, where their office is
held ; and a public academy carried on in the
fame manner as the royal academy, and where
every year they difl:ribute, among their difciples,
three prizes for defigns. The only academy we
have in England of this kind, is in St. Martin's-
lane, London.
Academy of Arxhi tenure, a company of fkil-
fiil architects, eilabliihed at Paris in the year
1671, by M. Colbert, under the direclion of the
iuperintendant of the buildings.
Academy is alio ufed in fpeaking of the fchools
and feminaries of the Jews, where their rabbins
and doiSfors inilruiSted the youth of their nation in
the Hebrew language, and explained to them the
Talmud and the fee rets of the Cabala. The Jews
have always had thcfe fort of academies ever fmce
their return from Babylon ; thofe of Tiberias and
Babylon have been the moit celebrated.
Academy is alfo particularly underflrood of a
riding fchool, or a place where young gentlemen
are taught to ride the great horfe, as alfo the ufe
of arms, dancing, vaulting, &c. This is what
Vitruvius calls ephebeum ; and fome others,
among the ancients, gvmnafium ; the moderns call
it equeflrian, or military academy.
The duke of Newcaftle will have the art. of
riding to have had its origin in Italy ; and the firft
academy of this fort to have been eflabliflicd at
Naples, by Frederic Grifon, who, he adds, was
the firft that wrote on this fuhjedl, which he did,
like a true cavalier, and a good mafter. Henry
VTII. fays the fame author, called over two
Italians, difciples of Grifon, into England, y/ho
A C A
/boil flocked the nation with ecuyers, or riding-
mafters.
He adds, that the greatefl mi.fter which Italy
ever produced, was a Neapolitan, called Pigna-
telli ; that La Broue rode under him five yeais,
Pluvincl nine, and S. Antoine many years; and
that thefe Frenchmen filled France with French
maflers, which, till then, had known only
Italians.
The ground fet apart in an academy for tiding,
is called the menage, having ufually a pillar in the
centre, and other pillars placed two by two at the
fides.
Academy Figures, in painting, are defigns
made after a model with a crayon or pencil.
ACAJOU, the Cafieiv-Nut-Trce, in botany,
the name of a genus of trees, comprehended by
Linnaeus among the anacardiums. See Ana-
CARDIl'M.
ACALEPTIC, in the ancient profody, an ap-
pellation given to fuch verfes as have all their fi:et
complete.
ACALYPHA, in botany, the three-feeded mer-
cury, a plant that produces male and femiale
flowers, neither of which have any petals : the
calyx of each are compofed of three roundifh
leaves ; from the cup of the male flowers arife
eight or ten ftamina ; in the center of the female
flowers, a round oviary is fituated, fupporting
three branching flyles ; when the flowers decay,
the oviary is divided into three cells, containing in
each one large round i'eed. This plant is the ri-
cinocarpos of Eoerhaave.
ACANACEOUS, in botanj', are plants of
the thiille kind, hax'ing heads with prickles on
them.
ACANTHA, among botanifts, a name given
to the prickles of thorny plants.
AcANTHA, is alfo ufed by zoologifts for the
fpines of certain flfhcs, as thofe of the echinus
marinus. See.
AcANTHA is alfo a term ufed by fome ana-
tomifirs, for the protuberances of die back-bone,
otherwife called fpina dorfi.
ACANTHABOLUS, in furgery, a kind of
forceps,, or inflrument for pulling out thorns,
and other fharp-pointed bodies, that may have
penetrated the fkin : alfo an inftrument for pulling
liairs from the eye-brows, &c. .
ACANTHACEOUS, among botanifcs, an
epithet- gi\'en to all plants of the thiflle kind,,
on account of the prickles with v/liich they are
befet.
ACANTHUS, in. botany, the branca uiTini, ^
or bears breech ; this plant produces a monope-
talous unequal flower, with a double empalemcnt,
the outer compofed of three leaves indented : the
inner empalement confifts of two leaves, the up-
per one concave, and ferratcd at the top, and the ■
H. unde:-
A C C
wider one convex ; this flower produces four {la-
mina, two long, and two fhort, clofely adhering
to the ftvle, which is fituated on a roundifh ger-
nicn, that afterward becomes an oval capfuls,
producing tv/o cells containing iji each one flefhy
linooth oblong feed.
Acanthus, in archite£l:ure, an ornament re-
prcfcnting the Jeaives of the herb acanthus, and
ufcd in the capitals of the Corinthian and Com-
pofite orders. See the article Capital.
For this purpofe, the Greek fculptors imitated
the leaves of the foft acanthus, as the Goths did
thofe of the prickly kind.
ACARNA, a name by v.'hich Theophraftus
calls the common thiitle.
ACARUS, in zoology, a numerous genus of
jnfefts, comprehending the mites in general, and
the lice of feveral animals.
ACATERY, or Accatry, an officer in the
kijig's houfhold, defigned as a check between the
clerks of the king's houfliold and the clerks
of the kitchen.
ACATHUSTUS, in ecclefiaftical hiflory, a
hymn anciently fung in the Greek church, in ho-
nour of the Virgin.
ACAULIS, in botany, thofe flowers which
have no vifible llalks, but appear to relt on the
ground.
ACCEDAS (id curiam, in law, a writ lying
where a man hath received or fears falfe imprifon-
ment in a hundred court, or court baron.
ACCELERATED, in a general fenfe, im-
plied quickened, or continually increafing in mo-
tion.
Accelerated Motion, in phyilcs, is that whofe
velocity is continually increaiing ; and when the
velocity is equally increafed in equal times, it is
faid to be uniformly accelerated.
The accelerated motion of falling bodies is pro-
duced by the impulfe of gravity, which keeps con-
jtantly afting upon them, and thereby communi-
cating a new increafe of motion every inftant.
The acceleration of the defcent of heavy bodies
was firll difcovered by Ga!ila;us ; and by due ap-
plication of Sir Ifaac Newton's fecond law of mo-
tion, is clear and evident, viz. 77}at the change of
motion is always proportionahle to the force imprejfed,
and is akvays according to that fame line of direction.
For fuppofmg gravity, at equal diilanccs from the
earth's center, to ai^t uniformly on all bodies, and
that the time in which any body f:\lls to the earth
be divided into infinitely fmall and equal parts :
let gravity incline the body towards the earth's
center, while it moves in the firll infinitely fmall
part of the time of its defcent ; if after this the
aiStion of gravity fhould ceafe, the body would go
towards the earth's center equally, with a velocity
equal to the force of that firft imprefllon. But
iiicn, if we fuppofe that the adtion of gravity does
A CC
continue, in the fecond inftant the body will receive
a new impulfe towards the earth, equal to that
which it received in the firft inftant, confequently
its velocity will be doubled, in the third inftant
trebled, in the fourth quadrupled, and fo on : for
the irrpulfe made in any preceeding inftant is no
ways altered by that which is made in the follow-
ing ; wherefore the inftants of time being fuppofed
infinitely fmall, and all equal, the velocity acquired
by the falling body will be in every inltant as the
times from the beginning of the defcent, and con-
fequently the velocity will be proportionable to the
time in which it is acquired. After the fame
manner it may be proved that the motion of afcend-
ing proje£f ives fhall be equably retarded ; for fince
the force of gravity adts continually and equably
againft the motion firft begun, it muft diminifh or
abate the motion according to the time of afcent,
till at laft it entirely ceafe.
The fpace run through by a moving body during
a given time, and with a given velocity, may be
confidered as a reftangle compounded of the time
and velocity. Let the right line AB (Plate IL
fig. I . ) exprefs the time of any heavy body's defcent,
and let BC, at right angles to it, denote the velo-
city acquired at the end of the fall. Draw AC, and
divide A Yi into any number of equal parts, deno-
minated intervals or proportions of the given time,
as DE and EG, which will exprefs the velo-
cities acquired in the times of defcent A D and AF ;
for becaufe of the fimilar triangles AB : AF ::
BC:FG,andas AF: AD :: FG:DE; where-
fore it is evident that the velocities are as the times
of defcent ; that is, as the lines or elements of
the triangle ABC, drawn parallel to the bafe
BC.
By imagining fliorter divifions of time, for ex-
ample, but half fo long as the former, the indent-
ures of the figure will be proportionably more con-
tradled, and it will approach near unto a triangle :
And if they be taken infinitely fmall ; that is, if
increments of the velocity be fuppofed to be ac-
quired continually, and at each indivifible particle
of time, which is really the cafe, the reiStangles (o
fucceffively produced will form a true triangle, as
ABE ; (See Plate IL fig. 2.) the whole time AB
confifting of minute portions of times, A i, A 2,
&c.. and the area of the triangle ABE, of all the
minute furfaces, or minute trapeziums, which an-
fwer to the divifions of the times ; the area of the
whole triangle cxprefling the fpace run through
during the time AB. Or the triangles ABE,
A I f being fimilar, their areas are to each other,
as the fquaresof their homologous fides AB, A i,
&c. and confequently the fpaces gone through, are
to each other as the fquares of the times.
^Vhence alio may he deduced this great Liw of
acceleration : That a body defccnding with an uni-
formly accelerated motion, defcribcs in the whole time of
its
A C C
Its drfcoti, a Jpace which is exaSlly the half of thr.t
which it vjouhl ilefcribe uniformly in the fame tune.
its
which it ivould defriie uniformly in the f,
tvith the velocity it acquires at the end of its fill. For,
as we have already fhewn, the whole fpace which
-the falling body has run through in the time AB,
will be reprefented by the triangle ABE ; and the
• fpace that body would run through uniformly in the
fame time, with the velocity B E, will be repre-
fented by the redangle ABEF : But it vi well
known, that the triangle is cxaiSfly equal to half
the reftangle : fo that the fpace run through, will
be the half of that which the body would defcribe
uniformly in the fame time, with the velocity ac-
quired at the end of its fall.
We may therefore conclude, ift. That the fpace
which would be uniformly defcribed in half the
time AB, with the ultimately acquired velocity
BE, is equal to that which has been actually run
through by the falling body during the whole time
2d. If the falling body defcribes any given fpace,
-or length, in a given time; in twice that time, it
will defcribe four times as much ; in thrice thtti
time, nine times as much, &c. In a word, if the
times are in proportion to each other, as the ferics
I, 2, 3, 4, &c. the fpaces run through will be as
the fquares of thefe numbers, that is, as i, 4, g,
16, &c. that is to fay, if a body defcribes, for
example, 16 feet in the firft fecond minute of its
fall, in the two firft taken together, it will de-
fcribe four times 16 feet ; nine times 16 feet
in the three firft feconds taken together ; and fo
on.
3d. The fpaces defcribed by falling bodies, in a
ferics of equal inftants or intervals of time, will
be as the odd numbers I, 3, 5, 7, g, 5cc. that is,
the body which has run thro' 16 feet in the firft fe-
cond, will in the next fecond run thro' 48 feet, iu
the third fecond 80 feet, (S:c. and fince the veloci-
ties acquired in falling are as the times, the fpaces
v/ill be likewife as the fquares of the velocities ;
and the times and the velocities in the fub-dupli-
cate ratio of the fpaces.
The motion of an afcending bodv, or of one
that is impelled upwards, is diminifhcd or retarded
bv the fame principle of gravity afling in a con-
trary direiStion, after the fame manner that a falling
body is accelerated. See Retardation.
A body projected upwards, afcends until it has
loft all its moticn ; which it does in the fame inter-
val of time that the fame body would have takeij
up in acquiring by faHing, a velocity equal to that
with which the falling body begait to be projected
upv/ards. And confequently the heights to which
bodies. projected upwards, with diftcrent velocities,
arrive, are to each other as the fquare.of thofe ve-
locities.
Accelerated Motion of ProjeSlihs. See Pr.o-
JtCTILES.
AC C
Accelerated Motif,n of ccmpreffd hulles. Sec
CoMrREssioN and Elasticity.
ACCELERATION, in phyfics, an increafe of
velocity in the motion of a body ; it is oppofed to
retardation, by which term is underftood a dimi-
nution of velocity. See Motion, Velocity,
and Retardation.
Acceleration, in mechanics, implies the aug-
mentation or increafe of motion in accelerated bo-
dies. Sec Accelerated Motion.
Acceleration of the Motion of Pendulums.
See the article Pendulum.
Acceleration, among the old aftronomcrs,
implied the difterence between the revolution of the
primum mobile and that of the fun, and which they
computed to be about three minutes and fifty-fix
feconds.
ACCELER ATI VE ^lantity of centripetal Force,
in phyfics, is the meafure of that force, proportional
to the velocity which it generates in a giveji time.
See Centripetal Force.
ACCELERATOR, in anatomy, the name of
two mufcles of the penis, fo denominated froni their
accelerating the difcharge of the urine and femen.
ACCENDENTES, or AccENS0REs,in theRo-
man church, are a lower clafs of minifters, whofe
principal bufinefs confifts in lighting, fnufRng, and
trimming the lamps, candles, and tapers.
ACCENSI, in the Roman armies, were a fort
of fupernumerary foldicrs, intended to fupply the
places of thofe who might be killed or difabled.
ACCENT, in a general fenfe, fignifies a cer-
Uiin tone or manner of fpeaking, peculiar to foine
country or province.
Accent is ufed in grammar for the particular af-
fection or impreffion of the voice on certain words
and fyllables, by which they acquire their due force
and meaning. Some who have written upon this
fubjeft make a diftinvllion between accent and tone,
referring die former to the variation of the time in
fpeaking, and the latter to the dift'erent modula-
tions or inflexions of the voice. But there feems .
to be no occafion for fuch a difttiidtion ; we fhall
therefore confwier them as one and the fame thins,
in treating of this article.
The ear is foon fatiated with a continuation of
one and the lame found ; nor can the foul be afreft-
ed at all by the fame motions and percuffions of the
air. Nature therefore has wifely inftrufted the
voice, in every language, not to move by fingle
and uniform founds, nor to ftrike perpetually the
fime notes, without any variation of the time.
No : — by fuch a pronunciation as this, every
found muft necelfanly be furd and unmeaning,
painful to the voice, ajid ungrateful to the car.
Repeat only the following line in the fame tenor,
unchanged alike in time or accent, through every
fyllable, and you will have no idea yourfelf, n9r
be underftood by any one elfe ;
Was
A C C
A C C
Was I glad — that j now | Ins | fea | a I fhore
Ihould I find.
But if you unite every two of thefe founds into
one movement, and let your voice alternately reft
on one, and flip over another, and rife on one,
and fall on the other, you will find a meaning, and
fpeak and be heard with pleafure. This refting
and varying of t^je voice is what we properly call
the accent.; and this it is which gives to every lan-
guage its peculiar ftrength, fweetnefs, and har-
mony. It is very juftly remarked by Cicero, that
'' mira efl; natura vocis, cujus quidem, e tribus
*' omnino fonis inflexo acuto gravi, tanta fit, et
*' tarn fuavis varietas perfedta in cantibus. Eft
*' aiitcra in dicendo etiam quidam cantus." The
vature of the voice is admirable, u^hich frcin three via-
Aulatiom only, the circuwf.ex, the grave, and the acute,
offords fo great and plenfi'ig a variety of fmging : nay
there ii a kind of chant even in our common difcotirfe.
Every language has its peculiar accent, which dif-
lers according to the genius and temper of the
people by whom it is fpoken : it is either grave or
acute, ihong or weak, rare or frequent. This it
IS which regulates the mufic of different countries,
giving to each that particular charafter v/hich
makes it ftriclly its own : for as thefe are the foands
by which nature teaches us to exprefs the various
emotions of the foul, no mufic can poflibly affect or
captivate us that is not in fome meafure direfted by
them. And this perhaps is the true reafon why an
Englifh audience is juitly difpleafed with the great-
eft part of the recitative that is performed on our
theatres. It does not bear any refemblance to our
common manner of exprefling ourfelves ; but is ge-
nerally borrowed from the Italians, and feems in-
deed to be nothing elfe than the accent of that lan-
guage carried a little beyond its natural pitch.
It has long been a matter of much contention
amongft the learned, whether the Greeks origi-
nally made u(c of accents, or they are of modern
invention : We would here be fuppofed to mean
thofe three characters that are placed over the
Syllables of their words, to denote the accent.
Thefe are, firft, The acute accent, when the voice
is to be railed, which is figured thus (') ; fe-
condly, The grave acent, v;hen the voice is to
be deprefled, exprefled thus ('); and thirdly.
The circurifex, compofcd of the aciue and grave,.
which is marked thus C^ or ' ). It is certain that
in fpeaking they muft have made ufe of accents,
as otherwife their language would have been furd
and unmeaning: but it is very improbable, that
they exprefled their accents by particular marks ;
as we find that all ancient infcriptious and manu-
ibripts can boaft of very little precifion, being
■written in capital letters, equidiibr>t from each
other, without the leaft diftiniflion either of words
or phrafes. If they did not take the pains then to
exprefs e\'cn tlieir words exaftly, fo that they could
not be miftakcn ; how unlikely is it, that they
fiiould mark, with fuch prodigious accuracy, the
manner in which every word was to be fpoken ?
Indeed fuch a labour as this appears to be unnecef-
fary ; as there are very few words in a living lan-
guage of fo doubtful a fignification, as to require
that the pronunciation of them fhould be ex-
prelsly marked down, left they be mifunderftood by
the ignorant and unwary. Kow then ihall we ac-
count for the introduction of thefe particular
m.arks and characters .'' Shall we agree v/ith Il'aac
Voffius, and other eminent grammarians, that
they are of modern invention ? but at what precife
time were they firft of all made ufe of? Some
are of opinion, that they are not of much later
date than about 900 years, and were introduced
by the Arabs to prevent a barbarous pronuncia-
tion, which was then breaking in upon them :
but it appears to us as if they were of much longer
continuance; being in all likelihood invented,
when Athens was the feat of arts and fcience, whea
fhe was in her meridian glory, the envy and ad-
miiration of the world. At that happy period,
when the youth of all nations, but particularly of
Rome, reforted to her for inftrudtion ; when fhe
fent forth her orators, her poets, her painters, and
muficians to every corner of the globe ; thefe ac-
cents might then firft of all be made ufe of to fa-
cilitate the knowledge of her language to ftrangers,
and afcertain a pure and perfeft pronunciation of
it in foreign countries. But however this mio-ht
be, certain it is, that they were never intended for
thofe ridiculous purpofes, to which they have been
wrefted by gothic and taftelefs grammarians.
They were undoubtedly meant for nothing, but to
mark, fome certain inflexions and modulations of
the voice : what thefe were, it is impoftible at this
length of time to determine ; but one may be bold
enough to affirm, that tliey could never be intend-
ed to alFect the time or quantity of any word, for
that would deftroy all order and harmony, and
throwthe whole language into confufion.
Accent is alfo made ufe of, but improperly,
to exprefs the charafters by which the quantity of
any word is determined ; fuch is the long accent, .
which ftiews that the voice is ta dwell upon that
fyllable, and is marked thus (").
The jhort accent, which fhews that the time of
pronunciation ought to be quick, and is marked
thus (").
There are perfons, who rank the hyphen, the
diaftole, and apoftrophe, amongft accents.
Accent is alfo applied to any particular tone, ,
or brogue, that is contradtcd by ai^y perfon, from
the cou;itry or province where he has been bred ;
thus we fay the northern accent, the Welch ac-
ceat, Sec.
ActESTT
A C C
A C C
Accent is ufed too in poetry to flguify the
cadence or cxi'ura, but in this fenfe it is impro-
perly applied. In mufic it means the modulation
of the voice, to exprefs any particular paflion.
Every bar or mealure is divided into accented and
unaccented parts. The accented parts are the prin-
cipal, being thofe intended chiefly to move and
aft'edl : it is on thefe the fpirit of the mufic de-
pends. The harmony muft always be full and free
from difcords in the accented parts ; in the others
it is not fo abfolutely neceffary, as they are tre-
cuently pafl'ed over unobferved.
Accentor, in mufic, implies one of the three
fmgers in parts, or the perfon who fings the highefl:
part in a trio.
ACCEPTANCE, in the common law, fig-
nities the tacitly agreeing to fome aift before done
by another, and which might have been deteatcd
before acceptance.
Thus, if a bifhop before the flatute of I Eliza-
beth, leafed part of his bifhopric for a term of
years, at a certain rent, and dies before the term
;is expired ; the new bifliop, if he accepts and re-
ceives the rent when due, the leafe is confirmed,
which otherwife the new bifhop might have fet
afide. In like manner, if baron and fenie, feizcd
of land in right of the feme, join and make a
le.ife or feoffment, at a certain referved rent, and
the baron dies before the leafe be expired ; the
feme, if flie receives or accepts the rent, fhe con-
firms the leafe or feotFment, and this acceptation
{hall bar her from bringing a cui in vita.
Acceptance, among civilians, implies the con-
fenting to receive fomething offered, which haxl
we refuied could not ha\'e taken effe£t.
Acceptance, among merchants, denotes the
figning or fubfcribing a bill of exchange, by which
the acceptor obliges himfelf to pay the contents of
the bill, even though the dr.^we^ fliould fail be-
fore it becomes due. See Bill of Exchange.
Acceptation is ufed in grammar, to fignify
. the particular fenfe in which a word is taken or
received : thus we lay. Such a word in its firft and
natural acceptation denotes, &c. It is owing to
the different acceptation in which words are
taken, that fo many difputes arife, ajid are carried
on in the world.
ACCEPTILATION, among civilians, figni-
fies an acquittance given by a creditor to a debtor,
without receiving any money.
ACCEPTOR, or Accepter, among mer-
chants, the perfon who accepts a bill of ex-
change.
ACCESS, in a general fenfe, denotes the ap-
proach of one towards another.
Access, in a more limited fenfe, implies a pcr-
miflion or leave to come near any perfon, place, or
thing.
Access, among"phyficians, is ufed for the be-
ginning of ii paroxifm, or fit of fome periodical
difeafe.
ACCESSARY, or Accesscry, in law, figni-
fies a perlbn who was any ways aiding or allilling
in a felonious aftion.
Acceflaries are oftwokinds,beforc and after the facl.
An acceflary before the fact, is a perfon, who,-
though abfent at the time the fellony was commit-
ted, yet had previoviffy procured, counfclled, or
commanded the principal to commit it.
An acceflary after the fact, is a perfon, who
knowing the felony to he committed by another,
receives, relieves, comforts, and affiils the felon.
In cafes of high trcafon, there can be no ac-
cefTaries, either before or after ; for all confcnters,
knowing receivers, or comforters of traitors, are
principals.
In cales that are criminal but not c?.pital, there
can be no acceffaries, for all the acceffaries before
the faft, are in the fame degree as principals ; and
acceffaries after, cannot be in lav/ under any pe-
nalties as acceiTaries, unlefs the afts oi parliament
that infliiEt thofe penalties, do- alfo exprefsly extend
to receivers or comforters, which fome do.
It follows therefore, the term acceflary refers
only to felonies, whether by the common law, or
by act of parliament.
ACCESSIBLE, fomethin-g that may be ap-
proached.
Accessible Altitude. See Altitude.
ACCESSION, among civilians, is ufed to im-
ply the property acquired in fuch things as are con-
nected with, or appendag-es of other things.
Accession, among j>liyficians, fig nifies she fame
with what is generally called paroxilm. See
Paroxism.
Accession, among politicians, is ufed to figni-
fy a prince's agreeing to, and becoming a party in
a treaty already concluded between otb.er poten-
tates : and alfo to derx)te a prince's coming to the
throne, on the death of the preceding king.
Accession, in the Roman church, implies a
peculiar method of cledting the pope ; and confiffs
ii> one of the candidates having obtained two thirds
of the votes ; for when this happens, the reft are
enrolled by acceffion,
ACCIDENT, in a general lenfe, implies fome--
thino- that is unufual, or that happens by chance.
Accident, a term in grammar, which is made
ufe of to fignify a property that is really attached
to' a v/oixl, though it is not in the definition effential
to it. Befides the sccidents that are peculiar to
ncuns fubilantives, fuch as the cafe, gender, de-
clenfion, and number, there are four others that
are attendant on words. The firft is, when a worol
rs ufed in a figurative fenfe, or differently from
what it was originally meant to fignify. Thus (or
inllance, the pjrimiiive meaning of the word bear,
was that of a rough, fii.igg)', fovage animal : fror^
• i which
A C G
•which it is adopted to defcribe a perfon of a rude,
aukward, and brutal behaviour.
The I'econd is, v/hen words are derivative, as
gedly, heavenly, earthly, &c. which come from
the primitive words God, heaven, earth.
The third accident is, when from two or more
fimplewords, acomplexis formed : thus, for inftance,
from the fimple words common and wealth, comes the
compound term common-wealth ; which does not
convey the meaning of the two v/ords of v/hich it
ib made up, but acquires a fenfe of its own, and
fignifies llatc or kingdom.
The fourth is the accent or tone of voice with
which words are pronounced, which frequently
determines their meaning, nay, fometimes gives
jthem a fenfe cjuLte foreign to their original figmn-
cation ; as when they are ipoken with paflion, or
ironically, &c.
Accident, in logic, is when we join a con-
fufed and undetermined idea of fubftance with a
dillinct idea of fome mode ; becaufe that idea is
capable of reprefenting all things to which that
mode can belong ; as the idea of round compre-
hends all round bodies in general.
This idea, exprelled by the a.d]eAlverountl, forms
the fifth univerfal, and is called accident, becaufe
not eflcntial to the thing to which it is at-
tributed. It fhould, however, be here obferved,
that when we confider two fubftances together,
we may confider one of them as the mode of the
X)ther : thus a drefled man may be confidered as a
whole, compofcd of the man and of his clothes :
but the diefs, with refpeiSt to the man, is only a
mode under which we confider him, though his
habit may be fubilances.
The Ariflotelians, after diftributing beings into
ten.clafics, reduced them to two general ones, viz.
fubftance and accident. From the latter they
form.ed nine others ; quantity, relation, quality,
aition, paffion, time, place, fituation, habitude.
Accident, in the healing art, implies a revo-
lution, occafioned by a difeafc, or fome new
caufe, which adds ftrength to a diftemper already
exilling. Thus the fudden iuppreffion of the fali-
va in a peripneumony, is a dreadful accident.
The moft celebrated practitioners in phyfic, re-
commend a particular regard to the violence of
accidents ; becaufe their continuance may augment
the diflemper in fuch manner, as to render it in-
curable.
ACCIDENTAL, in a general fenfe, is an
epithet given to fuch things as happen by accident.
AcciDENT.'VL Point, in perfpective, is that point
in the horizontal line, where all lines parallel
among themfelves meet the perfpedtive plane.
ACCIPITER, in ornithology, the name of
a whole race of birds, the diftinguilhing charac-
teriftic of which is, that they have a hooked, or
crooked beak.
A C C
Tliis order comprehends three genera, viz. the
parrot, the owl, and the hawk kind.
ACCISiVlUS, in antiquity, denotes a feigned
refufal of what one earneftly defires.
The accifmus was a piece of political diflimula-
tion, for which Auguftus and Tiberius are famed.
AcciSMUS, in rhetoric, is accounted a fpecies of
irony. See Irony.
ACCLAMATION, Acclamatio, in Ro.T.an
antiquity, a fhout raifed by the people, to teftify
their applaufe, or approbation of their princes,
generals, &c.
Acclamation, in rhetoric, the fame with
v/hat is othei-wife called epiphonema. See Epi-
PHONEMA.
A..CCLAMATION Medals, among antiquaries, thofe
whereon the people are reprelt:nted as exprefling
their joy by acclamation.
ACCLIVITY, a term ufed to denote the af-
cent of a hill, or rifing ground, as declivity is the
defcent.
Acclivity is Ibmetimes ufed by writers in for-
tification, for the talus of the rampart. See
Tatus.
ACCOLADE, in antient cuftoms, the cere-
mony of conferring knighthood, by the king's
laying his arms about the young knight's neck,
and embracing him.
ACOLLE'E, in heraldry, a term ufed in diffe-
rent fenfes ; fometimes it denotes the fame with
accolade ; fometimes two things joined together ;
at other times, animals with collars or crowns
about their necks ; and finally, battons, or (words,
placed faltierwife behind the ihield.
ACCOMMODATION, am.ong divines, is the
applying what is faid of one i>erfon or thing to
another : thus the words of Ifaiah, directed to the
Jews of his time, are by St. Paul accommodated to
the Jews who were cotemporarics with that
apofHe.
Accommodation is alfo ufed for an amicable
agreement between two or more contending par-
ties.
ACCOMPANYMENT, in mufic, is ufed for
the inftruments which accompany a voice, to make
the mufic more full.
Among the moderns, the accompanyment fre-
quently plavs a different part or melody from the
fong it accompanies ; but authors are not agreed
whether it was fo among the ancients.
AccoMPANYMEKT, in heraldry, denotes any
thing added to a ihield byway of ornament, as the
belt, mantling, fupporters, &c.
Accompanyment is alfo ufed for fevera! bear-
in2;s about a principal one, as a faltier, bend, fefs,
he.
ACCOMPLICE, in law, a perfon who is privy
to, or aiding in the perpetra. ii of lijnie crime.
See Accessary.
By
A C C
By the law of Scotland accomplices cannot be
profeciitcd till the principal offenders arc firll con-
viftcd.
ACCOMPLISHMENT, in a general fenfc,
denotes the perfecting, or entirely linifliing and
compleating any matter or thing.
AccoMi'LiSHMENT is morc particularly ufcd for
the fulfilling of a prophecy ; in which fenfc \vc
read of a literal acconiplimnient, a myftical ac-
compliftiment, &c. See the article Prophecy.
Accomplishment is llill more particularly
ufcd for the acquirement of fome branch of Icarn-
iiijr, uleful art, polite excrcifc, &c.
ACCOMPT and Accomptant. See Ac-
count and ACCOUNT.^NT.
ACCORD, in mufic, the fame with what is
more ufually called concord. See Concord.
Accord, in law, a verbal agreement between two
or more, where any one is injured by a trelpafs, or
other offence committed, to make fatisfaftion to the
injured party ; who, after the accord is performed,
will be barred in law from bringing any new aftion
againft the aggreilor for the fame trefpafs. It is
fafeft, however, in pleading, to allege fatisfaftion,
and not accord alone ; becaufe in this laft cafe, a
precife execution in every part thereof muff be al-
ledged ; whereas in the former, the defendant needs
only fay, that he paid the plaintiff" fuch a fum in
full fatisfaclion of the accord, which he received.
ACCOUNT, or Accompt, in a general fenfe,
is ufcd for all arithmetical computations, whether
of time, weight, meafure, money, ^ic.
Account is alfo ufcd collectively, for the books
in which merchants, traders, and hankers enter all
their bufmefs, traffic, and bargains with each other.
The method of keeping thefe is called book-
keeping. See Book-keeping.
To open an AccovvT, is to enter in the ledger
the nam*, the furname, and the place of abode of
the perfon with whom you have dealings ; after
Vv-hich the feveral articles are ported or placed, either
on the credit or debit fide, according as the perfon
is become your creditor or debtor.
To place or poji a fum to Account, is to enter it
in the ledger, cither on the debit or credit fide, ac-
cording as the perfons ai'e become debtors or cre-
ditors.
To examine mi Account, is to read it exaftly, in
order to prove the truth of the computation, or de-
tedt errors, if there are any.
To fettle an Account, is to fum up all the ar-
ticles, both on the debit and credit fide, and find
the balance between them ; which being placed on
the leaft fide, makes the fum of both equal : this
is otherwife called fhuttijig, balancing, clofing, or
making up an account.
Account in Co?npany,7in account kept by traders
in partnerihip, wherein all articles relating to their
joint trade aix entered.
A C C
Accoum is alfo ufcd in different fenfes, as for
profit, hazard, &c. Thus we fiy a man has found
his account in fomcthing, or it has turned to good
account ; alfo, if a man commits errors, they IIkiiI
be on his own account, 5i'c.
Account, in law, is a writ or action which
lies againff- a perfon, who, by reafon of his office
or bufincfs, is obliged to render an account to- ano-
ther, but rcfufcsto do it ; as a bailiff', for inftance,
to hisioid.
Account, in the rcniemhrancer's office in thfe
exchequer, is the ftate of any branch of the king's
revenue ; as the account of the mint, of the v/ard-
robe, of the army, of the i^avy, &c.
Chamber of ACCOUNTS, in the French polity, a.
fovereign court, anfwering nearly to our exche-
quer. See ExcHEQLfER.
Account of Saks, among merchants, an ac^
count of the difpofal and net proceeds of certain
merchandizes, after deducting charges and com-
miflion.
Auditing an Account, the examining and paf-
finj it bv an officer appointed oa purpofe.
ACCOUNTANT, or Accomptant, in a
general fenfe, denotes one whofe bufinefs it is to
keep accounts-.
AccouNTANT-Gc;/£'r<j/, in the court of chan-
cery, a new officer appointed by aifl of parliament,
to receive all monies lodged in court, and convey
the fame to the bank of England, for better fecu-
rity. The falary of this officer and his clerks is to
be paid out of the intereft made of part of the
money, it not being allowable to take fees in this
office.
ACCOUTREMENT, an old term, fignifying
drefs, ftill ufed for the furniture of a Ibldier.
ACCRETION, in natural hiftorj', the increafe
or growth of a body by an external additioh
of new parts : thus it is, falts, fliells, llcnes,
&c. are formed.
Accretion, among civilians, a term ufcd for
the property acquired in a vague or not occupied
thing, by its adhering to or following another
thing already occupied ; thus, if a legacy be left to
two perfons, and one of them die before the tefta-
tor, the legacy devolves to the furvivor by right of
accretion. Alluvion is another inftance of accre-
tion. See Alluvion.
ACCROCHE, in heraldry, denotes a thing's
being hooked into another.
ACCUMULATION, in a general fenfe, the
aft of heaping or amaffiing things together.
Accumulation, among lawyers, denotes the
concurrence of feveral titles to the lame thing, or
of ieveral circumffances or proofs to make out one
faft.
ACCUSATION, among civilians, the brings
ing a criminal aftion againft any perfon ; in which
fenfe it differs only in circumffances from what
ACE
A C I
among us is called impeachment. See Impeach-
ment.
ACCUSATIVE, in grammar, is the fourth
cafe of nouns, in thofe languages that have declen-
fions, that is, whofe words have different termina-
tions affigncd them, according to the different re-
lations in which they ffand with refpect to the
verb. Varro fays, " Sunt deffinati caUis, ut qui
'* de altero dicejet diffinguere poffet quum vocaret,
•' quum daret, quum accufaret ; fic alia qua;dam
" difcrimina qua; nos et Gracos ad declinandum
"• duxerunt." The cnfes of nouns luere invented,,
that he who Jhould fpeak of another might d'iflinguijh
ivhcn he would tall, ivhift he zvould give, ivhen he
ivould accufe ; fo there are other dljlinCTnui too, which
induced us and the Greeks to decline our nouns.
The termination of the accufative cafe ferves to
difcover the word which marks the term, or the
cbjei^t of the aftion, v/hich the verb fignihes. All
verbs that exprefs adtions which pafs from the
agents, as I defpife, I conquer, ^c. mufl have
fubjeiSts to receive thofe acSions : for if I delpife, I
iv.uft defpife fomething ; fo that fuch a verb evi-
dently requires after it a noun or name, to be the
objeiit of the aftion expreffed. In Englilh we have
nothing to denote the accufative cafe, but the place
in which the noun ffands, as I hate hypocrij]\ the
accufative naturally following, and the nominative
preceding the verb. Where there is any tranfpo-
I'ltion of the words, as frequently happens in poe-
try, the fenfe muff determine which is the accufa-
tive cafe, and which not, as in the following
lines :
" And oh ! you mortal engines, whofe rude throats
" Th'immortal Jove'sdread clamours counterfeit !"
which in profe would run thus : " Oh you mortal
" engines, whofe rude throats counterfeit the
" dread clamours of immortal Jove !"
ACEPHALI, or Acephalit^, a name given
by ecclefiaftical hiftorians to feveral fects who were
dcftitute of any head or leader. They alfo extend-
ed it to fuch bifhopsas were exempted fiom the dif-
cipline and jurifdiiilion of their patriarch.
The word is Greek, and compounded of a priv.
yj-^n.Kw^ a head.
ACER, in botany, die maple-trce. Sec the ar-
ticle Maple-tree.
ACETABULUM, in antiquity, a certain mca-
fure equal to one eighth of our pint.
Acetabulum, in anatomy, implies a large ca-
vity in a bone, formed for receiving the convex
heal of another bone, in order to admit of a cir-
cular motion in the joint formed by this articula-
tion.
Acetabulum alfo fignifies a kind of glandular
-fubftance, generally eatied cotyledon, many of
.v/hich are found in the pLiccnta of fome ajiimals,
See CotjLcuok,
ACETOSA, forrel, in botany. See Sorrel.
ACETUA-I, vinegar. See Vinegar.
ACHATES, the agate, in natural hiftory. See
Agate.
ACHILLEA, in botany, is a name given to
the ptarmica and millefolium of Toumefort. The
common ibrt, known by the iiame of yarrow, is a
plant that grows wild in moff parts of England ;
the flowers make an agreeable appearance, but blow
not fo well in gardens as in uncultivated places :
there are other forts that aie clafTeJ under the gene-
ral name, which are moff of them natives of
foreign countries.
ACHILLEID, or Achilleis, a poem of Sta-
tius, in which the author propofed to recount the
whole life and exploits of Achilles ; but being pre-
vented by death, he hath only treated of the infajicy
and education of his hero.
NotAvithffanding the opinion of Scaliger, who
prefers Statius to all the heroic poets, Greek and
Roman, not excepting even Homer himfelf, every
impartial judge muff allow that he is deficient in
imagination, as well as judgment ; and that his
language, thro' a conftant affedlation of grandeur
and fublimity, is for the moff part ftiff", unnatural,
and bombaft. As to the work itfelf, he has
certainly made choice of a very improper fubjeft for
an epic poem, as it would not allow of that unity
of adlion which is abfolutely elTential to compofi-
tions of this nature. Accordingly the AchJUeid
is not fo much an epic poem, as a hiffory in verfe.
ACHILLES, an appellation fometimes given to
the principal argument made ufe of by each fedt of
ancient philofophers, in defence of their fyftem.
Tendo Achilles, in anatomy, is a large tendon
formed by the union of the tendons of the four ex-
tenfor mufclcs of the foot. It has its name from
the fatal wound which Achilles received before the
walls of Troy, in that part.
ACHOR, in medicine, a fmall ulcer in the fkin
of the head, perforated with a great many little
holes, which contain a vifcid humour refembling
ichor. It is the third fpecics of a tinea, or fcald-
head. See the article Tinea.
ACHRONICAL, in affronomy. Sec Acro-
nical.
ACID, any thing which aft'cfls the tongue with
a fenfe of ffuirpnefs and fournefs.
The word is formed from the Latin aeidum,^
which is derived from the Greek axu, a point or
edge.
The chcmJfts call all fubffances acids, which
make an eftervefcence with an alcali. However,.
this does not feem to be a true charafteriffic of
acids, becaufe fome acids will caufe aji ertcrvef-
cence, upon being mixed with acids of a different
kind ; and akaline fubffances will do the fame
with alcalies ; and acids with bodies which are
neither akaline nor acid, but neutral.
Another
A C I
Another mark of acids is, that they change
the colour of the juices of heliotropium, rofes,
and violets, red ; whereas animal alcalies turn
them green. We mention animal alcalies, be-
caufe others will not always produce that effect.
The celebrated Bocrhaave has made a great
number of experiments to prove that oil is the
pabulum or food of fire, and an acid fecms effen-
tial to the compofition of oil. That vegetable oils
contain an acid is, in feme, manifeft to the tafte,
and we can obtain it from others by diflillation.
This acid is the caufe why oils fo readily mix v/ith
alcaline falts, and why they are, by this juncture,
neutralized, and converted into foap. Hence v/e have
another very obvious charafterilHc, which will
more juftly difcover acids in bodies, than either
their caufmg an effervefccnce with alcalies, or pro-
ducing a red colour when mixed with the juice
of heliotropium, rofes, or violets, viz. that all
bodies whatever which will flame, contain either a
manifefl: or a latent acid ; for acids are, proba-
bly, the only bodies in nature that are convertible
into that Ipecies of fire which we call flame.
Vegetables flame fo long as their black oil contains
an acid both by its fmell and effects.
Mineral oils in general contain a manifeil acid,
as the oil of coal, petrolaeum, naphtha, and all
kinds of bitumens.
In animal oil the acid is not fo manifefl, but
feems wrapt up in a large portion of volatile alca-
line falts. But v/e may conclude, that an acid
enters its compofition ; Jirft, becaufe after it is
cleared from the membraneous cells which contain
it, and tlis blcod-veflels which enter it, though
kept ever fo long, it does not putrify like the other
parts of animals, nor does it afford a nidus for the
eggs o/ infefts, and breed maggots : but if it has
Once been deprived of a part of its alcaline falts
by boiling, it will keep for ages unaltered and
untainted in the hottefl: fcafons, of which tallow
candles may fcrvc as an obvious inilance. Now
acids arethe great .prefervatives againfi: putrefaction,
and known dcftroyers of thofe kinds of infects that
breed in animal bodies.
Secondly, becaufe an'mal oils not only pre-
ferve themfelves, but alfo all other animal and
vegetable fubltances immerfed in thejn from putre-
faction.
Thirdly, becaufe, like vegetable oils, they rea-
dily mix with alcaline falts, which they neutralize,
as is evident in making fome kinds of foap.
Pure acids are not eafily inflammable by the
common methods, becaufe of their folidity and
ffrong cohefion ; but when they are divided into
exceeding fine particles, difperfed in the interftices
of other bodies, and by means of fome other fub-
jeft fet on fire, they burfi: into a lucid flame, and
■explode with the utmoil violence.
Acids feem to be of the grcateft ufe in the
A c r
cEconomy ftf the world, becaufe they are fo uni--
verfal. In the bowels of the earth v/e meet with
them in almoft c\'ery mine and mineral ; buL prin-
cipally in thofe prodigious rocks of fait whicK
are found in almofl every country, and which the'
induftry of a great many a2es have not been able to
exhauft. Such are thofe in the famous fait mines in'
Poland, and our own in Chcfhire, where xaff quan-
tities aregot every year, and exported. Not to men-
tion the quantities of acids hourly difcharged from
the bowels of the earth, in the fait which may be
found, by a nice examination, in the waters of
every fpring, the frefhefl not excepted.
In the air the acid is univerfal, and that in every
part of it.
It is remarkable that the acid abounds more in
the air, when the winds blow from the ea{{: and
north, and when the weather -is ferene. This the
learned Hofiman informs us, is confirmed by the
obfervations of thofe who are concerned in nitre-
works, who remark, that, during thefe winds,
their alcaline earth is impregnated with an acid.
Phyficians have obfcrved, that the fouth winds
fiivour pefcikntial contlitutions of the air, efpe-
cially if the fealon happens at the fame time to be
moift and rainy ; and that the malignancy is abated
by winds which blow from the north and north-eaft :
fo that there is reafon to believe that the alca-,
line contagion is deflroyed by the aerial acid.
T'he acids of vegetables, fays the accurate Bocr-
haave, are either native, or produced by the help
of fermentation. Native vegetable acids fecm to
ou'e their origin entirely to the juices which the
plants draw from the earth that nourifiies them ;
and hence all theie may perhaps be looked upon
as belonging originally to the fofhle kingdom,
efpecially as plants which grow in the fea, and
have not their roots inferted in the earth, confift
purely of alcalefcent parts, and, in diftillation,
yield an oily, volatile acid.
In fome vegetables the native acids difcover
themfelves evidently ; as in forre], the trefolium
acetofum, and the juice of all fruits, efpecially
while unripe ; for when concofted by the heat of
the fun, they grow niorc mild. The fap likewif?
of all vegetables, which rifes in the fpring, is
almdil: as acid as vinegar. Many woods alio and
aromatics contain a true acid, though not fo mani-
feft. Who could have expected to have found an
acid iji guaiacum, faffaflas, cinnam.on, and a great
many more of the fame kind, if diftiilation had
not demonltrated it.? But fermentation feems more
and more to eXalt the latent acid of vegetables 5
for the iuices of vegetables which are exceedins
ripe and fweet appear to have fcarcely any thing
acid in tuem, as we fee evidently in the expreffeJ
juice of grapes. Who can perceive any thing like
acid in caflia, manna, honey, and fugar ? and
yet, 'When lhefe are properly fermented, the acid
K prefently
A C I
A CI
preftntty appears, efpeciaJly when the.wine bei^ins
fo grow finer,, and more fubtile. Is there the leafl
indication of an acid in ripe mealy corn ? and
J-et even this, after a little fermentation, difcovcr,)
an acidit^^ As thefe acids are fomething ditferent,
and of a more fubtile nature than native ones,
they are generally called vinous acids. They are
of two forts ; for they are either difperfed through
the wine, in form of liquid acids, or elfe gra-
dually ccUedt themfelves together in the v/ine, and
lix theinielves to the furface of the veflel, in the
iblid form of tartar.
But the acids of vegetables produced by a fecond
fermentation arc generally called acetoic : for if
any known wines are, by an admixture of aullerc,
acid, crude juices, made to undergo again a proper
acetofe fermentation, they will be converted into
vinegars, will confunie their own tartar, become
much more acid, and acquire a ftronger and more
durable fournefs, which will remain even in di-
.flillation ; hence there mav be obtained from vi-
negars, by diftill.uion, a pure aflive acid of the
utmoft fervice in chemiftr)'.
It will alfo be neccflary to take notice here of
what are called fermenting acids ; by which we
Hiean vegetable juices in the very avil of fermenta-
tion, and confcqucntly in a kind of middle ftate
between that which is natural to them, and that
■^■hich they obtain when the fermentation is com-
pleated ; for, during this interval, the mod elailic
part of the fermenting liquid acquires fuch a pov/er
as is hardly to be equalled by any thing in nature :
ibr if this favage, incoercible, explofive, acid fpi-
rit, rifmg from a vafl quantity of fermenting vege-
tables, fhould pafs thi-ough a very fm.all vent-hole
into the noftrils of the itrongeft m^m, it would
ftrike him dsiid in an inflant. If it does not acl
with all its force, it caufes a fudden apoplexy ; if
I'efs pov-erfut ftill, a Ipfs of the fenfes, with, a pa-
raplegia ; if very lightly, only a vertigo. The
^ruth of this has been too certainly proved by many
B^elancholv inftances.
There are alfo d'ifcovereil other ver\' flngular
acids, that are, in fonie meafure, of a balCunic and
oily nature; we mean fuch as ai'e drawn from vege-
tables by fire in a clofe veffel. Thus the wood of
guaiacum, juniper, oak, and a great many others,
if reduced to dry fhavings, and carefully dillilled in
a retort, will yield a limpid reddifh liquor,, which
is very acid, fomewhat oily, and has a good deal
of the fmell of a herring dried in the fnioke. This
liquid may be rendered ilronger by depuration and
rectification ; and then the folvent virtue of this
ipenftruum will appear to be very Angular.
FofTile native- acids are rarely to be met
with.; for it is. now dlfcovered, that the medicinal
waters; oace confidered as an, acid, approach, in
nvery chara£ler, nearer to an alcali. There is
wftpo. La5ee.4 avaj^our obfei:\Le.d.iji.nMJ>&s,5 which. r.ci-
fembles a fiiffbcating, fulphureous acid, arid by otlier
marks dcmonftrates its acidity ; but it is very fel-
dom icund alone unmixed, and in a fluid form.
But whenever it happens, which is very often
the cafe, that it meets with a folid body, capable of
attradling that acid, it wiites with it, and becomes
fixed and palpable : and when it is afterwards
drawn out of that fixed body,, it then falls under
the cognizance of out fenfes j and tlien, as far as-
it is poflible for us to judge, appeals to be always
one and the fame.
For if it lays hold of a pinguious fofTile, it pro-
duces various kinds of fulpliurs, which, when
burnt, emit ftur.es, which being collected, refri-
gerated, and mixed with the humid air, yield the
fpirit or oil of fulphur per campanum. If you pour
this acid liquor into a clean glafs veflel, andexpofe
it for a confiderable time to a heat equal to that of
boiling water, you will diftil from it a confiderable
quantity of pure water, which, whilft the fulphur
was burning, had infimiated itfelf out of the air
into the acid fumes of the fulphur ; and there will
then remain at the bottom a ponderous, thick,
cauftic acid, which, in e\ery charafter, refemblea
the puseflroilof vitriol, except in its having no par-
ticles of a volatile metal, which are always found"
more or lefs in oil of vitriol..
But if this acid happens to corrode ITme-ftones^
it then produces alums, which are different accord-
ing to the diverCty of the matter which is mixed
with them. All thefe, if they are at firft lightly
calcined, and then with an intenfe fire urged into
vapours, will, by a condenfation of thefe, yield a li-
quor, which, when purified according to art, is.
nearly the fame with the fonner procured from
burning fulphur.
Again, if native, green vitriol be reduced, by the-
help of a moderate fire, to a dry white powder,
and then expofed to a fire gradually increafed to the
mofl: extreme degree, it will emit white cloudy va-
pours, which, collefled into a liquid, and accu-
rately depurated, is again the very fame as was be-
fore obtained from fulphur and ajum..
Tlic blue vitriol likcwlfe treated in the fame
manner, yields a liquid, which is the fame with.
the former ;, nor can it be diftinguifhed from tliem^
if reiEfified according to art.
Another foffile acid which we are acquainted
with, is produced from nitre only, fo tliat there ne-
ver was perhaps a fingle drop feen of it in tlie world
but what was dilHlled from niti-e. For if nitre be
intimately mixed with three times its quantity or
bole, clay, brick-d'uft, or say thing of the like
nature, and then urged with a very ftrong fire, a.
grc:r.i part of it will be converted iuto red fumes,.
v.hich, being condenfed into a liquid,.is called fpirit
of nitre. Or if dry nitie he mixed witli an equal,
quantity of oil of \itrioI, anddiftilled in the ftrong-
flfi. faiid-heat, gradiull^ iucreafed, the famg fpirit-
AC I
of xilixe will be procured from the liime red
fumes.
Or, laftly, nitre rubbed with an equal quantity
of the red calx of vitriol, or alum, and then urged
with a very great degree of heat, will emit the
fame fumes, and from them yield a fpirit of nitre,
which is as good and as pure as the former ; but it
is then called by the chemifts aqua fords, aqua lly-
gia, and aqua docimaftica.
Sea-falt, like nitre, when it is paie, difcovcrs no
figns of acidity ; but if it be treated in the manner
iuit mentioned with regard to nitre, it is changed
iiito a volatile acid liquor. For if, to prevent its
melting, it is mixed witli three times its weiglit of
earth, and then urged by a fire gradually increafed
to the greatelt degree, it will be diffipated into
denfe white fumes, which float about, and are very
volatile, but being collefted, form a liquor of a
golden or green colour.
If diftiUed with oil of vitriol, it yields the fame
liquor, but more volatile : and if mixed with the
faces of diftilled aium, or vitriol, and afterwards
expofed to a very llrong fire, it will then give the
fame fpirit of fea-falt : and thefe fpirits, prepared
according to thefe three different ways, arc entirely
one and the fatiie ; and they will alio be the fame,
whether they be made from fal gemms;, fountain,
or fea-falt. This fpirit has this peculiarity, that if
it be drawii from the pureft fait, and you repeat
the dillillation upon frefh pure fait, when it begins,
through the violence of die fire, to grow exceeding
hot, it emits white fumes, and dilloUes gold, whid\
no other acid in nature is able to penctmte.
Acids, in die materia medica, denote fuch me-
dicines as axe pcilelled of an acid quality ; fuch are
vinegar, fpirit of vitrio', &c.
Thefe being powerful antifepdcs, are efteemed
good in all putrid and malignant difeafes, and by
their cooling virtue are no lefs efficacious in inflam-
matory and feverifh cafes. However, great care
ought to be taken nor to adminiller them in fuch
large quantises as to corrode the bowels, or coagu-
late the blood.
Acids are alfo commended in the plague, and as
ftyptics. Thus, \inegar not only lerves to flop
hemorrhages, but being fprinkled upon a red-hot
tile or iron, corrects the putrefadbion of the air.
See Plague, &c.
ACIDITY, Additas, that quality in bodies
which renders them acid. See Acid.
AClDULiE, a diminutive of acids, four, cold
mineral waters, which contain a brifk fpirit,, in
contra-diftindion to TUrnia:^ or thofe which are
hot.
.The name owes its original to a fuppofition tb^t
thefe waters were acid ; which later obfervations
and experiments have proved to be without founda-
tion.
'Ihe admirable viitiies and extraordinarj' <:f5-
A CI
cacy of mineral waters, both hot and cold, in pcfr
fectly curing the mofl obftinate and inveterate dif-
eafes, are fo well known and attellcd by long ufe,
and an infinite number of experiments, as to put
the matter beyond all maimer of difpute. But
whence thefe waters derive their fanative power and
virtue, is a thing not fo commonly known ; and
indeed there are very few who know how to difco-
vcr, by a chemical examination, the elements and
ingredients in which their wonderful efficacy con-
fiib.
Now there is no better way to difcover the ele-
ments of medicated waters, than by evaporating
the liquid by a very gentle heat, either in a tin vcf-
fel fet over hot embers in the open air, or, which is
better, in a glafs cucurbit, carefully faving the li-
quid which drops from the alembic, that the pro-
portion of the folid to the liquid may be obtained,.
If the evaporation be continued to a drynefs, and
the mafs left in the cucurbit be accurately weighed,,
we {hall have ths weight of the ingredients, which
are of a more fixed nature, aud, though of a dif-
ferent texture, midb be examined.
Firft then, a folution of die refiduum mult be
made in pure diftilled water, which is always requi-
fite for the more accurate exam.ination of things,
chemically prepared ; for many fpring waters con-
tain a confiderable quantity of earth and fait. la.
this folution the fait is feparated, and the earth re-
mains, being lefs foluhle in v/ater. It is eafy to.
know whedier this fait be alcaline, by mixing it
with an acid, for then it forms a neutral fait ; or
with fill ammoniac, in which cafe a ft:rong urinous'
fmell will be produced ; or it may be knov.n by bidd-
ing to it a iblution of mercury fublimate in water,,
for it will then precipitate a yellow powder ; or if
you mix it with fyrup of xiolets, it- will turn of a
green colour.
The cafe is a litde more difficult, when the
falts left after evaporadon are not of one and the
fame, but of different kinds ; as when, for ex-
ample, alc:Jine falts are mixed with thofe which
are neutral. In this cafe, pour common water cm.
tiie dry mafs, and, after a gentle agitation, decant
it ofF. By this means there will remain a faline
powder not eafily didbluble, fof alcaline falts
readily diflolve in water. There is another way of
fjparadng r.eutral falts from alcaline, and that is-
by cry lL.il izadon; in which, rightly performed,
e\cry neutrJ fait being bell adapted to receive a
folid figure, defcends hrft in the form of cryftals,
and nodiing but a lixivious liquor remains, which
fwims on top, and receives with more difficulty a
Iblid form.
The next thina; is to determine the genuine
nature and properties of thofe neutral falts. In
Older to this, it mu!l be obfcrved, dvat no other
fi.lls are conveyed out of the bowels of the earth
in the vehicle of wdtcr, than either common ialt,
ox
A CI
A CI
T)T a kind of neutral fait, of a vitriolic and fulphu-
"reous nature, being compounded of the acid, of
■I'ulphur, or vitriol, aird a fort of alcaline earth;
-tlie former, that is, tommon fait, may eafily be
diftinguilhed, partly by tlie talte and cubical
figure which it afliimes by ciyftallization, and
•parti)' by emitting, when mixed with oil of vitriol,
a copious white fume of a very penetrating linell.
The other fait, which owes its origin to an uni-
verfal, fubterraneous, fulphureous acid, is thus
tried : mix two parts of this fait with one part
of fak of tartar, and one part of powder of char-
coal ; let -them incorporate and fufe together in a
crucible, in a melting heat ; there will then be
produced a red mafs-, of a fulphureous alcaline
tafte, refembling the li(er of fulphur, and from
which, by highly reftified fpirt of wine, a yellow
tinfture ef fulphur may be extrafted, which will
tinge filver of a footy colour.
From a folution of this mafs in water, by an
acid liquor, is precipitated the true lac fulphuris ;
a manifefl: proof that the mineral fulphur, which
is compounded of the univerlal acid and inflamma-
tory principle, is revived in this procefs. This is
not only true with regard to all falts procured
by art, Init alfo by means of this procefs, a ful-
phureous alcaline mafs may be produced out of
all the faits, common alone excepted, which are
found in mineral v/aters, both hot and cold ; with
this difference, that if the neutral fak be com-
pounded of an alcaline fait and the fpirit of ful-
phur, the fufion by fire will be performed the
more eafdy: but if this acid be united with a
terrene, or gypfeo-calcareous fak, it becomes far
more difHcuk.
Befides alcaline and neutral falts, there is, in
many cold mineral waters, a vitriolic fait, which is
leldom of a fixed nature, but, for the mod part,
fubtile and volatile. This fait is difcovered, in
all waters, by the da;k purpk and blackifh colour
which immediately follows from their being mixed
with fine powder of galls, or the rhind of pomegra-
nates. The volatility of the fpirit -of this vitriol, or
rather of the acid of this mineral, which, in con-
junction with martial or olearious particles, con-
ftitutes the fubtile fait of vitriol, is manifefl: from
thofe mineral waters, which produce a black tinc-
ture on being mixed with powder of galls ; for if
they are expofed for fome time to the open air in a
warm place, they lofe entirely their vitriolic taife
and faculty -of changing their colour.
There remains yet fomething to be examined
in mineral watt;rs, and that is their fubtiie fpiritu-
ous particles, which feem to be of an a-reo-ethereal
nature, and to be endued with an elaftic property.
That they contain a great quantity of thefe is evi-
-dent, both from the vapour which ftrikes the nof-
trils, and alfo from their affcdting the head in
.drijiking. To thefe particles muft alfo be afcribed
2
the vaft quantities of bubbles which are generated'
in fome cold mineral waters, on their being poured
out of one glafs into another.
But thefe bubbles are generated in ftlll greater
plerity, and with more force and celerity, when
they are mixed with equal quantities of Mofelle,
or Rhsnifli wine, or any other that contains a
fubtile acid and a little fugar ; for then they
look well to the eye, and become of a delicious
talle, the vapours proceeding from them in fuch
plenty, that they feem to fmoak. This efFervef-
cence which generates thefe bubbles, proceeds from
the confiicl of the alcaline fait, which prevails in
mineral waters, with the fubtile acid of the
wine.
This fpirituous principle, which refides in thefe
waters, is alio the caufe why xeffels or bottles
clofe flropped, when heated, burfl: with great vio-
lence ; a certain proof of the expanfive power of
this fubtile matter.
Adoreover, the exiftence of this fpirituous prin-
ciple, which ennobles mineral waters, may be
proved by the help of an air-pump ; for on exhauft:-
nig the receiver, fo great a quantity of bubbles
v/ill rife to the furface, that it will appear like a
fluid heated to a degree of ebullition.
Such things, therefore, as have undergone art
examination, and do not produce the like cffedis
and phoenomena, may be looked upon as much in-
ferior in virtue : for it is chat fubtile mineral fpirit
which endues the waters and their ingredients with
mch extraordinary qualities, fo as not only to enter
immediately, and penetrate the very inmofi: recef-
fes and emunftories of the body, but alfo commi:-
nicate greater flrength and elaflicity to the folids.'
Hence the paffage of the waters through our bodies
is facilitated, the vellels freed from all obilruftions,
and the fecretion of ufelefs matter in an extraor-
dinary manner promoted.
But as there is no fpring water which does not
afford fome quantity of an earthy fubfl:ance, which,
after evaporation, is hardly foluble, fo we find the
fame in mineral waters, whether hot or cold, even
in thoie of the greateft reputation for medicinal
virtues. Now the natme and properties of this
grofs fubflance oua;ht alfo to be enquired into ; for
as the waters in their courfe meet with various kinds
of earth, fome particles thereof are eafily taken up
by the inteftine motion -of thefe waters.
Thefe particles are chiefly either chalky, okreous,
clayey, or flonev. If the water be impregnated
with particles of a chalky nature, it will produce
an effervefcence with an acid ; or if the refiduum
after evaporation be calcined, it will acquire the
higheil degree of acrimony. If the waters, efpe-
cially thofe which are hot, contain a large quan-
tity of this chalky earth, it will feparate in cold
weather, and ffick to the veffels which contain it,
and in a little time cover them with a ftoney cruft.
If
ACL
li the fediment which remains after cry{l:illizatIon
and evaporation, be of a ycllowiih colour, and in
calcining changes into a red, it is a fign that the
water is impregnated with martial particles, which
never fail of producing falutary efFecfts on the hu-
man body, by their gentle ailringent and corrobo-
rating virtue.
But this okerous fubftance, though it derive its
colour from iron, cannot be diflblved by an acid,
becaufe it is of the nature of clay. — Many waters
abound with this bolar and martial earth, without
other faline and fpirituous ingredient; whence they
«re of no fmall fervice in chroiiic diftempers, both
drank and ufed as baths.
Befides the hot and cold mineral waters in which
alcalies predominate, there are other medicinal
fprings impregnated neither with acid nor alcali,
nor capable of tinging fyrup of violets, but con-
taining only a fait of a neutral or middle nature,
which may beftbe procured by evaporation.
ACIDULATED, among phylkians, an appel-
lation given to fuch medicines as have been mixed
with fome acid. See Acid.
ACINARIA, in botany, a name fometimes
given to the marfh-whortle-berries. SeeWnoRTLE.
ACINI, among botanilts. See Acinus.
ACINIFORMIS Tunica, in anatomy, the fame
with uvea. See Uvea.
ACINUS, in botany, a name given to grapes
6r berries growing in clufters, in oppofition to
baccs, or fuch berries as grow fmgle.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT, in a general fenfe,
is the owning or confeffing fome thing ; but more
particularly denotes the reward of fome fervice, or
the grateful requital of a favour received.
AcKNOWLEDGMENT-A/owy, a certain fum paid
by tenants in feveral parts of England, on the death
of their landlords, as an acknowledgment of their
new lords.
ACLIDES, in Roman antiquity, a kind of
miflive weapon, with a thong fi.xed to it, whereby
it might be drawn back again.
Moft authors defcribe the aclides as a fort of dart
or javelin ; but Scaliger makes it roundifli or glo-
bular, with a wooden ftem to poife it by.
ACME, in a general fenfe, denotes the height,
point, or top of any thing. Among phyficians it
is ufed for the higheft pitch to which a diflemper
rifes.
Acme alfo denotes the prime orbeftpartof athing.
ACNUA, amongil the ancient Romans, figni-
fied a certain determinate meafure of land, equal
to the Englifh rood, or fourth part of an acre.
See Rood.
ACOEMETjE, or AcoEMETi, a fet of monks,
who chaunted the divine fervice night and day in
their monafteries, without interniiffion ; from
which they were ftiled a.y.oiwfjoi, or men who lived
without fleep. We muft not fuppofe however that
AGO
they did in facl watch abcays, and prav ivlthout
ceajing : human nature could not fupport fuch in-
cellant fatigue. They divided their body into three
different choirs, who regularly fucceeded and re-
lieved each other, io that there was no interruption
ill the facred fervice.
It is generally believed that Alexander, a monk
of Syria, was the founder of this feel, about the
beginning of the fifth century. He tirft preached
at Conftantinople ; but being obliged to quit that
city, he built a monafterv near the mouth of the
Pontus Euxinus, where he died in the year 430.
He was fucceeded by John, and Marcellus, v/ho
having built the famous monaflery near Conftanti-
nople, has been miftaken for the inflitutor of this
order. Some years afterwards one Studius, a noble-
man of confular dignity at Rome, eredted a mo-
naftery at Conftantinople, which contained a thou-
fand perfons, and was highly celebrated for its pictv
and learning. He dedicated it to St. John, and
called it from his own name Studium ; whence
the monks who lived in it gained the appellation
of Studitas.
This fe6t was long ftmous for their exemplary
piety ; but in time they degenerated, and were ac
length condemned by the cm[)eror Juftinian, and
pope John II. for favouring the herefy of the
Neftorians.
There are a kind of Acoemetae ftill fubfifting in
the Romifh church ; the religious of the holy fa-
crament coming properly enough under that appel-
lation, as they have adopted, from the Latin
church, what was called the laus pereiinis, pray-
ing before the holy facrame'it, fome or other of
them, day and night.
ACOLUTHI, in antiquity, was a name given
of old to the Stoics, who were remarkably tena-
cious of their principles, and were not to be Ihaken
from their refolutions.
The word is of Greek extraflion, compounded
of «. nriv. and mhiv^ofy way ; as never deviating
from the original courfe. In this fenfe it has been
applied to thofe perfons who were firm and un-
moveable in their opinions, be they what theywould.
AcoLUTHi, in ecclefiaftica! hiftory, is the name
of the firft four minor orders below the fub-
deacon.
The word is Greek, being derived from ixoAsf-
Ssf, that is, a fervant. It was a very ancient or-
der in the Latin church, being mentioned by Cy-
prian, but was unknown to the Greek. Their
function in the church was to light the candles, and
to bottle the wine that was for confecration, as is
remarked in the fourth council of Carthage, and
in the ancient rituals ; whence we learn, that when
they were ordained, the archdeacon prefented them
with a candle and a bottle, to fignify to them the
office they were to fupply in the church. We find
in the Martyrology, that they held fometimes the
L covsrtd
AGO
covered chalice at mafs, whifh is now done by the
fubdeacon. They affifted too the bifhops and oiS-
ciating piiefts, in helping them to the faccrdotal
habits.
There were in the Roman church three forts of
acoluthi : the palatini, who waited upon the pope ;
the flationarii, who affitled in the churches ; and
theregionarii, who helped the deacons in the func-
tions which they exercii'ed in different parts of the
city.
ACONITE, in botany, a genus of plants com-
monly known by the name of wolfsbane and
mcnkfliood.
The petals of the flower confifl: of five unequal
irregular leaver, formed fo as to bear a great refem-
blance of a helmet, or hood, v/hich in feme fpecies
i^ very confpicuous ; and from this particular the
name of monkfhood is taken. The common forts
are too well known to require any farther defcription.
All the fpecies of aconite are extremely acrimo-
nious, and thence too often occafion fatal convul-
fions, or inflammations, that terminate in a morti-
fication.
ACONTIAS, in zoology, a fpecies of ferpent,
otherv.'ife called jaculum, or the dart-fnake, from
its vibrating its body in the manner of a dart. It
is about nine or ten inches long, and of the thick-
nefs of a man's little finger. On the back it is of
a milky grey colour, variegated v/ith fmall black
fpots, and furrounded with a white circle, like fo
many eyes.
The neck ij wholly black : and from it there run
two milk-white llreaks along the back to the tail.
The belly is perfeflly white.. It is found in Egypt,
and in the iflands of the Mediterranean.
AcoNTiAS is alfo ufed by naturalifts for a kind of
comet, or rather meteor, with a roundifh or oblong
head, and a long flender tail refembling a javelin,
from whence it takes its name.
ACORES, in geography. See Azores.
ACORN, the fruit of the oak. Sec the article
Oak.
Acorns are faid to have been the primitive food
q{ mankind. They are aftringent, and therefore
cfteemedgood in fluxes. However, they are prin-
cipally uied at prefent, for fattening of hogs, poul-
Uy, &c.
ACORUS, in the materia medica, a name given
to two very different roots, the galangal, and the
calamus aromaticus. Se^ Gaiangal, and Ca-
lamus Aromaticus.
AcoRus adiilterinus^ 01 Ba/lard AcoKV i, a name
^iven by fome bot:inilts to tl\e roQt of the yellpw
water-iris, or flag-flowei;.
ACOUSTICS, in mechanics, is the arc of af-
fifting the Icnfe of hearing, by inftruments con-
trived for that purpof.', as hearing-trumpets, whif-
pering-galleries, &c. for the conftrufticn of which,
(??. thpfe arti(;les.
A C R
Ic is poflible, by the- help of an extended wire,.
to hear the beat of a watch more than a furlong,
and that almoft inftantaneous ; and Dr. Hook, in
the preface to his Micrography, fays, that he knew
of a way by which it is eafy to hear a perfon Ipeak
through a wall three feet thick.
The word is Greek, aKxriy.cti and derived from
dK>scj, to hear.
Acoustic Du,^, in anatomy, a name fome-
times given to the external paffage of the ear, ge-
nerally called meatus auditorius. See Meatus
AUDITORIUS.
Acoustic Injlrumenls, are inftruments contrived
to aflift the hearing.
ACQUEST, or Acquist, in law, implies
goods acquired by f urchafe or donation, in contra-
diftin£tion to thofe defcended by inheritance.
ACQUISITION, in a general fenfe, implies
the obtaining or procuring fomething. But the
lawyers ufe it to fignify the right or title to the
enjoyment and property of an eftate procured by
purchafe.
ACQUITAL, in law, fignifies the freeing a
perfon from the fufpicion of guilt ; or the declaring
a perfon innocent of the crime he is accufcd of.
ACQUITTANCE, a difcharge in writing for
a fum ot money, vvitnefling that the perfon ta
whom it is given hath paid the fame.
ACRE, in furveying, is an Englifh fuperficial.
meafure of land, containing ten fquare chains, of
twenty-two yards each.
The French acre is equal to one and a quarter
of the Englifh, while that of Strafburg is only
about half of the latter.
ACRID, an appellation given to fuch things as.
are of a fharp or pungent tafte. Dr. Grew iays,
an acrid tafte is compounded of pungency and.
heat.
ACRIMONY, that quality in things which,
renders them acrid. See Acrid.
ACROATIC was a denomination given by
Ariftotle to fuch leflures as were calculated only>
for his particular friends and difciples, being chiefly;
employed in demonftrating fome fpeculative or. ab-
ftrufe part of philofophy.
The word is Greek, and derived from ctxfoacjuet/,,
to hear.
ACROMATIC, or Achromatic, in optics,
is a term applied to a particular Ipecies ot telelcope,
the moft pecfeft of the refrafting kind, and for the
invention of which the late Mr. John DoUond ob-
tained his majefty's letters patent for the fole dif-.
pofal thereof. But though it be certain that Mr..
Dollond was the firft perfon who made any thing
of this kind public, yet it is not quite fo clear that
he was the firft who thought of it, or even put it
in praiftice ; as appears by a paper, written by.
the late Mr. James Ayfcough, and given as a di-
reflion to I\'Ii-. Eaftland, one of his workmen, and-
■which
A CR
which is to the following eftecl : " A lens of
" crown-glafs, flat on one fide, and convex on the
" other, of two feet focus ; and one of flint-glafs,
•' flat on one fide, and concave on the other, fuf-
*' ficient, when combined with the former, to
" make the focal diftance three feet." This paper
is dated 1752, v/hich is a confiderable time before
Mr. Dollond made any thing of this kind public.
The refult is not known ; but the reader may com-
pare it with the following theory, which is agree-
able to the patentee's conftruftion.
Every ray of light, although it confifts of an in-
finite number of component rays of different co-
lours, is white during the time it is pafPing through
the medium in which it is firft generated ; but in
paffingobliquely from that into a deafer, it will change
its direction toward the perpendicular, and at the
fame time be fcparated into its component rays,.
which from that tim.e proceed on diverging from
each other, like rays from a center, each of which
will then appear of its own particular colour j as is
evident in the phenomenon of the rainbow. This
bending of the ray, called its refra(5i:ion, is caufed
bv a particular property in light called its refrangi-
bility ; and the divergency is cauled by the differ-
ent degrees of refrangibility in its component rays ;
and the more the original or compound ray is re-
fraiSted, the greater will be the divergency of its
component rays, when it is refrafted by one given
medium. See Divergekcy, Light, Ray, Re-
fraction, and Refrangibility.
Now from this property of light it has been con-
cluded, that any two different mediums that can be
made to produce equal degrees of refraftion, will
alfo produce equal divergencies; whence it fhoidd
likewife foUov/, that equal and contrary refraftions
would not only deftroy each other, but that the di
vergency in one would alfo be exactly counter-
balanced by the other, and that to produce refrac-
tion without divergency is impoffible. But thofe
conclufions are not true ; for it appears from num-
berlefs experiments, that a ray of light, after equal
and contrary refraftions, may be ftill fubjciEl to di-
vergency, if refraiSed through different mediums ;
and alfo that different refraiftions may be produced,
and yet the divergency in one exaftly correfted in
the other : as for exampk", if a prifm (fee Prism)
ef white flint-glafs, ABC, (fee Plate LII. /^. i.)
be taken, whofe angle C is about 25% and another
CBD, of crown-glafs, whofe angle B is 29°, be
joined to it, fo as to refrafl: in contrary directions.
It will be found that a beam of light, SP, incident
on the former at P, will, after it has been rcfra(5ted
through both prilms, pal's on in a direftion nearly
the fame as it did before it was refraifled by the
firff ; but at the fame time, the divergency of its
component rays will be very confiderable, and any
©bje£l on which it may fall will appear ftrongly
coloured. Again, if the prifm of white flint-glaf g
A CR
be retained, and one of crown-glafs, whofe angle
of refradtion is to that of the white Hint one nearly
as 3 : 2, be added to it, it will then be found, that
the divergency caufed by the refradtion in one, will
be exactly counteracted by that of the other, but
that there will ftill remain a confiderable angle of
refraction.
Now to determine the lens of a given focus,
which fhall produce the fame effect with the given
prifm ABC or BCB, (fee Fig. 1.) with CD =
the given focal diftance as a radius defcribc the
femi-circle ABG,. (Plate III. y?^. 2.) and make
the Z. ACB = |: the refradting angle in the given
prifm, and draw BC ; alfo draw Bl perpendicular
to DC, and B A and BE tangents to the equal and
fimilar arcs BD and BF. Now, fince the angle
ABC is aright angle .-. the triangles ABI, EBI,
and ACB, are fimilar,. and the jL ABI, EBI,
and ACB equal, whence the prifm ABE is funi-
lar to the given prifm, and BI, the femi-aperture
of the lens required.
For if we fuppofe a ray of light S B parallel to
the axis of the lens AC, and incident on it at the
extreme part B, it is evident that it will be refradt-
ed to the fame point in the axis, viz. C, the center
of the fphere, both in the prifm and lens, fince
they there perfectly coincide ; and it is well known,
from experiment, that parallel rays are rcfradted.
to the fame point in the axis, let them fall on what
part of the fpherical furface they will. See Aper-
ture, Focus, Lens, and Prism.
Cor. Hence it is verj' e\'idcnt (notwithftanding
vi'hat may have been faid to the contrary) that when
DCisconftant, thefcmi-aperturc BI and arcBD (or
BF) are fo too ; and confequently that the aberra-
tion arifing from the fpherical furface of the lens
cannot t)e remedied without departing from the-
thecry.
ACROMION, in anatomy, fignifies the upper
or fuperior part of the fcapula, or flioulder-blade.
See Scapula.
The v/ord is formed from the Greek cf.y.foi-, the
higheft, and wuif, the fhoulder.
ACRONYCAL, in aftronomv, is applied to
the riling of a ftar above the horizon, or fome other
point of the heavens, at fun-fetting ; or its finking
below the horizon when the fun rifes ; in which
cafe, the ftar, &c. is faid to rife or let acronycal.
The v/ord is Greek, tt-AMwyJ^;- £tnd compound-
ed of ctxpoi', extremity, and ck^, the nights
The acronycal is one of the three poetical rifing<:
and fettirigs of the (tars ; the other two are called cof-
7n!cal and heUacr.l. Sec Cosmical and Heliacai:-
ACROSPIRE, the popular term for what the
botaniils call the germ, plume, or plumule. See-
Plumule.
ACROSPIRED, in the art of making malt,
implies that the grains of barley are (hot or fprout-
ed out at both ends. See Malt-m \kivg.
ACROS-
ACT
ACT
. ACROSTIC, the name of a kind of poetical
coinpoikion, difpofed in fuch a manner, riiat the
initial letttrs of the verfes make up fome perfon's
name, title, motto, &c.
The word is compounded of the Greek ctjcpof,
extreme, and 5-/5^®^, verfe.
ACROTERlA, in architeclure, are little pe-
deftals, ufually without bales, anciently placed at
tlic middle and two extremes of the pediments ;
and ferving alfo to fupport llatues, &c. The word
Ls alfu fometimes ufed to lignify the figures which
are placed as ornaments on the tops of churches ;
and thofe Iharp pinnacles that ilund in ranges about
Hat buildings, with rails and balultcrs.
ACT, yiSius^ in a general fenfe, implies the
exertion or effedual application of fome power or
faculty.
It is diftinguiflied from power, as the efFeiSt from
the caufe, or as the thing produced from that which
produces it.
Act, among logician?, denotes an operation of
the human mind, as judging, willing, abftradt-
ijig, &c.
Act, among lawyers, is ufed to fignify an in-
ftrument or deed in writing, ferving to prove the
truth of fome bargain or tranfaclion.
Act is alfo ufed for the final refolution or decree
of an aflembly, fenate, council, &c.
Act of Faith, Auto da fc, in the church of
Rome, is the utmoll exertion of prieftly tyranny,
being no other than a gaol-delivery, for burning,
&c. the unhappy prifoners who have unfortunately
fallen into the unrelenting and defpotic power of
the judges of the inquifition.
Act, in dramatic poetry, is a certain part or di-
vifion of a play, contrived to give a refpite to the
adfors and the audience. Every jufl: dramatic ac-
tion fhould confifl, according to Horace, of five
diftinft parts, dependent on each other. Thefc
different portions of the poem are called adis, be-
caufe they may be confidered as fo many fubordi-
rate aiStions, which tend to the ultimate point in
view. When they all run in one direft line, and
fucceed each other naturally, till they arrive at the
profiofcd end, then the a£lion is fimple, and with-
out epifode. It is otherwile, when there are col-
lateral branches which are not united to the princi-
pal adfion till towards the end of the play ; for in
that cafe the plot is complex, and thefe are epifodes.
If they never join the common ftream at all, but
are entirely fuperfluous, they are faulty, and have
a bad efFedf ; as they call oft" the attention of the
fpedtators from the main dcfign, and divide and
weaken the diftrcfs. Such, for inllancc, are the
love-fccncs in the Tragedy of Cato, which may
be lopt off entirely, without doing the leaft da-
mage to the main adtion of the poem.
The five acts have each their particular rules,
which arc neceflarv to be obferved by every one
who intends to form himfelf after the model of the
ancients.
The firft, which is called the Protofis, becaufe it
contains the propofition of the fubjedt, ought to
explain the action of the drama in a plain and
clear manner ; it fhould bring us acquainted with
all the perfonages, and their characters ; and fhould
lay a foundation for the denouemejit and unravel-
ling the plot. I fhall initance from the Tragedy
of Oedipus by Sophocles, after jult premifing that
the Greeks did not divide their plays by adts, but
by chorufes, or interludes, which anfwer exadtly
the fame purpofe. At the opening of the play, the
people requelt the king to find fome remedy for the
evils they groan under. He tells them, he has fent
Creon to confult the gods, and is every inftant in
expedtation of his return. Creon enters with an
apparent air of fatisfadtion, and informs them of
the oracle's commands to punifli the murderers of
Laius : the king makes a refolution to leave no-
thing undone towards the difcovery of thofe mur-
derers.
We have here a clear expofition of the fubjedt :
firft, the diftrefs of Thebes ; fecondly, the caufe
of her misfortunes ; and thirdly, the remedy is pro-
pofed, by which the evil is to be vanquifhed.
The fecond and third adt fhould be taken up in
heightening the plot, and keeping the expedtation
and inquietude of the audience continually in-
creafing. This was called by the Greeks the Epi-
taf.i. Thus in the Oedipus, adt the fecond and
third, the king pronounces before-hand the edidt
againll the murderer of Laius, and then exhorts
his people to j-ield him all affiflance in detedting the
criminal, and bringing him to punifhment. Juft
at that time arrives Tirefias the prophet, whom the
king quellions about the murderer, but he refufes
to anfwer. This throws Oedipus into a rage : at
laft Tirefias difcovers to the king every thing that
concerns him : Oedipus believes that it is a plot of
Creon's, who was jealous of feeing a flranger, as
he was, upon the throne, and wanted to fucceed
him : however, what Tirefias faid created the king
no fmall uneafinefs. Creon endeavours to juftify
himfelf, but the king is enraged : Jocafta comes
in, and in order to make Oedipus quite eafy, tells
him not to credit Tirefias, for the oracle had fore-
told that Laius fhould be killed by his own fon, and
that fon had died foon after he was born : fhe ac-
quaints him moreover, that Laius had been mur-
dered bv thieves, in a place where three great roads
met. Thefe lalt words, dropt without defign, in-
creafe his imeafinefs ; he afks frefh queftions ; he
enquires into circumltances, which ferve to prove
to him too clearly, that he is himfelf the author of
the murder committed in that place. One thing
remains to be folved, which is, the report that fe-
veral were concerned in the murder of Laius,
whereas Oedipus was alone when he did it : an of-
ficer
ACT
ffcer of the hoafholJ, who was well acquaintod
with the circumftances, is fent for : in the mean
while Oedipus relates to Jocafla, that while he was
at the court of Polybus, king of Corinth, he had
one day been ren.-oached with not being the fon of
that prince ; an J not hiving been able to get this
point cleared up by the king, he confultcd the
oracle at Delphos, which, inftead of giving him a
fatisfaiftory anfwer, had told him that he ftould
kill his father, and marry his mother. In order to
prevent this, he had relblved never to fee Corinth
more, and in his way to Thebes, had met with fuch
a man as Laius was defcribed, and killed him and
fome of his retinue ; that when this happened, he
was alone by himfelf ; therefore, if Laius had been
killed by a number of people in company, he
certainl)' could not be the perfon that murdered
him. Here we fee all is in agitation and perplexi-
ty ; the dreadful oracle begins in fonie meafure to
be accompliflied againft him, and we wait in
trembling anxiety for the event.
The next rule is the CaUiftaft;, which carries on
the intri-iue, and heightens the diftrefs that is raifed
in the Ephajis, till at lall: the plot, being ripe for
unravelling, leads to the Catajhopbe. Thus the
fourth zSt begins with Jocafta in great diforder
preparing for a facrihce. A mefienger arrives
from Corinth, with an account of the death of Po-
lybus. Jocafta is partly appeafed, as fhe thinks the
oracle has now proved falfe, at leaft in one parti-
cular : fhe fends to acquaint Oedipus with the
pleafing news. He no longer dreads being the
murderer of his father, but is ftill in apprehenfion
of becoming the inceftuous partner of his mother's
bed. The Corinthian, in hopes of filencing his
fears, informs him that the queen of Corinth was
not his mother, nor Polybus his Either ; and then
relates to him the manner of his having received
him an infant from the hands of a fhepherd on
mount Citheron.' Oedipus perceives that thisfhep-
h-erd is the very fame perfon he fent for. Jocafta,
who is acquainted with all the remaining parts of
the (lory, is for preventing the king from enquiring
further : he is determined to know the whole : the
queen, unable to fiand the fatal difcoxery, departs.
The officer who was fent for arrives, and a moft
-dreadful fcenc enfues : every thing is difcovered,
by confronting the two fliepherds. Oedipus finds
himfelf guilty of all the horrid crimes which the
oracle foretold ; and nothing remains but to fee the
punifliment infliftcd on him. This leads direftly
to
The laft rule of the drama, called by the Greeks
the Catajhophe, which unravels the intrigue, and
brings the play to a conclufion. Accordingly the
hfth a£l opens with an officer, who relates what
lias pafled in the palace : the queen has killed her-
felf, and Oedipus, not having arms to take away
his life, has dug out his eyes with one of the clafps
A CT
of Jocafla's robe, and is filling the palace with the
molt bitter lamentations : Creon enters and up-
braids him, but at length he is permitted to take a
laft farewel of his children : after this he is con-
duced back to the palace, and fo the piece ends.
From this analylis of the Tragedy of Oedipus,
we may collect the ufc of the chorufcs or inter-
ludes, which, as was hinted above, anfwer the
fame purpofcs with the more modern divifions of
the drama, called ails. Thefe were invented by
the Romans, to give a breathing-time to the ac-
tors and fpeftators : but we muft not fuppofe
that during the intervals between the afts, when the
theatre remains empty, the plot ftands itill : ffo -,
though there is no aftion vifible to the fpedtators,
it is fuppofed all the while there is one paffing
out of light ; fo that it is not merely for the
fake of the refpite that thefe afts are obferved,
but te give affairs a greater degree of probability,
and render the plot more interefting. For the
fpec^ator who fees the aiStion prepared that is to
pafs in the interval, does not remain idle, but fup-
plies in his imagination the part of the abfent
acT:ors : by which means he is agreeably furprifed
to fee a new aft come upon the Itage, which is
the refult or natural confequence, if I may fo
fay, of what has been paffing in his own mind.
It fliould be the bufinefs of an author, to con-
trive that the moll; dry and difficult parts of the
drama fhould be tranfa(R;ed between tlie afts :
jull as the ancients endeavoured to throw the nar-
rative and unentertaining parts of their plays into
the chorufes.
Horace has determined the number of acts to
be five : but fuch a rule feems to be drawn rather
from cuftom, than the reafon of the thing. A.'i
author fhould be governed entirely by the fubjedt
that he chufes : and if this is of fuch a kind,
that it cunnot be drawn out into five acts without
emharraffing it with epifodes, or loading it with
incidents foreign to the bufinefs ; he had better
confine it within three or four ads, than fuiter a
flavifli obfervance of rule to get the better of
nature and propriety.
The a6ts are divided into fcenes, and Voffius
remarks that among the ancients, an aft never
contained more than (even fcenes : it is eafy to
perceive that they fhould not be too numerous,
as a proportion fhould be kept up between the
length of each aft ; but there can be no rule as
to the exaft number, which feems to be ar-
bitrary.
ACTS of the JpDjIles, one of the facred books
of the New Teltament, which was placed among
the canonical books at the council of Laodicea,
and has been acknowledged fuch by every churcti
without controverfy. It contains the hiftory of
the infant church during the fpace of 29 or 30
years ; that is, from the afcenfion of our blefled
M Saviour
ACT
ACT
Saviour Jefus Chrift, till about the 63d year of the
Chriftian rera.
It is generally fuppofcd to have been written by
St. Luke, from its being addrefl'ed to Theophilus,
arid making mention of his Gofpel, in which he
had fet forth the aftions and doctrines of Chrif)-
till his afcenfion. He here refumes the thread of
his hiftory, and gives us an account of the miniftiy
of the apoftles and growth of the church. This
book contains the accomplifhment of many pro-
mifes made by our Saviour; his refurretftion imd
afcenfion ; the defcent of the Holy Ghoft on the
apoftles, and the wonderous change it wrought on
their hearts and manners ; their preaching, and
the miracles they performed in confirmation of it %
their zeal and prudence in the government of the
church at Jerufalem ; the concord, difinterefted-
nefs, and charity of the firit Chriflians ; in fhort,
every thing that happened in the church till the
apolUes feparated themfelves, to few the feed of
falvation throughout the whole world. From that
period St. Luke dropt the hiftory of the other
ajjoflles, from whom he was removed, and attach-
ed himlelf to that of St. Paul, who had chofen
him for the companion of his labours and travels.
Him he followed, the chofen \-e(f;l of the church,
in all his miffions, and even to Rome itfelf : for it
appears, that the A£ts of the Apoftles were pab-
lifhed the fccond year of St. Paul's refidence in
that city, that is, in the fixty-third year of Chrift,
and the 9th or loth of the emperor Nero. The
ftile of this work, which was compofed in Greek,
is more pure than that of th.£ other canonical books ;
and- one may remark that St. Luke v/as better
ikillcd in the Greek than the Hebrew language, as
his quotations of the Old Teftament are always
taken from the Septuagint verfion.
Several different works have been publifhed un-
der the title of the Acts of the Apoftles, of which
the firft was the adts of Paul and Thecla, written
by a difciple of St. John, for which he was de-
graded. Afterwards the Manicheans forged a work,
called the Kth of St. Peter and St. Paul, which
were fa!! cf their errors. They make tlie apoftles
iay, that the fouls of men and beafts are the fame,
and work miracles to make dogs and fheep tal.k :
other writings of tl^is kind are, the Afts of St.
Andrew and St. John, the Voyage of St. Peter,
the Tranf.ation of St. Paul, with leveral more too
tedious to mention.
ACTIAN Gcincs, ludi J^iaci., in antiquity, were
games infi-itutcd by Auguftus, in commemoration
of the victory he gained over Marc Antony at
Allium.
Some will have it that tliey were celebrated
•every third year ; but Strabo, whofe authority Is
now generally followed, tells us, that they return-
ed every fifth year only, and that they were facred
tp Agoilo, tlience called A(^liuSv.
AcTi.^N Tean^ a feries of years commencing
from the battle of Aftium. See Epocha.
ACTION, adio,, in a general fenfe, implies
riearlv the fame with 'dO:. See Act.
ACTION, as applied to epic poetry, is that
which mal'.es the fubjeft or the matter of the poem :
in the dramatic, we call it more properly plot or
fable. See Drama, Plot, P'able.
The five following qualifications feein efien-
ti.1l to the epic aiStion : it fhould be fingUy
gnat, rnaiveUous-, probable, and aJfeSJing, or in-
terefting.
Firft, It fliould be flngle : for if two aiSlions
were to be carried on at once, both of them
equally interefting, the heart would be divided,
and all its emotions would be vague and uncertain ;
if they were not equally interefting, that which
was the leaft fo, would be tirefome and palling ;
from which it follows, that unity is eftential to the
epic aftion. Hence v/e may coilecl that the life
of a hero, which comprizes a vaft variety of ac-
tions, can never be the proper matter of a regular
poem : and that for feveral reafons ; firft, becaufe
it is too diffufed to be taken in at one view ; fe-
condly, becaufe all the parts of it are not equally-
heroic ; and thirdly, becaufe they do not necef-
farily depend on each other, nor tend to one com-
mon end.
But it may be afked, what it is that makes the
a£tion of a poem flngle. Is it the unity of the
hero .? Certainly not ; for the Ihad comprizes a
whole people. Is it the fuperior excellence of any
one particular hero ? That cannot be ; for if A-
chilles excelled in valour, Ulyffes excelled no lefs
in prudence, Neftor in wifdom, and Agamemnon
in authority. How fliall we then define it .'' The
aftion is iingle when it is independent of every
other aiStion, and when all its parts are connedted
in a natural manner with each other. This unity
of action is known from the very propofition of
the fubjeft itfelf: thus Virgil fays, I fing the hero
who, after a thoufaad toils, fettled at length in
Italy. Here it is plain that the aftion of j^ilneas
is the conqueft of Italy, and the eftabliftiment of
his people in a foreign land. If he had faid, I
fmg the defpair of Dido ; though in that cafe his
poem would have contained but one fmgle book, it
would ftill have been a compleat work : or if he
had faid, I fing the defcent of j^neas into hell,
the funeral obfequies of old Anchifcs, or the fatal
adventure of Nifus and Euryalus ; in each of thefe
cafes the aftion of his poem would h.ive been
entire, though confifting at moft of but five or
fix hundred verfes. But faying as he did, I fing
the hero who fettled in Italy ; every obftracle this,
hero had to furmount, before he was ellablifhed in
his kingdom, became part of the poet's fubjeiSt ;
and every adventure he met with, that had any
conacdion with the main adion, might be intro-
duced.
ACT
duced as epifodcs, to refrefli the mind of the reader
by an agreeable variety. See Episode.
The next point to be confidered is the greatnefs
of the epic adtion : a common and ordinaiy ad-
venture does not furnifla from its own llock either
matter fufficicntly interefting, or fuch a fund of
ufeful inftrudtion, as ve ought to meet with in an
epic poem. Nothing lefs than a hero, who is the
tavourite of the gods ; or the redudlion of a famous
city ; or the conquelt of a kingdom ; or the com-
mon fate of mankind, is worth the confideralioii
©f the epic rnufe. The life of an ordinary perfon,
or a trivir.l Itory, or a love intrigue, may furnifh
matter for a hiflory, a novel, or aromance ; but an
epic poem, which ftrains every nerve of the human
genius, fliould attempt nothing but what is big
with grandeur and magnificence.
But it is not ejiougn that the adfion of nn epic
poem be great, it fhould alfo be tnarvelkiis. Petro-
nius fays. Per ombagti Deorumque m'mijleria, fa-
hulofumque jententiarum toimentum praciphandus cjl
iiber fpiritu!. " Through all the intricate mazes
" of fate, conducted by the miniftering gods,
" the wild unfettered genius of the poet muft
" dart, and bring his machinery from the vaft un-
" bounded fpace of fidtiofi." it is the bufinefs of
an epic poem to raife our admiration and allonifh-
ment. If v/e look into Homer, the great father
of this fpecies of poetry, we are all at once wrapt
in amazement : Jupiter thunders on mount Ida;
we fee gods and goddefles mingle in a croud of
mortal combatants, covered with duft and heavenly
ichor. How warmly arc they interefted ! what fur-
prizing revolutions do they occafion, attacking and
overcoming each other ! Virgil trod in the ftcps ot
this mighty mafter : nothing is tranfacfted in the
^neid, without the interpofition of fome deity :
the gods are every where ! Juno traverfes the
air ; the monarch of die winds lets loole the
bellowing tempeft ; all is uproar and contu-
fion, until Neptune the god of ocean rifes,
and drives back the winds to their caverns.
It feems from the frequent ufe which is made of
thefe divine agents, that an epic poem could not
exift without machinery of this nature, which
gives to the moit trifling and common incident
of life an air of the marvellous. I would not here
be fuppofed to mean, that an epic poem could not
be formed without tiie ailiftance of heathenifh
deities. No ; if in the hands of Homer fuch ad-
mirable ufe could be made of the pagan mytho-
logy, which is a fyftem only of abfurdities ; how
much more noble and fublime a machinery would a
poet of equal genius frame from the chriftian re-
ligion ! With what energy, what mafterly force,
v/ould he paint the God who created the univcrfe
with a word, who rides on the wings of the wind,
ajid fees and comprehends every thing at a glance ?
How delightful mull it be to foUov/ fuch a poet,
ACT
while with a foul inflamed with p^-cpi.ciic fire, hs
defcribes his hero imagining, attempting, and ex-
ecuting the grandefl: exploits ; always under the
dirCiStion of fome miniftring angel, fome guardian
fpirit, which gives him prudence to forefee, for-
titude to encounter, and patience and courage to
furmount every obHacle in his way ! See Ma-
The fourth qualification cflential to the epic
adiion, is that it fhould be probable : for though
it feems neceflary in a poem of this nature to m.ake
ufe of the agency of fuperior beings to produce
efFedts afloniihing and fupernatural, yet they fhould
ne\er be em.ployed in matters that contradict any
known truths, or even received opinions. The
poet declares himfelf infpired by a genius, who
affifts at the council of the gods ; and therefore
may fairly be allowed to lay open the unknown
fprings of great operations. But he never does it
in fuch a manner as fliocks probability ; he fhews
us fuch things as rcfemble thofe we believe, and
relates them with an air of authority and refolution.
The refolution fhakes, and the probability of the
thing convinces us. We behold heroes, adtions,
maimers, painted in charadters we underflrand •,
we foiijive die fidlion, nay, we even forget it,
through an amiable del ufion that poiTefl^es us. But
this would be impo.Tible, if the charadlers were
unnatural, or his reprefentations exceeded the
bounds of probability : in fuch cafes we fhould
laugh, as we do at Homer himfelf, when he makes
a river quit his bed to purfue a man, and Vulcau
run armed with fire to force the river, back agahi
to its channel.
The lafl thing that is necelTarv to the epic ac-
tion is, that it fhould be interefting : this may be
eftedtcd two wavs, one, by the nature of the ac-
tion and its object, and the other, by the nature
of the obftacles to be furnunmtcd : the former is
called the affecting ; the latter excites our curiofitv^
and is therefore called the fingular.
The affcdling comprehends fevera! forts of in-
terefts ; as nrfl-, a national intereif ; thus a Roman
interefts himfelf in the undertaking of ^Tmeas, as
being a Roman: fecondly, a religious intereft; a
chriitian interells himfelf in the undertaking of
Godfrey of Bulloignc to deliver the fepidchre of
JeUis Chrift out of the hands of the infidels :
thirdly, a natural intereft, or the intereft of hu-
manity, " Homo, fum, humani nihil a me alienum
" puto :" thus we all intereft ourfelves warmly
in the diftrefs of Adam, not only as he is a man,
but as he is the father of all mankind, in whole
welfare every individual is concerned as a prin-
cipal. Wher-e thefe difix-rent kinds of interefts
can be blended and joined together, the action
cannot fail to affedt and capdvate us. I'he laft of
thefe is by far the ftrongefir and, moft prevalent ;
and Mikcji has chofen fuch a fubjedl, inwhlch we
-.u-e.
ACT
ACT
-arc concerned both for ourielves anS others, and
managed it with fo much art and addrefs, that he
vill 1)2 for ever read and felt, even though the d:iys
o( nioukifli barbarifin fhould again return, v/hen
Homer and Virgil will be fuffered to moulder into
diifV, neglefted and forgotten !
We are told by Anftotle that the epic aiStion
ihould have a beginning, a middle, and an end ;
\?hich precept F. Boiru has explained in the fol-
lowing manner I'The beginning, fays he, compre-
hends thofe caufes that influence the acl:ion, and
the refolution that fome perfon takes to perform it ;
the middle is the etFect of thofe caufes, and the
ditficulties which attend their being carried into
execution ; and the end is the unravelling and cef-
lation of thofe difficulties. The unravelling may
be brought about two ways, either by dif-
covcrv, or without it by a revolution. This is
called a peripetia ; which if it happen by a dif-
covery, the peripetia is twofold j if by a revolu-
tion, it is fu\gle.
Action, in oratory, means the outward de-
portment of the orator, or an accommodation of
bis countenance, voice, and gefture, to the fubje6l
of which he is treating. Cicero emphatically
terms it, the eloquence of the body : and it was
ib much efteenied by Demoilhenes, that when he
■(vf.is afked, what was the principal perfecSion of an
orator? He anfwered, Aftion. What the fscond ?
Action. \\''hat the third ? Adion. As if the
matter of the difcourfe was of trivial confequence,
fo that it was only well delivered. Indeed he
feems to have fpoken thus with fome rcafon, as
action is a dirert attack upon the fenfes, which
are as it were the inlets to thofe ideas that more
immediately afFeiil: the pafTions. P'or this caufe
it has been condemned by many fober and judi-
cious perfons, as inverting the natural order of
things, dragging our reafon after our paffions,
which fliould ever go before them.
It is impoffible to lay down any rules to afcer-
tain the proper modes and degrees of aiSion,
which can be univerjally juil and accurate ; be-
caufc every nation has fome particular figns of its
own to exprefs particular paffions, and no two
nations agree in the direct quantity of a£tion that
can be made ufe of with propriety. What in
Italy is decent and becoming, would be regarded
in France as extravagant and prepofterous ; and
what with them is lively and fpirited, is looked
upon in England as downright grimace and buf-
foonery. Yet notwithftanding thi3, there are fome
geftures that are univerfally underitood, and feem
to be the language of nature herfelf ; even fo far
that the very brutes are afteited by them. The
face, according to Quintilian, is able to exprefs
every movement and paffion of the foul ; it
•ihreatens, careffes, and fupplicates ; is forrowful,
gay, and bumble. Nay, the very .eyes with him
are a never failing fource of eloquence ; they are
the windows of the foul, through which we fee
whether fho fparkles with joy, or is clouded with
fcrrow : they are bright with pleafure, glare with
indignation,, arc deprefied with fliame, roll in
anger, and are tender and bathed with tears in
pity.
It is much to be lamented that aftion is (o
generallv diiufed in difcourfes from the pulpit ;
v.'hich are for the moil: part frigid leiStures of
divinity, deli\ered and heard without the leaft
marks of feeling, either in the preacher or the
audience. It would be highly abfurd to introduce
into the pulpit all the variety of theatrical geftures ;
but at the fame time there is a certain degree
of action, properly regulated, which might be
made ufe of with the happieit fuccefs ; as not un-
likely to influence thofe who ha\e fliut their ears
againft the voice of reafon.
Action, in ethics, implies fomething done by
a free or moral agent, capable of diftinguifhing
good from evil.
The efl'ence of a moral action confifts in being
done knowingly and voluntarily: that is, the
agent mull not only be able to diftinguiOi whe-
ther it be good or bad in itfelf, but he mufl: like-
wife be entirely free from compuHlon of any kind,
and at full liberty to follow the di(£tates of his
own underltanding. Hence the actions of ideots,
flaves, iic. cannot be called moral. Hence alfo
appears the abfurdity of fatalifm, becaufe it de-
ftroys the very foundation of morality.
Action, in mechanics and phyfics, in fome
authors, fignifies the preflure or percuffion of one
body againit another : or, according to others, the
effect itfelf of fuch preffure.
It^ is abfolutely neceflary, in order to reafon
juftly upon any fubje£t, to have a juft and deter-
minate idea of it ; and as this word is become am-
biguous, and ufed both hi a fimple and complex
fenfe, it was neccflary to give this double defini-
tion of it : but its proper fignification feems to
imply the motion which a body really produces,
or tends to produce in another ; or in other words,
that which it would have produced, had nothing
hindered its effedls.
For it may be confidered, that we can have no
demonftrative evidence of the adtion of bodies
upon one another but their motion ; and as the
mind can have no precife idea of a caufe, but from
the effedt which it produces, it would therefore be
abfurd to prefix any idea to the word adtion, ex-
cept that of actual motion, or a tendency thereto.
Had Leibnitz and his followers but thoroughly
confidered this, it is very probable we fliould never
have heard of the famous controverfy concerning
the vires viva, which feems to have arofe entirely
from a mifconception of this nature.
^antity
ACT
^tantity of Action, a name given by M. Ac
Maupertuis, in the Memoirs of the Parifian aca-
demy of faiences for 1744, and in thofe of Ber-
lin for 1746, to the produdt of the mafs of a
body, into the fpace which it runs through, and
into its celerity. He there lays it down as a gene-
ral law, " That in the changes made in the
" fl:ate of any body, the quantity of aftion ne-
" cefiary to produce fuch change is the leali:
" poflible." Tliis principle he applies to the
jnvelligation of the laws of refrailion, equilibrium,
and even to the laws of afting of the fupreme
Ueing.
In the fame year that M. de Maupertuis com-
municated the idea of this principle, profeflor
Euler printed a work, entitled, Methodui inven'i-
endi lineas curvas maximi vel minimi proprietatc gau-
dcntes ; in the fupplement to which he has made
an application of this principle to the motion of
the planets.
It appears from the Memoir of 1744, that it
was refledlions on the laws of refra6tion which
firft led M. de Maupertuis to the theorem here
fpoken of. The principle on which M. de Fer-
mat, and after him M. Leibnitz, accounted for
the laws of refradlion, by fuppofing that a particle
of light in pafling from one point to another,
through two different mediums, in each of which
it moves with a different velocity, muft do it in the
leaft time poflible, and from whence they demon-
flrated by geometry, that the particle cannot go
from one point to the other in a right line, but
that when it arrives at the furface which feparates
the two mediums, it mufl: alter its direction in
fuch a manner, that the fine of its incidence fliall
be to the fme of its refradlion, as its velocity in
the firft medium is to its velocity in the feeond ; and
from whence alfo thev deduced the well-known law
of the conftant ratio of their fines, is very ingeni-
<5us ; but notwithftanding, M. de Maupertuis faw
it was liable to one great objetJtion, which is, that
fhe particle muft approach towards the perpendicu-
lar in that medium where its velocity is the leaft, and
confcquently refills it the moll, which is contrary
to all the mechanical explanations of the refradtion
of bodies that have liitherto been given, and of
the refraclion of light in particular.
Now Sir Ifaac Newton's way of accounting for
it is much more fatisfaftorv, and gives a clear
reafon for the conftant ratio of the fines, by afcrib-
ing the refraftion to the attraftive power of the
mediums ; whence it follows, that the denfeft me-
diums, whofe attraction is the ftrongefl, fhould
caufe the ray to approach towards the perpendi-
cular, a fadl confirmed by experiment. Now the
atiracftion of the medium could not caufe the ray
to approach the perpendicular, without increafing
its velocity, as may cafily be demonftrated ; and
M. de Maupertuis has attempted to recojicile it
ACT
with mc-taphyfical principles in the folloAvir>g
manner.
Inftead of fuppofing, as the aforefaid gentlemen
do, that a particle of light proceeds from one
point to another in the fhorted time pofTible j
he will have it, that a particle of light palfes from
one point to another in fuch manner, that the
quantity of (iSticn (hsW be the leaft poiTible. This
quaiuity of action, fays he, is a real expence, in
which nature is always frugal ; and in virtue of
this philofophical principle, he difcovers that not
only the fines are in a conftant ratio, but that they
are alfo in the in^x•rfe ratio of their velocities ,
agreeable to Sir Ifaac Newton's explanation, and
not in the dired ratio, as MefTieurs de Fermat
and Leibnitz had fuppoicd.
It is very remarkable that of the many philofo-
phers who have written on refraction, none fliould
hit upon this thought; for it is but making a
fmall alteration in the calculus founded on Sl.
de Fermat's principle, viz. That the fpace divided
by the velocity fliould be a minimum : for calling
the fpace run through in the firil medium S with
the velocity V; and the fpace run through in the
feeond medium s with the velocity v, wc (hall have
+
a minimum, its fluxion — + - = o
whence it is eafy to perceive, that the fines of
incidence and refraftion are to each other as
S to — s .: it follows that thofe fines zre in the
direCt ratio of V : v, which is what M. de Fermat
makes it to be : but in order to have thofe fines iii
the inverfe ratio, it is only fuppofing that S X V
+ JX w isa minimiim,whichgives V S + vs :=. o.
See Minimum and Fluxion.
In the Alemoirs of the academy of Berlin above-
cited, may be feen all the other applications which
M. de Maupertuis has made of this principle; and
whatever (hall be <!eterniined witii regard either
to his metaphyfical bafis, or the conception he has
annexed to the quantity of action, it Vv'ill ftill
hold good, that the produiEl of the fpace by the
velocity is a minimum, in the moft general laws
of nature.
Action, in the animal oeconomy, is a motion
or alteration produced in the whole body, or in
fome part of it, and differs from function in this,
that the latter is only a faculty of producing,
whereas adlion is that faculty reduced into an a£t.
Boerhaatv.
Actions, as well as fun£tions, are diftinguifh-
ed into vital, natural, and animal : the vital adlions
are thofe which are of an abfolute necefTity for
life ; fuch as the motion of the heart, refpiration,
&CC. Natural actions are thofe whereby the body
is preferved fuch as it is ; fuch are digeftion, the
fecretions, nutrition, &c. The animal aitions
are thofe which produce a certain alteration in
N the
ACT
ACT
the foul, and on which it hath fome pov.xr ; fuch
are the motion of the mufcles fubmitted to the
v/ill, feiifations, &c. See Function, Anmal,
Natural and Fital.
Action, in medicine, is faid in the fame fenfe
as funiftion ; and therefore we fay, that the ac-
tion of the ftomach upon aliments is to divide them
and mix them intimately together. A phyfician
ought to be acquainted with the adlion of all the
parts of the human body, and to dillinguifli the
caufe, feat, and differences of difeafes ; this know-
ledge puts him in a fituation of pronouncing with
cerrainty, either in refpeft of the danger that the
patient is in, or of the proximity of his recovery.
See Function.
The word ailion Is lilcewife medicinally- ufed
inftead of force : we augment the aciion of a pur-
gative, by adding fomething to it, that is to fay,
we give it more force.
Action, in the military art, is an engagement
between two armies, or between different bodies
of troops belonging thereto. The word is like-
wife ufed to fignify fome memorable adl done by
an officer, or commander of a body of troops.
Action, inlaw, is a judiciary demand, found-
ed upon a title or law, whereby the plaintiff fum-
mons the defendant to fatisfy him for that to which
he is obliged, in virtue of the one or the other,
and for defciff whereof he requires that he fliould
be condemned by the judge.
Actions are divided by Juffinian into two
general kinds, real, or thofe againil the thing ;
and perfonal, or thofe againft the perfon ; for
whoever brings an action, either does it againft
one obnoxious to him in rcfpeit either of
contrail or of offence ; in which cafe arife
aftions againft the perfon, which require the
party to do or give fomething ; or he does it againft
one not obnoxious, yet with whom a controverfy
is rifen touching fome matter; as if Caius holds
a field, which Julius claims as his property, and
brings his aftion for the fame. Seethe Institut.
L. 4. ///. 4. where the principal adlions introduced
by the Roman law are fummarily explain-ed.
There is alfo a third kind of attion which
arifes out of the two former claffes of real and
perfonal aftions, and which is called a mixed
aftion.
Real Action is that whereby the plaintiff fues
for the right which he has to lands, tenements,
rents, or other payments ; and of this there are
two forts, either the pofleffion or dc^mand. An
aftion is merely real when it fingly attacks the
thing, and the detainer is clear upon g:iving it
wp ; but if lie is perfonalty obliged to the reftl-
tution of fruits or intercft, in that cafe it is. mixed.
Perfonal Action is that which one man has
againft another, in confequence of a contra(fl,
Vticrcby he is obliged to pay or do fomething;
or by reafon of an offence done by him, or by
fome other perfon for whofe faft he is anfwerable.
See Personal.
In the firft cafe the aftion is civil, and in the
other it is or may be criminal.
Alixed Action is that which is either laid
againft the perfon of the detainer of the thing, or
for the thing detained, being thus called, becaufe
it hath a mixed refpedt, both to the thing and to
the perfon.
They generally reckon three forts of mixed
aflions, the ailion of partition between coheirs,
of divifion between affociates, and limitations be-
tween neighbours.
Actions are alfo divided into civil, penal, or
criminal : the civil aiStion is that which tends only
to the recovery of that which belongs to a man,
by virtue of a contrail:, or of fome fuch like
caufe ; as if any one fhould endeavour to recover, ■
by way of aftion, a fum of money which he has
lent.
Penal or criminal Action tends to the punifh-
ment of the party accufed or profecuted, either
corporally or pecuniarily.
Action of a writ, is where a perfon pleads
fome matter, whereby he Ihews that the plaintiff"
hath no juft caufe to have the writ he brought,
though it be poflible he might have a writ or
a6f ion for the fame matter ; fuch plea is called a
plea to the a6f ion of the writ. See Writ.
Action, in commerce, fometimes fignifies
moveable effeiEfs ; and we fay, that the merchant's
creditors have feized upon all his a£tions, inftead
o>f faying, that they have put themfelves in pof-
feiTion, and rendered themfelves mafters of all his
aftive debts.
Action, in painting and fculpture, is the atti-
tude or pofition of the parts of the face and body
of fuch figures as are reprefented, and whereby we
judge that they are agitated bv paffions : they fay,.
This figure by its adlion finely expreffes the paffions
with which it is agitated ; This acSlion of a man
in a fright is very well. They make ufe of the
fame term- in refpeft to animals ; tliey fay. There is-
a dog, whofe action very well expreffes fury ; and
of a ftag at bay ; There is a ftag, who by his ac--
tion expreffes his grief, &c.
ACTIVE, in a general fenfe, implies fome-
thing that communicates motion or aciion to ano-
ther, in which acceptation the term aifivc ftands
oppofed to paffive.
Active, a term in grammar, which denotes a
word tliat has aa active fignification, or expreffes.
an action.
Verbs aclive, according to fome grammarians,,
are diftinguiflied into three kinds : firft, trcinfitivty.
where the atSlion pailes into a fubjeil: difterent from
the agent, as Antony loved Cleopatra : fecondiy,.
The reflected, or verb >ieutir, v/hich has no noun.
I followiiig
ACT
A C U
following it, bccaufe the a£tion returns upon the
agent, as I walk, I think, &c. and thirdly. The
reciprocal verb, which is ufed only in fome modern
languages, where the aftion turns mutually upon
the leveral agents who produced it, as in P rench,
"Jacque et toi vius vous lotwz : " James and you
commend each other, or one another."
In the Greek and Latin languages, the aftive
and paflive voice have each their diftin6l termi-
nations in the different moods and tenfes : but in
all modern languages, the paflive voice is expreffed
by the participle pad joined to an auxiliary verb,
as, I am loved. See Participle, Auxiliary,
&c.
Active principles, in chemiftry, thofe which
a£l of themfelves without any foreign aflift-
ance. Thefe are fuppofed to be mercury, oil,
and fait ; phlegm and earth are called paflive
principles.
ACTIVITY, in a general fenfe, fignifies the
faculty or power which renders things aftive.
Sphere of AcTi\'iTy, the whole (pace in which
the virtue, power, or influence of any objeft is
exerted.
ACTCEA, in botany, a name given by Lin-
naeus to a plant, formerly called Chriftophoriana
by Tournefort, or herb Chriftopher. It produces
a rofaceous flower compofed of four petals ; the
filaments are numerous and hairy, topped with
round and upright antherae ; it has no Ityle, but
the germen, which is oval and placed in the
center, is crowned with an oblique comprelTed
ftigma. When the flower is decayed, its oviary
becomes a globular berry confifting of one cell,
containing four feeds, whofe outfides are round,
but angular where they are joined. The common
fort, called bane-berries, grows plentifully in fome
parts of Yorkfliire : but the other fpscies of this
plant are natives of America, one of which called
black fnake-root, is ufed as an antidote againft the
bite of the rattle-fnake.
ACTOR, in a general fenfe, fignifies a perfon
who acts or performs fomething.
Actor, as to the dram.a, fignifies a perfon
who rcprcfents fome part or character upon the
theatre.
The drama confifted originally of nothing more
than a fimple chorus, who fung hymns in honour
of Bacchus. Thefpis was the firfl: who intro-
duced a perfona or a£i:or ; which he did for two
reafons, one, to give a kind of refplte, or breath-
ing-time to the fingers, and the other, to explain
fome particular circumflances which related to
their heroes, and without which feveral paflages
in their hymns would not er.fily be underftood.
iTfcylus, finding a fingle perfon tirefome, ven-
tured to introduce a fecond ; and fo chanoed the
ancient recitals into dialogues. It was he who
iirft invented the bulkinj which was a hijih fljoe.
that cncreakd the ilature, and ga\c the wearsf an
heroic appearance.
Sophocles improved further upon this plan ;
and rinding the two perfons of A^fchylus not futh-
cient for the variety of incidents, added a third :
and here the Greeks Hopped ; at Icaft we do not find
in any of their tragedies above three perfons in the
fame fcene. In their comedies, they allowed
themfelves greater licence.
If we confider fome particular circumflances
and cuftoms that prevailed on the ancient theatre,
we cannot help fuppofing that the aftors trufled
rather to the matter of the play, than their nr<;n-
ner of performing it, for the entertaining and.
afi^efting their audience. In the firli: place they
acted in mafks, for which reafon they were called
perjona : now it was impoflible for them to ex-
prefs any emotion of the foul by the mufclcs of the
face, which is the mofl eloquent part of the body,
while it was thus concealed from the fpe£lators.
To remedy this inconvenience, when the adlor
was to vary the paflion, he wore a mafk that was
painted, on one fide the face, for inftance, to re-
prefent joy, and on the other grief : aaid when
there was occafion to make a tranfition from one
pafTion to the other, he gave himfelf a dexterous
turn, and exhibited the oppofite profile.
Another thing, whici^ to us at leafl appears
highly ridiculous, is, that on the Roman ftage
one adtor frequently fpoke the part, and another
gave it a proper accompanyment of action and
geflrure.
Actors were highly honoured at Athens,, and
defpifed at Rome ; where they were not only de-
nied all rank among the citizens, but even v/hert
a citizen appeared upon the flage, he was ex-
pelled his tribe, and deprived of the right of
fuffrage by the cenfors. The French have in
fome meafure adopted the fame ideas with the
Romans ; but we, more humane and polite, thofe
of tlie courtly Athenians.
ACTUAL, an epithet applied to fuch things,
as exift fully and abfolutely. Thus philofophers.
fpeak of aftual heat, cold, &c. in oppofition to-
virtual or potential.
ACTUARIAL naz'fSy in antiquity, a kind of
fhips among the Romans, deugned chiefly for
expedition.
ACUBENE, in aftronomy, the Arabic name of
a flar of the fourth magnitude, in the fouthern
forceps of cancer ; by Bayer marked a.. See tlie
confiellatlon Cancer.
ACUPUNCTURE, a method of curing feve-
ral diforders among the Chinele and Japonefe^
It confifts in makiiig a great number of punc-
tures in the part affected with a gold or filver
needle.
ACUS, in iclitlivology, the name of two dif-
tinct genufe.- vf filhes 3 the one called the acus of
Ariftotle,
ADA
Ariftotle, and the other the acus of Bellonius.
The former is generally called, in Englifh the
needle-fifh, and the latter the gar-fifh.
ACUTE, an epithet applied to fuch objefts
as terminate in a fharp point or edge ; in which
acceptation it is oppofed to obtufe.
Acute Angle, in geometry, is that which is
lefs than a right-angle, or ninety degrees. See
Ancle.
AcvT'E-an^kd Cone, is a right cone, whofe
axis makes an acute angle with its fides.
AcvTE-angled Triangle, in geometry, is that
whofe angles are all acute : it is otherwife called
an oxygonous triangle. See Triangle.
Acute angular Jecfion of a cotie, an expreflion
made ufe of by the ancient geometricians, to fignify
the ellipfis. See Cone, and Ellipsis.
Acute Accent, in grammar. See Accent.
Acute, in mufic, is applied to a tone or found
that is fliarp or high, in refpecl to fome other tone.
In this fenfe it flands oppofed to grave.
Acute Difeafis, among phyficians, imply fuch
as move with velocity towards a crifis, and are at-
tended with danger. In this knk the word acute
is oppofed to chronic.
Ad, in grammar, a Latin prcpofition, frequently
iifed in the compolition of words in the Englifh as
well as the Latin language. Sometimes the (/ is
fupprefled, and fometimes changed into another let-
ter.
Adage, a fliort fentence, or proverb, contain-
ing fome wife remark, or ufeful obfervation.
We have a colledfion of Greek and Roman
adages, by Erafmus, and another of Englifh pro-
verbs, by Mr. Ray.
ADACjIO, an Italian adverb, fignifying flowly,
Icifurely ; and is nfed in mufic, to ftgnify the flow-
eft of all times, except the grave. It is fometimes
repeated, as adagio, adagio, and tlien fignifies a
ll'.ll greater retardation of the time than when ufcd
iingly.
ADAMANT, a name fometimes given to the
diamond. See Diamond.
ADAMI Pomum, Adam's apple, in anatomy,
a prominence in the fore part of the throat ; fo
called from an idle conceit that a piece of the for-
bidden fruit fluck in Adam's throat, and occafioned
this tumor ; though it is in reality nothing more
than the convex part of the firft cartilage of the
laiynx. See Larynx.
ADAMICA Terra, adamic earth, a name
giveji to the common clay, from a luppofition of
its being the adamah, or ruddy earth, out of which
the firll man was formed.
Some writers call the flimy fubftance found at
the bottom of the fea by the name of Adamica
terra.
ADAMITES, the n.ime of a feft of ancient
heretics, who are mentioned by Epiphanius, anJ
ADA
after him by St. Auftin and Theodoret : they arc
fuppofed to be a branch of the Bafilidians and Car-
pocratians. It is much difputed amongft the learn-
ed at what time this fedl firft fprang up, and who
was its author. Some affirm, that it began in the
fecond century of the church, and that its infti-
tutor was Prodicus, a difciple of Carpocrates : but
it appears from Tertullian, and Clem.ent of Alex-
andria, that his followers never had the name of
Adamites, though they profefl'ed the fame erro.'s.
However this might be, they took the name of
Adamites, according to Epiphanius, from their
pretending to be reinftated in primitive innocence,
like Adam at his firft creation, whofe nakednefs
they thought themfelves obliged to imitate. They
detefted marriage, affirming that the conjugal union
had never been known but for fin ; and that the
privilege of enjoying women in common belonged
to thofe who like them were reinftated in original
purity. However incompatible thefe tenets were
with chaftity, they all of them pretended to vaft
continence, and declared that if any of their fol-
lowers fell into carnal ftns, they would chafe him
from their allembly, as Adam and Eve were driven
out of paradife for eating the forbidden fruit.
They looked upon themfelves as fo many Adams
and Eves, and their temple as paradife : a ftrange
paradife indeed, v.'hich was nothing but a fubter-
raneous cavern, into which they entered ftark naked,
men and women ; and as foon as ever their chief
had pronounced aloud, " Increafe and multiply,"
committed the moft fcandalous actions, even adul-
tery and inceft ! They had not even regard to
common decency, but openly in the face of the
fun imitated the beaftly impudence of the ancient
Cynics. They boafted that they were pofTefTed of
the fecret books of Zoroafler, for which reafon
they have been fufpedted by fome of praclifmg ma-
gic arts.
This deteftable feft did not at firft continue
long, but ftarted up afrefli in the twelfth century,
imder one Tandamus, fince known by the name of
Tanchelin. They appeared again in the fifteenth
centuiy, under one Picard, who pretended that he
was fent into the world as another Adam, to re-
eftabiifh the law of nature, which, according to
him, confirted in going naked, and having all the
women in common. They aflembled, like the
notaries of the Bona Dea (only that there were
men as well as women) by night, and like them
too h.ad their fecrets and mylferies. One of the
fundamental maxims of their fociety was contained
in the following verfe :
Jura, pc'jura, fecreium prodere noli.
Some learned men have thought that this feft is
■\'ery ancient, and trace them up as high as the fol-
lowers and votaries of the heathen god Priapus.
ADANSONIA, in botany, a "tender kind of
gourd,
ADD
{^ourd, fiiid to come originally from Ethiopia. It
coiifiib of a flower whofe cup is monophylous ;
the petals are five in number-, round and (-leihyj,
the filaments arc numerous, furrounding a long
tubulous crooked ftjle ; and the fruit is a hard oval
Ihell, covered with down, which contains feeds
funilar to chocolate nuts, and of a dufky co-
lour.
ADAPTERS, in chemiftry, are hollow veffels,
of an oblong form, perfoi^ated at each extremity,
for conneiSling the receiver to the nofe of the re-
tort, alembic, &C.
ADAR, the name of a Hebrew mcnith, which
?.nhvcrs to part of our February and March : it is
the twelfth of their facred, and the fixth of their
civil year.
On th-e fevcnth of this month the Jews cele-
brate a fafl, in commemoration of the death of
Mofcs.
They do the fame on the thirteenth, which they
call the fait of Efther ; and on the fourteenth they
hold the feaft of Purim, to celebrate their deliver-
znce from the cruelties of Haman by means of
Efther.
As the lunar year, which the Jews have been ufed
to follow in their calculations, is (horter than the
folar by eleven days, they infert at the end of every
three years an intercalary month of twenty-nine
days, which they call Veader, or the fecond
Adar.
ADARCE, in the ancient materia medica^ was
a kind of fait concreted about reeds and other ve-
getables in form of incruftations. — It was applied
externally in various cutaneous dilbrders, as a de-
tergent and diffolver.
ADARTICULATION, a term ufed by fome
writers in anatomy, for what is more generally called
arthrodia, and diarthrofis.
ADERAMIN, in aftronomy, the Arabic name
of a ftar of the third magnitude, in the left fhoul-
der of Cepheus, marked a. by Bayer. See th-e
conrtellation Cepheus.
ADDER, in zoology, a name fometimes gi\cn
to the viper. See Viper.
Adders-tongue, OphioghJJum, in botany. See
Cphioglossu.m.
Adder- woPvT, in botany, the fame with biftort,
or fnake-weed. See Bistort.
ADDICE, or Adze, a kind of crooked ax
vfed by Shipwrights, carpenters, coopers, &c.
ADDITION, in a general fenfe implies the
imiting or joining feveral things together ; or, the
adding fomething to another.
Addition, in arithmetic, is the firft of the four
fundamental or principal rules of that fcience,
whereby we are taught to ftnd a fum equal to fe-
veral fmall ones.
In fctting down the numbers to be added, care
niuft be- taken to place every figure in its proper
3
ADD
place, that is, units under units, tens undtr tens,
&c. Then will the reafon of the work appear very
evident from this undeniable maxim, viz. that ail
the farts are equal to the zihole. And the method of
fetting down the total may cafdy be accounted for
from the nature of numeration, which explrjns the
different \alue of places, as they proceed from the
right to the left-hand ; fQr as 9 i-s the grcateft
fmnple cfiaracfer or figure, fo every number e.\ceed-
ing 9, being compound, muft require inore places
than one to. exprels it. — Thus the number ten can
no otherwile be exprefl'ed in figures but by Ve-
moving the figure i into the place of tens, which
is done by fupplying the units place with a cypher ;
and as it is the fame with every other column (ten
being ftill the proportion of incrcafe) confequently
when the fum of any column amounts to 10 or
more, the units exceeding, if there be any, or a
cypher, if none, mult be fet under fuch column,
and the ten or tens carried on as fo many units to
the next colunm on the left-hand ; for example,
fuppofe we were to add the numbers 47, 397, and
687, together, they niuft be placed in the follow-
ing maimer, one under another.;
47
397
68.7
1131
Having thus placed the above numbers, draw a
ftraight line under them, and beginning at the
place of units, add all the figures together in thait
column, putting their fum under the faid ftraight
line 5 as in this example, fay, fe\xn and feven make
fourteen, and feven make tv/enty-one ; wherefore,
put one under the line in units place, and carry
two for the two tens to the next column, and then
proceed, faying, two that I carry and eight is ten,
and nine is nineteen, and four make twenty-three,
fet down three under the line in tens place, and
carry two to the next column ; then fay, two and
fix is eight, and three make eleven, which, bccaufc
it is the laft column, put dowji ele\cn, and the
work is done.
Addition of different (Ltmn'misticns, Wheji
the numbers are of dift'erent denominations, or
when they contain, for example, pounds, fhillings,
pence, and farthings ; tons, hundreds, quarters,
pounds, &C. care muft be taken to place the given
numbers in fuch -order under each other, that eacli
column, from top to bottom, may confift of one
and the fame value, as pence under pence, fliillings
under ()ii]lings, and pounds under pounds.
Having firft drawn a line under the columns, add
them together, confidering how mariy of each
fmaller make an unit of the next that is fuperior to
it, (always obferving to begin at the Icaft denomi-
nation) and for every fuch unit carry one to the
next fuperior denomination, that is, for every 4
O ux
ADD
ADD
in the farthings, you muft carry one to the pence ;
for every I2 in the pence column carry one to the
fhi!]ing;s column ; and for every 20 contained in
the (hillings, caixy one to the pounds, and the odd
farthings, pence, and fliillings, put under their
proper columns below the line, as in the following
examples. Let it be required to add together,
146/. 16s. yid, 274/. 10 J. II -id. 567/.
i-j s. 10 \d. and 78/. 11/. 6 | a'. Firft fet
them dowji one under the other, in the fol-
lowing manner, and draw a line as before di-
reded.
I- ^- ^■
146 16 7 4
274 10 II I
567 17 \o\
78 II 6^
1067 17 o\
Firft begin with the leafl denomination, which is
farthings, and add them together, faying | and \
is i, and f is 6, and | make 9, which is 2 pence
and one farthing over, which iet dowii under far-
things below the line, and carry the 2 to the pence ;
then fay, 2 and 6 is 8, and 10 is 18, and 11 is
29, and 7 make 36, which is 3 fhillings, and no-
thing over ; therefore put down nothing under the
pence column, and carry 3 to the fliillings ; then
fay, 3 and 11 is 14, and 17 is 31, and 10 is 14,
and 16 is 57, v/hich makes 2 pounds, and 17 fliil-
lings over; put down the 17 fhillings under fhil-
lings, and carry 2 to the pounds, faying 2 and 8 is
10, and 7 is 17, and 4 is 21, and 6 make 27,
which is 2 tens, and 7 over ; therefore put
down a 7 under the units place of the pounds,
and carry 2 to the tens, and fay, 2 and 7 is 9,
and 6 is 15, and 7 is 22, and 4 is 26 ; put down
the 6, and carry 2 to the next column, faying,
2 and 5 is 7, and 2 is 9, and i is 10, which place
down under the line in luch a manner that the cy-
pher may ftand under the laft column of the
pounds, and the i to the left-hand, and the work
is done. Note, that whatfoever fums are to be
added together, whether of money, weights, mca-
fiires, &c. when you come to the greatefl: deno-
minations, as you caft up the feveral columns
thereof, you are to carry the tens of every preced-
jn«>^ column to that which follows.
Addition ef Decimal Nvmhers docs nowjys
differ from that of iivtegcrs, due c?-re being taken
to place the particular fums fo that the firfl place of
the integral or decimal parts be exaiftly uiidcj each
csther, as is feen in the following exampk ;
5684,94
3415^^3
28,48
i39r8,7-t{
Cyphers on the right-hand of a decimal num-
ber fignify nothing, and are therefore more ele-
gantly omitted ; thus,
47.080I r 47.08
Inftead of { ^^•'°° i We write i ^^-J
4.506 f ^ 4.506
4. 120 J t 4-12
112.406
112.406
See the article Decimals.
Addition of Vulgar FraB'ions. When the
fra£Hons to be added have one common denomina-
tor, add the numerators together for a new nume-
rator, and place it over the given common de-
nominator ; thus -J, -J, and J , when added to-
gether, make \ , or ^ : but when amongft the
given fraiSlions there are either compound ones,,
or Angle with different denominators, thej' muft
be prepared by reduflion before they can be added.
See Fractions, and Reduction of Fractions.
Addition, in algebra, is performed by con-
necting the quantities to be added with their
proper figns or charadler of -f and — , and unit-
ing or joining together thofe which are fimilar
and capable of it. See Similar, Algebra, and
Character.
The difficulty in algebraic additions, will chiefly
arife from the figns-)- and — made uie of in them ;
but only concei\ c, that what + aiHrms — denies,,
or what the flrfl: alledges or brings, the fecond
annuls and takes away ; if -|- makes a tradefmaii
worth fuch a fum, — deprives him of it again i
let us fuppcrfe a perfon has in pofl'eflion 20 pounds,,
and tlwt he ov/es 10 pounds, then it is plain that
his real worth is only 10 pounds ; fo in algebra,
-f- 20 added to — 10, the fum will be equal to 10.
Addition of algebra may be reduced to the follow-
ing rules ;
Rule L
When die letters, called quantities, arc the-
fame, and have the fame fign prefixed, add the
quantities together, and to the fum prefix the conv-
mon fign.
Example I. Example 2. Example 3.
<?= 4 — hzn — 2 a — hzz 4— 2
3/3 = 12 -^^bzz — 10 3^ — 5^=112—10'
4<?r=i6
-6i:
12
1
4(7 — i>h-=.\i)— 12
Numbers reprefented by the fame letter in any
operation, are fuppofed to be of the fame \'alue,
and thofe by different letters of ditFerent values ;
thus in example third, the letter a reprefents 4,
and h reprefents 2 ; again the figure or number, pre-
fixed to .any letter or quantity, (called its co-effi-
cient) fhews hov/ often that quantity is to be
taken ^ thus, 3a fhews that the quarrtity reprefent-
ed by a is to be taken 3 times, and when a quantity
(lands without a co-cJhcient, it is always .underilood ta
have
ADD
have an unit prefixed. Qijantities wliich differ only
in their co-efficients, (as «, 3a and 5a) are faid
to h^ like or fimilar, Ijut 3« and 5/' are unlike,
and not fimilar. Qiiantities which Hand without
any prefixed fign before them, are always under-
ftood to have the fign + before them : thus, 3^7
»nd + 3^, both represent the fame thing.
Rule II.
When the quantities are like, but have different
figns ; fubftraiSl the co-efficient of the leffer from
that of the greater, and to the difference, if any
prefix the fign of the greater, adjoining the letter
or letters, common to each quantity.
Example 4. Example 5. Example 6.
-^=-y b=z LI 5^- a= 55- 7
3rt= 21 —4*=— 44 —2b + ^a=z— 22 + 21
ADD
2rt = 14 -3*=-33
3i-l-2fl= 33+H
III.
Rule
When the quantities are unlike, fet them in
order with their proper figns prefixed.
Example 7. Example 8. Example g.
a + b A-^—Sy "jz—x—a
a — c 2«— z "jz—d+c
2a + b—c ^x + ^y+2n — z \Ji^z—x—a—d-{-c
Additon of algebraic fractions is performed
•by the fame rules as numerical fractions, they be-
ing firft reduced to one denomination, and their
lowell terms. See Fractions.
Addition of furd, or irrationals. In thefe
Pf eaations we have two cafes.
Case I.
When the furds quantities are alike, add the
rational parts, or thofe which are without the
radical fign, if they arc joined to any, and to their
fum join their furd.
Example i. Example 2.
7 x\/^ 5 y\ /d!n~) \
Sxs/li^, ysy4m—y\
\2X
\/a b
b)\r d m—y\
C A S E II.
Wien the furd quantities are unlike, they are
only to be added by their figns, and torn thence
Will arife compound furds.
Example 3. Example 4.
\/~b7^ ms/da+}
"V b -z?' VI \/^
yl
In the laff example, the letters under the radi-
al figns being different, firft put down 7n\/ da +
and becaufe the quantity wv/zT'has the fign -)- ,
therefore after w v^^/rt +^1 put the fign -|-, afte""
v/hich put the quantity m \/ %, and we have
m \/da ->ry\->!-m\/~zl
Addition of logarithms. Sec Logarithms.
Additions, among diftillers, a general name
for fuch things as are added to the wafh or liquor
while fermenting, in order to increafe the vinofity
and quantity of the fpirit, or to give it a particular
flavour.
Additions, in law, denote all forts of defigna-
tions given to a perfon, over and above his proper
name and furname, &c.
Thefe additions are ordained to prevent one
man's being grieved or molefted for another ; and
that every perfon might \x. certainly known, fo as
to bear his own burden.
If a man is of different degrees, as duke, earl,
&c. he fliall have the moft worthy ; and the title
of knight, or baronet, is part of the party's name,
and therefore ought to be rightly ufed ; whereas
that of efquire, or gentleman, being as people
pleafe to call them, may be ufcd or not, or varied
at plcafure.
An earl of Ireland is no addition of honour
here ; nay, the law-addition to the children of Bri-
tifli noblemen is only that of efquire, commonly
called lord.
Writs without the proper additions, if excepted
to, {hall abate ; only where the procefs of out-
lawry doth not lie, additions are not neceffarv.
The addition of a parifii, not in any city, muit
mention the county, otherwife it is not good.
Addition of ratios, the fame with what i.<;
otherwife called compofition of jratios. See Com-
position and Ratio.
Addition, in mufic, a dot marked on the right
fide of a note, to fignify that it is to be founded" or
lengthened half as much more as it would have
been without fuch mark. See Note, and Cha-
racter.
ADDITIONAL, in a general fenfe, denotes
fomething over the ufual fum or quantity.
Additional Duties, thefe charged upon cer-
tain commodities, over and above what were for-
merly obliged to be paid.
ADDITIVE, in a general fenfe, fignifies fome-
thing to be added : mathematicians fpeak of addi-
tive ratios, aftronomers of additive equations. See
the articles Ratio, aiid Equation.
ADDRESS, in a general fenfe, denotes the
nice management of an affair, or the trimfadino-
it with great propriety and fkill.
Address is, more particularlv, ufed for a fpeech
made to the king, in the name of feme confider-
able body of men, by way of congratulation, pe-
tition, or remonftrance,
AdJreflis
A D E
AdJreiTes of parliament were firrt fet on foot un-
der Oliver Croniwel.
ADDUCENT Mufcks, among anatomifts, the
■fame with thofc more ufually called adduftors. See
Adductor.
ADDUCTION, Addu^lo, among anatomifts,
denotes the action of the mufcles called adduU^rei.
See Adductor.
ADDUC TOR, in anatomy, a general name
-for all fuch mufcles as ferve to draw one part of the
•body towards another. Thus,
Adductor hrachii is a mufcle of the arm,
ferving to bring it rov/ards the trunk of the bodv.
Adductor indiiis, a mufcle of the fore-finger,
.which draws it towards the thumb.
Adductor cculi, a mufcle of the eye, directing
its pupil towards the nofe ; and otherwife called
'bibitonus, for a iilcc reafon.
Anatomifts reckon u.p feveral other abductors,
as the addudor pollicls, the adduHor pallicis pedis,
adduiior tniii'mil dit^iu pedis^ adduSlor projiatx^ (sfc-
ADELPHIANI, in church hiftory, a fefl of
heretics, who always fafted on Sundays.
ADEMPTION, ademptio, among civilians,
.denotes the revocation of fomc donation or favour.
The ademption of a legacy may be done either
in exprefs terms, or indiredtly, by difpoling of it
jDtherwife.
ADENOGRAPHY, ct^nviy^di'pid, that part of
.anatomy which treats of the glands. See
Gland.
ADEPS, in anatomy, denotes the fat found in
.the abdomen ; differing from the common fat, or
pitiguedo, as being thicker, harder, and of a more
-earthy fubftauce.
Adhps, among phyficians, is ufed in a more
general fenfe, for all kinds of animal fat: thefe
they prefcribe for their ripening quality.
ADEPTS, the name given to the proficients in
alchemy, particularly thofe who pretend to have
found out the philofophers ftone, and the panacea,
.or univerfal m.edicine.
Akhemilts will have it, that there are airways
twelve adepts ; the places of thofe who die being
immediately fupplied by others of the fraternity.
ADEQUATE, in a gener.al fenfe, fomething
exaftly correfponding with another. Thus,
A-DEqi-'ATE Ideas are thofe which perfedtly re-
prefent all the parts and properties of the object.
See Idea.
In this fenfe, xhe idea of a figure bounded by a
-curve line, which returns iirto itfelf, and whofe
parts are all equally diftant from a certain point in
the middle, is an adequate idea of a circle.
All fimple and abitraifted ideas are adequate
ones, becaufe they reprefent obje£ts as they really
.are : whereas' thofe of fubitances are inadequate,
.in regard our knowlege of fubihuice is extremely de-
A DH
ADESSENARIANS, Adejjinarll, a fca of
Chriftians, who maintain that Jefus Chrift is real-
ly prefent in the eucharilt, though not by way
of tranfubitantiation.
The Adeffenarians differ among themfelvcs,
fome of them holding, that the body of Jefus
Chrift is in the bread ; others, that it is about
the bread /others, that it is with the bread; and
others, that it is under the bread. See Eucharist.
KYiYY.Q,'YYX) Equations , or affected, in algebra;
thofe wherein the unknown quantity is found to
rife to two or more different powers : for example,
7.' + az^ — bz^nd'-qn, in which there is found three
different powers of z, that is, 2% s" and z. See
Eqltation'.
'Eke term affeJled is fometimes likcwife ufed in
algebra, when fpeaking of quantities which have
co-efRcients. Thus in the quantity 3 a-, x is faid
to be aftedted with the co-efEcient 3.
It is likewife faid, that an algebraic quantity Is
affected with the fign + or — , or with a radical
fign •/ ; meaning that it has the fign -f or — , or
that it includes a radical fign •v/. See Co-effi-
cient and Radical.
ADHESION, in phyfics, the ftate of two
bodies joined or faffcned together by mutual at-
traction, the interpofition of their own parts, or
the impulfe or preffure of external bodies. Muf-
chenbroeck in his EJJhi de Phyfique, has given a
great many remaks on the adhefion of bodies, and
relates various experiments which he h.ad made on
this matter ; the chief of which concern the re-
filtance of feveral bodies to frafture, in virtue of
the adhefion of their parts ; which adhefion he
afcribes, principally, to their mutual attraction.
Common experiments prove the mutual adhefion
of the parts of water to each other, as well as to
the bodies they touch. The fame may be faid of
the particles of air, on which M. Petit has a me-
moir, among thofe of the academy of fciences
at Paris, for the year 1 73 1. Some authors feem
not difpofed to admit, that the adhefion oi the
parts of water, on indeed of bodies in general, is
to be attributed to the attraction of their parts,
and they reafon thus : Suppofe, fay they, attrac-
tion to adt at the diltance of a line from a particle
of water, about this particle defcribe a circle whofe
radius is one line ; the particle of water will not
be attracted but by the particles which are included
within the circle, and as thefe particles .aCt in con-
trary directions, their mutual effeCts muff deftroy
one another, and there can be no attraction of
the particle, fincc it will have no more tendency
one way than the other. See Attraction of
Cohefion.
Adhesion, among logicians, denotes the main-
taining fome tenet, merely on account of its fup •
pofed advantage, without any pofitive evidence for
its truth.
Adhesion
ADJ
ADJ
Adhesion, in medicine and anatomy. There
are frequent inftances of the adhefion of the lungs
to the pleura and diaphragm, which occafions
many diforders. We alfo read of adhefions of the
inteltincs, of the dura mater to the cranium,
&c.
ADIANTIUM, in botany, maiden-hair. See
Maiden-hair.
ADIAPHORISTS, or Mapho'ita, in church
hiflory, names given to the moderate Lutherans,
in the fixteenth century.
The name imports lukewarmnefs, or indiffe-
rence ; being compounded of the privative «, and
J^/ct9op^, different.
ADJACENT, in geometry, whatfocver lies
immediately near each other : an angle is faid
to be adjacent to another angle, when the one is
immediately contiguous to the other, fo that they
both have one common fide. This term is more
particularly ufed when the two angles have not
only one common fide, but alfo when the two
other fides form one right line. See Angle, and
Side.
ADJECTIVE is a term made ufe of in gram-
mar, and comes from the Latin word adje^us, added
to, bccaufe it is always joined to the noun fubfran-
tive, either expreffed or undcrftood, to fhew its qua-
lities or accidents.
Some pcrfons have improperly called the follovv-
ing words fubftantives, viz. the fublime, the grand,
the beautiful, &:c. They are ufed indeed fub{?:an-
tively ; but ftill are only adjectives, employed to
exprefs that idea of fublimity, grandeur, and beauty,
\\hich is raifed by fome iubilance, or agent. It
was in the fame manner that the Greeks and Latins
made ufe of adjectives of the neuter gender inftead
of fubftantives : but then in this cafe the fubflantive
was always unde;-ftood ; as in the following ex-
amples, y.;{\t H 'znyvt iK^iH a.v]f.i ottik Gfjn to y^^v/M
r.ai TO T/Z03I' ; where it is evident that u/t-p is un-
derftood : and in the following paiTage of Horace,
mifcuit utile dulci,
■/jviii., or part, is to be fupplied.
The definition which F. BufEer gives of ad-
iectivcs is by no means a bad one, though fome-
vvhat diitertnt from other grammarians : nouns,
according to him, are fubftantives, when the ob-
jects which thev rcprefent are confidercd fimply and
in the.mteiveE, without any regard to their quali-
ties : on the contr.iry, they are adjectives when
they exprefs the quality of an objcft. Thus when
we'fay limply a king, the word king is a fubftan-
rivc, becaufe none of its qualities are exprefled ;
!ijt when we fay a pious king, or a virtuous king,
■ )r a good king, thefe words pious, virtuous, and
■ ood are adjeitivcs,- bccaufe they exprefs fo many
. ualities in the king. See Noun Substantive,
AD INQUIRENDUM, in law, a writ com-
manding inquiry to be ruade about fomething con-
nefted with a caufe depending in the king's courts;
as of baftardy, for inflance.
ADJOURNMENT, in law, the putting off
a court or meeting to another time or place.
Thus,
Adjournment in Eyre, is the appointmeKt of
a certain day, when the juftices in eyre are to meet
again.
Adjournments cf ParUament differ from pro-
rogations, in being not only for a fhort time, but
alfo in regard each houfe has the privilege of ad-
journing itfclf. See Prorogation.
ADIPOSE, in a general fenfe, denotes fome-
thing belonging to the fat of the body.
The term adipofe is chiefly ufed by phyficians
and anatomifis, in whofe writings we read of
adipofe cells, adipofe du6ts, adipofe membrane,
adipofe vefl"els, &c. See Cell, Duct, 5cc.
ADIT, Ad'ttus, in a general fenfe, fignifies the ,
pafl'age to, or entrance of any thing. Thus we
read of an adit of a mine, adit of a theatre, adit
of fhips, 5:c. See Mine, Theatre, &c.
ADJUNCT, Adjuniliim, among philofophers,
fomething added to another, to which it does not
naturally belong : thus water in a fponge is an ad-
junct to it ; fo are clothes to a man.
Adjuncts are what we commonly call circum —
ftances : thefe, in ethics, are commonly reckoned'
ieven, quii, quid, uhi, quibus auxiliii, cur, qucmodo,
quando.
ADJUNCTS, in rhetoric, a denomination
given to all words added with a view to increafe thf.
force of the difcourfe : fuch are adjetSives, attri-
butes, epithets, &c.
Adjunct is alfo ufed for a colleague, or affift- '
ant. Thus,
Adjunct Gods, in heathen theology, were a
kind of inferior deities, v.'hofe office it was to af-
fiit the firperior gods : fuch were Mars, Bel'cna, .
and Nemefis accounted.
AD JURA REGIS, in law, a w.rit which lies ;
for a clerk prefented to a living by the king, againft
thofe who endeavour to eject him, to the prejudice
of tlie king's title.
ADJU'i'AGE, or Ajuiage, m hydraulics, is a
tube fitted to the mouth of a jet-d'eau, through
which the water is played, or directed into any de-
fired figure ; fo that 'the great variety of fountains
is chiefly owing to the difurent ftruflurc,- &:c. of
their adjutages. ; ,,". .'^.'.
Mr. Martctt, who was ■. ery converfant'in thefe
things, gives the following proportions of the bores '
of the adjutages and pipes of condudt, divid- .
ing the inch into 12 equal parts, which he calls
lines.
P Heigi-t
ADJ
Heiglit of the re-
fervoirs.
Feet
5
10
15
20
25
3^
40
50
60
80
100
DlametPTs of fit Ad-
jutages,
Lines
3, 4, 5, or 6
4, 5, or 6 -
5 or 6 - -
6 - - -
Ditto -
Ditto -
7 or 8 - -
8 or 10 - -
10 or 12 - -
12 or 14 - -
12, 14, or 15
Diameter of the pipes
of conduct.
22
25
27
3°
33
36
5'
65
72
87
96
There is a certain and juft proportion to be ob-
ferved between the adjutage, whereby the jet is de-
livered, and the pipe conducting it from the head.
In general about five times the diameter of the ad-
jutage for jets under half an inch, and fix or feven
times for all above, will fize the pipes of conduct
pretty well.
In refervoirs of the f;:me altitude, and adjutages
of different diameters, the expence of water is pro-
portionable to the fquares of the diameters of the
adjutages. But in refervoirs of different altitudes,
the excefs of the expence of water from greater
heights more than in fmaller is in the fubduplicate
ratio, or as the fquare roots of the altitudes ; from
whence we have the two following; tables :
TABLE I.
Aeljut,
Feet
I —
2-
Pints
-6:
3 14
4 25
5 29
6 56
7 76'
8 iioi-
9 126
Height
TABLE II.
6-
8-
9-
10-
12-
15-
18-
20-
25-
30-
35-
40-
45-
48-
II.
10
TI'
I2J
I2|
14
15^-
17
i84-
206
22^,-
24
244
276-
28
It is Ihewn from experiment, that 14 Paris
pints of water will be delivered in a minute from
an adjutage of three lines diameter, when the height
of the refcrvoir above the orifice is 12 feet ; which
may be taken as a fundamental rule for fountains
aflifted with the foregoing principles. Likewife
cbferve, that the foregoing tables of Mr. Mariott's
<3f the expcnces of water are calculated ioi one
ADM
minute of. time; and fliould the expence of two
refervoirs of unequal heights and different adju-
tages be required, ufe the following rule :
The expence of water of two refervoirs whofe
altitudes are different, and alfo their adjutages, are
in the compound ratio of the fquares of the dia-
meters of the adjutages, and of the fubduplicate
ratio of the heights. See the article Foun-
tain.
ADJUTANT, in the military' art, an officer
whofe bufinefs it is to affift the major, and there-
fore fometimcs called the aid-major. See Major.
Each battalion of foot, and regiment of horfe,
has an adjutant, who receives the orders every
night from the brigade-major ; which, after car-
rying them to the colonel, he delivers out to the
ferjeants.
When detachments are to be made, he gives
the number to be furnifhed by each company, and
afligns the hour and place of rendezvous. He alfo
places the guards, receives and diftributes the am-
munition to the companies ; and, by the major's
orders, regulates the price of bread, beer, &c.
Adjutant is fometimes ufed by the French
for an aid-du-camp. See Aid-du-Camp.
Adjvt AtiTS-Genera/, among the Jefuits, a fe-
ledf number of fathers, who refide with the general
of that order : they have each a province, or country,
aligned them, as England, Germany, &c. and
their bufinefs is to inform the father-general of
ftate occurrences in fach countries.
ADJUTORIUM, among phyficians, is ufed
for a medicine prefcribed along with another more
efficacious one ; and, particularly, for an external
application, after the proper ufe of internal me-
dicines.
Adjutorium, in anatomy, a name fometimes
given to the humerus, or Ihoulder-blade. See
Humerus.
ADMEASUREMENT, in law, a writ for
adjulting the fliarcs of fomething to be divided.
Thus,
Ad.measurement of Dower takes place, when
the widow of the deceafed claims more as her
dower than what of right belongs to her. And,
Admeasurement of Pafture rmy be obtained,
when any of the perfons who have right in a com-
mon pafture, puts more cattle to feed on it than he
ought.
ADMINICLE, adminiculum, in our old law-
books, is ufed for aid, help, or fupport.
Adminicle, in the French jurifprudence, fig-
nifies the beginning or firft (ketch of a proof.
Adminicles, among antiquarians, denote the
attributes or ornaments wherewith Juno is repre^
fentcd on medals.
ADMINICULATOR, in church-hiftory, an
officer otherwife called advocate of the poor. See
Advocate.
ADMI-
ADM
ADMINISTRATION, in a political fcnfc,
denotes, or ought to denote, the attendance of the
trullees of the people on public affairs ; but, more
particularly, adminiftration is ufed for the execu-
tive part of the government, which is faid to be
good or bad, according as the laws are duly en-
forced, and juftice done the fubjefts. See Go-
vernment.
Administration, in law, the office of an ad-
niinifbrator. See Administrator.
Whenever a man dies inteftate, letters of admi-
niftration are taken out in the prerogative court.
Administration is alfo ufed for the manage-
naent of the affairs of a minor, lunatic, &c.
ADMINISTRATOR, in law, the perfon to
whom the goods, effefts, or eftate of one who died
inteftate are entrufted ; for which he is to be ac-
countable, when required.
The bifhop of the diocefe where the party dies,
is regularly to grant adminiftration : but if the in-
teftate has goods in different diocefes, he is to be
accountable for them, when required.
The [jerfons to whom adminiftration is granted
areahufband, wife, children, whether fons or
daughters, the father or mother, brother or fifters,
and in general tlve next of kin, as uncle, aunt,
coufm ; then to a creditor.
An aftion lies for and againft an adminiftrator,
as for and againft an executor ; only that he is ac-
countable no farther than to the value of the
goods.
ADMINISTRATRIX, a female, or woman
who acls as adminiftrator. See Administrator.
ADA4IRAL, Jdmiralius, or Admirallus, a great
officer who fuperintends the naval armaments of a
kingdom, and has the determination of all caufes
in the marine.
There has been great variety df opinions with
rSgard to the origin and denomination of this im-
portant office ; which fcems to have been eftablifti-
ed in moft countries lying near the fea. Some
have borrowed it from the Greek, others from the
Arabic, while a third fort, with more appearance
of reafon, derive both the title and dignity from
the Saracens. But as no certain conclufions feem
to have been hitherto deduced from thefe elaborate
refearches, and fmce it is not our province to give
an hiftoric?! or chronological detail of the diffe-
rence of rank r.nd power with which admirals have
been inverted in different nations, we {hall decline
to fatigue our readers with an enquiry fo fruitlefs
and foreign to our purpofe ; and inftead thereof,
prefent them with a real account of the office and
duty of admirals at fea, as well as of the Lord
high Admiral of England, the former of which
feems to have been entirely negle^Ried, probably
for a very ftifficient reafon, by the gentlemen who
have hitherto furnifhed us with thefe critical in-
vcftigations.
A D M
Lcrri high Al>'^nK.\h of Enghii'J, ftilej in feme
ancient records, caplttinus ?imr'itimatum, an officer
of great antiquity and triilf, who has the entire
manngemtnt of the royal navy, and foimcrly had
the decifion of all maritime cafes, civil and cri-
minal ; he judged of all things done at fea, or
abroad by Britifh mariners, and thofc with whom
they might be connedled ; upon the fca-coafts, in
all ports and havens, and upon all rivers below the
firft bridge from the fea. By him the inferior ad-
mirals, captains, and heutcnants are ccrnmiiuon-
ed ; all deputies for particular coafts appointed,
and coroners to view dead bodies found on the
fea-coail, or at fea : he alfo appoints the judges
for his court of admiralt)'^, and may iniprifon, &cc.
All ports and havens are ivfra corpus comiiatus, and
the lord admiral hath no jurifdi<Stion of any thing
done therein. Between high and low water mark
the admiral and common law have jurifdicSion al-
ternately, one upon the land, and the other upon
the water. The admiral hath likewife power to
arreft fhips in harbours, &c. and during the voyage
every commanding officer, foldier, or other, are
to obferve the orders of the lord admiral on pain
of death, or other punLfhment.
The lord admiral has power to arreft all Britifl)
feam.en, and detain them for the fervice of the
ftate, after which they become immediately fub-
je6t to military laws in cafe of defertion. To
him belongs all 'penalties and amercements of all
tranf2:reffions at fea, on the iVa ihore, in ports and
havens, and all rivers, below the firft bridge from
the fea ; the goods of pirates and felons condemn-
ed or enflaved ; fea-wrecks, goods floating at fe?,
or caft afhore ; alfo all great fifties, commonly
called royal fifhes, except whales and fturgeons :
to which we may add a falary of 7OCO 1. a year.
In the time of Edward I. and king John all
caufes of merchants and mariners, and things arifmg
on the main lea, were tried before the lord admi
ral ; by all which, and other laws, the power of
the admiral is not only declared, but the original
from whence it is derived, namely, from the legl-
flative power of the parliament, and not from the
fingle perfon of the king, or any other council
whatever.
l^his office is indeed fo great in point of truft,
honour, and profit, that it has feldom been invefted
in any other than princes of the blood, or the moft
eminent perfons among the nobility. For fome
years we have had no high admiral, the office being
put in comniiffion, or under the adminiftration of
the lords commiffioners of the admiralty, who by
ftatute have the fame power and authority as the
lord high admiral. When he embarks, the
flao- of the anchor and rope is immediately dif-
played.
Admiral of the Fleet, the higheft officer under
' the conprnanJ of the jord high admiral : he is di-
ftinguiCied
ADM
ADM
fl'uiguifhcd by holfting the union flag at the main-
top-mail: head. Adir.iial alfo implies the com-
man derof any fuigle fleet or fquadron,or in general
Siiy officer whatfoever who carries his flag at the
main-top-mafl head.
The admiral or flag officer is to acquaint the fc-
cretary of the admiralty of all his proceedings re-
lating to the fervice, for the information of the
lord high admiral, or lords commiffioners of the
admiralty. It is his duty, when at fea, to arrange
the fhips under his command into lines or ranks of
battle, as often as convenient, in order to exercife
the officers and crew in the difcipline of naval war ;
every Ihip being diftinguifiicd by a particular ftgnal
difplayed on board of the admiral. He is often to
vifit the other fliips of his fquadron, and fee the
men muftered, that no fupernumeraries may be
borne on the books. He is to aflifl at all councils
of war that relate to naval affairs, and to attend
the lord high admiral on his return home, with an
account of his expedition or voyage, and tranfmit
a copy of his journal to the fecretary of the admi-
ralty. See Line, Signal.
J^ice -Admiral, the officer next in rank and
command to the admiral. He carries his flag at the
fore-top-mafl: head.
Rear Admiral, the officer next in rank and
command to the vice. He carries a flag at the
inizen-top-mafl: head.
There are at prefent in Eiigland, befides the ad-
miral of the fleet, foyr admirals of the white
i'qiiadron, and three of the blue ; four vice admirals
of the red, five of the white, and fix of the blue
I'quadron ; four rear admirals of the red, five of the
white, and five of the blue fquadron ; befides
twenty-nine rear admirals that have. carried no
ilag, fuperannuated, onhalf-pay.
yice Admiral, is alfo an officer sppointed by
the lords coBimilfioners of the nomiraity. There
are feveral of thefe ofiic^Ts efiablifhed in different
parts of Great Britain, with judges aiid niarflials
under them, for executing jurifdiction within their
rcfpeftive limits. Their decifions hov/ever, arc
not final, an appeal lying to the court of admiralty
in Lon.don.
Admiral, in natural hiilory, is the name of a
beautiful fiiell of the voluta kind, greatly admired
by the curious.
There are four fpecics of tliisfhell diftlnguifhcd
by the names of grand-admiral, vice-admiral,
orange-admiral, and extra-admiral. The firft is
extremely beautiful, of an elegant white enamel,
variegated with b.".nds of yellow, which, in fome
meafure, rcprefent the colours of the flags in fiiips
of war. It is of a very curious fiiapc, and finely
turned about the head ; but its diflinguifhing cha-
raiStcr is a denticulated line ruuning along the cen-
.:-r of thp large yellov/b.Mid ; and this diilingu'ifiies
it from the vice-admiral, though the head of the
latter is alfo lefs elegantly formed. ,
The orange-admiral has more yellow than any
of the others, and the bands of the extra-admiral
run into one another.
ADMIRALTY, the office of lord high-admi-
ral, whether difcharged by one fingle perfon, or
by joint commiffioners, called lords of the admi-
ralty.
Ccurt of Admiralty is a fovereign court,
held by the lord high-admiral, or lords of the ad-
miralty, wh«re cognizance is taken of all mari-
time affairs, whether civil or criminal ; where
they are tried by judge and jury : but in civil
cafes the manner is different, the decifions being
all made according to the civil l.iw.
ADMIRATION, in grammar, is a mark or
charafter made ufe of to fignify fomething that is
wonderful, or worthy of admiration : it is expref-
fed thus (!), and may be placed either at the end
of the word that is exclamatory, or deferred to
the end of a fentence. It feems however as if this
diflincfion fhould be made, that when the excla-
mation is not detached from the other part of
the fentence, it fhould be pofl:poncd to the end,
as in the following lines :
See how the force of others prayers I try,
(Oh pious fraud of amorous charity !)
Where the exclamation is detached, it will be
better, if placed immediately after it, as thus,
Jefus ! — and didft thou leave thy blefl: abode, &c.
But nothing is fo vague and arbitrary as punctu-
ation. See Punctuation.
ADMISSION, admljjta, among ccclefiaPtical
writers, denotes the a6l of a billion's admitting
or allowing a clerk to be able, or qualified for
ferving a cure. •
This is done after examination, by pronouncing
the formula adm'itto tc h^hilcin. If any perfon pre-
fume to be admitted, who has not epifcopal ordina-
tion, he fhall forfeit lool.
ADMITTENDO dcriai, a writ granted to a
perfon, _ who has recovered his right of prefentation
in the common pleas ; by which the biffiop, or
metropolitan, is ordaincJ to admit his clerk. See
Admission.
Admittendo in focttim, a writ aflbclating cer-
tain perfons, ufuaily knights, and other gentle-
men of the county, to the juftices of aflize al-
ready aopointed.
ADMONITION, in church hifiory, a part of
difcipline which confifts chiefly in warning an •
offender of the irregul.irities he is guilty of, and
ad\ifing him to mend his manners.
By tlie ancient canons, nine admonitions n-ere
required before' excommunication. See Excom-
munication.
Admo-
ADO
ADMONiTio/«/?;'ttOT, among the Romans, n mi-
litary punUhnient, not unlike our whipping, only
that it was performed with vine branches.
ADMORTIZATION, in the feudal cuRoms,
the reducing the property of lands or tenements
■to mortmain. See Mortmain.
ADNATA, in anatomy, one of tlie tunics or
coats of the eye; otherwife called conjunftiva and
albuginea.
It is the fame part with what is called the white
■of the eye, formed by the tendinous expanfions
of the mufcles which move the eye. Sec EvE.
Adnata, in botany, implies the increafe which
grows on the fides of bulbous roots, as lillies,
tulips, narciflus's, pancratiums, &c. thefc off-fets
will fhew their bloflbms in a much (horter time,
-than by propagation from feed.
Adnata is alfo a term ufed for fuch things as
grow upon animal or vegetable bodies, whether
infeparable, ns hair, wool, horns, &c. or acci-
dental, as the few epii'itical plants.
ADNOUN, in grammar, the fame with ad-
jedlive. See Adjective.
ADOLESCENCE, the flower of youth in the
human fpecies, commencing at infancy and termi-
' iiating in manhood. This period of human life
is commonly computed from fifteen to twenty-five
years of age.
ADONAI, one of the names of God ufed in
fcripture. It properly fignifies 7ny lords.
Adonai, in antiquity, were fcftivals kept in
honour of Venus, and ni memory of her beloved
Adonis.
The Adonai lafted two days ; on the firft of
which the images of \ enus and Adonis were
carried with great folemnitv, in the manner of a
funeral ; the women following the (tatues, crying,
tearing their hair, and beating their breads. On
the fecond they changed the mournings into joy,
and fung his praifes, as if Adonis had been again
reifored to life.
The Adonia were celebrated by the ancient
Greeks, Egvptians, Syrians, lyycians, &c.
ADONlAS, a name given by the ancient bo-
tanifts to the anemony, or wind flower, from a
fuppofition that it owed its origin to the tears ilied
by Venus in lamenting the death of her beloved
Adonis.
ADONIC, in ancient poetry, a kind of verfe
conhfling of a daftvle and fpondee.
This kind of verfe has its name on account
of its being originally ufed in the lament.uions
for Adonis. Its principal ufe liowever among the
poets, is to ferve as a conclufion to each flrophe of
Saphic verfe.
ADONIS j?j.', in botany, a genus of planis
whofe leaves bear the refemblance of fennel. The
'■flower is polyandrious and rofaceous, with many
germina colki^ted in one head ; the common fort
4
ADD
in gardens is called phcafaiit's eye, from its fuiiili-
tude to the eye of a phealknt.
ADOPTIANI, in ccdefattical hiftory, a izSt
of heretics, who maiiuained that Chrilt:, with re-
fpect to his human nature, was n©t .tke natural
but the .adoptive fon of God.
ADOP TION, a folcm.n ad, whereby one man
makes another his heir ; invefling him with all
the rights and privileges of a fon.
ADOPTIVE, in a general fenfe, implies fome-
thing adopted.
Adoptive /frmi, in heraldry, are thofc enjoyed
by the conceffion of another, which the adopter is
obliged to m.irllial with his own, as being the con-
dition of foine honour or eltate left him.
ADORATION, the aft of worjhipping the
divine Being.
This ceremony was differently performed by
difterent people. Among the Jews it confifted
in kiffing the hands, bowing, kneeling, and evert
proftration. Among the Romans it was perfornn-
ed with the head veiled, or covered, the devotee
applying his right hand to his lips, the fore-finger
reiting upon the thumb, which was eredl ; and
then bowing, he turned himfelf round from left
to right. The Gauls, on the contrary, thought
it more religious to turn from right to left : and
the Greeks to worfhip with their heads uncovered.
The Chrillians follow the Grecian rather than the
Roman mode, by uncovering their heads when
thev perform any kind of adoration.
Divines fpeak of many kinds of adoration;
as fupreme adoracion, or thnt which is paid imme-
diately to God ; fubordinate adoration, or that
rendered to inferior beings ; abfolute adoration, or
that paid to a being on account of its own per-
fedlions : this is oppofed to relative adoration, or
that paid to an object as belonging to, or repre-
fenting another.
Adoration is alfo ufc-d in a civil fenfe, for
any extraordinary homage, or refped paid by one
man to another.
The Perfians adored their kings by falling prof-
trate before them, ftriking the earth witli their
foreheads, and kiiTuig the ground. This was a
piece of fervility whicJi Conon, a nobleman of
Athens, refufed to comply with when introduced
to Artaxerxes ; neither would the philofopher
Califthenes perform it to Alexander the Great, as
judging it at once impious and unlawful.
ThiT Roman emperors were adoi-ed, by bowing
or kneeling at their feet, laying hold of their pur-
ple robe, and immediately withdrawing the hand
and kifling it.
Adoration is more commonly ufed to ilgnify
the ceremony of paying homage to the pope, by
kiffing his feet; which not only the people, but
the createft prelates, and even princes themfelves, of
theRomiih religion, make no fcrupleof performing.
Q^ Adora-
AD V
A D V
Adoration is flill more particuUuly iifeJ for
one of the methods ufed in elciSting a new pope ;
when the cardinals, inltead of proceeding in the
ufual way, unanimoufly fall down and adore
©ne of their own number. Adoration is the lait
ceremony of a regular elecTtion, but here it is the
•eleftion itfelf, or rather fuperfedes it.
Perpetual Adokation, in the church of Rome,
a kind of religious fociety, frequent in the popifh
countries j it confifts of a number of devout per-
fons, who by dividing themfelves into three bodies,
and regularly relieving one another at ftated hours,
keep conftantly praying before the eucharill day
and night.
ADOSSEE, in heraldn,', a term ufed for two
rampant lions placed back, to back.
It is alfo ufed to fignify any other figures, as
axes, keys, &c. placed with their heads facing
different ways. '
ADOXA, in botany, the tuberofe mofchatel,
a low plant of a perfume fmell, growing in feve-
ral woods in Engl.-uid : its leaves are like thofe of
the bulbous fumitory, ajid the flowers monopcta-
lous. It is called in fome places niuflc crowfoot.
AD QUOD DAMNUM, in law, a writ which
ought to be iflued before the king grants certain
liberties, -^ a fair, market, or the like ; ordering
the fheriff to enquire what damage the country is
likely to fufter by a grant of that kind. The fame
writ is alfo ifTitcd, for making a fimilar enquiry
with refpeift to lands granted to religious houies,
or corporations; for turning and ch-anging ot
highv/ays, &c.
ADSTRICTION, among phyficians, implies
too great a rigidity and clofenefs ia the emundtories
of the bodv, particularly the pores of the fkin.
They alfo'fometimes ufe it to fignify the ftyptic
or altriiigcnt quality of medicines.
AD I'ERMINUM qui praten'lt, in law, a writ
of entry that lies for the leffor or his heirs,
if after the expiration of a term for life or years,
granted by leafe, ,the tenant cr other occupier of
the lands, &c. witliolds the fame from fuch
Icflbr.
ADVANCE, in the mercantile ftile, denotes
money paid before goods are delivered, work done,
or buiinefs performed.
Advau CE-FcJJt', in fortification, a ditch, thrown
round the efplanade or glacis of a place, to pre-
vent its being furprized by the befiegers.
The ditch fometimes m.ade in that part of the
lines or retrenchments neareft: the enemy, to pre-
vent him from attacking them, is alfo cdled the
advance-fofie. See Retrenchment, and Line
ff Circwnvallahon.
The advance-fofie fliould alv/ays be full of
water, otherwife it v/Jll ferve the enemy for a
covering from the fire of the place, if he becomes
inaftcr of the foife ^ beyond t\\; advance-fofie it
is ufuaV to conftruift lunettes, redoubts, Sec. Sec
Lunette, and Redoubt.
ADVANCED-^«fl'v/, or Van-guard, in the art
of war, denotes the firll line or divifion of any
army, ranged, or marching in order of battle ; w
it is that part which is next the enemy, and
marches firft towards them. See Army.
Anv AUCZD-guard is more particularly ufed for
a fmall party of horfe ftationed before the main-
guard. See Guard.
ADUAR, in the Arabian and Moorifli cuftoms,
a kind of ambulatory village, confifting of tents j
which thefe people remove from one place to ano-
ther, as fuits their conveniency.
ADVENT, in the calendar, denotes the time
immediately preceding Chriftmas. It includes
four Sundays, or weeks, which begin either on
St. Andrew's day, or on the Sunday before or
after it.
'i'he term advent, advenius, properly fignifies
the approach or confing on of the feall of the
nativity. See the article Nativity.
During advent, and the end of the 0(5taves of
epiphany, the folemnizing of marriage is forbid^
without a fpecial licence. Sec Marriage.
ADVENTITIOUS, an appellation given to
whatever accrues to a perfon or thing from with-
out. Such are fparry incruflations upon wood, &c^
Adventitious, among civilians, denotes all
fuch goods as are acquired accidentally, or by the
liberality of a ftranger, he.
Adventitious Fojfils, the fame wnth extrane-
ous or foreign ones, found imbodied in other
foflils : fuch as fhells, bones, ice. in ftone.
Bill »/ ADVENTURE, among merchants,, a
writing figned by a merchant,, teftifying that the
goods mentioned in it to be fhipped on board a
certain veffel belong to another perfon, who is
to run all hazards ; the merchant only obliging
himfelf to account to him for the produce of
them, be that what it will.
ADVERB, arlverbium, a term in grammar,.
made ufe of to modify the adlion which the vecb-
figjfifies, and for that reafon it is placed near the
veib, according to its derivation, which is ad arid
iierbiim; not but that it is fometimes joined, to
adjeflives, participles, nay and even, fubftantives
themfelves, as. He is truly king.
Adverbs, though very numerous, may be re-
duced to the following claffes : adverbs of time,
as vjhi.n\ of place, ?& where; of- quantity, as
hotv much ; of quality, Zi wifely;, of manner, ^s
fwiftly ; of interrogation, as w/;/ ; of affirmation'^^
?i% yei ; of negation, as no; of diminution, as
almojl ; of doubt, as perhaps ; of exception, as
only ; witli fome adjedlives, which in Latin,
French, &c. are ufed adverbially, as, iranfve'-fa
iitentika hircls, for tranfvi'nc ; and, // chanie jtijle,
for ju/lemsnt,.
AdV£R-=-
AD V
ADI
ADVERSARIA, among the ancfents, was a
book of accounts, refcmbling in fome mcafure
our day-book, or journal. But the term is at
prefent ufed by men of letters, to fignify a com-
mon-place book, wherein they enter every thing
that occurs to them worthy of notice.
ADVICE* or Letter of Advice, a letter mi/Tn c,
by which a merchant, or banker, informs his cor-
refpondent, that he has drawn a bill of exchange
upon him, fcnt him a quantity of merchandize,
or that his debtor's affairs are in a bad ftate.
If the letter of advice refpe(f!ls a bill of ex-
change, the name of the perfon in whofe favour
it was drawn, the date, value of the bill, and
time of payment fhould be mentioned ; for with-
out fuch a letter of advice, it is very allowable
for the perfon on whom the bill is drawn, to re-
fufe both acceptance and payment.
ADULTERATION, in a general knk, im-
plies the a<ft of debafmg by an improper mixture
fomething that was before pure and genuine.
Thus the adulteration of coin implies, the ufmg
a greater proportion of alloy than is appointed by
the flandard : and the adulteration of a medicine
fignifies the ufmg ingredients of lefs virtue and
efficacy in the compofition, than thofe ordered in
the recipe.
ADULTERY, the crime of married perfons,
whether huiband or wife, who, in violation of
their marriage vow, have carnal commerce with
another befides the perfon to whom their faith
has been plighted.
Adultery, in the fcripture language, is alio
ufed to fignify idolatry, or the forfaking the wor-
ship of the true God for that of an idol.
Advocate, among the ancient Romans,
implied a perfon who undertook the defence of
caufes, which he pleaded much in the fame man-
ner as our barrilters do at prefent.
The term is flill ufed in countries where the
civil law obtains. In Scotland there is a college
of advocates, confifling of one hundred and eighty
members, appointed to plead in all a£lions before
the lords of feffions. In France there are twro
kinds of advocates, one of which plead in all
cauies, and the other give their opinions.
Lord AijVOC AT z. One of the officers of ftate In
Scotland, who pleads in all cafes of the crown,
or where the king is concerned..
Advocate, among ecckfiaftical writers, im-
plies a perfon who undertakes the defence of a
church, monL'ftery, &c.
ADVOCATION, among civilians, fignifies
the act of calling another to affifl us in pleading
fome caufc.
LcUers of Advocation, in the law of Scot-
hiid, implies a writ iffued by the lords of feffion,
a<lvocating, or calling, a caufe. from an inferior
jiidge tQ themfelv.es..
ADVOWEE, in law, fignifies the patron of
a church, or the perfon who has a right to prefent
to a benefice.
ADVOWSON, in l.iw, implies the right of
patronage, or prefenting to a vacant benefice.
ADUSTION, among phyficians, implies an
inflammation of the parts about the brain and its
membranes, attended with a hollownefs of the
finciput and eyes, a pale colour, and drynefs of
the body.
ADYTUM, aj^ujovr in pagan antiquity, the
moft retired and facred place of their tem.ples, in-
to which none but the priefts v/ere allowed to
enter.
The term is purely Greek, fignifying inac-
ceffible.
The adytum of the heathens anfwered to the
fanilwn fanSlorwn of the Jews, and was the place
from whence they delivered oracles.
ADZE, a kind of ax, otherwife called addice.
See the article Addice.
AE, or PE^y among grammarians, a diphthong,
or double vowel, compounded of A and E.
The orthography of this diphthong is far from
being fixed, the fimple E frequently fupplying its
place. When, therefore,, an article cannot be
found under EL, the reader is to look for it un-
der E : though the references, for the moft part,.
will be a fiithful guide in cafes of this nature.
./51ACEA, in Grecian antiquity, folemn fefti-
vals and games celebrated at ."Egina, in honoui'
of iEdcus ; who, en account of his juftice upon
earth, was thought to have been appointed one
of the judges in hell.
.iEDILE, a,lilis, in Roman antiquity, a ma-
glftrate whofe chief bufinefs was to fupcrintend
buildings of all kijids, but more efpecially public
ones, as temples, aqueducts, bridges, &:c.
To the aedilcs likewife belo:iged the care of the
highways, public places, weights, and measures,
&c. They alfo fixed the prices, of pro'.ifions,
took cognizance of debauches, puniihed lewd'
women, and fuch perfons as frequented gaming
houfes. The cuftody of the plebifcita, or or-
ders of the people, were likev/ife committed
to them. They had. the iiifpefiion of come-
dies, ajxd other pieces of wit; and were oblig-
ed to exhibit magnificent games to the people,
at their own: expence, whereby many ot them
were ruined.
At firft the adiles were only t-.vo in number,
and chofen from among the common people ; but
thefe being unable to fjpport the expence of the
public fhcws, two more were created out of the
patrician order ; thefe laft took upon, themfelves
all the charges of the games, and were called
iCiUUi curules, or ninjores, as the two plebeians were
denominated minjres.
Julius Ca-far,. in order to eafe thefe four, created.
two
't'.vo otheis, \\-]v) were caMed a^'iles cereahs, as hav-
ing the inrpeclioii of all manner of grain commit-
.ud to t!icir care.
'I'here were alio asdiles in the municipal cities,
who had much the fame authority as thofe in Rome.
^I'lDILITIAN eriifl, tzdilitium ediftum, among
the Romans, was particularly ufed for the adile's
.ii.-nteiice, allowing redrefs to the purchafer of a
t)ca{V, or flave, that had been impofed on.
tEGAGROPILA, or j?:^gagrophilus, Aiyt.-
foo/r/A®^, in natural liiftory, a ball compofed of a
fubltance refembliiig hair, generated in the fto-
niach of the chamois-goat.
It is a kind of bezoar, called bezoar germam-
cum, and is poflefled of no medicinal virtue, no
more than the balls of the fatne kind formed in
the ftomachs of cows, hogs, &c. See Bezoar.
^GILOPS, hiyiKi)-^, among phyficians, an
abfcefs in the corner of the eye, next the nofe ;
or, according to Heifter, a fmall tumour caufed by
an inflammation or abfcefs, which in time, by the
acrimony of its purulent matter, erodes the ex-
ternal ficin, lacryraal dufts, and fat round the
ball of the eye ; nay, fometimes it renders the
neighbouring bones carious to a dangerous degree.
As to the method of treatment, the furgcon is
.firft to endeavour to difperfe the tumour, by
nioiflening \t Teveral times a day with fpirit of
vitriol ; but if he finds this impru£licable, he is
to forward the fuppuration as much as poflible,
left an obflinate firtula, or worfe confequenrcs,
fiiould be the cfFedfs of too long delay. For this
purpofe, a plaifler of diachylon with the gums, or
cmollitnt cataplafms may be ufed.
"When fully ripe, the tumour is to be laid open
with a lancet or fcalpcl, and the ulcer cleanfed
and healed In the ordinary way. See Ulcer.
/EGIPAN, in heathen mythology, a denomi-
nation given to the god Pan, by reafon he was
reprefented with the horns, legs, feet, &c. of a goat.
jEgis, in heathen mythology, is particularly
ufed for the fnidJ or cuirafs of Jupiter and Pallas.
i^.gis is derived from a.i^-, ctiy^-, a fne-goat ;
Jupiter having covered his fliield with the fl>;in of
Amalthea, the goat that fuck]cd him. Afterwards
making a prefcnt of the buckler to Minerva, this
goddefs fixed the head of Medufa on the middle
jof it, which, by that means, became capable of
turning all thofe into ftone who looked at it.
VEGIUCHUS, in heathcji mythology, a fur-
name of Jupiter, given him on account of his
Laving been fuckled by a goat.
j'EGYPTIACUM, in pharmacy, the name of
fcveral detergent ointments, ufed for eating oii"
iTOttcn flefh, and cleanflng foul ulcers.
j'l'lNIGMA, a.ivifiJ.a., denotes any dark faying
xjr queflion, wherein fome well known thing is
.concealed under obfcure language.
The parable, gryphus, and rebus, are by fome
2
JE QJJ
accounted three fpecies, or branches of aenigma.
See Parable, Gryphus, and Rebus.
j^OLIC li'iiileSi, among gramn^.arians, one of
the five dialedls of the Greek tongue, agreeing
ill moil things with the Doric dialed:. See
Doric.
/EoLic digamma. See Digamma.
j^OLic verfe, in profody, a kind of verfe, con-
fifting of an iambus, or fjwndee, then of two ana-
pefts, feparated by a long iyllabie, and laftly, of
another fyllable. Such is,
O Jidlifcr'i conditor orbis.
7E0LIPILE, in hydraulics, aninftrumentcon-
fifting of a hollow metalline ball, with a fmall
pipe or neck fcrewed thereto, which being filled
with water, and expofed to the fire, produces a
flrong blafl of wind.
This inftrument the mechanical and experimen-
tal philofophers chiefly make ufe of, to account for
the natural caufe and generation of winds, and
fome have ufed this machine to meafure the gravity
and rarefadlion of the air, but without iuccefs,
as there are many objeflions and difficulties which
it is liable to. Others have fuppofed that if the
seolipile was fixed to fome fonorous inftrument,
as a trumpet or a horn, it might produce mufic,
or with proper additions be made to reprefent the
fluiiliuating and playing up and down of the ftreani
of a fountain ; likewife being placed before the
fire, to ferve as a pair of bellows, when an intenfe
heat is required ; but thefe fuppofitions are only
theory, and not capable of being reduced to
praifice, for experience fhews us that inftead of
the blaft kindling the fire it totally extinguLfhes,
or puts it out. However, the ceolopile being pro-
perly conftrufted, it may with fome fucccfs, we
think, be applied to cure fmoaking chimnies, and
without great expence ; for being filled with water,
and hung properly in the funnel of the chimney,
the blall which v/ill qiiickly enfue from the heat of
the fire, will drive up the loitering fmoke, and caufe
a ftrong draught. See Wind, Heat, Water,
Air, and Rarefaction.
iEOLUS, in the heathen theology, the god of
the winds, painted with fwoln blubber cheeks,
like one who widi main force endeavours to blow
a blaft ; alfo with two fmall wings upon his
flioulders, and a fiery high-coloured counte-
nance.
EQUATION,
EQUATOR,
^QLTILIBRATOR,
^.QUILIBRIUM,
EQUINOCTIAL,
EQUIPOLLENT,
EQUIVALENT,
EQUIVOCAL,
EQUIVOCATIONJ"
f"EQUATION.
Equator.
Eqctilibrator.
Equilibrium.
5-See-( Equinoctial.
Equipollent.
Eqijivalent.
Equivocal.
LEquivocation.
ERA,
AER
/ERA, in chronology, a ferics of y.-ais, com-
mencing from a certain fixed point of time, called
cpocha: thus, we fay the Chriftian rrra, that is,
the number of years elapfcd fincc the birth of
Chrift.
'I'hc generality of authors, howc\Tr, nfe the
terms a-ra and epocha in a fynonymous fenfe,
or for the point of time from which the compu-
tation commences, making no other dilTcrcncc be-
tween them, except that the fornnr is chiefly
uied by the vulgar, and the latter by chronologcrs.
See Epocha.
AERIAL, in a general fenfe, denotes fome-
tliing partaking of the nature of air : thus we fay,
an aerial i'ublfance, aerial particles, he. "
Aerial Perfpe£live, is that which reprefents
bodies diminifhed and weakened in proportion to
tlieir diftance from the eye, and has chiefly to do
with the colours of objecSls, whofc luflre and force
is diminifhed in proportion to the diftance of the
objeift you are to reprefent ; for the longer the
column of air that any body is feen through, fo
much the fainter do the rays emitted from it, ap-
pear to the eye. See Perspective.
AERIANS, Jeria/ii, in church hiftory, the
name of certain fedlaries of the fourth century,
who were fo called from Aerius, a prieft of Ar-
menia, who was their chief. Thefe Arians had
pretty much the fame notions, with refpeft to the
Trinity, that the Arians had ; but they entertain-
ed befides fome tenets that were peculiar to them-
felves. Aerius was diflatisSed that Euftathius, his
former companion, fhould fucceed to a bifhopric,
for which he had been candidate himfelf; and
therefore defamed the order of bifliops, as an en-
croachment upon the priefthood. He looked upon
all the fafts of the church to be merely fuperfti-
tious, and affirmed that even the pafTover itfelf
fhould not be obfen'ed ; he admitted none into his
feft, but thofe who lived in continence, and con-
tkmned marriage as unlawful.
AEROGRAPHY fignifies a defcription of the
air, efpecially of its dimenfions, and other moft
obvious properties ; in which fenfe, it differs but
little from
AEROLOGY, v/hich is a fcientifical account
of the nature and lefs obvious properties of air.
See Air and Atmosphere.
AEROMANCY, Aeromantia, a fpecies of di-
vination performed by means of air, winds, &c.
Aeromancy is alfo ufed for the art of fore-
telling the various changes of the air and weather,
by means of barometers, hygrometers, &c. See
Barometer, &c.
AEROMETRY, the fcience of meafuring the
air, its powers and properties ; the term, at pre-
fent, is not much in ufe, for this part of natural
philofophy is commonly called pneumaiics. See
Pneumatics.
JE TH
yf-.SCm'NOMENE, in botany, a genus of
plants, that bears a papilionaceous flower, and it',
leaves contraft by the touch ; whence it has been
called the baflard fcnfiti\e plmt. Botanifls enu-
merate fi\e forts, which are all natives of the
warmer climates.
j^SCL'LAPIUS's Setpeiit, /Efculcipii aaguis, in
zoology, a harmlcfs kind of ferpcnt, otherwife
called parx'a. See PARitA.
j'F'SCULUS, in botany. See Horse-'Cheskut.
TETHER, A/Oiip, in phyfiology, an exceeding
fine, thin, fubtile fluid, concerning which philo-
fophers are greatly divided ; however, the fenti-
ments of Sir Ifaac Newton, v.-hich arc molt re-
ceived, are as follows :
1. He fuppofcs that anffithcrial fubftance is dif-
fufcd through all places, and that it is capable of
contraction and dilatation, ftror.gly elaliic, and
much like air in all refpects, but much more
fubtile.
2. He fuppofcs that this aether pervades all groft
bodies, but yet fo as to itand rarer in their pores,
than in free fpaces, and fo much the rarer as
their pores are lefs : that it is the caufe why light
incident on thofe bodies, is refra£fed towards the
perpendicular. See Light and Refraction.
Why two well polifhed metals cohere in a receiver
exhaufted of air. See Cohesion. Why mer-
cury flands fometimes up to the top of a glafs
pipe, though much higher than 30 inches, and
one of the chief caufes why the parts of all
bodies cohere ; .ilfo the caufe of filtration, of the
rifing of water in fmall glals pipes, above the
furface of the ftagnated water they are dipped in,
for he fufpc6is the sether may itand rarer, not only
in the infenfible pores of bodies, but even in the
very fenfible cavities of thefe pipes. See Capil-
lary Tube. And the fame principle may caufe
menftruums to pervade with violence the pores of
bodies they dilTolve, the furrounding a;ther as well
as the atmofphcre preffing them together.
3. He fuppoies the rarer --ether within bodies,
and the denfer without them, not to be terminated
in a mathematical fuperficiss, but to grow gra-
dually into one another, the external sether begin-
ning to grow rarer, and the internal to grow den-
fer, at fome little diftance from the fuperficies of
the body, and running through all degrees of den-
fity in tl;ie intermediate fpaces ; and that this may
be the caufe why light, in Grimaldi's experiment,
pafling by the edge of a knife, or other opakc
body, is turned afide, and as it were refradled,
and by that refra£lion makes feveral colours.
Let ABCD, (Plate VL//. I.) beadenfebody
whether opake or tranfparent ; EFGH, the out-
fide of the uniform aether which is within it ;
IKLM, the infide of the uniform fether which
is without it, and conceive the aether which is
between EFGH and I K L M to run through all
R
intermediate
-^ T H
^ T H
iiitermediate degrees of denfity, between that of
the two uniform aethers on either fide. This be-
ing fuppofeJ, the rays of the fun SB, SK, which
pafs by the edge of this body between B and K,
ought in their paflage through the unequally
dcnfe sethcr there, to receive a ply from the dcn-
for sethcr, which is on that fide towards K ; and
that the more, by how much they pafs nearer
to the body, and thereby be fcattered through the
fpace P Q_R S 7% as by experience they are found
to be. iNow the fpace between the limits EFGH
and I K L M, he calls the fpace of the sethcr's
graduated rarity.
4. When two bodies moving towards one ano-
ther come near together, he fuppofcs the a;ther
between them to grow rarer than before, and the
fpaces of its graduated rarity to extend further
from the fuperficies of the bodies towards one
another, and this by reafon that the aether can-
not move and play up and down fo freely in the
ftraight pafTage between the bodies as it could be-
fore they carae fo near together. Thus, if the
fpace of the aether's graduated rarity reach from
f 36 body A BCD EF (fig. 1.) only to the diftance
GHLMRS, when no other body is near it, yet
ni.iy it reach farther, as to I K, when another body
N O P Q_ approaches ; and as the other body ap-
proaches more and more, he fuppofes the sther
between them vrill grow rarer and rarer. — Note,
He has fo defcribed thofe fuppofitions, as if he
thought the fpaces of graduated :vther had precife
limits, as is exprefcd at IFZL.M in the firlf figure,
;ind at GMRS iixtlie fecond, for thus he thought
Ive could better exprefs himfelf: but he did not
think they have fuch precife limits, but rather de-
cay infenfibly, and in fo decaying, extend to a
much greater diilance than can eafdy be believed,
or need bs fuppofed.
5, Now^ from the fourth fuppofition it fol-
lows, that if two bodies approaching one another,
come fo near together as to make the asther be-
tween them begin to rarify, they will have a se-
lu6tance from beiiig brought nearer together, and
an endeavour to recede from one another ; which
reluiStance and endeavour will increafe as they come
nearer together, becaufe thereby they caufe the
interjaceat aether to rarefy more and more ; but at
length, when they come fo near together, that the
excefs of prefjure of the external ?ethcr which, fur-
round the bodies,, above that of the rarefied ather
which is between them, is fo great, as to overcome
the relui^ance which the bodies have from being
brought togeth.er, then will- that excefs of pref-
fure drive them witli violerice together, and nwkc
them adhere ftrongly to one another, as was faid
i^;i the fecond fuppolition.
For inftance, (Plate IV. yf^. 2.) when the bodies
ED and NP are fo near together, that the fpaces
<?.( the aether's graduated rarity begin to reach one
another, and meet in the line IK, the xther be-
tween them will have fufFered much rarefadtion,
which rarefaction requires much force; that is^ ■
much preffing of the bodies together; and the
endeavours which the athcr between them has to,
return to its former ftate of condenfation, will
cauie the bodies to have an endeavour to recede
from one another. But on the other hand, ta
counterpoife this endeavour, there will not yet be
any excefs of denfity of the asther which furrounds
the bodies, above that of the aether which is be-
tween them at the line IK. But if the bodies,
come nearer together, fo as to make the aether
in the midway line IK, grow rarer than the fur-
rounding x-iher, there will ^arife from the excefs of
dcnfity of the furrounding aether, a compreflure of
the bodies toward one another, which when by
the near approach of the bodies, it becomes fo
great as to overcome the aforefaid endeavour the
bodies have to recede from one another, they willi
then go towards one another, and adhere together;
and on the contrary, if any power force them
afunder to that diftance, where the endeavour to
recede begins to overcome the endeavour to ac-
cede, they will again leap from one another.
Hence, he conceives, it is chiefly that a fly walks
on water without wetting her feet, and conse-
quently, without touching the water ; that two
polifhed pieces of glafs are not wit'aout prefTure
brought to contaft, no, not though one be plane,
the other a little convex; that the particles of
duft cannot be made to cohere, as they would do-
if they did bat fully touch ; that the particles of
tiiTging fubftances and falts dillblved in water, do
not of their own accord concrete and fall to the
bottom, but difFufe themfehes all oyst the liquor,
and expand ftill more if you add more liquor to
them. Alfo, that the paiticles of vapours, cxha-
latioijs, and air, do ftand at a difbmce from one
another, and endeavour to recede as far from one
another as the preflure of the incumbent atmof-.
jihcre will let them : for he conceives the con-
fufed mafs of vapours, air, and exhalations, which
we call the atmofphere, to be nothing elfe but the-
particles of all forts of bodies of which the carth-
confilts feparated from] one another, and kept at
a diftance by the fame principle. >
He likewife fuppofi;s a-ther to confift of parts.
di.fcring from one anothsr in fubtilty by indefinite
degrees ; that in the pores of bodies there is lefs.-
of the grofier aether in proportion to the finer
than in open fpaces^ and confequently,. that in
the great body of the earth, there is much lefs of
the grofTer sther in proportion to the finer than,
in the regions of the air ; aird that yet the groflor
.-ether in the air afte6fs the upper regions of the
earth, and the finer asther in the earth the lower
regions of the air, in fuch a manner, that from
the top of the air to the furface of the earth,.
and
JETH
JET H
and again from the furface of the earth to the
txnter thereof, the a;ther is inreiifiblv finer and
finer. Imagine now any body fufpcndcd in the
air, or Iving on the earth, and the aether being by
the hypothelis, groiTer in the pores which are in the
upper parts of the body, than thofe which are in
the lower parts of the body, and that the groflcr
a'thcr being lefs apt to be lodged in thofe pores,
than the finer sther below, it will endea\oiir to
get out and give way to the finer ather below,
which cannot be without the bodies defcendincr
to make room above for it to go out into. See
Gravity.
The above doftrine of the a-thcr is paft of
what was drawn up by Sir Ifaac Newton for the
ufe of Mr. Boyle ; his further thoughts on the
fame fubjeft will be foimd in the following Qiie-
ries, which he inferted many years after among
others, in his excellent book of Optics.
^'^.. 1 6. When a man in the dark prefTes eitlier
corner of his eye with his finger, he will fee a
circle of colours like thofe in a peacock's tail. If
the eye and the finger remain quiet, thefe colours
■» anifh in a fecond minute of time ; but if the fin-
ger be moved v/ith a quivering motion they appear
again. Do not thefe colours arife from fuch mo-
tions excited in the bottom of the eye, by the
preilure and motion of the finger, as at other times
are excited there by light caufing vifion? And do
not the motions once excited continue about a
fecond of time before they ceafe ? And when a
man by a ftroke upon his eye fees a flafli of light,
are not the like motions excited in the retina by
the ftroke ? And when a coal of fire moving
nimbly in the circumference of a circle, makes
the whole circumference appear like a circle of fire,
is it not becaufe the motions excited in the bot-
tom of the eye by the rays of light, are of a laft-
ing nature, and continue till the coal of fire in
going round returns to its former place ? And con-
Itdering the laftingnefs of the motions excited i.n
the bottom of the eye by light, are they not of a
vibrating nature ?
^. 17. If a ftone be thrown into ftagnating
water, the waves excited thereby continue fome
time to arife ^n the place where the ftone fell into
the water, and are propagated from thence in con-
centric circks upon the furface of the water to
great diftances. And the vibrations or tremors ex-
cited in the air by percuflion, continue a little time
to move from the place of perculJion in concentric
fpheres to great diftances. And in like manner,
when a ray of light falls upon the furface of any
f-ellucid body, and is there refracted or reflected ;
may not waves of vibrations or tremors be thereby
excited on the refradting or refledting medium at
the point of incidence, and continue to arife there,
and to be propagated from thence as Ions; as they
continue to arife, and be propagated v.'hen'they arc
excited in the bottom of the eye by t'le p.-rfTur.^' c:
motion of the finger, or from the liglit wliich
comes from the coal of fire in the experimeiits .
above mentioned? And thefe vibration? piop,i-j.aced •
from the point of incidence to great iiiiiillances i* •
And do they not overtake the rays of light, ami
by overtaking tliem fucceiTuely, do, they not put
tiiem into fits of eafv refledtion and eafy tranf-
million defcribed above ? tor if the rays endeavour
to recede from the denfeft part of the vibration,
they may be idternately accelerated and retarded
by the vibrations overtaking them.
J^u. 18. If in two large tali cylindrical vcffels
of glafs inverted, tv/o little thermometers be fuf-
pended fo as not to touch the vefTels, and the air
be drawn out of one of thef3 velTels, and thefe
veffels thus prepared be carried cut of a cold place
into a warm one ; tlve thermometer in vacuo will
grow warm as much, and almoft as foon, as the
thermometer which is not in vacuo. And when
the vellels are carried back into die cold place,,
the thermometer in -vocuo will grow cold almoft as
fooji as die other thermometer. Is not the heat of
the warm room,, conveved through die vacuum by
the vibrations, of a much fubtLler medium than air,
which after the air v.-as drawn out remained in the
vacuum 1 y\iid is not this medium the fime with
that medium by v/hich light is refrafted and re-
fleiSlid, and by whofe vibrations light communi-
cates heat to bodies, arul is put into fits of eafy
reflexion and eafy tranfmiffion I And do not the
vibrations of this medium '\i\ hot bodies, contri-
bute to the intenfenefs and duration of the heal ?
And do not hot bodies communicate their heat to-
contiguous cold ones, by the vibrations of this
medium propagated from them into the cold ones \
And is not this m.edium exceedingly more rare and
fubtile than the air, and exceedingly mora elaftic
and active ? And doth it not readily pervade all
bodies ? And is it not, by its elaftic force, ex-
panded through all the heavens ? See Heat.
^i. 19. Doth not the refraction of light pro-
ceed from the different denfit)' of this ssthereaL
medium in different places, the light receding al-
ways from the dcnfer p.ii-ts of the medium .■ And
is not the denfity of it greater in free and open
fpaces void of air and other groffer bodies, than.
witb.in the pores of water, gLifs,, cryftal, gems,
and other compacl bodies ? For when light paffes.
through glafs or cryftal, au>l falling very obliquely
upon the farther furface thereof is totallv reflected,
tl>e total refleftion ought to proceed rather from-
tlie denfity and vigour of tlie medium without and
beyond the glafs, than from the rarity and weak-
nei's thereof. - ■
^i. 20. Doth nrt this atherial medium in.
paOing out of water, glafs, cryftal, and other
compact and denfe bodies, into empty (paces, grow.
denfer and denfcr bv decrees, snd bv that means
rehvA tlie rays of light, not in ;i point, but by I
bending them gradually in curve lines ? And doth
net the gradual condenlation of this medium ex-
tend to fome diilance from the bodies,^ and thereby
caufe the infledtions of the rays of light, which
pafs by the edges of denfe bodies, at fome diftance
from the bodies. See Inflection, REFtECTioN,
and Refraction.
^i. 21. Is not this medium much rarer within
the denfe bodies of the fun, ft;ir», planets and
comets, than in the empty cclellial fpaces between
them ? And in pafling from them to greater
dijlances, doth it not grow denfer and denfer per
petually, and thereby caufe the gravity of thofe
great bodies towards one another, and of their
parts, towards the bodies ; every body endeavour-
ing to go from the denfer parts of the medium to-
wards the rarer ? For if this medium be rarer
within the fun's body than at its furface, and rarer
there than at the hundredth part of an inch from
its body, and rarer there than at the fifteenth part
of an inch from its body, and rarer there than at
the orb of Saturn ; he fees no reafoii v.hy the in-
creafe of denfity fhould ftop anv where, and not
rather be continued througii all diftanccs from the
Sun to Saturn, and beyond. And though this in-
creafe of denfity may be exceeding flow, yet if the
clartic force of this medium be exceeding great,
it may fuffice to impel bodies from the denfer parts
of the medium towards the rarer, with all that
power which we call gravity. And that theelaftic
torce of this medium is exceeding great, may be
ga;'iered from the fwiftnefs of its vibrations.
.Sounds move about 1140 Englifh feet in a fecond
of time, and in feven or eight minutes of time
they move above one hundred Englifh miles.
Light moves from the Sun to us in about feven or
eight minutes of time, whicii dillance is about
70000000 of Englifh miles, fuppofing the hori-
zontal parallax of the Sun to be twelve feconds.
And the vibrations or pulfes of this medium, that
they may caufe the alternate fits of cafy tranf-
mifiion and cafy reflexion, muft be fwifter than
light, and by confequence above 700000 times
jTwifter than founds. And therefore the elaftic
force of this medium, in proportion to its denfity,
rtiLift be above 700000x700000 (that is, above
490000000OC0) times greater than the elaftic force
of the air is in proportion to its denfity. For the
velocities of the pulfes of elaftic mediums, are in
a fubduplicate ratio of the elafticities and the
rarities of the mediums taken together.
As attraiftion is ftronger In fmall macrnets than
in great ones, in prcportinn to their bulk ; and
gravity is greater in the furfaces of fmall planets
than in thole of great ones, in proportion to their
bulk ; and fmall bodies are agitated much more by
electric attrafiion, than great ones : fo the fmall-
neis of the rays of light ipay contribiKe very
^ T H
much to the power of the a^ent by which they
are refraE\ed. And fo if any one ftiould fuppofe
that aither, like our air, may contain particles
which endeavour to recede from one another (for
he owns he does not know what this a;ther is) and
that its particles are exceedingly fmaHer than thofe
of air, or even than thofe of light ; the exceeding
fmallnefs of its particles may contribute to tiie
greatnefs of the force by which thofe particles may
recede from one another, and thereby make that
medium exceedingly more rare and elaftic than
air, and by confequence exceedingly lefs abk to
refift the motions of projectiles, and exceedingly
lefs able to prefs upon grols bodies, by endeavour-
ing to expand itfelf.
^n. 22. May not planets and comets, and ail
grofs bodies, perform their motions more freclv,
and with lefs refift-ance, in this a-therial medium,
than in any fluid which tills all fpace adequately
without leaving any pores, and by confequence is
much denfer than quickfilver or gold ? And may
not its refiftance be fo fmall, as to be inconfider-
able I For inftaiice, if this nether fliould be fup-
pofed 700000 times more elaftic than our air, and
above 70C000 times more rare ; its refiftance v.'ould
be above 600000000 times lef.i than that of water.
And fo fmall a refiftance would fcarce make any
fenfible alteration in the motions of the planets in
ten thoufand years. If any one would afk, how
a medium can be fo rare ? let him tell us how
the air, in the upper parts of the atmofphere, can
be above a hundred thoufand times rarer than gold.
Let him alfo tell us, how an eleftric body can,
by friftion, emit an exhalation fo rare and fubtilc,
and yet fo potent, as by its emiftion to caufe no
fenfible diminution of the weight of the eledtric
body, and to be expanded through a fphere, whofe
diameter is above two feet ; and yet to be able to
agitate, and carry up leaf-copper, or leaf-gold, at
the djftance of above a foot from the electric
body? And how the effluvia of a magnet can be
fo rare and fubtilc, as to pafs through a plate of
glafs without any refiftance or diminution of their
torce ; and yet fo potent, as to turn a magnetic
needle beyond the glafs ?
Is not vifion performed chiefly by tfee vibrations
of this medium, excited in the bottom of the eye
by the rays of light, and propagated through the
folid, pellucid, and uniform capillamenta of the
optic nerves into the place of fenfation ? And is
not hearing performed by the vibrations either of
this or fome other medium, excited in the auditory
nerves by the tremors of the air, and propagated
through the iblid, pellucid, and uniform capilla-
menta of thofe nerves into the place of fenfation ?
And ib of the other fenfts.
^u. 24. Is not animal motion performed by the
vibrations of this medium, excited in the brain by
the power cf the will, and propagated i'rom thence
/ through
^T H
through the foliJ, pelluciii, and uniform capilla-
menta of the nerves into the mufcles, for contraft-
ing and dilating them ? Suppofing that the capilla-
ments of the nei-ves are each of them folid and
uniform, that the vibrating motion of the :ethcreal
medium may be propagated along them from one
end to the other, uniformly and without interrup-
tion : for obftruitions in the nerves create palfies.
And that they may be fufficiently uniform, he
fuppofes them to be pellucid, when viewed fmgly,
though the reflections in their cylindrical furfaces,
may make the whole nerve compofcd of many
capillamenta appear opake and white : for opacity
arifes from reflecting furfaces, fuch as may dilturb
and interrupt the motion of this medium.
jEther, in chem.iftry, an extremely penetrating
fpirit, made by diftilling (pirit of wine with oil of
vitriol, and then precipitating the fulphureous gas
with an alcali.
Concentrated oil of vitriol be'nc', dropt by de-
grees into an equal quantity, or fi\e or iix times
its quantity, of highly redtilied fpirit of wine, the
liquor becomes firit yellow and then reddifn, and
exhales an agreeable, difrufive, penetrating fmell,
which if freely taken in with the breath attefts
the lungs : the tafte of the liquor is conildera-
bly acid.
On digefting the mixture for fome days, and
then committin"; it to diftillation in a retort with
a very gentle warmth, there arifes a fubtile fpirir,
more fragrant and penetrating in fmell than the
undlilllled liquor, very volatile, inflammable, in
tafte not at all acid, but of the aromatic kind.
This is the dulcified fpirit of vitriol. It comes
over in thin invifiblc vapours, which condenie
upon the fides of the recipient in flraight ftrise.
This fpirit is fucceeded by one of a different
kind, which, being caught in a feparate receiver,
is found to be fenfibly acid, and of a pungent fuf-
focating fmell, like the fumes of burning brim-
llone. Along with it comes over a fmall quantity
of oil ; which fometimes proves colourlei's, and
fwims on the fulphureous liquor, and fometimes
appears yellowifh or greenilh, and fmks to the
bottom, according as the vinous fpirit in the max-
ture was in large or in fmall proportion.
The dulcified fpirit alfo has frequently fome
flight acidity, fuf&cient to alter the fine green
tintture, which in its perfect ftate it extracts
from the leaves of plants. It is purified or recti-
fied from this redundant acid, by mixing it with
a weak folution of fixed alcaline fait, and diftilling
it over a fecond time : for every pint of the fpirit,
may be taken a folution of a, dram of alcali in a
pint of water.
If the fpirit, thus reCIified, be mingled agp-in
with an equal quantity of a like alcaline folution,
the mixture fhaken together, appears milky : on
ftanding for a little time;^ thete ariles to the fur-
4
JET H
face an extremely fubtile fluid, called by the che-
mlfts sethcr, or ;cthcrial fpirit of wine. A con-
fiderable quantity of dulcified fpirit may Itlll be
fcparated from the remaining liquor by didillation ;
and this fpirit, mixed v^'ith frcfli alcaline folution,
aftbrds more rether.
The a-ther is the lighted:, moft volatile, andmofi:
inflammable of all known liquors. It. fwims on
the moft highly retSlified fpirit of wine, being
lighter than that fpirit in the proportion nearly of
0,730 to 0,830. Dropt on the warm hand, it al-
moll exhales, diffafing a penetrating fragrance,
and leaving no nioiiture behind. On the approach,
of a candle it takes fire, and goes off in a flaflv
like lightning. It does not mingle with water,
■with acid, or with alcaline liquors; but dlflblves
fome unctuous and refinous bodies. Among me-
tallic fubftanccs, it difcovers a remarkable attrac-
tion to gold, but feems to have no eftett on any
of the otliers : mixed with a lolution of gold made
in acids, it imbibes the gold from the acid, carries
it to the furface, and keeps it there diflolved into
a. yellow liquor ; hence its ufe for difcovering gold
in liquids.
The only perfon we know of who has given
any plaufible theory of the produflion of this
fubtile fluid, is Mr. Macquer. Spirit of wine
confills chiefly of an oil, cxquifitely attenuated by
fermentation, and intimately combined with water.
According to Mr. Macquer, the aether is no other
than this fubtllized oil, extricated by the vitriolic
acid ; which acid, having a ftrong affinity or at-
traction to water, abforbs the watery element ci'
the fpirit, and thus fcts the oily one at liberty.
AixHERiAi., fomcthing that participates of the
nature of aether. See /I'Ither.
^Etherial 0//, among chemifls, a fubtile eficn-
tlal oil, approaching to the nature of fpirits. Sec
the article Oit.
jE THJOFS, or Mthiops Mineral,, a preparation
of mercurv, made by rubbing In a nvarble or glafs
mortar, equal quantities of quick-filver and flowers
of fulphur, till the mercury wholly difappears',
and there remains a fine deep black powder, from
whence it has got the name of /Ethiops.
This Is cfteemed one of the fafe.ft preparations
of mercury, a.'id is much ufed againlt cutaneous
foulnefTes, in fcrophulous cafes, in remains of
ven.ereal difordcrs, and even in the gout and rheu--
niatifm. In fccrbutlc cafes fcarce any medicine
exceeds it; and it has been long known as- <i
remedy againTt worms. Its dole is fronx a fcruple
to a dram or two.
IEthiops Julius, apreparatlonof mercury, which
is made by rubbing quick-filver with a double
quantity of crabs-eyes, or of fugar-caiidy, till it
is extingurfhed.
ii-'LTHioPs of' Dr. Plummey, a medicine prepared
by levigating fulphur auratum an;imonii-, \yith a|i
S equal
A FF
A FF
•efiual quantity of calomel : it is faid to be good
in venereal and other cutaneous diforders.
AETIANS, the followers of Aetius, known
.by the name of the Impious, a native of Syria,
born in the fourth century : he was firll a menial
fervant, then a goldfmith, afterwards a quack-
doiSlor, and laft of all a prieft. He was a iubtle
fophilt, and a noify difputant ; and the doctrine of
Arius making at that time a great bulHe in the
Chrilirian world, he embraced it, and became one
of his moil zealous followers. He conlidercd the
moll infamous actions as natural necefliries, and
not at all criminal ; teaching his difciples, that
God required nothing of theni but faith. Hav-
ing been frequently driven out from place to
place, he retired at laft to Coiiftantinople, where
he died in the year 367. His followers after his
death were called Eunomians, from Eunomus, a
famous dilc:iple of Aetius.
74:TI0L0GY, that branch of phyfic which
affigns the caufes of difeafes.
/Etiology, in rhetoric, is deemed a figure of
fpeech, whereby, in relating an event, we at the
l.;me time unfold the caufes of it.
JETITJE, or ./Etites, in natural hiftory, a
name given to pebbles or ftones of any kind,
v/hich have a loofe nucleus rattling within them,
and called in Englifh the eagle-ilone.
So far from being a particular genus of fofiils
themfelves, we find sstitae among very difterent
a;cnufes, as the gcodes, heteropyrse, &c. but the
moil valued of all others, is that formed of the
fcveral varieties of our common pebbles. See
Geodes, &c.
As to the foundation of astitae, naturalills ac-
count for it from this confideration, that as the
nuclei are coarfer and more debafcd by earth than
the refl of the pebble, they muft flirink up and
contract themfelves into a fmaller fize ; by which
means, it will be feparated from the furrounding
-xruft, and thereby become loofe.
Many imaginary virtues hav£ been afcribcd to
thcfc Hones, as, that they atliit women in labour,
difcover thieves, <kc. than which nothing can be
more ridiculous.
AFFECTATION, in language and conver-
fation, is a vice too frequent in the falliionable
world. It confifts in expreffing the moft common
and trifling thing in terms far fetched, and often
jidiculoudy choien. Nothing is ib infupportable
to a man of true wit, as one of thefe retailers
of phrafes ; who would rather brirfg forth a few
little prettinefTes of expreffion, than be able to
conceive the moft ftrong, manly, and juil ideas.
Affectation, in writing, is nearly the fame as
in fpeaking : it is the vice of a weak, effeminate,
fribbling mind. It difcovers itfelf in poor, little,
ricketty thoughts, drcfled up in language as varie-
gated as ajack -pudding's coat, interfperfed with the
prettleft-fancied latinifms, and phrafes half French
and half Ene:l;fh.
Affectation in behaviour is a ftrange and re-
markable deportment of the body, occulloned by
a defire to appear what a man is not, or to be
taken notice of for fomething that he is. In the
Hrft cafe it is difagreeable, becaufe it is an impo-
iltion or deceit, which is endeavoured to be put
upon us ; and it is equally fo in the fecond, be-
caufe it arifes from vanity, or a too great atten-
tion to difplay fome fuperiority. AffeiStation of all
lorts is a violation of fimplicity and of nature :
in converfation and writing it arifes from huntijig
eagerly after wit ; in dreis and behaviour, from
learching after graces. There are fome perfons of
fo happy a mould, that they cannot acquire it ;
and others of fo wretched a compofition, that they
cannot root it out of their texture.
AFFECTED Equations. See Adfected.
AfFECTION, in a general fcnfe, implies an
attribute that cannot be feparated from its fubjedl.
Thus gravity is an affe£lion of all bodies.
Affection, in phyfics, the aftcdlions of a body
are certain modifications produced by motion, in
virtue of which, the body is difpofed after fuch
or fuch a manner. The affedlions of bodies
are fometimes fub-divided into primary and fe-
condary.
Primar)' affeftions are thofe which arife out of
the idea of matter ; as quantity and figure ; or out
of that of form, as that of quality and power ;
or out of both, as motion, place, and time.
Secondary, or dcrivati\'e affeilions, are fuch as
aril'e out of primary ones, as divillbility, continui-
ty, contiguity, &c. wliich arifc out of quantity ;
rcgularit)^, irregularity, &c. which arife out of
figure.
Affections of the Mind, are the fame with
paiTions, or inclinations. See the article Pas-
sion.
Affection, in medicine, a term ufed for any
dilorJer with which a limb or other part of the
body is affedled. Thus, wc fiiy, hypochondriacal,
or hyfterical affeflion, &c. See the articles Hy-
pochondriacal, and Hysterics, &c.
AFFEERERS, or Affeerors, in law, per-
fons appointed in court-leets, courts-baron, &c.
to fettle, upon oath, the fines to be impofed upon
thofe who have been guilty of faults arbitrarily
punifhable ; that is, fuch as have no exprefs pe-
nalty aOigned by ftatute.
AFFETTUOSO, or con Affetto, in the
Italian mufic, intimates that the part to which it
is added, ought to be played in a tender mov-
ing way, and confequently, rather flow than
faft.
AFFIANCE, m law, denotes the mutual plight-
ing of troth between a man and a woman, to
marry each other.
AFFI-
A FF
AFFIDAVIT fignifies an oath in writing,
fv.'orn before i'ome peribn who is authorifed to take
the fame.
In an affidavit, the time, place of habitation, and
addition of the perfon who makes it, are to be
inferted.
Affidavits are chiefly ufcd to certify the fcrving
of procefTes or other matters, concerning the pro-
ceedines in a court ; and therefore {hould fet forth
the matter of fact to be proved, without taking
any notice of the merits of the caufe. They are
read in court upon motions, but are not admitted
in evidence at trials.
Weftminfter may commiffion perfons in the
feveral counties in England, to take affidavits re-
lating to any thing depending in their feveral
courts.
APFINITY, affinitas, among civilians, denotes
the relation of each of the parties married to the
kindred of the other.
Affinity is diflinguiflied into three kinds: i.
Dire6l affinity, or that fubfifting between the
hufband and his wife's relations bv blood ; or be-
tween the wife and her hufband's relations by
blood. 2. Secondary affinity, or that which tub-
■fiils between the huiband and his wife's relations
by marriage. 3. Collateral affinity, or that which
fubfifls between the hufband and the relations of
his wife's relatiop.s. The dee;rees of affinity are
always the fame with thofe of confanguinity :
hence, in whatever degree of confanguinity the
kindred of one of the parties married are, they are
in the fame degree of affinity to the other.
Affinity is alfo ufed to denote a conformity,
or agreement, between two or more things : thus,
we fay, the affinity of language, the affinity of
words, the affinity of founds, &c.
AFFIRMATION, among logicians, is the
aft of the mind afTertlng the truth or reality of
fomething ; or it is a pofitive propoiition, declar-
ing certain proportions or qualities to belong to the
thing in queilion : thus, when I fay, every circle
is a perfe£tly round figure, I affirm perfeft round-
nefs to be an infeparable property of a circle.
Affirmation is alfo ufed for the redifying or
confirming the fentence or decree of fome inferior
court : thus, we fay, the Houfe of Lords affirm-
•ed the decree of the lords of feffion.
Affirmation alfo denotes a fblemn atteftation
of the truth of forne fa<ft, which the Quakers are
allowed to make inflead of an oath.
AFFIR^'IATIVE, in a general fenfe, denotes
any thing which implies an aifirmation. See Af-
firmation.
Affirmative, in the F-oman inquifition, a
defignation given to fuch heretics as openly a\ ow
the opinions they are charged withal.
Affirmative Charafler. See the article Cha-
racter.
A G A
Affirmative Propifitlon. See the artlc'c
Proposition.
Affirmative ^lantlty, in algebra, a real
quantity, or a quantity greater than nothing;
tiius called in oppohtion to a privative ornegative
quantity, which is lefs than nothing. •"•
Affirmative Sig;i, in algebra, is markeJ
thus +, and fignifies that the quantity it is placed
before has real exillence, and is called an affirma-
tive quantity. See Sign and Character.
AFFORESTING, afore/latio, in our old laww
books, is the turning lands into a /orefl, as the
converting a foreft to other ufes, is called dif-
aflorefling, or deafForefling.
AFFRAY, or Affrayaient, in law, former-
ly lignified the crime of aflrighting other perfons,
by appearing in unufual armour, brandifhing a
weapon, &c. But, at prefent, affray denotes a
fkirmifh or fighting between two or more ; and
there mutl be a Itroke given, otherwife it is no
affray.
An afFray is a common injury, punifhable by the
jultices of peace in their feffions, by fine and im-
prifonment; and accordingly differs from alFault,
which is a private offence.
A conflable may feize, and carry affrayers
before a juflice; as may likewife any private
perfon .
AFFRONTEE, in heraldry, an appellation
given to animals facing one another on an ef-
cutcheon, a kind of bearing, which is otherwife
called ccnfrcvtee, and flands oppofed to adojj'ee.
AF TER-Birth, in midwifery, the membranes
v.'hich furrounded the infant in the womb, more
ufualiy called the fecundines. See the articles
Birth, Delivery, and Secundines.
In brutes this is called the beam, or cleaning.
After-Math, in hufbandry, fignifies the grafs
which fprings or grows up after mowing ; or the
grafs, or flubhle, cut after corn.
AFTER-PAiNS,in midwifery, exceffive pains felt
in the groin, loins, &c. after the woman is deliver-
ed. See Delivery.
In order to guard againfl: them, phyficians re-
commend oil of fweet almonds, ipermaceti,
troches of myrrh and fyrup of maiden-hair ; and
generally with luccefs.
AFTER-SwARiMS, in the management of bees,
are ihofc which leave the hive fome time after
the firft has fwarmed. See the articles Bee and
Swarm.
AGA, in the Turkifli language, fignifies a great
lord, or comnianuor. Hence, the aga of the Jani-
zaries is the commander in chief of th.it corps ; as
the general of the horfe is denominated fpahiclav
aga. See the articles Janizaries and Spahi.
AGANIPPIDES, in ancient poetry, a defig-
nation eiven to the mufes, from a fountain of
mount Helicon, called Aganippe, - ■ ■'
AGA-
AG A
- ■ AGAPES, or Ac.\pm, a word made ufe of in
tecleliaftical hilbory, to fignify thofe feafts of cha-
rity which were kept by the hrft Chriftians, when
ihey were a proverb among the heathen, " Look
'.' how thel'c Chrillians love one another ! " The
term is taken from the Greek word d.yu.Tn}, which
iignifies love. It was a rcpafl which was made at
night, in commemoration of our Saviour's '.all: fup-
per with his difciples : the rich furnifhed the ex-
pence, and the poor were invited. It concluded
with a kifs of peace, and after it the holy facrament
was received.
Originally thefe love-fer.fts were pure and irre-
proachable, without diforder or licentioufneis : but
they gave occafion at laft to the heathens to upbraid
the Chriltians, and accufe them of the vilell and
moft flagitious practices. They continued for three
centuries in the church, but were entirely prohi-
bited by the councils of Laodicea and Carthage.
It is imagined by fome commentators that St.
Paul, in the i ith chapter of the ill of the Corin-
thians, ("peaks of thefe fealls of charity, and not of
the eocharifl. Others are of opinion that they
were not kept in commemoration of ChriiFs lail
fupper, but were taken from the pagans. St. Auf-
r,in reports that Faullus, theManichean, reproached
the faithful, becaufe they had converted the facriiices
of the heathens into love-feafls. It feems as if the
idea ot thefe fcafts of charity was t:ik«i from die
Jews ; v/ho, when they facrificed to the true God,
kept a fellival, and aliembled together their kins-
folk and friends to partake of the facrifice. Chrif-
tianity was full: planted in Judea ; and it is rational
to fuppofe that the firit Chiftians might adopt fo
laudable a cufiom from the J,ews. Bsingfewin num-
ber, they confidered themfelves as one'fainily : they
•were all brethren, and lived together in common :
the fpirit of charity inflruiTted thefe repafts, where
nothing was ken but order, temperance, and har-
mony. As they multiplied, they were Hill dcfirous
to keep up their primitive cuftoms ; but abufe crept
in, and the church was obliged to fupprefs them.
AGAPETvE was a name gi\en to thofe vir-
gins who, thro' a motive of piety and charity, aflb-
ciated with the ccclefiaftics, and attended upon
them. They were originally their nearefi: relations ;
and in the pure days of primitive Chriifianity they
lived together without reproach or fcandal. In
time however they degenerated into libertinifm ;
and this promifcuous fociety was forbidden by the
councils of the church. St. Athanafius mentions
a pritfl: named I.eontius, who, to remove all occa-
sions of flander, offered to caftr; tc himfelf, that he
might be permitted to retain his beloved com-
panion.
AGARIC, Agarlcum, in. botany, a genus of
epiiitical plants, growing on the ci-unks of trees,
efpecially the larch-tree, and refembliug the com^
siPii ittulhroonii both in fublhvnce and llrudture.
AGE
Agaric is a fungus, of an irregular figure, three
or four inches in length, and as many in breadth
and thicknefs. It is extremely foft and elaftic,
taking an impreffion from the lead touch, and re-
luming its former figure again : its colour, on the
outllde, is a pale yellowilhTwhite, but a pure white
within.
It was much ufed by the ancients, as a fpuno-e ;
but the prefent pradice condemns it, as being not
only difagreeablc, but unfafe and pernicious.
Mineral Agaric, in natural hiftory, a light
marly earth, fo called on account of 'its refem-
blancc to the vegetable agaric, in its colour and
fpungy texture.
It never conftitutes a ftratum of itfelf, but is
found in cracks and hllures of rocks, roofs of ca-
verns, and fomctimes in the horizontal v.acuities of
thefe flrata, in form of a white porous powder.
Mineral agaric is a good aftringent, and there-
fore prefcribcd in fluxes, hemorrhages, to dry old.
ulcers, (top defluxions of the eyes, ^c.
AGAT, Achates, in natural hiftory, a genus of
femipellucid gems, variegated with veins and
clouds, but have no zones like the onvx.
Agats are formed of a cryllalline fubftance, vari-
oully debafed with earths of different colours, to:
which is to be attributed the variety of their ap-
pearance. Thus, fome have a white ground, as
the dendrachaies, or m.ocoa-ftone, the phajjuchates,
and another fpecies. Others have a reddifli ground,
as the hamachiites, jardacbates, corallo-achates, &c.
Others again a yellowilh ground, as the ccrachates,
and Lontcjcres. Arid, laftly, fome have a greenifh.
ground, as \ht jafpacbates, &c.
Agat is alfo the name of an inftrument ufed
by the gold wire-drawers ; fo called from the ao-at
in the middle of it, which forms its principal
pai't.
AGAVE, in botany. See Aloe.
AGE, in a general fenfe, denotes a certain por-
tion, or part of duration, applied to the exiftence
of piu-ticular objefts : thus, we fay, the age of the
world, the age of Rome, &c. that is, the time, or.
number of years, el.ipfed fmce the creation of the
world, or the building of Rome. 7"hus alfo, a
man's age is the time he has lived, or the number of-
years el.ipfed fince his birth ; and fo in other in-
ilances, as the age of a houfe, the age of a tree, &c>
The age of a horfe, deer, &c. is knov/n. by feve-
ral marks ; for which fee the articles Horse,
Deer, &c.
Ghronologers are far from being agreed with re-
fpedt to the age of the world-; fome making it
more, fome lefs. See the article World.
AsE, is alfo ufed in a fyrionimous fenfe with
century. S.ec Centurv.
Age likewife denotes certain periods of the du-
ration of the world.
Thus, among Chriflian chronologers, .we mce*-
with
AGE
with the age of the law of nature, which comprc-
hcjids the whole time between Adam and Moles ;
the age of the Jewifli law, which takes in all the
time from Mofes to Chrift ; and laftly, the age of
grace, or the number of years fince the birth of
Chrift.
Among ancient hiftorians, the duration of the
world is alfo fubdivided into certain periods, called
ages; of which they reckon three : the firft, reach-
uig from the creation to the deluge which happened
in Greece during the reign of Ogygcs, is called
the obfcure or uncertain age ; the hiftory of man-
kind, during that period, being altogether uncer-
tain. The fecond, called the fabulous or heroic,
terminates at the firft olympiad ; where the third,
or hiftoricaJ age, commences.
The ancient poets alfo divided the duration of
the world into four ages, or periods ; the firft of
which they called the golden age ; the fecond, the
filver age ; the third, tlie brazen age ; and the
fourth, the iron age. Not unlike thefe are the four
ages of the world, as computed by the Eaft-Indians,
"who extend them to a monftrous length.
Age alfo denotes certain degrees or periods of
human life, commonly reckoned four, viz. infancy,
youth, manhood, and old age : the firft of which
extends to the fourteenth year; the fecond, to the
twenty-fifth year; the third, to the fiftieth year ;
and the fourth, to the feventy-fifth year, or rather,
as long as a man lives.
Age, in law, fignifies certain periods of life,
when perfons of both fexes are enabled to do cer-
tain adts, which for want of years and difcretion
they were incapable of before : thus, a man at
twelve years of age ought to take the oath of
allegiance to the king in a leet : at fourteen,
which is his age of difcretion, he may marry,
choofe his guardian, and claim his lands held iji
focage.
Twenty-one is called full age, a man or wo-
man being then capable of afting for themfelves,
of managing their affairs, making contrails, dif-
pofmg of their eftates, and the like ; which before
that age they could not do.
A woman is dowable at nine years of age, may
marry at twelve, and at fourteen chufe her guar-
dian.
If a man or woman afts in any of the above-
mentioned capacities before the time preicribed by
law, he or fhe may retra£t at that time, otherwife
they are fuppofed to agree to it anew, and it fliall
be deemed valid. Thus, if a man marries before
fourteen, or a woman before twelve, they may ei-
ther agree to the marriage or not, at thefe feveral
ages ; and fo on in other cafes.
At fourteen, a man may difpofe of his perfonal
-eftate by will, but not of lands. At this age too
a man or woman is firft capable of being a witnefs,
and under it perfons are not generally puniflKible
4
A GE
for crimes, though they muft fitisfy the damage
fuftained by trefpafs committed by them.
Age-Prier, /Etatcm precari, is when an aftion
being brought againft a perfon under age, for lands
defcended to him, he, by motion or petition, fliews
the matter to the court, praying the aftion may be
ftayed till his full age; v/hich the court generally
agrees to. However, as a purchafcr, a minor fhall
not have his age-pricr ; nor in any writ of afTize,
of dower, or petition; but he may in any aiilioa
of debt.
By the civil law the cafe is otherwife, an in-
fant or minor being obliged to anfwer by his tutor
or curator.
Among the Romans it was unlawful to put up
for any public office, or magiftracy, unlefs the can-
didate had attained to a certain age; which dif-
fered according to the offices fued for. Hence the
phrafes confular age, pra;torian age, &c. See the
articles CoKsui., Praetor, &c.
Age of the Moon, in aftronomy, is the num-
ber of days that are paft fince her laft conjundlion
with the fun, or from the day of her change.
See the article Moon.
AGEMOGLANS, Jgiamoghns, or Azlamo-
ghnis, in the Turkifli cuftoms, Chriftian children
raifed every third year, by way of tribute, from
the Chriftians tolerated in the Turkifh empire.
The collectors of this odious tax ufe to taice one
child out of three, pitching always upon the moft
handfomc.
The word agemoglans properly fignifies a bar-
barian's child ; and out of their number, after be-
ing circumcifcd, and inftructed in the religion and
language of their tyrannical mafters, are the jani-
zaries recruited. As to thofe who are thought un-
fit for the army, they are employed in the lowefl:
offices of the feraglio.
AGENDA, among philofophers and divines,
fignifies the duties which a man lies under an obli-
gation to perform : thus we meet with the agenda
of a Chriftian, or the duties he ought to perform,
in oppofition to the credenda, or things he is to
believe.
Agenda is more particularly ufed for divine
fervice, in which fenfe we meet with agenda ma-
tutina b' vefpertina ; that is, morning and evening
prayers.
Agent, in mechanics, a power which a£ts
upon other bodies by virtue of its own motion, and
by that adfion caufes or effedls a change therein.
See Action or Motion.
Agents are either natural or moral.
Natural Aoznrs ai-e all fuch inanimate bodies,
as have a power to adl upon other bodies in a cer-
tain and determinate manner : fuch is fire, which
has the invariable property or power to warm or
heat.
Moral Agents, on the contrary, are rational
T creatures.
AG G
A G L
creatures, capable of regulating their ailions hj a
certain rule.
Thele are otherwife called free or voluntary
agents.
Agents, among phyficians and chemifls, an
appellation given to all kinds of menftruums.
Agent is alfo ufed to denote a perfon entruft-
ed with the management of an afFair, whether be-
longing to a fociety, company, or prl\'ate perfon ;
thus we fay, agents of the Exchequer, of the Vic-
tualling-office, &:c.
Agent and Patient, in law, is faid of a perfon
who is the doer of any thing, and alfo the party to
whom it is done. Thus, if a man who is indebted
to another, makes his creditor his executor, and
dies, the executor may retain fo much of the goods
of the deceafed as v.'ill fatisfy his debt ; by which
means he becomes agent and patient ; that is, the
perfon to whom the debt is due, and the perfon who
pays it.
AGER, in Roman antiquity, a certain portion
of land allowed to each citizen. See the article
Agrarian Law.
Acer is alfo ufed, in middle-age writers, for an
acre of land. See the article Acre.
AGERATUM, in botany, the baftard hemp
agrimony, a plant which produces male and fe-
male and hermaphrodite flofcules in one common
empalement ; it contains five fliort hairy filaments,
with an oblong germen, in which are fituated fe-
verai angulated oblong downy feeds. — This plant
was antiently known among the Greeks by
the name of eupatorium ; the leaves are recom-
mended as vulnerary and hepatic ; alfo to dilTolve
hard tumours, and abforb fuperfluous humidities.
The maudlin, which is alfo called ageratum, is
r.ot of this genus, but a fpecies of the achillsa.
See Achill.s;a and Maudlin.
AGGER, in the ancient military art, a bank
CT rampart, compofed of various materials, as earth,
boughs of trees, &c.
The agger of the ancients vms of the fame na-
ture with what the moderns call lines.
Agger was alfo ufed in feveral other fcnfes, as
for a wall or bulwark to keep oft" the fea ; for the
middle part of a military road, ufuaily raifed into
a ridge ; and fometimss for the heap of earth raifed
over crraves, more commonly called tunudi.
AGGLUTINANTS, y1y«IutinnKtia, in phar-
macy, &:c. make a clafs of {brengthcning medicines,
of a' glutinous or vifcous nature; which, by rca-
tiilv adhering to the folids, contribute greatly to
repair their lofs.
AGGLUTINATION, in a general fenfe, de-
notes the joining two or more things togetiier, by
means of a proper glue or cement.
Agglutination, among phyficians, fignifies
either the adherence of new fublbnce, or the giv-
ing a glutinous confiftence to the animal fluids^
whereby they become more fit for nourifhing the
body.
AGGREGATE is much the fame as the futn
arifing from the addition or colledlion of feveral
things together, the whole of which is called the
aggregate, fum, or total.
AGGREGATION, in natural philofophy, is
a particular kind of union or affociation of feve-
ral things which have no natural connexion one
with the other by nature ; but by fome artificial means
are collected together fo as to form one whole.
Thus a houfe is a body of aggregation, being form-
ed of wood, ftone, mortar, he. which have no na-
tural connexion one with the other.
AGGRESSOR, among lawyers, denotes the
perfon who began a quarrel, or made the firll
aflault.
It is a very material point to know who was the
firft aggreffor, and accordingly never fails to be
ftridtlv enquired into.
AGIADES, in the Turkifh armies, denote ar
kind of pioneers employed in fortifying camps, and
the like offices.
AGIO, in commerce, a term chiefly ufed in
Holland and at Venice, where it denotes the dif-
ference between the value of bank-ftock and the
current coin.
Agio is alfo ufed for the profit arifing from the
difcounting a note, bill, &c.
AGISTA4ENT, Agistage, or Agistation,
in law, the taking in other people's cattle to graze,
at fo much per month.
The term is peculiarly ufed for the taking iir
cattle to be fed in the king's forefl:s, as well as
for the profits thence arifing.
Agistment is alfo ufed in a metaphorical
fenfe, for any tax, burden, or charge : thus, the
tax levied for repairing the banks of Romney-
marfh was called agiji amentum.
AGISTOR, or Agistator, an officer be-
longing to foreils, who has the care of the cattle
taken in to be arazed, and levies the monies du3
on that account.
There are four fuch agifiors in each foreft, all
created by letters patent, and commonly called
gueft-takers, or gift -takers.
AGITATION, in phyfics, a brifk inteflinc
motion of the fmall corpufcies of anv natural
body. Thus fermentation and efiervefcence are
produced by a quick agitation of the particles of
the fermenting body : fire Hkewife agitates the
moil fubcile particles of matter. See Fire.
AGLAOPHOTIS, in botany, a term ufed
fon^etimes for piony. See the article PiONY.
AGLECTS, Aglets, or Agleeds, among^
botanifts, tjie fame with v.'hat is ufuaily called
apices. See Apices.
AGLIA>
AGO
AG R
AGLTA, a term ufcd by ancient phyficians for
a whitifh fpot in the eye, caufed by a congcftipn
of humours.
AGNATION, Jgnatto, among civilians, de-
i'lotes the relation of kinfliip fubfifting between the
defcendants of the fame man, in the male line.
AGNOET^., in church hiftory, a feft of he-
retics, fo called on account of their maintaining
that Chrift, with refpe£t to his human nature, was
ignorant of many things, and particularly of the
day of judgment ; an opinion which they built
upon the text, Mark xiii. 32. whereof the mod
natural meaning is, that the knowledge of the
day of judgment does not concern our Saviour,
confidered in the charafter of Meifiah.
AGNOETISM, among ecclefiaftical writers,
fignifies the do(Slrine or herefy of the agnoetse.
See Agnoetje.
AGNOMEN, in Roman antiquity, a kind of
fourth or honorary name, given to a perfon on ac-
count of fome extraordinary aftion, virtue, or
other accomplifhment. Thus the agnomen Afri-
canus was beftowed upon Publius Cornelius Scipio,
on account of his great atchievements in Africa.
AGNUS, the lamb, in zoology, the young of
the fheep kind ; for the proper treatment of which,
fee the article Lamb.
Agnus CaJJus, in botany, the chafte tree, fo
called on fuppofition that it allayed luft, by cooling
the genital parts when heated by feminal turgef-
cency. In the prefent medical practice it is but
little ufed. Botanifts enumerate five fpecies of
thefe plants, which are all clafled under the gene-
ral name vitex. See Vitex.
Agnus Dei, in the church of Rome, a cake of
wax ftamped with the figure of a lamb fupport-
ing a crofs.
Thefe being confecrated by the pope with great
folemnity, and diftributed among the people, are
fuppofed to have great virtues ; as to preferve thofe
who carry them worthily, and with faith, from
all manner of accidents, to expel evil fpirits, &c.
Agnus Dei, is alfo a popular name for that
part of the mafs, where the pried: ftrikes his brcaft
thrice, and fays the prayer beginning with the
words agnui dci.
Agnus Scytbicus,\n natural hiftory, the name of
a fiftitious plant, refembling a lamb, faid to grow
in Tartary.
Kzempfer, who was in the country, could not
by the moll diligent enquiry, find any account of
it ; and thefore concludes the whole to be a fiilion.
AGONALIA, in Roman antiquity, feftivals
celebrated in honour of Janus, or of the god
Agonius, whom the Romans invoked before un-
dertaking any affair of importance.
They fecm to have been kept three times in the
year, viz. on the fifth of the ides of January, on
the twelfrh of the calends of June, and or. tht:
third of the ides of December.
AGONOTHETA, or Agonothetes, in
Grecian antiquity, was the prcfident or fuperin-
tendant of the facred games ; who not only de-
frayed the expcnccs attending them, but infpe^ted
the manners and dilcipline of the athletx, and ad-
judged the prizes to the -litStors.
AGONY, am.ong phyficians, denotes extreme
pain, or the utmofl efforts of nature llruggling
with a difeafe.
Agony, in a more limited fenfe, is ufed for
the pangs of death ; v/hich are Icfs painful than
ufually imagined, the body being then incapabL-
of quick fenfations. See Death.
AGONYCLITA;, or Agonyclites, iu
church hiftory, a feft of Chriftians, in the feventh
century, who prayed always ftanding, as thinking
it unlawful to kneel.
AGRARIAN Stations, agvaria: ftationes, i:! ths-
Roman art of war, were a kind of advanced
guards pofted in the fields.
Agrarian Lawi, among the fame people,
thofe relating to the divifion and diftribution cf
lands ; of which there were a great number : but
that called the Agrarian Law, by way of eminence,
was publiflied by Spurius CaOlus, about the year
of Rome 268, for dividing the conquered lands
equally among all the citizens, and limiting the.
number of acres which each citizen m.ight enjoy.
Harrington, in his Oceana, thinks an agrarian
law the only bafis of liberty ; through the want cA
which, or the non-obfervance of it, the common.-
wealth of Rome came to ruin. He likewife lays
down the plan of an agrarian law for England,
whereby no man fhould b-c allowed to poffefs more-
than 2000]. a year in lands.
AGREEMENT, in law, fignifies the confcnt
of feveral perfnns to any thing done.
There are three kinds of agreement. Firft, an
agreement already executed at the beginning, as
when money is paid, or other fatisfaction made
for the thing agreed to. Secondly, an agreement
after an aft done by another, to which a perfon
agrees : this is alfo executed. Thirdly, an zina-
ment executory, or to be executed, m time to
come.
An agreement put in writing dflss not change
its nature, but if it be fealed and delivered, it bs-
conies ftill ftronger ; nay, any writing under hand-
and feal, or a provifo amounting to aa agcecmeni,
is equivalent to a co\ enant.
AGR1CUI,TURE, in a general fcnfc, denotes
the art of rendering the earth fertile by tillage
and culture. In this fenfe, it comprehends gar-
dening, as well us hufbandry. See the articles
Gardening and Husbandry.
Agriculture is more particularly ufed for the
inauageuv:nt
AGR
A GU
management of arable lands, by ploughing, fal-
lowing, manuring, 6tc. See the article Plough-
ing, &CC.
Agriculture is a no lefs honourable than pro-
fitable art, holding the higheft efteem among the
ancients, and equally valued by the moderns.
The Egyptians aicribed the invention of agri-
culture to Ofiris ; the Greeks to Ceres and her fon
Triptolemus ; and the Italians to Saturn, or Janus :
but the Jew^s, with more reafon, afcribe this honour
to Noah, who, immediately after the flood, fet
about tilling the ground and planting vineyards.
Agriculture has been the delight of the greateft
men. We are told, that Cyrus the Younger
planted and cultivated his garden, in a great mea-
ilire, with his own hands ; and it is well known,
that the Romans took many of their beft generals
from the plough.
But not to detain the reader with a needlefs
encomium of this univerfally admired art, we fliall
here fubjoin its principal branches, which will be
treated of under their refpedfive articles.
Agriculture, then, may be fubdivided into the
proper management of all kinds of arable lands,
whether of a clayey, fandy, loamy, or whatever
other foil. See the articles Clay-Lands, San-
dy-Lakds, &c.
2. Of lands employed in paflurage, whether
they be meadow-lands, marfhy-lands, &c. See
Meadow-Lakds, Sic.
3. Of wood-lands, or thofe laid out in nur-
feries, plantations, forefts, woods, &c. See the
article Wood-Lands, &c.
AGRIFOLIUM, or Aquifolium, in botany.
See Ilex.
AGRIMONOIDES, in botany, a plant bear-
ing rofaceous flowers ; it is claffed by Linnaeus
with the agrimonia.
AGRIMONIA, in botany, agrimony, a genus
of plants of dift'crent fpecies ; the fort which is
beft known in the fhops, grows wild in feveral
parts of England : the flower, which is rofaceous
and pentapetalous, contains a monophylous cup,
acurately divided into five fegments ; in the center,
t vvo ftyles rell on the germcn, furrounded by twelve
capillary filaments, whofe baii;s are inferred in the
calyx. When the flower is decayed, the germen
becomes two roundiih feeds, faftcnened to the em-
palement.
The leaves of this plant make a very pleafant
tea, and are faid to be good in the jaundice, in ca-
chectic cafes, and in obftruflions of the liver and
fpleen .
AGRIPPA, a denomination given by ancient as
well a? modern phyficians, to children born with
the feet foremoft. See the article Delivery.
AGROM, in medicine, a diforder incident to
the people of the Eaft-Indies, vvherein their
torques chave in feveral places.
The remedy for this difeafe, which they atttri-
bute to an extreme heat in the ftomach, is to chew
the black feeded bafilica, and to drink a chaly-
beated liquor, or the juice of large mint.
AGROSTEMA, in botany, a genus of decan-
drious plants, according to Linna;us ; but better
known by the name of lychnis, or campion. See
Lychnis.
AGROSTIS, in botany, a genus of triandri-
ous plants, v/hofe flowers are compofed of two
pointed valves, one fliorter than the other, termi-
nated with a beard ; the germen is round, fup-
porting two reflexed ftyles, with three capillary
filaments, and produces fingle feeds edged on both
fides. Thefe plants are very troublefome weeds in
gardens, and is commonly called in Englifh, couch
or quick grafs.
AGROSTAGRAPHIA, among naturalifts,
fignifies the hiftory or defcription of graflTes. Such
is that of Scheuchzer, containing an accurate de-
fcription of feveral hundreds fpecies of grafs.
AGRYPNIA, in a general fenfe, denotes
much the fame with watchfulnefs, or an inaptitude
to fleep ; which is a very troublefome fymptom of
feverifli and other diforders. See the article
Watching.
AGUAPECACO, in ornithology, a Brazilian
bird of the moor-hen kind, about the fize of a
pigeon, very long-legged, with a beak like that of
a common hen ; its back and the upper part of its
wings are brown ; and in each wing there is a
fmall horn, or prickle, ferving the bird as a de-
fenfive weapon.
AGUE, a general name for all periodical fevers,
which, according to the different times of the
return of the feverifli paroxyfm, or fit, are de-
nominated quotidian, tertian, or quartan agues.
See the article Quotidian, &c.
Agues are thought to be owing to a fuppreflion
of perfpiration, as their more immediate caufe,
whether that be occafioned by a foggy and nioifl
air, or by putrid damps ; but their caufa proxima
feems to be an a6lual corruption of the humours
of the bod v.
Dr. Pringle thinks the bcfl way of accounting
for the periodic returns, is upon the principle of
putrefadlion. The heat of the body, he obferves,
varies little, and therefore the corruption produced
in any of the humours muft happen in a determi-
nate time. If we fuppofe, that in the paroxyfm,
the more corrupted particles of the blood do not
all pafs off through the fkin with the fweat, but
that fome part of them are difcharged with the
bile ; thefe particles coming into the intcftines,
and being from thence taken up by the lacteals,
and carried into the blood, may there aft as a
new ferment and occafion a return of the fit. Thus,
the corruption of the bile may be the eftecl of the
firft fit, and the caufe of them that enfue.
The
j
A I D
A I R
The doctoj- farther obferves, that though all
moifl: countries arc fuhjeft to agues of fome kind
or other ; yet if the inoillure is pure, and the fum-
mers are not clofe and hot, they will moftly ap-
pear in a regular tertian fhape, and be cafily cured.
But if the nioifture arifes from long ftagnating
water, in which plants, fifhes, and inletts, die and
rot, then the damps, being of a putrid nature,
not only occafion more frequent, but more dan-
gerous fevers, which oftener appear in the form of
quotidians, and double tertian, than that of fingle
•lies.
It is remarkable ho\v much thefe fevers vary
with the feafon ; for however frequent, violent, or
dangerous they are in the decline of fummcr, or be-
ginning of autumn, when the putrefaction is highefl ;
yet before winter they are commonly reduced to a
fmall number, become mild, and generally aflume
a regular tertian form.
Ague-T)yc, a name by which feme call fafla-
fras, on account of its febrifuge qualities.
AGUTI, in zoology, an American quadruped
of the rat-kind, of the fize of the Guinea-pig,
which it greatly rcfcmbles : its hairs are rigid and
glofTy, of a mixed colour between red and brown,
with more or lefs of black ; its whifkcrs are like
thofe of the rabbit-kind ; but like the hog, its
upper-chop is longer than the under one ; its upper-
lip is fplit, like that of the hare ; its tail is very
fliort, the eyes are prominent, and the legs are
altogether, or almoft naked.
AHICCYATLI, in zoology, an American
ferpent, nearly allied to the hasmorrhous and rattle-
fnake ; only that it is larger than the former, and
wants the rattle of the latter. Its poilbn is as fatal
as any yet known.
AID, in a general fenfe, denotes any kind of
affiflance given by one perfon to another.
Aid, or Ayde^ in law, denotes a petition made in
court to call in help from another perfon, who has
intereit in land, or other thing contefted. This
is called aid prier, which not only ftrengthens the
party that prays for the aid, but gives the other
perfon an opportujiity of avoiding a prejudice that
might otherwife accrue to his own right. Thus,
a tenant for life may pray aid of the perfon in rever-
fion ; and a city, or borough, that holds a fee-
farm of the king, if any thing be demanded of
them, may pray for aid of the king.
Aid-de-Camp, in military affairs, an officer
employed to receive and carry the orders of a
creneral. They ought to be alert in compre-
hending, and punftu.i] and difiinct in delivering
them.
In the French armies every general is allowed
four aids-de camp, a lieutenant-general two, and
A marflial-de-camp one.
Aid-Major, the French term for aii adjutant.
See the aitlcle Adjutant.
Aid, auxtlium, in ancient culloms, a fubfidy
paid by vaflids to their lord, on certain occa-
fions.
Such were the aid of relief, paid upon the death
of the lord mcfne, to his heir; t\\c aid cheval, or
capital aid, due to the chief lord on fcveral occafions ;
as to make his eldeil fon a knight, to make up a
portion for marrying his daughter ; and fo in other
cafes.
Royal Aiv>, an appellation fometimes given to
the land-tax.
Aids, in the menage, are the fame with what
fome writers call cherifhings, and ufed to avoid the
ncceffity of corrections.
The inner heel, inner leg, inner rein, &c. are
called inner aids ; as the outer heel, the outer leg,
outer rein, he. are called outer aids.
AIGUISCE, AiGuissE, or Eguisce, in he-
raldry, denotes a crofs with its four ends fharpened,
but io as to terminate in obtufe angles.
It differs from the crofs fitchee, inafmuch as the
latter goes tapering by degrees to a point, and the
former only at the ends.
AILE, or AiEL, in law, a writ which lies
where a pcrfon's grand-father, or great-grand-father
being feifed of lands, &c. in fee-fimple the day
that he died, and a ftranger abates or enters the
fame day, and difpoffeffes the heir of his inhe-
ritance.
AIR, in phyfiology, from theGrceko(«f, fignify-
ing the fame thing. A light, fluid, tranfparent
body, capable of compreflion and dilatation, which
covers this terreflrial globe, and furrounds it to a
confulerable height.
'I he ancients confidered air as an element, tho'
it be moff certain that air taken in the ordinary ac-
ceptation, is very far from the fimplicity of an
elementary fubftance, notwithffanding fome of its
parts may merit that denomination. Wherefore
air may be difl-inguifhed into vulgar or heterogene,
and proper or elementary.
V ul2;ar or hetero"ene air, is an affemblase of
corpulcles of ^'anous kinds, conftituting all toge-
ther a fluid mafs, wherein v/e live and move, and
iiilpire and exfpire it alternately : which total mafs,
we call atmofphere. See Atmosphere.
The heterogene fubfiances of which the air con-
fifts, may be reduced to two forts : namely, firit,
the matter of light or fire, perpetually flowing
from the heavenly bodies. See Fire. 'Fo which
fome naturalifis add eleclric and magnetic exhala-
tions from the earth. See Electricity, and
Magnetism. Secondly, 'Fhe infinite number of
particles raifed under the form of vapours or ex-
halations from the fea, rivers, minerals, vege-
tables, or animals ; whether by the heat of the
fun, (ubterraneous fires, or chimneys, and other
artificial fires. See Exh,'\lation, and Vapour.
U
Sii;
A I R
Sir Ifaac Newton conceives the confufed mafj
of vapours, air, a]id exhalations, which we call
the atmol'pherc, to he nothing elle but the panicles
of all forts of bodies, of which the earth confiils,
fcparated and kept at a diftance by rarefied ajthcr.
See j^£ther.
Elementary air, or air properly fo called, is a
fubtile, homogcne and elaftic fubftance, being the
h:\fis, or as we may Cay, the fundanienta! ingre-
dient of the whole air of the ataiofphere, from
whence it lakes its name.
Sir Ifaac Newton ohferves again, that if it be
Confidered how by the continual fermentations
raifed in thebov/els of the earth, there are real fub-
ftances raifed out of all kinds of bodies ; it may
not perhaps be thought abfurd, that the moft per-
manent part of the atmofphere, which is the true
air, fliould be conftituted of thefe ; efpecially fince
they are the heavielt of all others, and fo muit fub-
fide to the lower part of the atmofphere, and float
upon the furfice of the earth, and buoy up the
lighter exhalations and vapours to float in great
plenty above them : for the air, as in reafon it
ought to be efleemed the moft ponderous part of
tjie atmofphere, becaufe the loweff, fo it betrays
its ponderofity by making vapours afcend readily
in it, by fuftaining mifls, and clouds of fnow, and
by buoying up grofs 'and ponderous fmoke. The
pioper air is alfo tlie moft grofs and inaftive part
of the aUiofphere, affording living things no nou-
rifhmcnt, if deprived of the more tender exhala-
tions and fpirits that float in it: and what m.ore
ina(5fivc and remote from nourifhmcnt than me-
tallic bodies ?
Proper air has a multitude of charafteriftics, the
mofl confiderable of which are the following:
If air be clofe confined in a metalline or glafs
vefTel, it will remain the fame, without any alte-
ration, ever preferving the form of air : but this
does not hold good of vapours ; which, as foon as
they grow old, lofe their whole elafticity, adhere to
the inner furfr.ce of the glafs, and at length trickle
dovm to the bottom. It is almolt the fame with
the exhalations of other bodies, they becoming in
a manner infenfible and loft after their elafiicity is
gone. This is confirm.ed by m.any of Mr. Boyle's
experiments on the air drawn from grapes, dough,
flefli, and other fubftances : and further ftill by
Dr. Hales's experiments in his Vegetable Statics,
&c.
Bythe means of air terreitrial bodies once on fire,
continue to burn, till all their parts which contain
any fire are confumed ; on the contrary, vapours
and exhalations extinguifh thequickefl fire in an in-
ffant, ajid even red hot iron. Vapours alfo, in-
ftead of being neceflary to refpiration, as air is, are
frequently detrimental thereto, and fometimes oc-
cafton AifFocation ; inftances of which we ha\e in
AI R
burning briniftoiie, ajid the grotto Dil Cam, inltaiv,
vi'hich brings on fuddcn death.
If air be not a fluid difi:in<Sl from vapours and ex-
halations, how comes it that it continues ever the
fame, after heavy rains accompanied with thunder
and lightning.? The truth is, when it lightens ex-
halations are let on fire, and fall on the earth in the
form of rain and vapour : but after the rain there
is no fenfible change in the air, except that it is re-
markably purified ; it muff therefore be of a diffe-
rent nature from terreffrial exhalations.
To fpeak the truth, our knowledge of the fuW
fiance and intimate nature of the air amounts to a
very fmall matter; what authors have hitherto
faid about it being but mere conje<£tm-e. There ij
no way of examining air pure and defecated from
the feveral things which are intermixed with it ;
confcquently there is no faying what is its particu-
lar nature.
Dr. Hook will have it to be no other than sether,
or that fluid and adive matter which is diflributed
through all the celeftial regions. See tEther
and iViEDiUM.
Confidered as fuch, it is a fubff ance fnl generis,
and independent of any other, incorruptible, im-
mutable, prefent in all places and in all bodies.
Other philofophers place its efTence in its elafii-
city, and make that its diftinguifhing charadleriftic.
Thefe fuppofe that it may be generated, :md that it
is nothing clfe but the matter of other bodies, ren-
dered by the changes it has undergone, fiifceptible
of a permanent elafiicity. Mr. Boyle produces a
number of experiments, which he made hiniself up-
on the produdtion of air. What this gentleman-
calls produiElion of air, is the extradtion of a f.;!-
fible quantity of air from a body wherein there ap-
peared to be none at all, or at leaft far lefs than the
quantity extrafted. He obferves that among the
different methods proper for this effedl, the bell are
fermentation, corrofion, diffolution, decompofition,
ebullition of water and other fluids, the reciprocal
ailion of bodies, efpecially faline ones, upon one
another ; he adds, that different folid and mine-
ral bodies, in the parts of which there could not
be conceived to be any elafiicity, being plunged in-
to corrofive mediums, which alfo are utterly unelaf-
tic, will produce, by means of the attenuation of
their parts from their mutual collifion, a confider-
able quantity of elaflic air.
Sir Ifaac Newton is of the fame opinion, ac-
cording to v/hom the particles of a denfe compact
fixed fubllance, adhering to each other by a power-
ful attra»rtive force, cannot be feparated but by a
violent heat, and perhaps never without fermenta-
tion ; and thefe bodies rarefied by heat and fer-
mentation are finally transformed into a truly elaf-
tic air. On thefe principles, he adds, gunpowder
produces air upon explofion.
Here
AIR
Here then are not only the materials for producing
air, but likewifc the mode of doing it ; in confc-
quence of which air may be diflinguifhed into real
or permanent, and apparent or tranfitory. For to
be fatisfied that every thing which has the appear-
ance of air, is not really fuch, the inftance of the
ELolipile is fufficient, where water being fufllciently
rareried by fire, Lflucs out with a fharp hifllng,
under a form pcrfeftly refembling that of air ; but
foon after lofes that refemblance, cfpecially in the
cold, and becomes water again by condenfation,
juft fuch as it was originally. The fame thing may
be obferved in fpirit of wine, and other fubtile
and fugitive fpirits obtainable by diftillation ; where-
as real air cannot by compreffion, condenfation, or
any other means, be converted into LAy other fub-
ftance but air. See jEolipile.
And as v/ater may be made to alTume the ap-
pearance of air for feme time, but foon after re-
lumes its own ; fo it is the fame with other fluids ;
the greatefl: fubtilization they can be made to un-
dergo, is reducing them to vapours, which confift
in a fluid extremely rarefied, and agitated by a very
brifk motion. For in order to render a fubftance
proper to become a permanent air, it muft be of
a fixed nature ; otherwife it camiot undergo the
neceffary tranfmutation, but will foon fly otFand
be diffipated. So that the difference between
tranfitorv and permanent air, anfwers to that be-
tween vapours and exhalations, which confilts in
this, that the one are dry and the other moift.
See Vapour and Exhalation.
Many make the elafticity of air to confift in
the figure of its particles. Some will have them
to be fmall locks, like thofe of wool or raw filk ;
others conceive them to be circumvoluted like fpi-
ral fprings, endeavouring to unbind themfelves in
virtue of their contexture ; fo that to produce air,
is, according to thefe naturalifts, to produce parti-
cles in fuch a manner difpofed, there being none
but fuch that are fufceptible of the like difpofition.
V/hence, they add, fluids are altogether incapable
of it, on account of the roundnefs, fmoothnefs, and
lubricity of their parts.
Eut Sir Ifaac Newton advances a different fyf-
tem. He does not think fuch a contexture of
parts fufficient to account for that furprizing elaf-
ticity we find in air, v/hich may be fo rarefied as
to occupy a fpace a m.illion of times greater than
that which it pofTeffed before its rarefaction. But
as he infifts that all bodies have an attractive and
rcpulfive power, and that thefe two qualities are by
fo much itronger as the bodies are more denfe, fo-
lid, and compact ; he thence concludes, that when
by heat, or the effedt of fome other agent, the at-
tractive force is overcome, and the particles of the
body are fet fo far afunder, as to be no longer
within the fphere of atuaction, the repulfive force
beginning to ad, caufes them to fepargte further
AI R
afunder, with a force proportional to that by which
they before adhered together; and after this man-
ner is permanent air formed. This is the reafon,
fays the fame author, why pennanent air, confift-
ing of proper particles, and formed of dcnfer bodies
than tranfitory air or vapours, is heavier, and a hu-
mid atmofphere lighter than a dry one. See At-
traction and Repulsion'.
After all, there is to doubt, if the fubftance thus
extracted from folid bodies be true air ; in a word,
whether it be not tranfitory air, or if permanent
?.ir, whether it did not before exift in the bodies
from whence it is extratfted. Mr. Boyle proves
from an experiment made in his pneumatic ma-
chine with a lighted match, that the fubtile fume
which fire raifes, even from dry bodies, has not fo
much of fpringinefsas air, fince itcannot hinder the
expanfion of a fmall quantity of air inclofed in a
bladder which it furrounds. Neverthelefs, in fome
experiment which he made afterwards, by diffolving
iron in oil of vitriol and water, or in aqua fortis,
he found a large bubble of air which was truly
elaftic, and which in confequence of its fpring,
hindered the neighbouring liquor from pofleffing
its place. A very warm hand applied to it caufed
it eafily to dilate like other air, and to feparate in the
liquor into a multitude of bubbles, fome of which
emerged up through the liquor into the open air.
The fame gentleman afilires us, that he has i'&-
parated a tiuly elaftic fubftance from feveral other
bodies ; as bread, grapes, beer, apples, peafe, beef,
&c. and from certain bodies, by burning them in
vacuo, particularly from paper and hartfliorn: how-
ever, that this fubftance, upon a clofe examination,
proved of fo diiFerent a nature from pure air, that
animals included in it, not only could not refpire
but with great pain, but died fooner than if they
had been fliut up in vacuo, without any air at all.
To this may be added, an obfervation of the
Parifian Royal Academy of Sciences ; . namely,
that elafticity is fo far from being a conftituti\'e
quality of the air, that, on the contrary, if certain
heterogene fubftances be mixed with the air, it be-
comes thereby more elaftic than it is ' in its utmoft
purity. 'And M. de Fontenelle alTerts, in .confe-
quence of fome experiments made at Paris by M.
de la Hire, and at Bologna by Sig. Stancari, that
air moiftened by vapours, is far more elaftic and
capable of expanfion, than when it is pure ; nay^
in the opinion of M. de la Hire, even eight times
more elaftic than dry air.
But it fliould be obferved at the fame time, that
Dr. Jurin explains thefe experiments in another
manner, and infifts that the confequence the
French philofophers have drawn from, is by no
means a necefl'ary one.
All that has been hitherto faid, is to be un^ler-
ftood of air confidered in itfelf; but, as we have
remarked, no air is to be found pure of all mix-
f-re^
A IR
ture. However, thofe heterogene fubftanccs, whofc
properties and efFefts we are to confider, are, ac-
cording to the great Boyle, of a very different na-
ture from pure air. Boerhaave comes after, and
takes upon him to prove that it is a chaos, a mecr
jumble of all fpecies of created bodies. Whatever
■fire is capable of elevating, rifes into the air ;
^nd what body is there able to refill the action of
fire ? See Fire, Volatile, &c.
Particles of every fubft:ance belonging to the
mineral kingdom, muft be intermixed with air ;
for all of them, falts, fulphurs, ftones, metals.
Sic. are convertible into fmoak, and confequently
mufl: take place among aereal fubltances. Gold
itfelf, the moft fixed of all natural bodies, is found
among ores, clofely combined with fulphurs, and
confequently may be elevated together with that
mineral. See Gold, Sec.
It is altogether as certain, that in air there muft
be particles of every fubftance belonging to the
animal kingdom. For the abundant emanations
which arc perpetually ifl'uing from the bodies of
animals, in the tranfpiration continually kept up
by the vital heat, are abforbed into the air ; and
in fuch quantities too, during the courfe of an
animal life, that, could they be recollc6led, they
would be fufficient to compofe a good round num-
ber of the like animals. See Transpiration,
Emanation, &c.
Furthermore, when a dead animal continues ex-
.pofed to the air, all its particles evaporate, and are
quickly diflipated ; fo that the fubftance which
compofed fuch animal, whether man, ox, or any
other, is almoft wholly converted into air.
One proof, among a thoufand others, that the
air is charged with an infinity of excrementitious
■particles, is this. At Madrid, we are told, that
there are few or no necefl'ary houfes, and that their
ftreets are the rvightly receptacles of all ordures : Yet
that the air fo fpeedily carries ofF thofe fetid par-
ticles, that none of their fcent remains the next
-day.
No lefs true is it, that the air is charged with
vegetable particles ; for 'tis fufFiciently known,
how readily thofe fubftances putrefy, and thereby
become volatile, without excepting even the more
folid and vafcular parts of them.
Of all the emanations which float in the vaft
ocean of the atmofphere, the principal are fuch as
confift of faline particles. Many writers fuppofe
them to be of a nitrous kind ; tho' there is little
reafon to doubt that there are feme of all forts;
vitriol, alum, marine fait, and an infinity of
others.
Mr. Boyle thinks, that there may be a large
quantity of compound falts, not to be met with on
or in the bowels of the earth, formed of the for-
tuitous concourfe and mixture of different faline
fpirits. Wc frequently find the window-glafs of
3
A IR
ancient buildings corroded, as if eaten by worms;
and we know of no particular fait that is capable of
producing fuch an effeft.
Sulphurs are no inconfiderable part of the aereal
fubftance, on account of the great number of vol-
cano?, grotts, caverns, and fpiracles, which are
conftantly belching up fumes of this fpecies.
Laftly, the feparations, friftions, diffolutions,
and, in general, the mutual operations of various
fubftances upon one another, may be regarded as
the fources of an inconceiveable quantity of ano-
nymous particles, which rife and float in the air.
Air, taken inthe general acceptation, is one of
the moft confiderable and univerfal agents in nature,
both for maintaining animal life, and producing
the moft important phenomena which happen upon
the earth. Its properties and effedls, having been
the moft principal objefts of the refearches and dif-
coverics of modern philofophers, they have been
reduced to certain laws and demonftrations, which
make no inconfiderable branches of mixed mathe-
matics, under the titles of Pneiunatics, Aerometry,
&c. which fee.
Among the properties and mechanical effe£ls of
the air, the principal ones are its fluidity, its
weight, and its elafticity.
The great fluidity of the air is manifeft from
the facility with which bodies traverfe it, by the
propagation of founds, odours, and emanations of
every kind that efcape from bodies ; thefe effects
imply a body whofe parts yield to the flighteft ef-
fort ; and in yielding, move themfelves with the
greateft freedom ; and now this is the very thing
which conftitutes fluidity. Air never lofes this
property, whether it be kept years together con-
fined in glafs veffels, or is expofed to the greateft
natural or artificial cold, or condenfed by the moft
powerful preffure. In none of thefe circumftanccs,
has it ever been found reduced to a folidity of parts;
this is owing to its rarity, mobility, and the figure
of its parts, i'ee Fluid.
The Cartefians make fluidity to confift in a per-
petual inteftine motion of the parts, and think they
can prove that this character belongs to air. Thus,
in a camera obfcura, where the reprefentations of
external objefts are introduced by a fingle ray, the
corpufcles with which the air is replete, are fcen to
be in a continual fluftuation. Some moderns at-
tribute the iluidity of the air to the fire which is
intermixed with it ; without which, fay they, the
whole atmofphere would harden into a folid im-
penetrable mafs ; and indeed it muft be allowed,
that the greater the quantity of fire is that it con-
tains, the greater will its fluidity, mobility, and
permeability be ; and according as the different
pofitions of the fun augment or diminifh the degree
of fire, the air always receives a proportional
temperature, which doubtlefs is the reafon why
on the tops of high mountains, the fenfes of hear-
ing*
AT R
Jng, fmelling, tVc. ars evidently weakened. Sec
l'"lRE.
Tlie air, as a fluid, prefTes with the fame foice
in all directions. M. Mariotte proves the lateral
preliure of air to be equal to its perpendicular
■jneilure, by the following experiment. He Likes
a tall glafs vefle], perforated near the middle with
u finall hole, which when flopped up, and the
veflel filled with water, he plunges into it a dafs
tube open at both ends, 'till its bottom extremity
^sjower than the little hole in the fide of the veflel.
Then he clofes the m.outh of the veflel with wax
or pitch, with which he Jikewife encon\pafles die
tube, fo that no air can gain admittance between
the tube and the neck of the veflel : Nov/ when
the tube is filled with water, and the hole in the
fide of the bottle is opened, the water runs out in
part from the tube ; but near the lower end of the
lube, at the height of the hole, it flops, and the
whole veflel remains full. If then the perpendi-
cular preflure of the air were greater than kr. lateral
pieiTure, all die water would lie forced oat of the
tube; but this does not happen, becaufe the air
prefles_ laterally with the fame force .againfl the
hole, fo that no water can efcape out of the veflel.
The weight or gra\ity of the air, is a property
of it arifing out of its corporeal fubflance; for
gravity is a property, efi"ential to matter, or at
leaft a property that is found in all bodies. See
Attraction, Gravity, and Weight.
Notvvithftanding we have infinite proofs of the
gravitating property of tlie air continually at hand.;
yet the dilcovery of it is certainly owina; to .the
moderns. Many of the pha^nomena whicli it oc-
caflons, ha\e, it is true, been taken notice of time
out of mind. It was known manv centuries ao-o,
that upon fuckijig the air contained in an open
pipe, vvhofe lower extremity is immerfcd in water,
this fluid rifes above its level, 'iiid takes place of
the air. In confequence of fuch obfervation fuck-
ing pumps were contrived, and divers other hydrau-
lic inventions, as Heron's fyphons defcribed 'in lik
Pneumatics, and -the -watering-pots know:ii in
Ariftode's tiine under .the name of Clcpfydra, which I
run or flop, as the finger leav-es open or- clofes their [
ufiper onhce. The reafon that pliilofophers affign- !
ed ior this, was a pretended horror that nature I
conceives for a vacuum, and rather than endure it, '
choofes to make a body afcend contrary to the folli- j
citation of iis own gravity. Even Galilxo, with j
all his fagacity, could not hit upon any thinsr more I
iatisfadory; for he only affig"ned limits to this
dread of vacuity. Having obferved that fucking I
pumps would not raife v/ater higher than i6 brafies,
oi- 34 Englifti feet, he limitcd''this force of nature \
to avoid a \acuum, to one that was equivalent to i
the weight of a column of water 34 feet high, on |
the bafe of the void fpace. Confequently he point- '
■cd out a way of making a \ ucuum, by means of a '
5
A IR
hollow cylinder, whofe pifton is charged widi a
weight fufficlcnt to detach it from the ciofc bottom
turned upwards. This effort he called the meafiire
of the force of vacuity, and made ufe of it for ex-
plaining the cohefion of the parts of bodies. See
Clepsydra, Pump, Vacuum, &c.
Gahlffio however was not altogether ignorant of
the weight of the air. He {hews two ways of d>.--
nionftrating it in his Dialogues. The path was eafy
from one dilcovery to another, yet flill Galila;o's
knowledge of the matter was imperfecft.
At length Torricelli fell upon the lucky guefs
that the counterpoife which keeps fluids above their
level, when nothing prefles upon their internal
furface, is the mafsof air reftmg upon the external
furface. He came at it in the following manner ;
in 1643, this difciple of Galileo being fet upon
executing a litde experiment on the vacuum form-
ed in pumps, above the column of water, when it
exceeds 34 feet, thought of ufing a fluid heavier
than water, fuch as quickfilver. He fuppofed that,
whatfoever was the caufe that fuflained a column
of 34 feet above its level, the fame force woul 1
fuftain a column of any other fluid, which weigh-
ed as much as the column of water on the fame
bafe; whence he concluded that quickfilver, being
about 14 dmcs as heavy as water, would not bj
kept up higlier than 2-9 or 30 inches. He there-
fore iook a glafs tube of fevcral feet in length,
fealed it hermetically at one end, and filled it with
quickfilver ; then inverting it upright, by prefTing
his finger againfl: the open orifice, he plunged it in-
to a veflel of quickfilver, and fuffering the fluid to
run out, the event verified his conjedfure ; the'
quickfilver, faithful to the lavvs of hydrortatics,
defcended till die column of it above 'the furface
of that in die refcrvolr, was about 30 inches
high.
roricelli's ej-periment became famous in a fliort
time. Father Alerfenne, who kept up a literary
correfpondeiice with moft of the literati in Itah',
was informed of it in 1664, and communicated it to
thofe of -France, who prefendy repeated it: the,
famous Mefll-s. Pafcal and Petit, curious naturalifl.s
at that time, were the firfl. who made it, and varied
It difl^erciit ways. This occafioned the ingenious
treadfe which M. Pafcal publiflied at 23 years of
age, under the title of, Experiences NouveUeifouckont
la Fuide^ which rendered his name famous through-
out Europe.
Torricelli refleifling en the caufe of this pheno-
menon, was at length led to conclude; that the
weight of the air incumbent on the furface of the
ftagnated quickfilver, was the thing that counter-
balanced the fluid contained in the tube. See
Torricellian Experiment.
In reality M. Pafcal, who, in tlie abovemen-
tioned treatife, made ufe of the principle o{' fu^a
vacui, ha-.ing, as he fa vs, fome gliminerin? notion
A . or
A IR
of the weight of the air, quickly adopted Torri-
celJi's idea, and deviled feveral experiments to con-
iirm it, one of which was to procure a vacuum
above the refervoir of quickfilver. In this cafe he
found the column fink down to the level ; but this
appearing to him not fufEciently powerful to diifw
pate the prejudices of the ancient philofophy, he
prevailed on a brother-in-law, M. Perier, to exe-
cute the famous experiment of Puy-de-Doinc, fo
univerfally known as not to need a recital here.
M. Perier obferves that die height of the quick-
filver half way up the mountain was lefs by fome
inches than at the foot of it, and ftill lefs at tbe
top ; fo that it was now plain that, it was the
weight of the atmolphere which counterpoU'ed tlic
quickfilver.
We fhould not omit fome itiftances of the faga-
city of Des Cartes with regard to the phasnome-
non wd have been fpeaking of. There are proofs
that this philofopher was ferifible,. before Tcrriccl-
li, of the weight of the air, and of its aftion for
fultaining water in pumps, and tubes clofed at tho
upper end. Amojigfr his r,etters there is one dated
in the year i6jr, in which he accounts for the
fufpenfion of quickfdver, in tubes clofed at top,
by afcribing it to the weight; of the column of
air contiuucd up to the clouds ; the fame way he
explains, in the fame letter, the preflure of a glafs
filled with hot air, upon.a body, care being taken
to clofe all communication with, the external air.
There are further proofs of this his opinion.in feve-
ral other of his letters. In one of them, not long
after Galileo's Dialogues on iVIotion v/ere publiih-
t;d, Des Cartes rejects the pretended force of a
\acuum, advanced by the Italian philofopher, and
attributes the adhefion of two polifhed bodies fole-
ly to the prcfTure of the circumambient atmofphere.
Laflly, in a letter wrote foon after that jufl men-
tioned, fpeaking of watering uots wherein the fluid
is retained by cIoGng the top orifice,. " The
" water, fays he^ is not retained in the vcfiel by a
" horror vciaii, but by the weight of the air."
And in another letter, he puts in a claim to the
idea of the Puy-de-Dome expeJ-iment. After hav-
ing defired of M. de Carcavi to inform him of the
fucccfs of that experiment ; which the public
rumour had advertifed hiin to have been made by
M.Pafcal hirafelf, " I had reafon, fays he, to
" eypeft this from him, rather than from you,
" becaufe I firft propofed it to him two years ago,
'_' alluring him at the fame time, that although I
" had not tried it, yet I could not doubt of the
" confequcnce ; but as he is a friend of M. Ro-
" berva), who profeifes himfeif no friend to me,
" I fuppofe he is guided by that gentleman's
" paffions."
It will not be improper in this place, to fay
fomething of Francifcus Linus his hypothefis,
v/hereby he pretends to folvs the phreiiomen of the
7
A IR
fufpenfion of the quickfilver in die Torricelliau
experiment. His principles are thcfe :
1. That there is an infeparability of bodies,
fo that diere can be !io vacuities //; rerum na~
tura.
2. That the deferted part of the tube is filkd
with a fmall film of quickfilver, which being
taken oft" from the upper part of it, is both ex-
tenuated, and extended dirough the feeming v.a-
cuity..
3. Tliat by this extended film or rnpe, as he
calls it,, of dilated quickfilver, the reff of thi
quickfilver in die tube is fufpended, and kept up
from fallino- into the refervoir.
4. 'i'hat this funicle or rope is exceedingly rare-
fied and extended by the weight of the pendent
quickfilver, and will, upon removal of that violent
caufe which fo holds it, recontra'fl itfcif into its
former dimenfions again, and fo draw up what
body foever it ha.s hold of along with it; as the -
effluvia of an eleftric body, upon its retreat, plucks
up f^ravvs or any other thing with it,, that it is able
to wield.
5. That this extcnfion of the film of quickfilver
is not Indefinite, but hath a certain limit beyond
which it v/ill not be ftretched ; and thcrtfore if
the tube be of an exceeding great heie;ht, the
quickfilver v/ill rather part with another film and
c:c tend that, and fo a third or fourth, till it comes
to the ftandard of 29 inches, where it rells, hav- -
ing not weight nor power enough to fcparate ano--
ther film from it,
Thefe are his principles, and to give a tafle of
the applicatiori of them, we Ihall add, that his
reafon why the quickfilver i;i a tube under 2g
inches defceruls not all, is this ; becaufe it flicks
with its uppermoflfurface fo ciofe to the top of the
tube, that there- is not weight enough to break
that adhefion ; the reafon whereof is, becaufe there
is nothing to fueceed in the room of the defend-
ing quickfilver, and therefore it firmly flicks tliere,
ns dasetur vaiunm.
In longer tubes it falls to that flandard, becaufe
then the greater weight of quickfilver is able to
break that contiguity or adhefion, and therefore
tlie uppermoft furface of the quickfilver being
fiiced off, is dilated into a thiji column or funicle, •
which fupplies that feeming vacuity.
For the poiitive arguments to avouch his prin-
ciples by, Linniiis has none at all ; and only what
he fetches fl /is/Avvij;/, from his commodious folu-
tion of difficulties, ajid folving the pha3nomena
better than others have done. I'his is the funicu-
lar hypothefis, and the only one we have met with'
that pretends to account for the phenomena, by
taking off the excefs of gravitation of the quick-
filver in the tube.
Thus much then may be faid, that nature either
fufpends her fettled laws for the produdion of
thefc
A I R
thefe phaenomena, or th:it there is ibme additional
preffure communicated to the qiiiciililver in the
veflel, which can be no other, as has been proved,
than the preffure of the air which is contiguous to
it; or lalHy, that the excefs of prelfure from the
quickhlver in the tube, is by foine way or other,
v/hich we cannot difcover, taken off, or rendered
ineffeiftual.
It is unreafonablc to imagine tli-.t nature fhould
forlake her wonted paths on fo trifling an occafion :
it is certain we ha\'e no precedents to warrant fuch
a fufpicion. Wlien the I'choohnen fay, nature ab-
hors a vacuum, they niufl: mean by nature, if they
ifleau any thing, either the Author of all created
b'eings, or the creatures themfelves ; if they would
be underftood in the firli: fcnfc, they unavoidably
charge Omnifcience itfelf with incogitancy, fup-
pofing him to have created the world as continual-
ly to ftand in need of miracles for its prefervation ;
it being in tlieir own power,^ as often as they pleafe
to make a trifling experiment, to put him to the
neceffity of interpofing to hinder a vacuum. If
they mean by nature the creatures themfelves, then
they mud of neceffity fall into another abfurdity,
vi'hilfc they fuppofc brute matter to be intelligent,
and to put iticlf in aclion in purfuit of fome de-
terminate end. This we prefume may be fufiicient
to e.\-pole that grofs opinion concerning a ft/ga
vaair, fuppofmg it could account for the experi-
ments, which it cannot do by any means.
It muft be confelTed, that Ariftotle himfelf doss
foFiiewhere aflert the gravitation of the air ; and to
prove his aflcrtion, he appeals to the experiment of
a bladder full blown; which, fa) j he, , weighing
more than when it was flaccid,, is a manifeft token
cf the weight of the air contaijied in it. Cut it is
certain, however unreafonabie it may feem, that
his follov/ers departed from their m.afl:er, by aflert-
ii'ig the conirary forfevcral ages together.
Galiljeo feems to be one of the firft who dif-
covered the Ipecific gravity of the air, by difterer.t
experiments. But the Krll experiment of this
nature, which was generally taken notice of, was
that of Merfenne.
He procured to himfelf on aollpile, or hollow
globe of brafs, with a very (lender neck. See
/EoLiPiLE. This he placed in the fire till it be-
came red-hot,, and immediately weighed it by a
ballance whilfr it remained fo. Afterv/ards he let
it cool, and then weighed it again ; and finding
its weight to be greater than before, he concluded
that the excefs was the weight of the air which
had been expelled hy the heat, and had been per-
mitted to return again upon the cooling of the
globe. Thus he was fatisfied that the air was a
ponderous body; but in what meal'ure it was fo,
lie could not, by this experiment alone, determine.
He therefore repeated the trial again, and found
slse weight of the globe when it ViTiS red-hot to be
AIR
the fame as before. Then he placed tlie neck of
it under water, and fuiTlred it to cool in thst
pofture; which being uonc, he found his globe to be
almort filled with water; and knowing tlie bulk of
that water to be the fame with the bulk of the air
which was expelled by the heat, upon weighing
that water and comparing its weight with the
weight of the air found by the former exp>'riment,
he concluded the fpecific gravity of air to be about
1300 times lefs than the fpecific gravity of water ;
whereas, by the experiments of Galikto, it came
out but 400 times lefs. If we take a mean be-
tween thefe tv/o, we muH: fay it is 850 times
lighter ; and this agrees very well with later ami
more exa'fl: obfervations.
Mr. Cotes always found the proportion of water
to air, to be between tiie proportions of 800 and
900 to I ; but it generally approached fomewhat
nearer to 900,
Mr. Hauklbce took a bottle which held more
than three gallons, and of a form fomething oval ;
which figiira he chofe, for the advantage of its
more eafy libration in water. Into this bottle he
put as much lead as would ferve to fink it below
the furface of the water.. And the reafon why he
chofe rather to have the weight of lead inclofeil'
within the bottle, than fixed any where on the
outfide, was, to prevent the inconveniencics which,
in the latter cafe, mufl needs have arofe from bub-
bles of air : for thefe bubbles would have inevit-
ably adhered to, and lurked in great plenty about
the body of the weight, had it been placed on thi
outfide, whicli mull have caufed fome errors in
the computatians of an experiment that required io
much exadlnefs and nicety. Thefe things thus
pro\ided,, the bottle cojitainiivg common air clofcd
up, was by a wire fufpsnded in the water, at one
end of a. very good bal.-.nce, and v/as counterpoifej
in the water, by a weight of 3584; grains in tks
oppofite fcak-. Then being taken out of the
v/ater, and flcrewed to the air-pump, in fi-ve .iiinutcs
time it was pretty well exhaufted, the mercury ia
the gage ftanding at near 29 i inches : after which,
having turned a cock that fkrewed both to the
bottle and the pump, and fo prevented the aii 's
return into it again ; it was taken oft from the-
pumpj and fufpended as before, at one end of the
balance in the water. And now the weiglit of it
was but 1754 grains; which, therefore, fubtra(51-
ed from 358 i- grains (the weight of the bottle with
tlie inclofsd air, before it had been applied to the
air-pump) gave, for the difterence, 183 grains;
which difference muft confcquently be the weight
of a quantity of air, drawn from the bottle by tlie
pump. Having thus determined the weight of the
exhauiled air, the cock was opened under water ;
upon which the water was at firft impelled with a
confiderable violence into the bottle (though thi.s
force abated gradually afterwards) and continued
to
A I R
to riifh in, till fuch a quantity was entcrcJ, as was
equal to the bulk of the air vvithdrawii. And
then the bottle, being examined by the balance
again, was found to weigh 162 132 grains ; from
v/hich fubflraiSting 1 75 f grains (the weight of the
bottle with the fmal! remains of included air, after
it was taken from the air-pumpj there remains
161956^ grains, for the weight of the mafs of
water, equal in bulk to the quantity of air ex-
haufted. So that the proportion of the weights of
two equal bulks of air and water, is as 183 to
161956^, or as I to 885.
There are two things particularly obfervable in
this experiment. Firfl, that in making it after this
manner, one needs not be \'cry follicitous about a
nice and accurate exhauflion of the receiver ; the
fuccefs of the experiment docs not at all depend
upon it : for to what degree foe\'er the exhauftion
be made, it muft ftill anfvvcr in proportion to the
quantity taken out. Neither can any more water
poffibly enter into the receiver, than what will
juft fupply the place, rmd fill up the room, delerced
by the exhauftcd air. Secondly, the feafon of the
year is to be confidered in this experiment. Ke
made it in the warm month of May, the mercury
in the barometer ftanding at the fame time at 29,7
inches. From whence it is reafonable to conclude,
that a fenfible -difference would arife, were it to
be tried in the- months of December or January,
when thcftate-and conftitution of the air is ufually
different from what it is in the foregoing months.
Br. J urin therefore recommends a mean tempera-
ture of the air to make the experiment in, and be-
lieves that the weight of air would then be found
to that of water, nearly as i to 800.
Muffchenbrock fays he has fometimes found the
proportion to be as i to 606 ; and obferves, that
in making the experiment in different years and
feafons, he met with a continual difference ; but
that in experiments made in Europe, the limits
w.ll never he v.-ider than i to 606, and i to 1000.
The laws of the air's gravitation and preffure,
as a fluid, muft be the fame as thofe of other
fluids ; and confequcntly its preffure muft be
proportional to its perpendicular height. See
Moreover this confequcncc is confirmed by ex-
periments. For if the Torricellian tube be carried
to a more elevated place, where the columin of air
is fhcrter, the colum.n of quickfilver which it
fuftains will alfo be fhorter, falling about a quar-
ter of an inch upon an afcent of an hundred feet.
On this principle depends the ftrufture and ufc of
the barometer. Sec B.\ROiMET'£R.
And from the fame principle it likewife follows,
that air, like all other fluids, preffes equally in all
dircdions. A proof whereof is, that we .fee foft
fubftances endure its preffure without any altera-
tion of their form, and -brittle ones wnhoufbrcalc-
A I R
ing, notwithftandiiig the preffure of the column
of air on fuch bodies is equal to that of a column
of quickfilver of 30 inches, or to one of water
°^ 33 or 34 feet : but if the preffure be removed
or diminifhed on one fide, the effedl: of it on the
other fide will be inftantaneoufty perceptible.
From the weight and fluidity of the air con-
jointly confidered, many effe6ls and ufes of it mav
be eafily deduced. By the combination of thefe
two qualities, it envelops the earth and all bodies
upon it, compreffes and unites them with a con-
fiderable force. The fpecific gravity of air beiiu-
known, the weight of a cubic foot of it will al!b
be known. For if a cubic foot of water weio-hs
62 pounds, a cubic foot of air will weigh about
the 8coth part of 62 pounds ; whence may be
concluded the weight of any certain quantity of
air. Likewife the force with which the air com-
preffes all terreftrial bodies, m.iy be deterinined ;
for it is evident, that fuch preffure is the fame as if
the whole globe were covered witli water about 33
teet high. Now a cubic foot of water weighing
62 pounds, 33 feet will weigh 33 times 62 pounds'^
or about 2046 pounds ; and as the earth's furface
contains about 55683136665024.00 fquare feet,
2046 times this great number muft be taken to get
nearly the weight reduced to pounds, with v/hich
the air compreffes our globe. Now the effedt cf
fuch a preffure muft be very confiderable. It pre-
vents, for example, the arterial veffels of plants
and animals, from being exceflively diftended by
the im.petuoufity of the juices, which circulate
in them, or by the elaftic force of the air, of
which a confiderable quantity is intermixed with
the blood. From air thus mixed with the blood,
it is that v/hen, by meaais of a cupping-glafs, the
preffure of the external air is in a great meafure
taken off from one part of the bod)', that part is
diftended, and caufes an alteration in the circula-
tion of the fluids in the capillary veffels.
The fame caufe hinders the fluids from tran-
fpiring, and efcaping through the pores of their
containing veffels, as it happens to travellers in
afcending high mountains : they find thcm.felves
more and more relaxed, as they advance upwards. j
and at length are feized with fpitting of blood, or
other hremorrhages, becaufe there is not fufficient
preffure of air en the pulmonary veflels. The
fame happens to animals ffiut up in the receiver of
an air pump ; whilft the air is pumping out, they
tumify, vomit, flaver, fweat, and render their
urine and other excrements. See Vacuum.
To the lame two qualities of the air, weight,
and fluidity, is owing the mixture of bodies con-
tiguous to one another, elpecially fluids. Aivd
divers liquids, as oils and falts, which readily mix
of themfelves in air, but will not mix at all in
vacuo.
Al.o, in confcquencc of t'.ie fkme two qualities,
the
A I R
the air determines the aftion ol: one body upon
another.- Thus fire, which burns wood, is put
out, and its flame is diflipated, if the air be with-
drawn ; becaufe then there is nothing that is able
to apply the particles of the fire againft thofe of
the combuilible fubftance, and hinder the flame
from diffipating. The fame happens to gold dif-
foh'ina; in aqua regia ; the menilruum ceafing to
a6l on the metal as loon as the air is drawn off :
and it is in'confequence of this determining faculty
of the air, that Dr. Papin invented the (hgejhr,
which bears his name. See Digester.
On the fame account it is, that on the tops of
very high mountains, fuch as the Pic of TenerifTe,
fubftances of the mod poignant favour, as p-^pper,
giliger, fait, fpirit of wine, '•cc. are in a manner
infipid ; for through want of an agent fulficient to
apply their particles on the tongue, and caufe them
to enter its pores, they are rarefied and difperfed
away by the mere warmth of the mouth. The
only fubftance found to retain its reliih there is
Canary-wine, and this in virtue of its uncluous
quality, which makes it adhere clofely to the
palate, and hinders it from evaporating.
The fame principle of gravity produces alfo, in
part, winds, which are nothing elfe but air put in
motion through fome alteration in its equilibrium.
See Wind.
Another quality of the air, from whence arife a
multitude of etFeits, fome already mentioned, is
its elafticity, whereby it yields to the impreffion of
other bodies, by contracting its volume ; and re-
flores itfelf again to the fame extent, by repelling
or weakening the caufe which had contracted it.
This elaftic force is one of the moft diftinguifh-
ing properties of air ; the two other properties be-
fore fpoken of, being common to it with other
fluids.
An infinity of proofs evince the exiftence of
this faculty in air. If we prefs, for example, a
blown bladder with the hand, we find a fenfible
refiftance from the included air ; and upon ceafing
the preffure, the part comprefl'ed immediately is
rellored to its former fize.
On this property of the air depends the con-
flruction and ufe of the air pump. See Am
Pump.
Every particle of air makes a continual effort to
dilate itfelf, and thereby acts forcibly againfl all
neighbouring particles, which alfo exert the like
force ; but if the refinance happens to ceafe, or to
be weakened, the particle inftantly becomes pro-
digioufly rarefied. This is the reafon why little
glafs balls, placed under the receiver of an air
pump, do, upon pumping out the air, burft afun-
der by the force of the air which they contain.
If a clofe flaccid bladder, containing but a ihiall
portion of air, be put under the receiver, it will
tumify as the air is exhaufled, and at length ap-
A IR
pear full. The fame thing happens if the flaccid
bladder be carried to the top of a very high moun-
tain.
The fame experiment fhcws very mnnlfefily, that
the elaflicity of folid bodies is very different from
the elaftic virtue of air, and that elafric folid bodies
are dilated after a veiy different manner from air.
Yor when air ceafes to be comprefied, it not only
dilates, but then occupies a far greater fpace, and
exifls under an immenfely greater volume than be-
fore ; which is never obfervcd in folid elaftic bodies,
thofe refuming only the figure they had before they
were comprefied.
The air, fuch as that near the furface of the
earth, is rarefied in fuch fort, that its volume is
ever in the in\erfe ratio of the v,'ei2:ht which com-
preifes it ; that is, if air preiTed by a certain weight
occupies a certain fpace, the fame air prciTed by a
weight which is but the half of the former, will
occupy a fpace double that which it occupied in the
former cafe. Boyle and Alariotte eftablifhed this
rule from experiments. The fame rule takes place
in comprefTed air, as Mariotte has alfo fliewn.
However, this rule is not to be admitted as fcrupu-
loufly exact ; for when air is very forcibly com-
pre.led, and reduced to a bulk four times lefs than
before, the efFeCt does not anfwer precifely to Ma-
riotte's rule ; the air, in this cafe, begins to make
a greater refiftance, and requires a ftronger com-
prefiion, that is, a greater weight than according
to the rule; and a m.oderate degree of attention
will fhew the impoffibility of the rules being exact-
ly true : for fuppofing the air to be fo ftrongly
comprefTed, that all its particles come in contadl
with one another, fo as to form but one folid mafs,
it can be comprefTed no farther ; fince bodies are
impenetrable. It is no lefs evident, that air cannot .
be rarefied in infinitum, and that its rarefaction
mufl have its limits ; whence it follows, that the
rule of the rarefaction being in the inverfe ratio of
the ccmprefling weight, cannot again be abfolute-
ly exaft ; fince, according to this rule, to ^ny
given degree of the air's rarefaftion, a correfpond-
ing weight might be afligned which would hinder
that rarefaction from becoming; greater : but when
the air is rarefied the moft that is poflible, it is not
charged with ar.y weight at all, and yet it occupies
a certain fpace.
We know not how to allign an}"^ precife limits to
the elafticity of the air, nor to deftroy or any ways
alter it. Mr. Boyle made a multitude of experi-
ments, to fee if he could weaken the fpring of air
extremely rarefied in the receiver of his air pump,
by keeping it a long time comprefTed by fo great a
weight as it is aftonifhing to think it could endure
a fingle moment; and, after all, he could perceive
no fenfibie diminution of the elafticity. And
M. de Roberval having left an air gun charged full
1 6 years ; it, upon being difcharged, propelled the
Y, ball
A I R
A I R
ball with as much force as if the air haJ been new-
ly condenfed.
However, Mr. HrLukfbce undertook to prove,
by an aSual experiment, that the fpring of the air
may be fo far difconcerted by a violent preiTure, as
not to be able to reftore itfelf till after fome time.
To this end he took a ftrong brafs condenfing
engine, into which he poured half a pint of water ;
then, the upper part being ftrongly fcrewed on, he
threw into it with a fyringe three or four atmo-
ipheres of air, as near as he could guefs ; and, in
this flate, he fufFered it to remain fomething more
than an hour. Then Jetting out as much of the
air, by taking ofF the fyringe, as would readily go
away, he preli^ntly fcrewed on its room a box of
leather collars, through which there palled a fmall
e,lafs tube, open at both ends, whcfe lower orifice
was plunged under the furface of the included
water. After this, in a very little time, he found
the water had afcended very near a foot in the tube,
and it continued rifing till it had reached near fix-
teen inches.
He concluded from hence, that the elaftic force
of the air had been weakened for fome time ; for
had it remained the fame as at firft, the whole air
would have efcaped from the veflcl upon opening
it ; whence it follows, according to Mr. Haukfbee,
that what air was left in the veffel, became after
fome timie rarefied, and caufed the water to rife in
the glafs tube.
But is it not poiTible, that a confiderable quan-
tity of the air might have entered into the water,
fince the air which relied thereon was three or four
times more comprefTed than the natural, and v/as
not in a condition to extricate itftif till after fome
time ? fo that v/hat of it could freely efcape, did in
efFc<3: get out of the veffel whilfl; that which had
penetrated the water required time to woik its way
back agafn. M. Muffchenbroek "having poured
quickfilver into a tube eight feet long, one of whofe
ends was recurved and clofed up, by which the
air in the recurved end was cqmprcfled, fealed the
ef'ier end hermetically, marking the degree of the
temperature of die air at that time : from which
time, he fays, he conftantly obfcrved that the mer-
cury kept at the fame height in the tube, when the
air had the fame degree of warmth as when the
expcrim.ent was firft made ; on the contrary, v/hen
the air was warmer, the quickfilver rofe in the
tube ; whence it feems to follow, that the com-
prcffion of the air does not hurt its elaflicity.
I{ovv-ever, it cannot be denied that Dr. Hales has
proved the pofiibility of the thing, by kindling
A/iphur in a glafs full of air ; and, perhaps, there
are a great number of exhalations capable of pro-
ducing the fame efFedl.
It is plain, that the weight or preiTure of the air
does net at all depend on its elafticity, and that it
is neither more nor lefs heavy than if it were not
6
at all elaftic. Cut from its being elaftic, it follows
that it is fufceptible of a preffure, that reduces it
to fuch a fpace, that the force of its elafticity,
which rea£ls againft the preffing weight, is exadtly
equal to that weight. Indeed the true law of the
elafticity is, that it increafes in proportion totheden-
fity of the air, and that its denfity increafes in propor-
tion to the forces which comprefs it. But there is a
neceirary equality between adlion and rea6fion; that
is, the gravity of the air which effetls its compreftion,
and the elafticity of it which gives it its tendency to
expanfion, are equal. See Density, and Re action.
Thus the elafticity incrcafing, or abating, gene-
rally in proportion to the augmentation or dimi-
nution of the denfity ; that is to fay, as the fpaces
between the particles of the air increafes or di-
minifhes ; it matters not, whether or no the air be
comprefted or confined within a certain fpace, by
the weight of the atmofphere, or by any other
caufe : it is fufiScient, that it tends to expand itfelf
with a force equal to that of the caufe which com-
prcfles it. For this reafon, if fuch air as is near
the earth, be inclofed in a veffel, fo that it can
have no communication with the external air, the
prefTure of fuch inclofed air againft the inward
furface of the veffel, will be exactly equal to the
preffure of the atmofphere on its outfide. Hence
we fee, that the air of a very clofe room fuftains
the quickfilver in the barometer, by its elaftic
force, at the fiime height, as the weight of the
whole atmofphere would do. See Elasticity.
According to this principle the air, by proper
contrivances, may be condenfed ; and upon it, is
founded the conftrucElion of the air gun. See
Condenser, and Air Gun.
To what degree air is fufceptible of condenfa-
tion, by compreiEon, is not certainly known.
Mr. Boyle found means of rendering it thirteen
times denfer, bv comprefling it, than it was be-
fore : others affert, that they have known it re-
duced to a fixtieth part of its common bulk. Dr.
Hales made it thirty-eight times more denfe, by
means of a prefs : but by caufing w.ater to freeze,
in a grenade or hallow bullet of caft iron, he re-
duced air to ToTa of fts volume, fo that it muft
have been above twice as fpecifically hca\y as
water: and as water is ilofcompreffible, it follows
from this experiment that the aereal particles muft
be of a nature very different from thofe of water;
fince, otherwife, it would be impoffible to reduce
air to a volume above 800 times lefs than its com-
mon one ; and indeed Dr. Halley, in the Philofo-
phical Tranfaftions, fays, in confequence of fome
experiments made in London, and others at Flo-
rence in the Academy del Cimento, it may be
fafely affirmed that no force is capable of reducing
air into a fpace 800 lefs than that which it natu-
rally occupies near the furface of the earth.
Air, in virtue of its elaftic force, is dilatable to
a very
A I R
a very amazing degree. Fire has the property of
rarefying it very confiderably ; and, throiigli fuch
rarefaiHon, air produces the fame eftciit as if its
elaftic force were increafed ; and thus it endeavours
to extend itfelf in all directions. On the contrary,
cold condenfes it, and it may be faid, in that cir-
cumftancc, to have loft of its elartic force. The
force of heated air may be proved by confining it
clofe in a tliin glafs phial, hermetically fealed, and
fet on a fire ; the air then is rarefied fo forcibly as
to buril the phial in pieces, with a confiderable
noife. Likcvvife a bladder half full of air, held
jiear the fire, will not only become tumid by the
fwelling of its air, but will alfo burrt afunder.
M. Amontons found that air made as hot as boil-
ing water, acquired a force which is to that of
the v/eight of the atmofphere, as lo to 33, or as
10 to 35 ; and that the refult was alike, whether a
greater or a lefs quantity of air were made ufe of in
the experiment.
Mr. Haukfbec obferved that a portion of air,
inclofed in a glafs tube, when it began to freeze,
formed a volume which was to that of the fame
quantity of air in the greateft heat of fummer here
in England, as 6 to 7.
M. Amontons aflerts, that the elafticity of fuch
air as he calls temperate, is to the elafticity of air
of the fame heat as boiling water, as 3 to 4 nearly,
or, more accurately, as 55 to 73 : but Dr. Daniel
Bernoulli, from experiments of his own, fays he
has found that the elafticity of the hotteft air at
Peterlburg, in the midft of fummer, has not fo
much elaiticity as M. Amontons afcribes to tem-
perate air ; and is firmly perfuaded, that even un-
der the line itfelf, the air can never acquire fuch a
heat ; and, from a courfe of obfervations, he col-
lects that the greateft variations of the heat of that
country, are contained between the terms of 3 and
4 ; believing that the heat of air, whofe elafticity
is equal to three-fourths of the elaiticity of air as
hot as boiling water, muft be in a manner intoler-
able to an animal bod)'.
When air is at liberty, and clear of the caufe
that comprefled it, it ever afTumes a fpherical
figure in the intcrftices of the fluids in which it is
lodged. This is evident in liquors placed in the
receiver of an air pump, by exhaufting the air ;
for at firft there appears a multitude of extraordi-
nary Ima'l bubbles, like grains of fine fand, dif-
perfed through the fluid mafs, and rifing upwards ;
and as more air is pumped out they enlarge in fize,
but ftill continue round. If a plate of metal be
immerged in the liquor, upon pumping, its fur-
face will be feen covered over wit'.i i'mall bubbles,
which arc nothing but the air v/hich adhered to it,
now expanding itfelf.
No means have been neglected to difcover how
far air will be dilated, when entirely free : but the
enquiry is fubjeft to great difiiculties ; becaufe our
AI R
atmofphere is compofed of divers elaftic fluid.-;,
whicii have not all the fame force ; confequently
to know how far air that is pure, and without any
mixture, can be dilated, it will be firft neccllary to
procure pure air, which is no cafy matter. It
muft next be known in what veilcl, and how, fuch
air muft be placed, that its particles may be kept
feparate, fo as not to act upon one another : indeed
many philofophers have defpaired of folving the
problem ; neverthelefs we may conclude, with
Muflbhcnbroek, from fome coarfe experiments,
that the aii; near the furface of our globe, may
expand fo far as to occupy a fpace four thoufand
times as great as it does in its ordinary ftate.
Mr. Boyle, from feveral experiments, found it
dilated nine times, from others 31 times, then
from 60 to 150 times ; and laitly, as he fays, 8000,
lOooo, and even 13679 times beyond its firft
bulk ; and this purely from its innate expanfive
virtue, without having any recourfe to fire.
On this principle depends the conftruclion and
ufe of the manometer. See Manometer.
From the feveral before cited experiments, it
appears how greatly Ariftotle was miftaken, when
he pronounced that air ten times rarefied, changes
its nature, and becomes fire.
Amontons makes the rarefa6tion of the air to
arife from the fire which it contains ; fo that by
augmenting the degree of heat, the rarefaction will
be encreafed to a far greater degree than it can pof-
fibly be by a fpontaneous dilatation.
From this principle he deduces the conftruc-
tion and ufe of the thermometer. S;e Ther-
mometer.
He firft of all difcovered that the more denfe ths
air is, the more it will be dilated by the fame de-
gree of heat : in confequence of which difcovcry
he wrote a tradl to prove, that the fpring and
weight of the air combined v."ith a moderate degree
of heat, may be fufficient to produce even earths
quakes, and other m.oft violent commotions in na-
ture. Sec Earthquake.
Dr. Hales made many curious and accurate ex-
periments v/ith regard to theafuring the great quan-
tities of air that were raifed, or generated, or ab-
forbed, by the fermentation arifiiig from the mix-
ture and variety of folid and fluid fubftances,
whereby he could eafily eftimate the furprifing
effects of fermentation on the air.
He put into the bolthead /•, (Plate I. /j. 6.)
the ingredients, and then run the long neck of the
bolt-head into the deep cylindrical glafs a y, and
inclined the inverted glafs i? y, and boIt-hcad al-
moft horizontal in a large veflel of water, that t'l^
water might run into the glafs ay: v/hen it v/as
almoft up to the top a, of the bolt-head, he the:\
imm.erfed the bottom of the bolt-head, ,and lower
part of y of the cylindrical glafs under water,
raifing at th; fame time the end a upnerrooit..
Then
A I R
Then before he took them out of the water, he
fet the bolt-head, and lower part of the cylindri-
cal glafs a;', into the earthen veflel xx full of
water, and having lifted all out of the great veffeL
of water, he marked the furface z of the water in
the glafs ay. If the ingredients in the bolthead,
upon fermenting, generated air, then the water
would fall from z to j, and the empty fpace zy,
was equal to the quantity of air generated.
But if the ingredients upon fermentation did
abforb or fix the aiilive particles of air, then the
furface of the water would afcend from z to ;;, and
the fpace k«, which was filled with water, was
equal to the bulk of air, which was abforbed by
the ingredients, or by the fume arifing from them.
To make an eftimate of the quantity of air ab- ,
forbed, or fixed, or generated, by a burning can-
dle, burning brimftone or nitre, or by the breath
of a living animal, he. he firft placed a high
itand or pedeftal on the veflel full of water xx ;
(Plate I. fig-"].) which pedeftal' reached a little
higher than zz; in this pedeftal he placed the
candle, or living animal, and then whelmed over
it the large inverted glafs zz^ii, which was fuf-
pended by a firing, fo as to have its mouth r r,
three or four inches under water ; then with a
fyphon he fucked tlie air out of the glafs veffel,
till the water rofe to zz. But when any noxious
thing, as burning brimftone, aqua-fortis, or the
like were placed under the glafs ; then by affixing
to the fyphon the nofe of a large pair of bellows,
whofe wide fucking orifice was clofed up, as the
bellows v/ere enlarged they drew the air quickly
out of the glafs z-zaa, through the fyphon ; the
other leg of which fyphon he immediately drew
from under the glafs vefTel, marking the height
of the water zz. When the materials on the
pedeftal generated air, then the water would fub-
fide from zz to aa, which fpace xzaa, was equal
to the quantity of air generated : but when on
the contrary, they deftroyed any part of the air's
elafticity, then the water would rife from aa (the
heighth that he at firft fucked it to) to zz, and
the fpace zzao, was equal to the quantity of air
whofe elafticity was deftroyed.
When the matter for trying the experiments
was phofphorus, gunpowder, nitre, &:c. the Doc-
tor ufually fired them on the pedeftal by means of
aburnin* glafs, v/hich colle£ted tlie fun's rays into
a focal point on the matter to be fired. He like-
wife made an eftimate of the quantity of air which
arofe from any body by diftillation, or fufion. He
firft put the matter intended to be diftilled into a
fmall retort r, (Plate I. fig. ^.) and then at a
cemented faft to it the glafs vefTc-l ab., which was
very capacious at b, with a hole in the bottom ;
he bound a bladder over the cement, which was
made of tobacco-pipe clay and bean flower, well
mixed with fome hair, tj'ing over the whole four
AIR
fmall fticks, which ferved as fplinters to ftrengthen
the joint ; matters being thus prepared, holding
the retort uppermoft, he immerged the bolt-head
into a large velTel of water to a, the top of the
bolt-head ; as the water ruflied in at the bottom of
the bolt-head, the air was driven out through the
fyphon ; when the bolt-head was full of water to
z, then he clofed the outward orifice of the fyphon
with the end of his finger, and drew the other leg
out of the water at the fame time, by which
means the water continued up to z, and could not
fubfide. Then he placed under the bolt-head
while it was in die water, the veflel jc *•, which
done, he lifted the veflel xx with the bolt-head in
it, out of the water, and tied a wax thread at z,
to mark the height of the water ; and then ap-
proached the retort gradually to the fire, taking
care to fcreen the whole bolt-head from the heat of
the fire. As the matter diftilled, all, except the
air, went down into the water in the bolt-head
and vefTel, the air that was generated, or deftroy-
ed, would be feen by caufing the furface of the
water in the holt-head to ftand below or above the
point z, as at ^■, when all was fet afide and cold.
For if the body diftilling generates air of an
elaftic quality, that added to the former will not
permit the water y, to rife fo high as z, and the fpace
between z and y below, will fhew how much air
was produced from its fixed ftate : but if when all
is cold, the furface of the water y be feen above
the point z, it then fhews that the diftilled body
did deftroy, that is, imbibe or abforb a part of the
natural air above z ; and the fpace between z and
y filled with water, will fhew what quantity was
changed from a repellent elaftic to a fixed ftate.
This quantity of generated or abforbed air, it is
eafy to meafure in cubic inches, by ftopping the
end of the bolt-head with a cork, and then with a
quantity of water of a known weight, to fill it
firft to z, and afterwards to^', and the difference of
weight in the two bulks of water gives the num-
ber of cubic inches, from a table of fpecific
gravities.
After the Doiftor has given a defcription, as
above, of his inftruments and method of making
experiments, he then gives the event or refult of
a great number which he made with great accu-
racy. He found that a cubic inch of hog's blood,
diftilled to dry fcoria, produced 33 cubic inches ;
that a cubic inch of tallov diftilled, produced 18
cubic inches of air ; that half a cubic inch of the
tip of a fallow deer's horn, produced 117 cubic
inches, or 234 times its own bulk in air.
A dram of volatile fait, of fal aromatic diftilled,
generated no air, but abforbed 2j cubic inches.
Phofphorus fired in a fmall receiver, expanded into
a fpace equal to 60 cubic inches, and abforbed 28
cubic inches of air. He likewife found th.it from
£ an inch of oak frefh cut from the growing tree,
was
A I R
\V?.s generated io8 cubic incl-ies of air ; and that
from 135 grains of thin fliavings taken trcrn the
fame piece of oak, and laid before the fire 24
hours, it evaporated 24 grains of moifture in
that time. From 388 grams of Indian wheat,
Vvhich grew in his own garden, but not come to
full maturity, was generated 270 cubic inches of
air, the weight of which air was 77 grains, which
is one fourth of the weight of the wheat. Ke
likewife adds, that from a cubic inch, or 318
grains of peafe, was generated 396 cubic inches of
ail-, or 113 grains, which is fomething more than
one third of the weight of the peafe. The Doc-
tor alfo found great plenty of air incorporated into
the fubftance of vegetables, which by the atlion
of fermentation, is rcufed into an elaftic ftate, as
is evident from many experiments, and which may
be feen at length in the DoiSlor's treatife of the
Analj-fis of the^Air.
Air, in medicine, makes one, and not the leaft
powerful, of the non-naturals; as upon it the
very life of animals depends.
• It is fufceptible of different qualities ; hot,
moitl, cold, drv, ferene, pure, and temperate.
It is fubjccl to variations, more or lefs fuddcn, and
to be mixed with im.pure, corrupted, contagious,
metallic, I'ulphureous exhalations, which are all
prejudicial to health. The beft quality of the air
is to be pure and fv.-eet, void of ail bad exiralattons,
neither too hot, cold, dry, nor moift.
~The fudden changes of the air are inevitable
and dangerous ; whence proceed a great number of
difeafes, which reign in the fpring and autumn,
towards the approach of winter. Hofpitals,
camps, places where lead is melted, and the earth
juft thrown up, are generally unhealthy, on ac-
count of the bad exhalations. Lighted charcoal,
in a clofe place, fills the air with fulphureous par-
ticles, which are unwholefome, and fometimes
kin the ftroiigcft perfons.
l^oo hot an air difpofes to malignant fevers ; if
it be without moifture, it produces diary and putrid
fevers. Agues are epidemic in the fens of Cam-
bridgefhire, • the hundreds of Eflex, and in fome
parts of Kent, on account of the vapours, which
weaken the fibres of the body, and obftruiSt the
pores of 'the fkin ; befides, a cold and moifl: con-
ftituti6r» cf the air produces coughs, dillillations,
■ and iTiOumatic pains.
Hcftic and confumptive people are in great dan-
ger, both in very hot and in very cold weather.
When the paffage through the pores of the fkin is
ftopt by cold, the patient is either apt to fall into
a loofenefs, or to have his legs fvvelled, and the
aflhmatic fymptoYns increafed.
Air, in mythology, was worflirpped 'bv the
.pagans, under tb, names of Jupiter and Juno -,
the former rcprcfenting the fuperior and finer part
5
AIR
of the atmofpherc, and the latter th: inferior ani
grofTer part. ' -■■■
Air, in painting and fculpture, denotes th:;
manner and very life of action ; or,'' it is that
which exprefies the difpolition of the' agent. Serf
Action. '"'"" ''■' "■''
Some ufe the word to fighify the gefture or at-
titude of ' a figure. . '- ' 'f- "' '
Aiii, in muific, implies the melody proper for
fcngs, odes, &c. being ufuallv quick and lively.
T'he term is fometimes uled to fignify the fongs
themfelves, called by the Romans, tz:rc7, whence
the word in this acceptation is derived.
Airs, in the menage, fignify the artificial mo-
tions of taught or rrienaged horfes ; fuch as the
demi-volt, curvet, capriole, &c.
" Some extend the term to the natural pates of a
horfc, as walking, trotting, galloping ; but this
is not a proper application of the word, and is
accordingly riever u-fed in the latter fenfe by the
beft v.'rit«rs.
Air-bladder, a veficle found in the bodies of
all fifties, except thofe of the cartilaginous and ce-
taceous kinds. It is vulg-arly called the fwim, or
fv.'imming bladder.
By the afllftance of this bladder, which is al-
ways more or lefs replete witii air, the fifti is en-
abled to fuftain its body at any depth. When the
fifli is near the bottom, the great weight of the
incumbent water comprefi^es its body, or rather
the inclofed air-bladder, till the whole fifli be-
comes equiponderant with an equal bulk of v.-atcr.
In the middle of the fluid, wher& the preflure is
lefs, the air-bladder expands; thereby increafcs
the bulk of the fifli, without adding any thing to
its weight, till it here alfo becomes equiponderant
with an equal bulk of water : and in this manner
the air-bladder expands, as the fifh rifes nearer
the furface, arid by that means fuftains it in any
depth.
There is however no doubt but fi.fties have a
power of expanding and comprelling the air-blad-
der, exclufive of the weight of the water, and by
that means of rifing or finking at pleafure.
Some fifties have only a fingle air-bladder ; fome
a double one ; and in others it is triple, or di-
vided into three cells. Fifties which lie grovelling
at the bottom, have no air-bladders ; and it is re-
markable, that if the air-bladder be either pricked
or burft, in fifties naturally furniftied with it, they
imm.ediately fink to the bottom ; from whence
they can never rife themfelves.
Air-gun, a pneumatic machine for exploding
bullets, &c. with great violence. See Gun.
MtJs:<izine AlR-GUS. SceGtTN.
Aik-JACKET, a particular kind of leathern
jacket, in which there are a great many bags
made of kathcr, -^'.iiich are interl'perfcd round the
Z jacket,
AIR
jacket, and have communication with each other ;
to one of thele bags, which are in the form of
bladders, is neatly fitted a leather tube or pipe,
having a brafs Itop-cock, airtight, fitted to the
extremity ; therefore by blowing through this pipe,
the bags are filled with air, and by turning the
flop-cock, it is confined in the bladders. As the
auman body difrers but very little in fpecific gra-
vity from water, it v/ill be eafy to conceive, that
a few of thefe bladders or bags will reduce them
not only to an equal gravity bulk for bulk, but
even make it impoflible to fink while the machine
remains air tight ; but if it fliould, in a length of
time, emit the air through the pores of the lea-
ther, or by means of any other faiall imperfection,.
the pipe and ftop-cock is fo contrived, that the
perfon wearing this jacket may reinftate the de-
ficiency of the bladders while on the water with
great eafe. Care muft be taken that the bags be
wet, before the air is blown into diem, otherwife
it will immediately efcape through the oores of the
leather.
Air-pump, in pneumatics, a machine for ex-
haufting the air out of a proper velTel, called a
receiver, in order to. difcover its chief properties
and efFe£ts on natural bodies. This internment
was invented b-y Otto Guericke, conful of Rlagde^
burgh, fome time before the year 1654; for then
this gentleman being employed in a public nego--
tiation at Ratifbon, lliewed this injftrufnenc to the
emperor, and fome other princes there prefent :
and. in the ycss '672, he defcribed his inftrument,
with a narrative of his trials with it, in a book
called, Experimenta mva Alagdebitr^ica de Vacuo
8patio.
Thefirfi: was attempt afterwards executed with
great improvements by Dr. Hook, -at tb.e infl.mce of
Mr. Boyle ; and farther perfected bv Dr. Rapin,
Mr. Haukfbcs, and lall:lv, bv Mr. Smeaton,
F.R.S.
The air-pump corr.monlv made ufe of now, is
that reprefented by Plate IL fig. 3. where A A
are the two brafs barrel?, in which the piftons
CC mo^'e up and down. The brafs tube or pipe
marked HH, is called the fwan's neck, through
which the air pafTes from under the receiver O O,
by a fmali hole K, in the middle of the brafs
plate II,. on the top of the pump, to a brafs piece
in the box DD, which bein.g preforated length-
wife to the middle point under each barrel, tranf-
mits the air through a bladder-valve to be pumped
out. The mercurial gauge which communicates
with the receiver, is marked LLL. T he flop-
cock N,, ferves to readmit the air, when there is
occafion. B is the handle or winch for turning
or working the pump. GG are two pillars fup-
porting the frame of the pump-wheel, which
is fcrewcd upom them by the tv/o nuts EE.
7
A I R
The ufes of the other parts will readily be co.ti--
prehended by infpe£tioc of the figure.
It is ufual to make the valves in air-pumps of
bladder ; but it will be found to anfwer the pur-
pofe much better to make them of thin neats fkin :
for oil is ' found by experience to harden thofe
made of bladder, which are very apt to crack, and
tobeoften outof order; when, oq the contrary, the-
neats flcin valves are kept fupple and pliant by the -
oil, and feldom want repairing. It is likewife-
cuftomary to ufe wet leather to place the receiver^
upon, &c.. but we vi'ould recommend, that a pro^
per m.ixture of fweet-oii and bees-wax be melted''
together over a flow fire, and the leather made ■
fupple with this mixture v.'hile lukc-warni, wMch.v
will, when cold, be found to anfwer the purpofe
much . better than wet Lather, which greatly
damages the works of the piunp.
Dej'criptton of the portable AlR-PUSJP. This
pump is defcribed by Plate II. .j?^. 4. where A B
is the head or p.art containing tiie wheel, which
alrernatcly rifes and deprefTes tb.e piiloiis C, D,
in the barrels E, E, which are ftrongly prefTed down-
by the part A B, fupported by two the pillars G, H,^
fixed into the bottom IKL of the machine. Oil
this bottom ftands the receiver MN, on a large
fmooth plate, .in, the middle of which is a hole.
by which the air pafies out of the receiver into a
fmali tube on the under part of the frame, and
goes to the piece O, v/hich comir.unicates with
the perforated brafs-piece on which the barrels
flatid, and from which they receive the air to be
exhaufted : on the middle part of this brafs-piece •
is a perforation, over which, is placed a fmali re-
ceiver P Q_, and under it a baton of mercury R,
in which a fmali tube R S, hermetically fealed at
one end, and filled with quickfilver, is inverted,
and confequently, as the fmali receiver P Q_, is.
exhaufted, together with the large one M N, the
approach of the \acimm will be fhewn by the fall-
ing of the quickfsher [in the tube R S : by means .
of a {top-cock atT, the air is agalir let into the
receiver.
Defcriptian of Mr. Smentons AiR-PuMP. The
principal caufes of i:nperfev5lion in the common air
pumps arife, ifl, from the difEculty in opejiing
the valve. 2dly, from tiis piftons not iitting ex-
actly when put clofe down, to the bottom, thereby
leaving a lodgment of air. To avoid thefe incon-
veniencies as much as poffible, inflead of one
fmali valve this pump has feven large ones, all of
equal fize and fhape, one in the center with fix
round it ; fo that the bladder valve is fupported at
proper diflances, by a kind of grating made by the
folid parts beD.veen the holes : alfo the top of the
barrel is fhut up with a plate, having a collar of
leathers in its middle, through ^yhich the rod that
carries the piflon moves. Thus the external air
is
^L^'pE m
\^etrtncf Air -T ump
Tz.iTJ-:m.
A I R
is prevented from preffing upon the pifton, and
the air which pafics through the valve of the pif-
ton from below, may be difcharged out of the
barrel. Tiicre is alfo a valve applied to the plate
at the top, which opens upwards ; and thus the
air in the lodgment under t!ie pifton, will evacu-
ate itfeif fo much more eafily, as the prefTure upon
the pifton valve will be Icfs.
Mr. Smeaton found the ufual gauges very unfit
for mcafuring the expaniion of the air, where ac-
curacy is required : the following one does it to
Jcfs than the loooth part of the ^yhol■e capacity.
It is a bulb of glafs, limped almoft like a pear,
which holds about a pound of quiclcfilvcr, and is
open at the lower end, with a tube at top, whofe
end is hermetically fealed. By a nice pair of
fcales, he found the proportion of weight a co-
lumn of quickfilver of a certain length in the tube,
bore to tl'.at which filled the whole vefi'el, and
marked ditneniions on the tube, anfwering each to
■rch^ of the wb-ole capacity. The gauge during
the exhaufting, is fufpended in the receive.r by a
flip wire. When the pump has been worked as
much as is judged neceilary, the gauge is pufhed
down, till its open end is immerged in a ciftern of
quickfilver placed underneath.i The air being- let
in, the quickfilver will be driven into the gauge,
till the air remaining in it becomes of the fame
denfity with the external ; and the expanfion will
be ihewn by the number of divifions occupied by
the air at top.
This pump is made to act likewife as a conden-
fer at pleafure, by fmgly turning a cock ; and
will then fhew the experiments of an air gun. See
Air Gun, andCoNDExsER.
Explanation of ihe Figures relating to the Jir Pump,
in Plate III.
Fig. 3. Is a perfpeftive view of the princip.il
parts of the pump together.
A, Is the barrel.
B, The ciftern, in which is included the cock-
with feveral joints.
C, The triangular handle of the key of the
cock ; which, by marks on its arms, Ihews how
it muft be turned, that the pump may produce the
effect defired.
D H, The pipe of communication betvi'een the
cock and the receiver.
E, The pipe which comm.unicates between the
cock and the valve, on the upper plate of the bar-
rel.
F, The upper plate of the puinp, which con-
tains the collar of leathers i;/, and V the valve,
which is covered by the piece y.
G I, The fyphon gauge, which fcrews on and
pfF, and is adapted to common purpofes. It con-
fifts of a glafs tube hermetically fealed at c, and
furnilhed with quickfilver in each leg, which, be-
A I R
fore the pump begins to work, lies level in the line
a b, the fpace b c being filled with air of the cortt-
mon denfity. When the jaimp exhaufts, the air
in b c expands ; and the quickfilver in the oppofite
leg rifes, till it becomes a counterballance to it.
Its riie is fhcwn upon the fcale 1 a, by which the
expanfion of the air in the receiver may be nearly
judged of. When the pump condenfes, the quick-
filver rifes in the other leg, and the degree may be
nearly judged of by the contraction of the air in
b c ; marks being placed at one-half and one-third
of the length of b c, from c ; which Ihcw when
the receiver contains double or treble its common
quantity.
K L, A fcrew frame to hold down the receiver
in condenfing experiments, which takes off' at
pleafure, and is fufficient to hold down a receivety
the diameter of whofe bafe is feven inches, when
charged with a treble atmofphere ; in which cafe,
it aiSts with a force of about 1200 pounds againft
the fcrew frame.
M, A fcrew that f.T.ftens a bolt which Aides up
and dov/n on that leg whereby the machine is
made to ftand faft on uneven ground.
Fig. 7^ Is a vertical fecStion of the barrel, cock,
&c. where
A B, Reprefents the barrel.
C D, T.he rod of the pifton, which pafics
through
M N, The plate which clofes the top of the
barrel.
K, The collar of leathers, through which the
pifton rod pafTes. When the pifton is at the bot-
tom of the barrel, the upper part of K is covered
by the cap at D, to keep out duft, &c.
L, The valve on the upper plate, which is co-
vered by the piece
P, "^Vhich is conncfted with the pipe
Q_R, Which makes the communication between
the valve and cock.
C E, The pifton and
E F F, The pifton valve.
1 I, Tv/o little holes to let the air pafs from the
pifton valve into the upper part of the barrel.
G G, The principal valve at the bottom of the
barrel.
H H, A piece of metal, into which the valve
G G is fcrev/ed, and clofes the bottom of the bar-
rel ; out of which alfo are compofed
S, The cock, ai\d
T T, The du<St from the cock to the bottom
of the barrel.
W, The key of the cock..
X, The ftcm, and
V, The handle.
Fig. 6'. Is an horizontal feiftion of the cockj
through the middle of the dui5t T T.
A B, Reprefents the fize of the circular plate
that cicfes the bottom of the barrel.
EFG,
A I R
A I R
.EFG, Th3 hyiy of th; cock, the outward
fliel! being pierced with three holes at equal dif-
taiices, and corrcfponding to the three diicii H H,
II, K K, whereof"
H H, Is the dud- that goes to the bottom of the
barrel.
1 1, The duct that communicates with the top
of the barrel.
K K, The duiSl that paiTjs from the cock to the
receiver.
L M N, The key, or fo! id parts of the cook,
moveable round in the fheli E F G. When the
canal L M anfwers to the duel H H and K K, the
pump exhaufls, and the air is difcharged by the
perforation N. . But the key LMN being turned
till the canal L M anfwers to 1 1 .and- K K, the
lisrforation N will then anfwer to H H ; and in
this cafe, the pump condenfes. X-aflly, when N
anfwers to K K, the air is then let in, or difcharg-
ed from the receiver, .as the circumftance requires.
Fig. 4. Is the plan of the principal valve.
. AB CD, Reprefents the bladder fallened in four
places, and. fa-etched over the feven holes IK,
formed into an hexagonal grati.-g, which may be
called the lioncy-comb.
E FGH, Shew where the metal is a little pro-
minent, to hinder the pifton from ilriking againfl
tlie bladder.
Fig. 5. Reprefents the pear gauge. It is open
at A; BC is the graduated tube, hermetically
clofed at C, and iufpended by the piece of brafs
D E, hollowed into a cylinder, and clafping the
tube.
N. B. A pum.p of this kind, when clean and in
, order, has been found to rarefy the air above 2000
tinies ; whereas the common ones, tried by this
gau£;e, have not been found to exceed 150 times.
'thctD-y of tlie AiR Pump. Mr. Varignon in the
Memoirei de Mathematique IS de Phyfique, for
December 1693, gives a general theorem for find-
ino- the ratio of the denfity of the air in its natural
ftate to that in the receiver, after a certain number
of ftrokes of the pifton in the barrel ; which, if
■^ve put a =z flate of the natural air, x =z the ftate
after any number of ftrokes, c = the capacity of
the receiver, b — the capacity of the receiver and
barrel together ; and a — number of ftrokes, we
d d
fhall have this proportion, ti : x : : r • — • The truth
of which is evident, if v/e confider that each time
the pifton is thruft down to the bottom of the bar-
rel and raifed up again, that the air by its elaftic
fpring will expand irfelf and fill up the cavity
made" by the pifton ; therefore, after each ftroke of
the pifton in the barrel, the remaining air in the
receiver and barrel will be to that imhe recei\er
b;fore, as the capacity of the receiver alone, to
the capacity of the receiver and barrel together.
' Stippofei^. f, g, h, to be the logarithms of a,
X, l>, c. Then as e : f : gd : lid. .-. e -\- h.i = f
-1- gel, or e — f rzi gd — hd; where gd — hd is the
logarithm of the ratio of the air fought. In
v.ords, the logarithm of the ratio of the denfitv of
the air in its natural ftate to that in the receiver
after the operation, is always equal to the produft
of the number of ftrokes of the pifton, multiplied
bv the logarithm of the ratio betv.'een the capacity
of the barrel and receiver together and the receiver
alone.
Thus if the capacity of the receiver be 10, that
of the barrel i, and the number of ftrokes 30 ;
then will the primitive air be found to the remain-
ing, as I to -i?j- nearly. If the capacity of
receiver and barrel were given, and it were requir-
ed to find the number of ftrokes of the pifton to
rarefy the air to a certain degree ; then from the
thccrcm abo\'e, e — f ^z gd — hd, we get L
/r - /'
=: (f = the number of ftroke? required ; which is
in words, Subtrad: the logarithm of the remaining
air from the logarithm of the primiti\-e air ; like-
wife the logarithm of the capacity of the receiver,
from the logarithm of the fum of the capacity of
the receiver and barrel together, and then dividing
the firft diftcrence by the latter, the quotie.-st vv-ill
be the number of ftrokes required. Thus fuppofe
the content of the receiver be equal to 600 cubic
inches, and the content of the barrel be equal to
30 cubic inches, what number of ftrokes, or turns
of the pump will rarefy the air under the receiver
800 times more than in its natural ftate ? The
anfwer will be, 137,007, which is the ftrokes and
part of a turn, required to rarefy the air 800 times
more than when in its natural Itate. If the con-
tent of the receiver be required, the other things
being giveii, we fhall find, from the above theo-
t — f
rem, the expreffion will be -f A = ^.
d
AiR-SHAFTS, among miners, are holes made
from the open air to meet the adits, and fupply
them with frefh air.
Thefe air-fhafts, "when the adits are thirty or
forty fathoms in length, become abfolutely necef-
fary, in order to let in frcfli air, and at the fame
give vent to the damps and noxious vapours.
AiR-THRF.ADS, in natural hiftory, a name given
to the long filaments, fo frequently feen in autumn
floating about in the air.
Thefe threads are the work of fpiders, efpecial-
ly of that fpecies called the long-legged ficld-fpider;
which, having mounted to the fummit of a bufh or
tree, darts from its tail fevcral of thefe threads, till
one is produced capable of fupporting the creature
in the air ; on this it ir.ounts in queft of prey, and
frequently rifes to a \ery confiderable height.
Ner
A LA
Nor does the fpider that has thus raifed itfelf
dcfcend always by tiie fame thread ; it often winds
that up, and dares out another, more or leislong,
as the creature intends a higher or lower flight.
Air-vessels, in plants, are certain \'eircls or
dudts for imbibing or conveying air to the fevcral
parts of the plant.
ARIANI, in ccclefiaftical hiftory, a branch of
the Arians, v/ho, befides the common tenets of that
feci, denied the conllantiabilitv of the Holy Ghofi:
with the Father and Son.
AIRING, in horlemanfliip, irniilics the cxer-
cifing a horfe in the open air ; a practice that can-
not be too much commended.
AIRY, or Aery, among fportfmen, implies the
neft of a hawk or eagle.
Airy Triplidty, among aflrologers, denotes the
three figns Gemini, Libra, and Aquarius.
AISiAMENTA, in law, the lame with eafe-
ment. See the article Easet^ient.
AIUS LOCUTIUS, the name of a deity to
whom the Romans erected an altar.
The words are Latin, and fignify, " A fpealcing
" voice."
The following accident gave occafion to the Ro-
mans credling an altar to the Aius Locutius. One
M. Beditius, a plebeian, acquainted the tribunes,
that, in walking the ftreets by night, he had heard a
voice over the temple of Vefta, giving the Romans
notice that the Gauls were coming againfl: them.
This intimation was however neglefted ; but after
the truth was confirmed by the event, Camillus
acknowledged this \oice to be a new deity, and e-
rected an altar to it, under the name of the Aius
Locutius.
AJUTAGE, or Adjutage, in hydraulics, a
fmall pipe fitted to the aperture of a jet-d'eau, or
fountain. See Adjutage and Fountain.
AJUTANT, in military affairs. See the ar-
ticle Adjutant. j
AIZOON, in botany, a name given by Lin-
nreus to the ficoidca, and by fome writers to the
fedums, aloes, &c. It is alio called fempervive.
ALA, or Alj^, in botany, a term ufed in dif-
ferent fenfes ; fometimes it denotes the hollow be-
tween the ftalk of a plant and its leaves ; alfo it is
ufed for leaves which coniift: of manv lobes, or
v/ings ; fometimes it is applied to fignifv thofe pe-
tals of papilionaceous flowers between the vexil-
lum and carina ; it is likewife uled for the {lender
membranaceous parts of fome feeds, and for thofe
foliaceous membranes which in fome plants run
the whole length of the ftem, whence it is called
caiiUs alatiis, i. c. a winged ftalk, ala in Latin fig-
nitving a wing.
ALABASTRA, in botanv, a term given to
the calyx of flowers before thev arc expanded, par-
ticularly to the rofc-bud.
ALABASTER, Aiabajlrius, in natural hiftory.
ALA
the name of a genus of folTils, nearly allied to
t.iat of marble. It is an elegant ftone of great
brightnefs, but brittle, tho' it will receive a fine po-
lifh.
Naturalifls enumerate feveral fpecies of alabaf-
ter ; as, the fnow-white fliining alabafter, or that
called the lygdine by the ancients. Boet in-
forms us, that this ftone is extremely white, and
found only in Taurus ; but it was formerly
brought from Arabia. It is not very compa£t, but
heavy, and confifts of a multitude of broad flat
large particles, which are very bright and perfecSt-
ly v/hite. It cuts very freely, and is capable of a
fine polifli. There are very large ftrata of it in
Arabia, Egypt, and many parts of Italy ; but it
is fcldom brought over to England.
l^'^hitifh yellow alabafter is of a foft confiftence,
and difters in nothing from common marble but in
hardnefs, and in its fhining when polifhed. It is
of a loofe open texture, confidcrably heavy, and
nearly of the colour of honey, but more deep in
fome places than others. It confifts of irregular
pieces lying in tables one over another, and altoge-
ther compofe a remarkable bright and very brittle
mafs. Befides the places above-mentioned, it has
been found in Germany, France, and Derby-
fliire.
Yellow and reddifh variegated alabafter is the
common alabafter of the ancients. It is fo foft
that it may be cut with a knife ; and has the fame
name in all languages. It is remarkably bright,
glittering, and almoft tranfparent ; and its texture
\cry loofe and open, though it is moderately hea-
vy. The ground is of a clear pale yellov/, be-
twxen that of honey and amber, and beautifully
variegated with crooked undulated veins, fome of
which are broad, and others narrow ; fome of a
pale red, others whitifli, and others again of a
xety agreeable pale brown. It will bear a very fine
polifh, and confifts of large angular fparry concre-
tions. It was formerly found only in Egypt, but
is now met with in many parts of England.
A-LA-MI-RE, among muficians, is the name
of a note in the modern fcale of mufic. See Ga-
mut.
ALAMODE, in commerce, the name of a \'ery
thni, gloiTv, black filk, chiefly ufed for women's
hoods and men's mourning fcarfs.
ALARES A^ufcuii, in anatomy, the Latin name
of the mufcles generally called pterygoidei. See
the article Pterygoideus.
ALARM, in m.ilitary aftairs, implies either the
apprehenfion of being fuddenlv attacked, or the
notice of fuch an attack, fignified by the firing of
a cannon, mufket, &c.
Falfe alarms are frequently made ufe of to har-
rafs the enemy, by keeping them continually under
arms.
Alarm-bell, the bell rung upon any Aiddcn
A a cn-.er-
ALB
ALB
cmcrgcncv, as a fire, mutiny, approach of an ene-
my, or the like.
Alarm-post, the place appointed for drawing
up a regiment in cafe of an alarm.
Alarm, the name of a kind of clock, contriv-
ed for waking people at a certain hour, by making
i'.n uncommon r.oife, &:c.
ALATED Leaver, in botanv, are thofe com-
pofed of feveral pinnated ones. S^e Pinnated.
ALATERNUS, in botanv, the ever green pri-
vet, a plant that produces male and female flow-
ers ; the male are compofed of a monophylous fun-
nel fhap'd cup, cut in five fegments at the brim,
furrounding five fmall petals with the fame number
of filaments ; the female flowers have the appear-
ance of the male, but when examined, are without
anyftamina, having a trifid ilyle placed on the ger-
men, which afterwards becomes a round, foft ber-
ry containing three feeds. This plant is very
common in England, and vulgarly called philly-
rea ; the moft diftinguifhed difference between
them is, that the leaves of the true phillyrea are
placed oppofite in pairs on the branches, whereas
the leaves of the alaternus are fituated alternately,
whence the name is fuppofed to be derived. — The
variegated fort, (commonly called the flriped phil-
lyrea) which is a beautiful plant, is encreafed by
layers, and the other fpecies by layers or feeds ;
this genus of plants are clafTed by Linnseus with
the rhamnus. See the article Rhamnus.
ALBANENSES, the name of certain heretics,
v^ho troubled the peace of the church in the fe-
venth century. They revived in a great meafure
the errors of the Manicheans, and other fe(Etaries,
which had been dropt for near three hundred years.
Their firft reverie confided in eftablifhing two
principles, the one good and the other evil ; to the
latter they attributed all the books of the Old Tef-
tament, which they rejected with abhorrence ; the
former they faid was the father of Jefus Chrift,the
fountain of good, and author of theNewTeftament.
They affirmed that the world had exifled from e-
ternity ; denied any refurreftion of the body; and
held with Pythagoras, the tranfmigration of fouls.
They afierted, that a man has a power of giving
himfelf the holy fpirit ; and that the accounts we
read of hell are all fable and fidion ; with other
tenets equally iinchriftian, wild, and ridicu-
lous.
ALBANI, in antiquity, a college of the Salli,
or the prieils of Mars, fo called from Mount Al-
banus, the place of their refidence.
ALBATI, a fort of Chriitian hermits, who
flourifhed in the year 1399, during the pontificate
of Boniface IX. The v/ere fo called from the
v/^hite linen which they wore. They c ime down
from t'iie Alps into feveral provir.ce; of Italy,
under the condudt of a prieft cloathed in white,
and holding a crucifix in his hand. The follow-
6
crs of this priefl:, whofe great zeal made lum
looked upon as a faint, multiplied fo fall, that it
alarmed the pope, who, fending foldiers, appre-
hended and put him to death ; upon which his fol-
lowers immediately difperfed. Thefe monks pro-
fefTed forrow and v/eepinsr for the fins and calami-
ties of the times : they eat together in the high-
ways, and flept promifcuouflv.
ALBE, a fmall piece of money, current in Ger-
many, worth about three halfpence.
ALBERTUS, a gold coin, worth about four-
teen {hillings; it was coined during the admiiiiftra-
tion of Albcrtus, archduke of Aulhia.
ALBIGENSES, a k€t of heretics who fprung
up in the twelfth century : they were fo called from
one Oliver, a difciple of Peter de Valdo, or Wal-
dius, who firft fpread his errors at AIbi, a city of
Languedoc, on the banks of the Tarne.
If we believe the catholic writers, this feiSl was
the very hodge-podge, or fcum of all the heretics,
that have ftarted up fince the firft propagation of
chriftianity. It contained the eftence of ail the
errors which had been advanced by theBafilidians,
Arians, Manicheans, &c. mixed up with a thou-
fand abfurd ingredients of their own invention.
Yet bad as it was, it gained fo confiderable a
ground againft the corruptions of the Romifti
church, and the profligacy of their clergy, that it
was not fupprefied v/ithout great bloodfhed and
murthers. They were at firft fupported bv Rai-
mond, count of Touloufe, when the catholics a-
greed upon a holy league, or crufade againft them.
He vvas joined by the king of Arragon, but was
defeated at the fiege of Muret, where he was kill-
ed, and the defeat followed by the furrender of the
city of Touloufe, and the conqueft of the greateft
part of Languedoc and Provence. His fuccefibr
agreed with the pope to fet up the inquifition in
his ftate, and to extirpate the Albigenfes. In an
aflembly held at Milan, the archbifhop of Tou-
loufe drew up articles^ agreeable to which the
count made a moft ample declaration againft them,
which he publifhed at Touloufe in 1253. This
compleated the ruin of the Albigenfes.
ALBITROSSE, the name of a bird, very
common in fe\'eral parts of the Weft-Indies ; but
not reduced to any certain genus.
ALBORAK, among Mahometan v/riters, the
beaft on which Mahomet rode in his journey to
heaven.
ALBUGINEA Tunica, in anatomy, the third
or innermoft coat of the tefticles, fo called from
its white colour.
AliiUginea is alfo a name given by fome ana-
tomifts to one of the co.its of the eye, called alfo
adnata. See the article Eve.
ALBUGO, among phyficians, denotes a dif-
temper of the eye, caufed by a white, denfe, and
opaque fpot, growing on the tunica cornea.
The
A L C
A LC
The word is formed from the Latin alius,
white.
This is a troublefo'me difeafe, which is more or
lefs offenfive to the fight, according to the greater
or lefs portion of the tianfparent part of the cor-
nea atFeifted by it : for fometimes it fixes on the
exterior furface only of this membrane, fometimes
on the interior, and fometimes it runs more or lefs
deep into it.
It is moft commonly the confcquence of inflam-
mations, by the extravafatiori of humours between
the membranes of this tunicle, and particularly in
the fmall-pox, by the fuppuration of puftules upon
this part.
I have, favs the learned Dr. Mead, made ufe of
two methods of cure for this diforder of the fight ;
the one in the outward fort, the other in the in-
ward. In the former cafe I ordered the following
powder :
Take of common glafs any quantity ; pound it
in a mortar, into a very fine powder ; then add
an equal quantity of white fugar-candy, and levi-
gate the mixture on a marble with great labour,
till it becomes quite impalpable.
A little of this powder, put into the eye with a
quill every day, gradually abfterges and wears off
the fpot by its inciding quality. The other me-
thod above-mentioned of removing this fpeclc is,
to order a dexterous furgcon to pare it cautioufly
every day with a knife ; for this tunicle is com-
pofed of feveral lamelhie one over another, and has
thicknefs enough to bear paring off fome of its
parts. I have feen feveral inftances of cures by
the eye-powder, but the paring of the coat has
not fucceeded with me above once or twice. How-
ever, it is better to try a doubtful remedy than
none. Mead's Manila 6f Pracepta.
ALBUM Gritcum, in the old materia medica,
the white dung of dogs, faid to be good for in-
flammations of the throat; but it is little regarded
at prefent.
ALBUMEN, a term ufed by medical writers
for the white of an egg.
It is ufed in collyriums, on account of its cool-
ing and agglutinating quality : it is alfo often an
ingredient in ointments for burns.
ALBURN, the Englifli name for a fort of
compound colour, formed by mixing red and
white.
ALCAICS, a name given to feveral different
kinds of metre, which were made ufe of by the
Greeks and Latins : they are fo called from the in-
ventor of theni Alcaeus, a famous Lyric poet, born
at Mitylene, in the ifland of Leibos, about the
44th Olympiad. He was cotemporary with the
celebrated Sappho ; and left fexeral works behind
him, of which only a few fragments are now re-
maining. He was an inveterate enemy to tyrants,
a«d particularly to Pittacus and Periander; for
which rcafon.
Horace mentions him thus
Aktt'i ininaces
Stcfhhor'ique graves caynccr.c.
The firft fpecies of Alcaic verfe is of four feet,
and confifls of a fjjondee or trochee, a bacchius,
and two daftvles, as thus :
'jujluin ct I Ur.achn \ propoii \ t'l virurn.
In every flanza, where this kind of metre is ufed,
the two firfl: verfes are of this fort ; the other two
verfes differ, the third being an iambic dimeter
hypercataleftic, i. e. with a long fyllable over and
above, as
Nw vid I ttisln \Jlar,fis [ tyran \ n't.
And the fourth verfe an alcaic, which confuls of
two daftyles and two trochees, or a trochee and a.
fpondee, as,
Menu quit ] fit foUrl \ a, r.cc | Ju/ler,
The following is a complete alcaic itanza,
Vefler \ camoenae., \ Fefler in \ arduos
Tollor j Sahuios ; \ jn'. rniht j frigidum
Praenef | te, feu | Tltur | Jitpl | num.
Sen liqui I dae placu \ ere Baiae !
Befides thefe two forts of alcaic verfe, which aro
called dactylic, there is another called fimply alcaic,
which confifts of an epitritus fecundus, two chori-
ambufes, and a bacchius ; as thus,
Fil'ium dl I cunt ThctuVis | Jub lacrimo | sa Trdjae.
Alcaic Ode^ a kind of manly ode, compofed
of feveral flrophes, each confifting of four verfes ;
the two firft of which are always alcaics of the
firft kind ; the third verfe is a dimeter hypercata-
lectic, or confifting of four feet and a long fylla-
ble ; and the fourth verfe is an alcaic of the fe-
cond kind. The following ftrophe is of this fpe-
cies, which Horace calls rmnaces Alcai camoena.
Non pojjidentem mi/'ta vocaveris
Retle beatum : reSiius oceupat
Nomen teatt, qui deorum
Miourihus japi enter utt. Sic. Hor.
Alcaid, Alcavde, or Alcalde, among
the Spaniards and Portuguefe, is a magiftrate, or
officer of juftice, anfwering nearly to our juftice
of peace. The alcaid is properly a Moorifli officer,.
where he is inverted with fupreme jurifdidion, both-
in civil and criminal cafes.
ALCALI, or Alkali, a general appellation
given by phyficians and chemifts to all fubftances,
which, on being mixed with acids, excite an effer-
vefcence.
The word originally fignified the fait extrafled
from the afhes of iali, or glafswort : but was
afterwards applied to all falts that effervefccd with-
acids.
Alcalies are generally divided into two kinds,,
and diftinguifhed by the epithets of ^xed and
volatile.
Fixed Alkalies are diftinguifhed from faline;
fubftances not alcaline, by their effervefcing with
all acids, forming with them neutral falts, preci-
pitating
A L C
ipitating Iblutioiis made in acids, and changing
lyrup of violets green.
They arc diftiugnifhed from volatile alculics by
their fixity an<i fufibility in the fire, by their deli-
quiating in the air, and never affuming a cryflal-
linc form, changing Iblution of mercury iublimate
not white, but of an orange yellow, producing
no bhic colour v/ith copper or its folutions, ralfnig
no vifible cloud when placed near an unftopt bottle
of nitre, occafioning no coldnefs but rather heat
on being diffolvcd in water. Pure fixed alcalies,
tliffolved in water, mingle with a foUition of any
other pure alcali, without the leaft precipitation,
turbidncfs, or fcnfiblc change.
They form, with acids, different neutral falts,
according to the nature of the acid employed ;
with the vitriolic, a bitterifh fait, very difficult of
folution in water, and not fufible in the fire, com-
monly called vitriolated tartar, the alkaline fait
made from tartar being that v.'hich has chiefly been
employed for thefe purpofes ; with the nitrous acid,
they form a perfect nitre ; with the marine, a fait
greatly refembling fca-falt, being in fome refpecls
different from the common vegetable alkalies.
They readily cryftallize with any of the mineral
acids, and with tartar ; with which laft they com-
po-fe a neutral fait, much eafier of folution than
the tartar itfelf, and hence called foluble tartar.
They do not eafily cryftallize with the acid of vine-
gar or lemon juice; thefe mixtures, if by careful
management reduced to a cryftalline form, foon
deliquiate again in the air.
Preparation of fixed A'LCAhi'ES. The mofl: com-.
Tnodious method of prej)aring fixed alkaline falts
in th« large way, feems to be that direited by
Kunckel in his Art of Glafs. The afhes of wood,
or the woody part of vegetables, either burnt on
purpofe or as common fuel, are to be put into a
large tub or vat, whofe bottom is covered with
pieces of fplit wood and draw, to prevent the afhes
from flopping up the cock. So much water is to
be poured on the aihes as may totally cover them :
after ftanding for a night, the liquor, impregnated
with their faline part, is to be let off by the cock
at the bottom into another veffc! ; and the elixation
repeated with frefti water fo long as the ley has
any faline tafte. The elixated aihes may be ufcd,
like common wood-ailics, for manure; and the
weak leys may be rendered ftronger, by pouring
them, inftead of plain water, upon a frefh quan-
tity of afties. Thus from every parcel of aflies
we obtain a ftrong ley,- with a weaker one to be
returned on the next. Where the ley is to be
kept in its liquid ftatc, wooden vcffels (according
to him) are more commodious than earthen ones,
however glazed ; thefe laft being fooner corroded
and penetrated by the acrid liquor.
In procuring a folid fait, the ley is to be cva-
jjorated iji an iron pan, fixed in brick-work ; frefh.
A L C
ley being continually fupplied during the evapora-
tion, in a very (lender ftream, from a caflc placed
on the brick-work, till the quantity of fait is as
large as can be conveniently dried in the veffcl.
This impure brown or blackifh fait is to be cal-
cined in a furnace built for that ufe, with a red
heat jufl not ftrong enough to melt it, and every
now and then turned up and ftirred for fix or feven
hours, or till fome of the larger pieces, taken out
and broke, appear internally white. Thus we ob-
tain an alkali fufficiently pure for ;ill the bufineffes
in which thefe kinds of falts are employed : if,
for particular purpofes, a further purification fliould
be required, it may be diflblved, infpiffated, and
calcined afrefh. The rough fait lofes, in the firft
calcination, commonly about one tenth of its
weight.
Some foak in the ley a quantity of flraw, bean-
ftalks, or other like fubfiances, fufHcient to im-
bibe it ; and, by drying and burning thefe, obtain
the fait of the ley, without the trouble of boiling
it down. The earthy matter left by the ftraw is,
in quantity, inconfiderablc, and, for many pur-
pofes, of no injury to the fait, particularly for
foap-boiling, bleaching, 6;c. where the fait is
diffolved, and confequently purified from indiffolu-
ble earthy admixtures befoie it is ufed. There is
neverthelefs one great inconvenience in the procefs ;
the ftraw, when loaded with the alkali, being
very difficultly made to burn. "Vegetable fubflan-
ces in general, when fully impregnated with fixed
alkaline falts, never flame ; and do not burn at
all without a continuance of external heat, info-
much that fome have propofed the impregnatina: of
wood for buildings with falts, as an effeiStual
means for preventing its receiving or communicat-
ing fire.
The ftrength of leys, or the quantity of fait
diffolved in them, may be eftimated by the weight
of a certain meafure of them, compared to
the. weight of an equal meafure of water ; or
more commodioufly, and perhaps as accurately,
by means of an hydrometer graduated from ailual
trials with leys of known ftrength. Nfumaiins
Chcmi/iry.
Volatile Alcalies, are falts formed by a new
combination of the conftituting particles ot a na-
tural body, by the operation of putrefa<Sion.
Volatile alkalies from whatever fublfance ob-
tained, are ail alike, and have the fame proper-
ties ; differing only according to their degrees of
purity. The volatile alkali, as well as the fixed,
confilts of a certain quantity of acid, combined
with and entangled by a portion of the earth of
the mixed body from which it v,'as obtained ; and
on that account it has many properties like thoie
of a fixed alkali. But there is, moreover, in its
compofition, a confiderable quantity of a fat or
oily matter, of which there is none in a fixed
alkali ;
AL C
alkali ; and, by this means, there is a great diffe-
rence between them. Thus the volatility of the
alkali produced by putrefaction, which is the prin-
cipal difference between it and the other kind of
alkali, whofe nature it is to be fixed, inuft be at-
tributed to the portion of oil which it contains :
for there is a certain method of volatilizing fixed
alkalies, by means of a fatty fubftance.
Volatile alkalies have a great affinity with acids,
unite therewith rapidly and with ebullition, and
form with them neutral falts, which {hoot into
cryrtals, but differ from one another according
to the kind of acid employed in the combi-
nation.
The neutral falts which have a volatile alkali
for their bafis arc in general called ammoniacal
falts. That whofe acid is the acid of fea-falt, is
called fal ammoniac. As this was the firft known,
it gave name to all the reft. Great quantities of
this fait are made in Egypt, and thence brought to
lis. They fublime it from the foot of cows-dung,
which is the fewel of that country, and contains
fea-falt, together with a volatile alkali, or at leaft
the materials proper for forming it ; and confe-
quently all the ingredients that enter into the com-
pofition of fal ammoniac. See the Memoirs of the
Academy of Sciences.
The neutral falts formed by combining the
acids of nitre and of vitriol with a volatile alkali,
are called after their acids, nitrous fal ammoniac
and vitriolic fal ammoniac : the latter, from the
name of its inventor, is called Glauber's fecret fal
ammoniac.
ALCANNA, in commerce, a powder prepared
from the leaves of the Egyptian privet, in which
the people of Cairo drive a confiderable trade.
It gives a yellow colour, when fteeped in com-
mon water ; and a red one when infufed in vine-
gar or alum water. They alfo extraft an oil of a
very agreeable odour from the berries of the alcanna,
and ule it in medicine.
Knights of ALCANTARA, a military order in
Spain. The knights of this order make a very
confiderable figure in the hiftory of the Spanifh ex-
peditions againft the Moors.
ALCE, in natural hiftory, the name of an
animal, generally called the elk. See the article
Elk.
ALCEA, the hollyhock in botany, a biennial
plant of the mallow kind ; it grows to the height
of eight or nine feet, ornamented with large rofa-
ceous flowers, which are pentapetalous : thofe that
are moft efteemed produce double flowers of vari-
ous colours, which make a magnificent appear-
ance in July and Auguft, the feeds of which fliould
be fown in the fpring, and in the fucceeding au-
tumn planted where they are defigned to remain
for flowering. The vervain mallow, called alfo
AL G
alcea, is not of this genus, but a fpecies of the
mallow. See the article Mallow.
ALCHEMILLA, ladies manile, in botany,
a genus of tetandrious plants ; the common fort,
which grows in feveral parts of England, has roots
that are compofed of many thick fibres, which
greatly fpread in a proper foil ; the leaves fupport-
ed by long foot ftaiks, are roundifti and fcolloped
about their extremities, arifing immediately from
the root, from between which the flower ftems
fhoot forth about a foot high, divided into many
branches ; the cup of the flov/er is monophyllous
and herbaceous, cut into eight fegments : it is
deftitute of petals, but in the center of the em-
palement is fituated an oval gcrmen, into which
is inferted a long fcyle, crowned with a globular
ftigma, furrounded by four upright filaments, reft-
ing on the edge of the empalement, and topped
with roundifli (ummits : when the flower is de-
cayed, the germen becomes a fingle compreffed
feed. This plant is recommended by fome as an
excellent vulnerary, and is faid to confolidate,
aftringe, and thicken the blood, which makes it
be prefcribed in haemorrhages and other fluxes.
ALCHEMIST, a perfon M'ho profefles, or
pradifes the art of alchemyc
ALCHEMY, the fublimer, or more abftrufe
parts of chemiftry. See the article Chemistry.
The word is formed from the Arabic particle
al, which fignifies fublime, or excellent, and
cbemy, chemiftry. The term therefore properly
fignifies the fublime chemijlry^ or the ihenujhy^ by
way of excellence.
ALCIS, in mythology, the name under which
Minerva was worftiipped by the Macedonians.
ALCMANIAN, in ancient lyric poetry, a
fpecies of verfe confifting of two da£l:yls and two
trochees. The following is of this kind :
Virgini \ bus pue | rifque | caJilo.
ALCOHOL, in chemiftry, fignifies fpirit of v/ine
rectified by repeated diftillations, till it has acquired
the utmoft fubtilty and pcrfedion poflible.
•By thefe repeated rectifications, it is not only
freed from its redundant phlegm, but alfo iTom
fome particles of acid and oil, which, though
much lefs volatile than itfelf, afcend with it in
the firft diftillation ; nor is it poflible wholly to
avoid this inconvenience. See Spirit.
Alcohol alfo fignifies a very fine impalpable
powder. The oriental ladies ufe antimony, re-
duced to an impalpable powder, for blacking their
eye-lids, and call this powder alcohol.
ALCOLA, a term ufed by feme alchemifts for
the tartar of urine, found in finall grains of a
reddifti colour.
ALCOR, in aftronomy, the Arabic name of a
ftar of the 5th magnitude, adjoining to the large
B b bright
AL C
A L
bright ftar in the niidJle of the tail of the great
bear, or urfa major. We are told in Wolfe's
Lex Math, page 34, that it is a proverb among the
Arabians, " That thou can I'ce alcor, and yet not
" fee the full moon :" which they apply to fuch
perfons, who are apt to fee fmall things, and
overlook much greater.
ALCORON, Al-coran, orAL-iconAN, the
fcripture, or bible of the Mahometans.
ilie word is compounded of the Arabic particle
fl/, and coriin, or koran, derived from the verb
atraci, oxkaiaa, to read ; the true fenfe therefore
of the word is, the reading, or that which ought
to be read.
The alcoran is divided into 114 large portions,
of very unequal length, which we call chapters,
but the Arabians joiuar, which properly fignifies a
row, or feries. Thefe chapters, in the manu-
fcript copies, are not dillinguilhed by their nume-
rical order, but by particular titles, which are
fometimes taken from fome principal matter treated
of, but generally from the firlt word of note that
occurs.
Every chapter is fubdivided into fmaller portions,
which we ufually call verfes, but the Arabians,
eiat, which fignifies figns or wonders ; fuch are
the fecrets of God, his attributes, works, &c. de-
livered in thofe verfes.
The alcoran is univerfally allowed to be written
in the pureft language, and to be the llandard of
the Arabic tongue. The {file is, in general, beau-
tiful and fluent, efpecially where it imitates the
prophetic manner, and Scripture phrafes. It is
concife, and often obfcure, adorned with bold
figures after the eaftern manner, enlivened with
florid and fententious expreflions, and in many
places, efpecially where the majeily and attributes
of God are defcribed, fublime and magnificent.
The general defign of the alcoran was, to unite
the profeflbrs of the three different religions then
followed in the populous country of Arabia, who,
for the moft part, lived proniifcuoufly, and wan-
dered without guides, the far greater number be-
ing Pagans, and the reft Jews and Chriftians.
In order to perform this, Mahomet pretended to
be the ambafiador of God, who, after the repeat-
ed admonitions, promifes, and threatenings of for-
mer ages, had fent him to eltablifh the true reli-
gion upon earth by force of arms, and appointed
him chief pontiff in fpiritual, and fupreme prince
in temporal affairs.
• The great doftrine of the alcoran is the unity
of God ; and to reflore that fundamental principle
of true religion, ?v'Iahomet pretended was the chief
end of his million. But there are many occafional
paffages in it, relating to particular emergencies ;
for whenever any thing happened to perplex the
falfe prophet, he always had recourfe to a new
revelation : and hence there are feveral paffages in
the alcoran contradictory to one another. The
Mahometan doftors, however, obviate any ob-
jeiSlion that might be raifed on this fubjeft^ by
faying, that God commanded feveral things in the
alcoran, which for good reafons v/ere afterwards
revoked and abrogated.
That Mahomet was really the chief contriver
of the alcoran is beyond difpute ; though it is
highly probable, that he had no fmall affiftance in
his defign from others ; particularly from one Ser-
gius, a Neilorian monk, and a Jew named Ab-
dallah Ebn Saldm. The Mahommedans however
abfolutcly deny that the alcoran was compofed
either by their. prophet himielf, or any other per-
fon ; it being their general and orthodox belief,
that it is not only of divine original, but even
eternal and uncreated, remaining, as fome of them
exprefs it, in the very effence of God ; that the
firft tranfcript has been from everlaifing by God's
throne, written on a table of vaft bignefs ; that a
copy from this table, in one volume on paper,
was, by the miniftry of the angel Gabriel, fent
down to the loweft heaven in the month of Rama-
dan, whence Gabriel revealed it by parcels, fome
at Mecca, and fome at Medina, at different times
during the fpace of twenty years, as the exigency
of affairs required ; giving Mahomet, however,
the fatisfacSion of feeing the whole once a year.
They add, that this original copy was bound in
filk, and adorned with gold and precious flones of
paradife.
Hence it is eafy to conceive, that this book is
held in the higheft efteem and reverence among
the Mahometans. They dare not fo much as
touch it without being legally purified. They
read it with great attention and refped:, never
holding it below their girdles. They fwear by it,
confult it on the mofl weighty occafions, carry
it with them to war, write fentences of it in their
banners, adorn it with gold and precious ftones,
and, knowingly, do not fuffer it to be in the pof-
feffion of any of a different perfuafion.
ALCOVE, among builders, fignifies a recefs,
or part of a chamber, feparated by an eilrade, or
partition of columns, and other correfponding.
ornaments, in which either a bed of ftatc is placed,
or feats to entertain company.
ALDEBARAN, in affronomy, a ftar of the
firft magnitude in the eye of Taurus, and in Eng-
land is commonly called the bull's-eye ; it i&
marked a. by Bayer, and is the 87th in Mr. Flam-
flead's catalogue. The place of this ftar has been
fettled with great accuracy at the Royal Obferva-
tory at Greenwich, in the late Dr. Bradley's time,
from obfervations of the fun near the time of his
pailing the equinox. See the conftellation or figrt
l^uiruSj tor his right Afcenfion,Declination,Varia-
tioj^j
AL D
A LE
tion, kc. which has beeji determined from the mean
01*2000 obfervations, and may be looked upon as one
certain given point in tlie heavens, whereby allro-
nomers may fettle the theory of the planets, as
v/ell as navigators determine their longitude at fea,
by obl'erving his dillance from the Moon. See
Longitude.
ALDER, AIiius, in botany, a. genus of trees
that produces male and female flowers ; the male
are digefted into a long cylindrical loofe katkin,
and each contain four fmall ilaniina ; the female
flowers, which are connected into a fcaly head,
are without petals, but have each an oval germen,
on which are affixed two ilyles, extended the length
of the fcales, crowned with a fuigle fUgma :
when the flower is decayed, the germen becomes
an oval feed inclofed in the fcale of the fruit.
The fort which is mod: common delights to grow
in watery places, where few other trees will thrive ;
they are propagated by layers, or from branches cut
about three feet long, and planted in February or
March : this plant may alfo be raifed from feeds.
The alder is reckoned very proper to make hedges
in moiil: places, and the wood is of great ufe to
turners, &c. The different fpecies of the alder
are clallcd by Linnaeus with the betula or birch.
See the article Birch.
Alder bearinghlack berries. See Trangula.
ALDERMAN, the fecond degree of nobility
amony; the Antrlo-Saxons, and now the fecond de-
gree in cities or corporations ; the mayor being the
head, the alderman the next, and the common-
council the third, or lowed degree;
The word is derived from the Saxon earlder-
man ; that is, a fenior, or alderman, which, by de-
grees, came to fland for perfons of the greateft
difl:in£tion, becaufe fuch were chofen to difcharge
the higheft oftires, being thofe whofe long expe-
rience rendered them mofc capable, and whoie birth
and fortune made them molt confpicuous ; and as
they were generally intruded with the government
of the counties, inftcad of faying the governor,
it was faid the earldcrman of fuch a county ; and
by degrees this word came to fignify the governor
of a county, or city. While the heptarchy lafted,
thefe officers were only during the king's pleafure ;
at laft they were for life, at leaft for the mofi: part.
After the Danes were fettled in England, the title
of earldernian was changed into that of earl, and
the Normans introduced that of count, which,
though different in its original lignification, meant
however the fame dignity.
At this time aldermen are aflbciates to the mayor,
qr civil magiftrate':; of molt of our municipal or
corporate cities or towns, who form a kind of
council, and regulate matters according to the po-
licy of the place : fometimes they alfo take cogni-
zance of civil and criminal matters, but very rare-
ly, and in paiticular cafes ; their number is not
limited, being in fome places fix, and others twen-
ty-fix, out of wiiich are annually chofen the may-
ors, or chief magiftrates, who, at the expiration of
their mayoralty, devolve again into aldermen.
An alderman ought to be an inhabitant of the
place, and rcfident where he is chofe ; and if he
removes, he is incapable of doing his duty in the,
government of the place, for which he may be dis-
franchiied.
ALE, a fermented liquor obtained from an in-
fufion of malt, and differing only from beer in hav-
ing a leis proportion of hops.
There are various forts of ale known in Eng-
land, particularly pale and brown ; the former is
brewed from malt flightly dried, and is efteemed
more vilcrid than the latter, which is made froni,
malt more highly dried or roafted.
Medicated A-LUS, thofe wherein medicinal herbs
have been infufed, or added during the fermenta-
tion.
Gill Ale is that in which the dried leaves of
gill or ground-ivy have been infufed. It is efteem-
ed abiterfive and vulnerary, and confequently good
in diforders of the breaft and obitructions of the
vifcera.
Ale-conner, an officer in London, who in-
fpeds the meafures ufed in public houfes.
There arc four ale-conners, who are all chofen
by the common-council of the city.
Ale-Silver, a tax paid annually to the Lord-
mayor of London, by all who fell ale within the
city.
ALEA, a furname given to Minerva by Aleus,
king of Arcadia, who built a temple to that god-
defs in the city of Tegea, the capital of his king-
dom. Li that temple were preferved the hide and
tufks of the wild boar Calydon.
ALECTO, one of the three furies of hell, the,
daughter of Acheron and Night. See Furies.
The v/ord is Greek, and fignifies envy.
ALECTOPvIA, in natural hiftory, a {tone faid
to be formed in the Itomach, liver, or rather gall-
bladder of old cocks ; and to which the antients
attributed many fabulous virtues.
The word is Greek, and derived from ahi'/jr^ov-,
a. cock.
ALECTROMANCIA, in antiquity, a fpecies .
of divination performed by means of a cock, in
the following manner : a circle being defcribed on
the ground, and divided into tv/enty-four equal,
portions, in each of which was written one of the,
letters of the alphabet, and a grain of wheat plac-
ed on each of the letters ; this being finiflicd, a
cock was turned loofe in the circle, and particular
notice taken of the grains picked up by the bird ;
becaufe the letters under them being formed into- a
word, gave an anfwer to the queltion.
The word is Greek, and compounded of a.Ki%-~-
Tfoy, a cock, and jAAi'Tna, divination.
A-LEE,.
ALE
A-LEE, in navigation, when a fliip leans over
to one fide more than the other, by the wind
thwarting the line of her courfe, and prcling upon
hermail:s and fails, which a<Stupon her hull with the
power of a lever, the fide prefl'ed down is called
the lee-fide : "hence when the helm is moved cloie
to it, it is faid to be a-lee, or hard a-lee : the o-
ther fide is then called the weather-fide, and the
helm being moved over to it, is faid to be hard a-
weather.
ALEGAR, a kind of vinegar made of ale.
ALEMBIC, a chemical veflel ufually made of
glafs, or copper, for condenfing the vapours that
rife in diftillation ; for the alembic is properly the
head or upper part of the apparatus ufed in diftill-
ing; though it is often ufed to fignify the whole.
See the articles Still, and Distillation.
ALEPH, the name of the firft letter in the He-
brew alphabet, from which the alpha of the Syrians
and Greeks was formed.
The word properly fignifies chief, prince, or
thoufand. There are fome of the Pfalms and o-
thcr parts of fcripture which begin vv'ith Aleph,
and the other verfes of them are continued with
the other letters of the alphabet. The modern
Jews ufe their letters as cyphers. Aleph ftands for
one ; Beth for two ; Gimel for three, &c.
ALESANDERS, or Alexanders, in botany,
the Englifli name of a plant that produces umbel-
liferous pentandrious flowers, with lea\'es refemb-
ling fmallage. It was formerly ufed in cookery,
with the fame intention as cellery ; it is reckoned
a balfamic, but at prefent is little ufed either in the
fliops or kitchen. There are different fpecies of
this plant, all clafled by botanifts under the gene-
ral name Smyrnium.
ALEXANDRINE, the name of a kind of
verfe, which confifls of twelve fyllables. It was
(o called from a poem written in French, in this
metre, ililed the Alexandriad. It was frequently
made ufe of by our old poets, even in whole
poems : Spenfer conftantly ends every ftanza of
his Fairy Qiieen with one of thefe verfes. Dry-
dcn v/as of opinion, that it might be introduced
with grer.t propriety, at the clofe of a fentence, to
give an air of folemnity and majefly to the thought;
and accordingly we frequently meet with it in his
works. It is now very much difufed, which might
be owing, in fome meafure, to the following cen-
fure paffed upon it by Pope, in his Effay on Cri-
ticifm :
Then, at the laft, and only couplet, fraught
With fome unmeaning thing they call a thought,
A nccdlefs Alexandi'ine ends the long,
That, like a wounded fnake, drags its flow
ilrength along.
Our Alexandrine verfe anfwers cxaftly to the
6
A L G
Trimeter larnhtc of the ancients, as may be fccn
from the two following lines,
^ul IS uflrt 1 tumulius ? out \ quid omniitm. Hor.
And all the day [ in doing good, | and godly deeds.
Spenf,
ALEXIPHARMICS, in medicine, are proper-
ly remedies for expelling or preventing the ill ef-
fefls of poifon : but fome of the moderns having
imagined that the animal fpirits, in acute diflem-
pers, vyere affefted by a malignant poifon, the
term has been underftood to mean medicines a-
dapted to expel this poifon by the cutaneous pores,
in the form of fweat. In this fenfe, alexipharmics
are the fame as fudorifics.
The v/ord is formed from the Greek, dLAi^a, to
expel, and tpdLpi/.Aiccy, a poifon.
ALEXITERIAL, among phyficians, a term
of much the fame import with alexipharmic ;
though fometimes ufed in a fynonymous fenfe with
amulet.
ALFAQUES, among the Moors, the name ge-
nerally ufed for their clergy, or thofe who teach
the Mahometan religion, in oppofition to the Mo-
rabites, who anfwer to the Monks among the
Chriftians.
ALFET, in our old cufloms, denotes a caul-
dron full of boiling v.'ater, wherein an accufed
perfon, by way of trial or purgation, plunged his
arm up to the elbow.
ALGA, in botany, a genus of fubmarine plants,
called in Englifh glafs-wreck, compofed of long
flender leaves of a dufky-grcen colour, very much
refemblino; fome kinds of grafs.
Authors enumerate feveral fpecies of alga, the
moft confiderablc of which is the alga-marina, the
fait of which is fo much ufed in the glafs trade.
ALGAROT, or Altjaret, in chemiftrv, an
emetic powder prepared from regulus of anti-
mony.
ALGEBRA, an univerfal arithmetic, or gene-
ral method of computation by certain figns, fim-
bols, or characters ; or the method of folving pro-
blems and raifing theorems by means of equa-
tions.
The word algebra is certainly derived from the
Arabic, but there have been fome miitakes as to its'
meaning. When it was firft introduced in Eu-
rope, it was underftood to be the invention of the'
famous philofopher Geber ; and by fome authors is
fometimes called regula algebra:, and fometimes re-
gula Gcbro, which fignifies nothing more than Ge-
ber's rule. But fince the Arabic language has be-
come more familiar in thofe parts, it is well known
that the Arabians called this art al-gjabr -ju'al-
viohabala, which is literally the art of refolution
and equation ; from hence we may infer, that the
true derivation of the word algebra, is from the
Arabic name of the art, and not from the fuppofed
inventor
A L G
A L G
inventor Geber. Whether the Oriental philofo-
phers or the Greeks were the firft inventors of al-
gebra, is yet difputed ; but it is very certain, that
it was handed to us by the Moors, who had it
from the Arabians ; but whether they are indebted
to the Perfians and Indians, or to the Greeks, is
yet a difpute. However, it muft be allowed that
the algebra taught as by the Arabians differs very
much from that contained in the works of Diophan-
tus, the oldeft Greek r.uthor on this art which is
now extant. But all th'fe difliculties, wiiich have
given great men fo much trouble, maybe eanly fur-
mounted, if we fuppofe tha' the invention was ori-
ginally taken from the Greeks, and nev/- modelled
by the Arabians in the f».me ojanner as we know
common arithmetic was : far this, which is ex-
tremely probable, m?.k';;s the whole plain and clear,
and leaves us the libc'ty to purfue the progrefs
of this art ; which, when it became better known
to the Europeans, received different names. The
Italians ftiled it ars magna, which in their own lan-
guage is I'arte magjore, oppofing to it common a-
rithmetic as the common or lefi'er art. It was alfo
called Regula Co/a, the Rule of Cofs ; becaufe the
Italians make ufe of the word Cofa, to fignify what
we call root, and from thence this kind of learn-
ing being derived from them to us, the root, the
fquare, and the cube, were called Coflic num-
bers, and this fcience the Rule of Cofs.
Lucas deBurgo Sandli Sepuchri publiOiedat Ve-
nice, under the title of, A com^Jeat treatife of arith-
metic and geometry, proportions and equations, the firft
book which is now extant on this fubjeft. It was
printed fo early as 1494, and is a very corredl
treatife : he afcribes the invention of algebra to the
Arabians, ufes their method, and treats very clear-
ly of quadratic equations.
- After him feveral authors in Germany and Italy
wrote on the fame fubjefl; but ftill the art ad-
vanced very little, till the famous Jerom Cardan
printed at Nuremberg, in 1545, in folio, a trea-
tife with this title, /frtis magna Jive de regttlis alge-
traicis, liber unus ; and foon after a fmaller piece,
with the title of Sermo de plus W minus, wherein
were rules contained for refolving cubic equations,
which have fince been called Cardan's rules, tho'
they were not invented by him, but as hinifelf
owns, by Scipio Ferreus of Bononia and Tarta-
gila. The next ■ celebrated writer was a French
ftionk, whofe name was Boteon, better known to
the learned by the Latin appellation of Buieo, He
publilhed in 1559, his Logiftica, in which there
was a treatife of algebra, which gained him great
reputation : yet his excellency lay in a clear and
copious manner of writing ; nor does it appear
that he added any thing to what had already been
difrnvered, except fome corretlions as to Tarta-
gila's melho i of managing cubic equations.
iutherto nothing was known of the Greek Analy-
^ fis; but in 1575, Xilander pubiiflied Diopbantui,
or at leaft: a part of his woiks, which are ftill re-
maining, and this quickly changed the face of
things; for it prefently appeared, that his was a
neater and more eafy method, and withal opened
a path to much greater difcoverles, which was the
reafon that the fucceeding algebiaifts quitted tiic
terms made ufe of by Arabic writers, and adopted
his. The time whicfi Diophantus flouriflied is noc
thoroughly fettled. Voffius thinks he lived in the
fcCOnd century, but others place him in the fourth :
his works were known to the Arabians, and trani-
lated by them ; nay, it is faid, they have ftill tho(e
feven books of arithmetic of his which are loft to
us. The famous Arabian hiftorian Abul-Pharai-
jus, whofe works were pubiiflied by the learned
Pocock, not only mentions him, but afcribes to
him the invention of algebra ; but in this he is to be
underftood as writing according to the lights he
had ; for though it be true that Diophantus Alex-
andrinus is the oldeft author we have which treats
exprefly of the analytic art, yet the footfteps there-
of are vlfible in much older writers. Theo, who
is thought to have explained the five firft propofi-
tions in the thirteenth book of Euclid in the ana-
lytic way, gives the honour of the invention to
Plato, and indeed it feems very agreeable to his ge-
nius and method of reafoning on mathematical
fubjefls. By the junftion of both lights, and a
proper connexion of the Arabic method of invef-
tigation with the Greek terms, which were much
fliorter and eafier, algebra quickly became a much
more ufeful as well as confiderable fcience than it
was before. In our own country, the firft wri-
ter on algebra that was known of, was Dr. Robert
Record, a phyfician, who diftinguifhed himfelf in
the reign of queen Mary, by his (kill in the ma-
thematics. He firft publifhed a book of arithme-
tic, which continued the ftandaid for that branch
of learning for many years ; and in 1557 he fent
abroad a fecond part, under the title of Cos ingeniiy
or the IFhetJlone oftuit, which is a treatife of alge-
bra ; the word cos alluding to Coflic numbers, or
the Rule of Cos, by which name, as has been before
(hewn, this art was known. This treatife is real-
ly a great curiolity, confidering the time in which
it was publifhed, and, together with his othet:
works, muft give us a high idea of the man's in-
duftry and application.
But notwithftanding the early publication of this
piece, and that fome Englifh gentlemen in their
travels acquired fome knowledge of this kind, as
appears by a Spanilh treatife of algebra publifhed
by Pedro Nunnez, in T.567, )et it continued to
be fo little cultivated in England, that Jrjhn Dee
in his mathematical preface, prefixed to Sir Henry
Billingfley's tiandation of Euclid, printed at Lon-
don in 1570, fpeaks of it in very high terms, and
as a myftery fcarce heard of by the ftudious in the
^ ^ aiathe-
A L G
A L G
mathematics here : however, it is plain from fomeof
his annotations on Euclid, that he was tolerably
verfed therein, and was even acquainted with the
manner of applying it to geometry, [n 1579,
Leonard Digges, a great mathematician for thofe
times, printed a treatife of algebra in his Stratkti-
(os, after which it came to be better known, and
more ftudied, to which contributed not a little the
improvement made by the author we fliall next
mention,
Francifcos Vieta, who for his attachment to the
mathematics, and efpecially this part of it, is well
known.
About the year 1590, he publiflied a treatife of
algebra in quite a new method ; and by a judicious
mixture of the Greelc and Arabian rules, with
fome improvements of his own, introduced the
mode of calculation which is {till in ufe under
the title of Specious Arithmetic. Before this time,
only unknown quantities were marked by letters,
but fuch as were known were fetdown in figures,
according to the ufual notation. He made ufe of
letters for both, only with this diftin£lion, that
the known quantities he reprefented by confonants,
and the unknown by vowels. By this contri-
vance he greatly extended the fcience, and, which
was more, (hewed its capacity of being farther
extended: for, whereas former algebraifts had
confined their inveftigaiions to the particular quef-
tions propofed to them, he by this means produced
theorems capable of refolving all demands of a
like nature, inftead of particular folutions. — The
learned Dr. Wallis has accounted very clearly for
the new title that Nieta gave to his algebra.
The Romans had a method of ftating law quef-
tions under'general names, fuch as Titius and Sem-
pronius, Caius and Msevius, whence we derive
our way of ufing A B C D on fuch occafions,
•which methods of ftating the civilians ^Wtfpt-cies,
in oppofition to the ftating of real cafes by true
names.
Vieta having made a change of the fame nature
in algebra, and being a lawyer by profeffion, he
borrowed from that fcience the title of his new in
vention, which was received with univerfal ap-
plaufe : we have likewife many of his works un.
der the name of ApoUonius Gallus, which he af-
iiiimed on account of his firft attempting to re-
ftore the works of ApoUonius Pergxus. About
the fame time flourifhed Raphael Bombelli, an
Italian, who publifted at Florence a treatife of al-
gebra, wherein he firft taught how to reduce a bi
quadratic equation to two quadratics, by the help
of a cubic. — Our own countryman, Mr. William
Oughtred, was the next great improver of alge-
bra. Building however on what Vieta had already
performed, he introduced fuch a concii^enels, and
V^itbal fo plain and perfpicuous a method of inycf-
tigatit^g geometrical problems, as acquired him im-
mortal reputation. His Clavis Mathematiius, or key
of the mathemathematics, was firft publifhed ia
1631, and is perhaps the clofeft, and moft com-
pendious fyftem hitherto extant.
In this work he contented himfelf with the fo-
lution of quadratic equations, referving thofe of a
higher power for another work, which was the
Exegefis Numerofaf which in later editions is joined
to his Clavis.
In both pieces there were abundance of addi-
tions and improvements, and the dodlrine of pro-
portions more fully and clearly ftated than it hi-
therto had been ; but the greateft excellency of
Mr. Oughtred's book was the application of the
analytic method to geometry, which he did in a.
variety of cafes, and enabled his difciples to pro-
ceed ftill farther than he had done. Cotempo-
rary with him was Mr. Thomas Harriot, an ex-
cellent mathematician, and who made ftill greater-
improvements in this fcience. He is placed after
Oughtred, though he died long before him, be-
cause his book was not publiftied till fome time af-
ter the firft edition of Oughtred's Clavis. It was
then printed in a thin folio, by the care of Mr
Walter Warner, under the title of, Artls analyti-
tce praxis ad a-quationes algdraicas, nova, expedita isf
generall methodo, refolvendas, traSiatus pojlhwnus., ISe.
that is, A tieatife of the analytic ait, containing
a new, expeditious, and general method of refolv-
ing equations; a pofthumous trail, by the late learn-
ed Mr. Thomas Harriot. The publifher, Mr. War
ner prefixed a preface of his own, containing a
very judicious, though concife, reprefentation of
the feveral parts of algebra, their natture and de^
pendence on each other, the extent and ufefulnefs
of this art, and the progrefs thereof to this time.
In Mr. Harriot's book, algebra takes a new form,
and from him alone it met with more improve-
ments than it had done from all who had ftudied,
or at leaft all who had written upon it before him.
. It is divided into two parts, and the author be-
gins his improvement by removing every thing that
was ufelefs, fuperfluous, or inelegant in other me-
thods : thus, inftead of capitals, he introduced fmail
letters; inftead of terms, fquares, cubes, furfolids,
&c. and their contradhons, he brought, in the pow-
ers themfelves, which made the operations much.
moreeafy, natural, and perfpicuous, than they were
before. Having thus eltabliflied a plain and accu-
rate notation, he proceeds to a multitude of new
difcoveries, of which, to the number of twenty-
three, the reader may find a full, diftindl, and very
judicious account, in the celebrated treatife of Dr.
Wallis.
Fiom this admirable piece of Mr. Harriot's, Des
Cartes took all the improvement he pretended to
make, as the Doctor juftly obferves, and e£ ,
which
A L G
A L G
which we fliall furnifii the reader with fome con- j
cife, andwethitikconclufive proofs. Firft, It appears
fiom the accounts we have of the life of Des Cartes,
that he was h re in England when Harriot's book
was publiflied, which being written in Latin, in
a branch of learninj; about which that great man
was then very fedulous, it is eafy to conceive that
he was one of his firlt perufers: Secondly, It is
certain that he did not publifa any thing on the
fubje£t before that year: Thirdly, His treatife of
geometry, wherein thefe new improvements firft
appeared, was printed in French in 1637, with-
out his name; which, in all probability, was to try
what opinion the world would have of them, and
whether any one of the French mathematicians
could difcein whence they were taken: Fourthly,
Thou'^h he I'ufl'ered the two firfl parts of his book
to be publifned in Latin, with his name, in 1644;
yet the third part relating to geometry, did not
appear till 1649, whenic was publifhed by Francis
Van Schooten. 'Ihcle are probable reafons only :
but then, Fifthly, He follows Harriot dillin£tly in
ftineteen feveral difcoveries ; which, that they fliould
be made in the fame method and manner, (except
a few miftakes) without confuking Mr. Harriot,
is altogether incredible, and was fo held to be even
by his countrymen, when, through the information
of the honourable Mj. Cavendifli, they were made
acquainted with Mr. Harriot's book: Sixthly,
There are fome little changes, particularly in the
marks made ufe of by Des Cartes, and which were
never followed by any body, that plainly intimate
he only introduted them in order to difguife:
Seventhly, It appears that Des Cartes himfelf was
acquainted with the ch»rge brought againft him
on this head, and yet he never thought fit to
juftify himfelf, nor ever fo much as declared, that
he never had feen the book he was faid to have
copied.
On the whole, therefore, there is all the reafon
in the world to believe, that the honour due to the
great improvement of this fcience, which fitted it for
all that is has received fincc from foreigners or
Englifhmen, belongs to our author Harriot, and
not to Des Cartes, who only accommodated thefe
difcoveries to geometrical i'ubjedls.
After him Dr. John Pell publiflied fome new
difcoveries, while he was refident for the common-
wealth of England in Switzerland. The method
he took of doing it was this ; he recommended
to Mr. Thomas Brancker a Treatife of Algebra,
written in the German language by Rhonius, which
when he had tranflated, the Doctor reviled, al-
tered, and added to it. In this piece thrre are a
great many curious things, relating efpecially to
Diophantine algebra, but delivered very obfcurely,
infomuch, that Dr. Wallis feenis to be in a doubt,
whether himfelf had reached Dr. Pell's true mean-
iog. Yet to this gentleman, who wrote in fo per-
plexed a way, we fl-and indebted for the invention
of the rcgiflcr; a method of great uii?, efpecially
to beginners, the pradice of which chiefly recom-
mended Kerfey's Algebra. As for the rules of
John Van Hudde, Mr. Merry, Erafmus Bartho-
line, Mr. Huygens, and others, we fhall not take
notice of them, becaufe, in reality, they are no
more than improvements and deduclions from Har-
riot. The fame thing may be laid of what has
been written by Meffeurs Fermat, De Billy, Fer-
nicle, and other French mathematicians, who on-
ly propofcd problems for other people to refolve,
and referved their own method of folutions as im-
penetrable fecrets. Dr, Wallis has made fome
confiderable improvements in this fcience; efpeci-
ally in refpeiSt to impofhble roots in fuperior equa-
tions ; and what he left unperfe(Sl: has been fup-
plied by the ingenious Mr. Abraham de Moivre,
,vh( fe accurate performances on that fubjefl have
lately been publifiied in the Algebra of Dr. Saun-
derfon.
In i6j5, Dr- Wallis publiibed his Arlthmetlca'
Infinltorum, in which he fquared a feries of curves,.
and fliewed, that if this feiies could be interpolated
in the middle fpaces, the interpolation would givs
the quadrature of the circle.
This treatife fell into the hands of the ingenious
Sir Ifaac, then Mr. Newton, in the year 1664,.
when that gentleman \\ as about twenty-two years-
of age; and he, by a fagacity peculiar to himfelf^,
derived from this hint his celebrated method of
infinite or converging feries. In 1665, he com-
puted the area of the hyperbola by this feries, to
52 figures; which having communicated to Dr^
Barrow, he prevented Mr. Nicholas Mercator's
running away with the reputation of this difcovcry,
who in 1668 publifhed the quadrature of the hyperbo-
la by an infinite feries. This was received with
univerfal applaufe ; and yet Mr. Newton far ex-
ceeded him, fince, without flopping at the hyper-
bola, he extended this method by general forms ta
all forts of curves, even fuch as are mechanical, to
their quadratures, rectifications, and centers of
gravity, to the folids formed by their rotations,
and to the fuperficies of thofe foliJs -, fo that fup-
pofing their determinations to be poflible, this feries--
flopped at a certain point, or at leaft their {'\im%
were given by ftated rules. But if the abfolute
determinations were poffible, they could yet be.
infinitely approximated, as he iikewife fliewed ; and
which, as a French writer juftly obferves, is tha
happieft and moft refined contrivance for fupply-
ing the defedls cf human knowledge, that nian'-s.
imagination could poffibly invent. It is alfa
certain, that he attained his invention of fluxions-
by the time he was four and twenty j but his mo-
defty was fo great, that he foibore to publifii hi.i
difcovery; which was the fole reafon that the
honour of it was was ever difputcd with hira. In
17.07.
A L G
A L I
1707, he firft pubfiflied a fyftem of algebra, under
the title of Univerfal Arithmetic; and in 1722,
gave another edition of it, wherein are contained
all his improvements in that art. From the rules
laid down by him, ftill farther lights were ftruck
out by fucceeding mathematicians, fuch as Dr.
Edmund Halley, who publiOied in the Philofophi-
cal Tranfadions a method of finding the roots of
equations without any previous redudion, and the
conftruflion of equations to the third and fourth
power, by the help of the circle and parabola.
Mr. John Collbn, who obliged the world with an
univerfal refolution, geometrical and mechanical,
of cubic and biquadratic equations; Mr. Colin
Mac Laurin in his treatife of Impoffible Roots;
Mr. Simfon of Woolwich, Mr. Clark, and fome
others, have applied algebra likewife to the laws
of chance and gaming, as may be feen in the ex-
cellent treatifes they have written on that fubje£t.
Numeral Algebra is that wherein the un-
known quantities are reprefented by letters, or
fymbols, and the known quantities by numbers.
This kind of algebra is what was u fed by the
ancients, till the rime of Francifcus Vieta, (who
was the firfl that invented literal or fpecious alge-
bra) and is fometimes now ufed by young (Indents
in the fcience, who cannot without fome difficulty
and practice, make themfelves familiar with the
algebraic language ; and therefore, by this mixture
of numbers and letters, they gradually become ac-
quainted with the true value of letters, which
may reprefent either known or unknown quanti-
ties.
Literal or Specious Algebra, is that wherein
both the known and unknown quantities are re-
prefented by letters or fymbols, by which means
we have general folutions inftead of particular ones,
as well as raife theorems, and demonftrate all
kind of problems, whether arithmetical or geome-
trical.
For the method of working the feveral rules in
algebra, they will be treated of under their refpedive
articles. See Addition, Substraction, Mul-
tiplication Division, &c.
ALGEBRAICAL, any thing that belongs or
relates to algebra; thus we fay, algebraic curves,
folutions, charaders, fymbols, &c. See Curve,
&c.
ALGEBRAIST, one who underftands and is
well acquainted with algebra.
ALGENEB, aftarof the 3d magnitude, on the
right fide of Pcrfeus. It is the 33d in that con-
ftellation, according to Flamftead's order, and
marked u by Bayer. This ftar, by moft aftrono-
mers, is faid to be of the fecond magnitude, but
by obfervation, it is found to be only of the third.
For its right afcenfion, declination, &c. fee the
conftellation Perseus.
ALGOIDES, a name ufed by Vaillant for a^
genus of plants, called, by Linnaeus, zannlchellia.
See Zannichellia.
ALGOL, a fixed ftar of the 2d magnitude, called
alfo Medufa's head ; it is the 26th of Perfeus, ac-
cording to Flamftead's order, and marked S by
Bayer. See the conftellation Perseus.
ALGORAB, in aftronomy, a ftar of the 3d
magnitude, in the right wing of Corvi ; it is the
7th according to Flamftead's order, and marked S
by Bayer. See the conftellation CoRvus.
ALGORITHM, fometimes called logijV.ca nume-
raits, is an Arabic term frequently ufed to fignify
the pracSlical rules in albegra, but more commonly,
the five principal rules in arithmetic, namely,
numeration, addition, fubftrailion, multiplication,
and divifion.
ALGUAZIL, in the Spanifti police, an officer
whofe bufinefs it is to tatry the decrees of the
judges into execution.
ALHEAL, in botany. See Panax.
ALHIDADE, or Alidade, an Arabic name
for a label, index, ruler, &c. which is moveable
about the.center of any arch ; efpecially in mathe-
matical inftruments, ufed in talking heights and
diftances. 'I hefe alidades are of difterent kinds .
thus the plumb-line of a Gunter's quadrant, the in-
dex of a Hadley's quadrant, and the eight feet re-
fradling telefcope on the mural arch at Greenwich,
&c. are what the Arabian writers of mathematics
alidades ; but it is a term feKiom made ufe of at
prefent.
ALIAS, a fecond or further writ ilTued from the
courts of Weftminfter, after a capias, &c. fued out
without effeft.
ALIBI, in law, implies the abfence of the ac-
cufed party ; or his being at a dillancc from the
place where the fadl was committed, at the very
time mentioned in the indi£lment.
The word is Latin, and properly fignifies elfe-
where;
ALIEN, in law, implies a perfon born in a
ftrange country, not within the king's allegiance,
in contra-diftin<SIion to a denizen, or natural fub-
jea.
The woid is formed from the Latin, alius, ano-
ther; q. d, one born in another country.
An alien is incapable of inheriting lands in Eng-
land, till naturalized bv an a£t of parliament. No
alien is entitled to vote at the eledion of mem-
bers of parliament ; nor can he enjoy any office,
or be returned on any jury, unlefs where an alien
is party in a caufe, when the inqueft is compofed of
an equal number of denizens and aliens.
Some have thought that the laws againft aliens
were introduced in the time of Henry 11. when a
law was made at the parliament of Wallingford,
for the expulfion of ftrangers, in order to drive
away the Flemings and Picards, introduced into
the kingdom by the wars of king Stephen. Others
have
A L I
A L I
have thought that the original of this law was more
ancient ; and that it is an original branch of the
feudal law; for by that law no man can parchafe
any lands, but he muft be obliged to do fealty to
the lords of whom the lands are holden ; fo that
an alien that owned a previous faith to another
prince, could not take an oath of fidelity in ano-
ther fovereign's dominions-
Alien DuTV, an impoft laid on all goods im-
ported by aliens, over and above the duty for fuch
goods imported by Britifli fubjeiSts, and on Britifli
bottoms.
Alien-PrioRIESi a kind of inferior monafteries,
formerly very numerous in England, and fo called
from thf ir be!on2;ing to foreign abbies.
ALIENATIO^N, in law, implies the a<St of
making over a perfon's property in lands, tene-
ments, &c. to another.
ALIFORMIS, in anatomy, the name of a pair
of mufclcs arifing from the pterygoide bones, the
procefs of the os cunciforme, with a beginning
partly nervous, and partly flcfiiy, and ending in the
neck of the lower jaw.
Aliformis Processus, a name fometimes given
to the prominence of the os cuneiforme.
ALIMENT, in a general fenfe, implies what-
ever contributes to the nouiifhment of an animal
or vegetable body.
Aliment, among phyficians, whatever is capable
oEnourilhing an animal body.
The lofs we fuftain daily makes it necefiary that
it fliould be repaired by fubftances analogous to
thofe of our body, fuch as aliment and drink, the
lliinulus to which is hunger and thirft.
Experience has fufficiently detnonftrated, that
the beli method of prelerving health is to live upon
plain fimple aliment, lightly feafoned, and in quan-
tity agiceable to the age, ilrength of the ftomach,
leafon of the year, (ex, coiiftitution, and chiefly
to what nature has found by experience to require:
for it is as great a fault to take too much as too
little. Perfect digeftion is the bell rule for regulat-
ing a meal, efpecially if the perfon is more briflc
and lively after a rcpaft than betbre.
We have examples of many perfons, who by
their temperance have lived to a very advanced age;
uhe;efofe, thofe that are fond of life and health
(hould imitate their regimea. Excefles in eating
and di-inking are extremely pernicious.
Perfons of a delicate conltitution, or who are
iuH: recovered from a difeafe, (hould afe foft light
aliments agreeable to the ftomach; for they make
the beft ciiyle.
Acid, tenacious, vifcous aliment, pies of all kinds,
things that are fat, and of a blackifh fubrtance, are
generally unfit for chylification, or render the chyle
bad.
Strong, robufl, young perfons, who ufe much
exercife, ought ic eat more than oUiers ; and may
6
be more free with the grofTer kind of aliment; for
their ftomachs being ftrong, tie lighter kind of
food would digeft too eafy, and be diflip.ueJ ti o
focn.
Children whofe ftomachs are wenk, and vefiels
fine, ought to ufe a light, flcnder, thin, foft ali-
ment, eafy of digeftlon ; wherefore i ifants (hould
be fed with fluid milk, to avoid caufing obftruc-
tions in their fine and delicate veflTels. Confe-
quently, the milk of a nufe newly broug'u o bed-
is more agreeable to infants, than that of one who-
has been delivered five or fix months, and whofe
milk begins to have too great a confiftence. Nur-
fes (hould obferve an exa6t regimen, and (hun all
forts of violent pafTions ; for they difturb digeftion,
and communicate their bad eft'ects to their children.
When infants are weaned, they (hould not be ac-
cuflomed to fpirituous liquors and (trong food, ef-
pecially the fait and fmoke-dried, which are
hard of digeftion, and yield bad nouri(hment.
The beft method is to eat little at a time and-
often.
In old age the fluids are more thick, the fccre
tions floiv, and the folids more iliff than in youth j
wherefore they require lefs food, and of a more
foft, nouriftiing, moiftening kind, eafy of digef--
tion, and not too much at a time, efpecia'ly in the
evening.
At all times of life, but efpecially in old age,
the conftant and immoderate ufe of fait and fmoke-
dried meat, acid and aromatic vegetables, as well
as fpirituous liquors, tend to harden and ftifFeii
the parts of the body, inftead of affording good
nouri(hment ; befides, the digeftion of thefe ali-
ments is difficult, and render the blood fo acrid, as
to hurt the capillary veflels.
However, an acquired habit is hard to be left
oft', and we find many perfons enjoy a good ftate
of health when their meat and drink are very in-
different, becaufe they are become cuftomary, and-
they are apt to fall fick when they attempt to
chan2e their manner of life; for cuftom h a fe-
cond nature : all great changes ought to be brought
about infenfibly.
For this reafon, ft is good not to contr.i£t a habit
of any kind ; wherefore, perfons of a good con-
ftitution (hould' live in a various manner, and re-
fufc no kind of aliment ; and fliould fometimes be-
in town, and fometimes in the country; (hould
ufe much exercife, and (hould even now and then,
exceed the exadl bounJs of moderation, and at other
timts omit a meal now and then.
Hunger ftiews the beft time of eating, but
cuftom confines us to certain hours. Perfons who
find no inconvenience from dining and fupping-
every day, need not change ther manner of life..
Inyo'uih, wherein there is a great diffipaiicn, and
in age, where ilrength is wanting, and when iittie-
js eaten ai a ti.me, fometh'jig taken between meals;
D d ia
L I
A L K
h not amifs. However, it is neceflary to otferve,
that when the ftomach is bajJ, perfons {hould not
begin (o eat again till the laft meal is digefted.
When a perfon is greatly fatigued, and his fpirits
diflipated, it will be neceflary to reft before eating.
In cafes of diihefs and forrow, the aliment fliould
le very light, and fmall in quantity, becaufe the
liomach is weak at thofe times.
In the fummer, when the fpirits and fluid parts
are apt to evaporate, the aliment fhould be light,
moift, fluid, and eafy of digeftion, to repair the
lofs with greater fpced ; whereas in winter the fto-
mach Will admit of grofler food-
.'ALIMENTARY, an epithet applied to what-
ever belongs to aliment or food.
AtiMENTARY £)«(fZ, in anatomy, a name given
by fome to the inteftines, on acconnt of the ali-
ments paffing through them.
Alimentary Duff is alfo fometimes ufed for
the thoraic du(5l. See Thoracic Duil.
ALIIVIONY in law, implies that allowance
which a married woman fuei for, and is en-
titled to, upon any Ofcafional feparation from her
hufband.
The word is Latin, alimonta, and properly fig-
nifies nnurifhment or maintenance.
ALIQUANT Part, in arithmetic, is a number
that cannot meafure a given number, or cannot
divide a given number without leaving a remain-
der ; thus, 5 is an aliquant part of 17; 4 of 9:
3 of 5, See. but that thefe aliquant numbers can-
not meafure any numbers, (as is faid in fome books
of this kind) is abfurd, for 5 will meafure 10,
15, 20, v*^C.
AL1Q.UOT Parts, in arithmetic, are fuch as
will meafure or divide a given number, without
any remainder; as 5 will divide 10, 20, 25, &c.
7 will divide 14, 21, 28,35, &c. thefe therefore
aie called aliquot parts of the above numbers.
The aliquot parts of a pound are the following:
lO^. make one half of 20s.
5 - - fourth - - -
4 - - fifth - - -
2 - - tenth . _ -
I - - twentieth- - -
6s Ed. - . third - - -
34 - - fixth - - -
26 - - eighth . - -
J 8 - - twelfth - - -
14 - - fifteenth - - -
13 - - fixteenth - - -
O io - - twenty-fourth "- -
05 - - a forty-eighth - - ■
The rule for finding all the aliquot parts of any
number, is. Divide the given number by its leaft
divifor, and that quotient by its leaft divifor,
until you get a quotient that is not divifible, and
you will have all the prime divifors, or aliquot
pajtsof that number; then if every two, three,
four, &c. be multiplied into themfelves, the pro- ,
dufts will be the ftveral conjoined divifors, or ali-
quot parts of that number. For multiplicatioa
and divifion of aliquot parts, fee Multiplica-
tion and Division of Aliquot Parts,
ALKAHEST, or Alcahrst, among chemifls,
implies an univerfal folvent, or a menftruum that
will diffolve all bodies without exception.
The word feems to have been coined by Para-
celfus, it being derived from no language, and was
unknown before the tmie of that author.
Paracelfus, and the elder Van Helmont, have
exprefly declared in their writings, that there is a
certain fluid in nature, capable of reducing all fub- .
lunary bodies, as well homogeneous as mixed, in-
to their ens primum, or original matter whereof
they are ccmpofed ; or into an uniform, equable,
and potable liquor, that will unite with water, and
the juices of our bodies, yet retain its feminal vir-
tues; and if mixed with i felf again, will thereby
be converted into pure elemtntary water: whence
they imagined this menftruum could at length re-
duce all things to water, whilft, itfelf, was incapa-
ble of any farther change. Surh a declaration as
this, feconded by the alleveration or oath of Hel-
mont, who religioufly fvvears himfelf poffefTed of
the fecret, caufed all the fucceeding chemifts fol-
licitoufly to turn their thought and labours to find
out fuch a noble menftruum. And the famous Mr.
Boyle was fo fond of it, that he frankly acknow-
ledges he had rather have been mafter thereof than
of the philofopher's ftone ; as indeed, it were a
thing more to be wifhed for than the power of
tranfmuting metals. That great philofopher, how-
ever, ingenuoufly tells us, he had not the good
fortune to pofl'efs it.
Now it is eafy to conceive, that all bodies might
originally grow from fome firft matter, which was
once in a fluid form. Thus the primitive matter of
gold is, perhaps, nothing more than a ponderous
fluid ; which, from its own nature, or a ftrong at-
tra<3ion between its paits, afterwards acquires a
folid form. The afleition, therefore, of Paracelfus
and Helmont carries a fhew of probability with it,
v\hen thev fay there is fome univerfal ens, or ori-
ginal matter, that refolves ali bodies into their ens
genitale, or the primitive fubftance whereof they
were at firft created. So many are the authors who
have treated of this fubjcft, that a library might
almoft be colledted of the books written upon the
alkaheft, Weiderfelt, in his treatife De Secretis
Adeptoru7n, has madcja colle£lion of all the opinions
that have been entertained about it ; but it is mani-
feft from his writings, that he himfelf never faw the
thing. Pantaloon alfo, with Philalethes, Tache-
nius, Ludovicus, and a thoufand others, treat of
the fame fubje(Sl- But none of them fpeak to the
purpofe, nor declare themfelves pofl'eiied of the
feciet, except Paracelfus and Helmont, who are
the
A L K
ALL
the orlginlal authors, and upon whofe writings the
reft have made idle comments, or fallen into fome
whimfical conceit as to this grand folvcnt.
But notwithftanding their prctenfions, the prin-
cipal chemifts are now perfuaded that no fuch fol-
vent ever exifted in nature : at leaft, that no mor-
tal was ever poffeii'ed ofthefecret. This, indeed,
feems fufficiently evident from the very nature of
the alkaheft; for if it will diflblve all bodies, it
will be impoffible to be kept in any veffel. Van
Helmont therefore cannot be believed, when he
afferts that he had a a bottle filled with allcaheft
lent him; becaufe it could not be contained in
any bottle, as it would diffolve the veffel and be
loft.
" ALKALI. See the article Alcali.
ALKANET, in botany, the Englifh name
of a genus of plants called anchufa. See An-
CHUSA.
ALKEKENGI, the winter cherry, in botany,
a plant with perennial roots, from which in the
fpring, the ftalk arifes to about a foot high, fur-
iiiftied with heart-fhapcd leaves ftanding in pairs ;
the flower produced from the wings of the ftalk is
monopetalous, divided at the extremity into five
fegments ; in the center is placed a round germen,
fupporting a flender ftyle, accompanied by five
filaments, topped with oblong upright antheras,
which join together; this is fucceeded by a globu-
lar berry, covered by an inflated empalement, con-
taining a number of kidney-fhaped feeds. The
fruit ripens in autumn, and in colour and (hape
much like a cherry ; if the feafon is mild, will con-
t nue to the latter end of the year, afterwards the
p!ant dies to the ground.
The fruit of this plant is by fome much cele-
brated for their lithontriptic qualities, and are faid
powerfully to cleanfe the urinary paflages of all
gravel, and whatever is apt to obftru£l them, and
likewife by their deterfive qualities, to be good in
the jaundice, and other afFeilions of the vifcera.
The berries boiled in milk, and fweetened with fu-
gar, cure the heat of urine, the making bloody
wattr, and ulcers in the kidneys or bladder.
There are various forts of the alkekengi, which
are all called by Linnsus phyfalis.
ALKERMES, a compound cordial medicine,
formerly much in ufe, the piincipal ingredient of
which is kermes. SeeKERMEs.
ALKORAN. See Alcoran.
ALLA, or Allah, the name of God among the
profeflors of the Mahometan religion. It properly
fignifies the adorable Being.
The word is Arabic, and derived from a!ah, to
adore.
ALLANTOIS, or Allantoides, in anato-
my, a veficle invefting the foetus of feveral ani-
mals, and containing an urinous liquor, fuppoftd
10 be convened thither from th? urachus.
The word is Greek, and compounded of a>.\a-^
a gut, and eJo?, refemblance.
Anatomifts are not agreed whether the allantoig
has or has not any exiftcnce in the human
fpecies.
ALLAY. See the article Alloy.
ALLEGATION, in law, implies the produc-
ing inftrumcnts, or deeds, for proving the truth of
fomething litigated before the court.
ALLEGIANCE, in law, fignifies the obe-
dience which every fubJeiSt owes to his lawful fo-«
vereign.
The word is formed from the Latin allegiantia,
and derived from allego, to admit.
Allegiance is either natural, acquired, or local.
Natural Allegiance is that which every fubjeiSl
born ought to pay immediately upon his birth.
Acquired Allegtance is that which a perfon
naturalized, or made a denizen, owes to the kin*.
Local Allegiance is that which a perfon, on hie
entering the dominions of another prince, ought to
pay for his protection.
Oath ij/Allegian'CE is that taken by the fubjedt,
and in which he acknowledges the king a temporal
prince.
ALLEGORICAL, fomething belonging to, o»-
partaking of, the nature of an allegory. See Al-
legory.
Allegorical Pcctry is that where fome ufeful
moral is conveyed under the veil of fiftion and alle-
gory. The moft beautiful poem of this kind ia
ours, or perhaps in any other language, is Spenfer's
Fairy Queen.
This Ipecies of poetry allows the largeft fcope
and latitude to the genius; the fancy of the poet,
winged with the wildeft enthufiafm, may fly out
beyond the bounds of fpace and time ; it may give
to airy nothing a local habitation and a name. Not:
contented with bodying forth the virtues, vices,
paffions, and all natural and moral qualities; it
may dart into the fairy-land of fiction : and with
more than magic power conjure up a new creation
of monftrous dragons, enchanted caftles, and tre-
mendous giants. Yet rolling in this fine frenzy tlis
eye of the poet muft ftill watch the moral : how-
ever wild and romantic his inventions are, the myf-
tical meaning of his fable muft appear under the
veil diftin(Et and intelligible. It is this, and this
only, v.hich can juitify him, when he tranfports us,
beyond the bounds of nature, into that ideal coun-
try, whofe inhabitants are all apparitions, whofe
very rocks have voice and language, and whofi:
trees drop tears of blooJ.
Having thus given the reader a fhort (tetch of .
the general rneaning of allegorical poetry, it may
not be amifs to mention four qualifications, which
appear to be necefliiry to this fort of compofition.
The firft is, that the fable muft be lively and
furprizing, in order to raife and engage our
curiofity^
ALL
ALL
curlofity. As there is more invention therefore
employed in a work of this kind than in mere
narration, or defcription, or indeed than in gene-
ral amplifications on any fubjedl whatever, it con-
fequently requires a more than ordinary heat of
fancy, when the fubje<St is firft ftruck off the anvil.
If the fable is flat, fpiritlefs, and uninterefting, the
reader's imagination is not afFecled, nor his atten-
tion engaged, though the inftrudtion conveyed un-
der it be ever fo ufeful or important.
The fecond qualification is beautiful propriety
or aptnefs in the fable to the fubjedl on which it
is employed. The invention of the poet (hould
never lofe itfelf in a confufion of illforted ideas,
nor, aiming only to furprize the imagination, of-
fend the judgment. As it requires a beat of fancy
to raife images or refemblances ; fo it requires a good
tafte to dillinguifh and range them, and to chufe
the moft proper and beautiful, where there appears
an almoft diflrafling variety.
Another effential property is, that the fable be
every where confiftent with itfelf. As licentious
as allegorical poetry may feem in feme refpe£ls, it
is neverthelefs fuhjedt to this reftraint. The poet
is indeed at liberty in chufing hisflory, and invent-
ing his perfons; but after he has introduced them,
he is obliged to fuftain them in their proper charac-
ters. Siii co'ijient, is a rule that ought never to
be violated : for however extravagant his charafters
may be, they fliould never be abfurd.
The three qualifications mentioned above, refpeit
the fable of the poem ; the laft property relates to
moral, and is, that the allegory fnould be clear and
intelligible; for the fable is defigned only to clothe
and adorn the moral, not to hide it. The poet
fhould in this refpedl imitate the art and fkili
which is fliewn by the old and celebrated mafters
of Itatuary ; who in compofing an animated figure,
confidered the fitaation of every limb, mafcle, and
vein, which they finiflied with the utmoil exafl-
nefs; and then af:erwards put on the drapery in
fuch an eafy and natural manner, that inftead of
hiding, it contributed to difcover the beautiful fym-
metry of the parts over which it was thrown-
ALLEGORIST, one who writes in, or has re-
courfe to allegories.
ALLEGORY, is the name given to a fable or
ftbry, in which under imaginary perfons or things,
is fhadovved fome real adlion, or inftrudlive moral :
it is, according to Plutarch's definition, that in
which one thing is related, and another under-
ftood. Every allegory therefore mult be confidered
as having two meanings, the liier.il and the mylli-
cal : the literal fenfe is like a dream or vifion, of
which the myftical fcnfe is the true interpreta-
tion.
If we purfue this point ftill further, we (hall
fmi, that as a fimile is nothing but a continued
nietaphor, fo an allegory is culy a continued
fimile. It may not be amifs to illuftrate this by
an example : " The helm of ftate was under ths
" management of Cato." This is fimply a meta-
phorical exprefTion, by which the hate is, in one
word, compared to a (hip : if we fay further that,.
" As the wary pilot fleers the (hip fecure from alL
" the rocks and (helves, that lie in wait to dertroy
" it ; fo Cato preferved the ftate from every in-
" trigue and plot that threatened its defiru(Slion j"
we then continue the metaphor ir.to a fimile ; whicte
if purfucd ftill further will become an allegory, as.
we fee in that excellent ode of Horace,,
O navis referent in mare U novi
FluSlus !
We meet with nothing in the whole ode, tha^
is not ftritSlly applicable to a (hip ; and yet it is uni-
verfally agreed, that the thing fignified is the Ro--
man (fate. Confideied in this 1 ght, tides and.
tempefts are wars and civil broils ; the port is peace
and concord; the fails are the laws; the ma--
giftrates are the mariners; and the ro.ks and
(hallows are thofe diilentions that may tear and.
diftrad it.
The more immediate ufes of allegory feem to be
thefe; to render virtue more amiable, by cloathiiig
her in the gay and ornamental robis of FiiSion, andi
Truth more engaging, by making her fly from be-
fore us, and raifing a ftrong curiofity in us to pur-
iue and overtake her. The virtues, in allegory,.
are perfonified, and employed in great and in-
terefting adventures; they prefent themfelves to us
in the moft alluring manner, adorned not only ia^
native lovelinefs, but in all the graces of adtion;.
we ate charmed with their beauty, and cannot help-
interefting ourfelves in their welfare ; they enlilt
the paiHons on their fide, and we foUov/ them
through all their difficulties, till at laft they arrive
at the end that was propofed, and are crowned with
fuccefs. h does not fignify that we know it is all,
a fi£lion; we enter willingly into the deceit, when
anairot probability runs through the ftary, and
event follows event in a regular and natural fuc-
ceffion. Rules of morality are dull and uniate.elt-
ing ; they may indeed inftru6t, but feldom enter-
tain us : nay, even truth itfelf is more engaging
when purfued, than when pofl'tfted; like eager
fponlraen we follow the chafe »vith unwearied,
pleafure, but when once the gr.me is hunted,
down, we trouble ourfi'lves little further about it.
It was for this reafon that parables are frequently
interfgerfed in the New as well as Old Tefta-
ment. Compofed of pr^ibable, yet at the fame
time of fidlitious events, they raife our curiofity,
and engage our imagination ; by which means
the moral that they aie intended lo convey,
flea's upon us imperc.ptibly, and we find either
our hea ts improved, or cur underftandings en-
lightened. When Naxhan ttic Prophet was fent
A L L
ALL
to reprove DavtJ for the murJer of Uriah, and his
adultery with Bathfheba; we cannot help admiring
the art and addrefs with which he executed his
commiffion. He did not attack the king with old
canting faws and leffbns of morality ; did not ex-
patiate on the heinoufnefs of the crimes which he
had committed, and the necedity there was for a
hearty and fincere repentance : no ; he took a more
effcdual method, by concealing his defign under
the veil of an allegory or parable. He began a fim-
ple and pathetic ftory, that awakened the attention
and curiofity of the king ; he touched the fecret
fprings and movements of his foul; called up on
one hand his tendernefs and pity, and on the
iOther his anger and indignation ;•' As the Lord
*' liveth, faid David, the man that hath done this
" thing fhall furely die!" Before he was convidled,
be was felf condemned ; and when Nathan retort-
ed upon him, " Thou art the man," could not
fail of being overwhelmed with reraorfe and con-
/ufion.
ALLEGRO, in mufic, an Italian word, figni-
fying that the part is to be played in a brifk, gay,
and fprightly manner.
ALLELUJaH is an expreffion of joy or praife,
made ufc of in feveral parts of the holy fcnp-
ture. It is compounded of ihe two Hebrew words,
V"?n /-'«/W«, and TS'^jah, which is an abbrevia-
tion of pry^V Jehovah : its literal meaning is,
Praife the Lord.
ALLERION, in heraldry, a fort of eag^e, with-
out beak or feet, having nothing perfeS but the
wings. -
ALLEVEURE, a fmall brafs Swedifli coin,
worth about 2\d. Engliih.
ALLEY, in gardening, a ftraight Walk bounded
on both fides with trees or flirubs, and commonly
covered with gravel or grafs. An alley is diftin-
guifhcd from a path, by being broad er>ough to ad-
mit two perfons to walk a-breaft, whereas a path is
fuppofed to admit of but one at a time : but if an
alley is wider than ten or twelve feet, it may, with
moie propriety, be called a walk.
Covered AlleYj is where the trees on each fide
meet at the top, fo as to form a fliade.
ALL-HEaL, in botany. See Panax.
ALLIANCE, in the civil and cannon law, im-
plies the relation between two perfons, or two fami-
lies contraQed by marriage.
Alliance is alfo uTed to fignify a treaty entered
into by fovereign princes or ftates, for their mutual
fifety or defence.
Defmfwe Alliance is that whereby the con-
trading parties engage to fland by and aflift ■
each other againft any power that (hall attack
either.
Ofinfive Alliance implies an agreement be- j
tween powers, whereby they engage themfelves to
attack jointly fome other prince or Itate. I
ALLIGATION, in arithmetic, is that rule by
which we refolve qucftions that concern the mixing
or uniting divers fimples or particulars into one
mafs or fum, according to any price or fum re-
quired.
The word is formed from the Latin, aH-garty
which fignifies to tie together; perhaps from a fort
of vincula or curve, commonly ufed to connedt or
join the feverai quantities or numbers together.
Alligation is either medial or alternate.
^LLiGATiot^ medial, is, when having the feveral
quantities and rates of divers fimples propofed, wa
difcover the rate of a mixture compounded of thofe
fimples. All queftions in this may be folved by the
following rule.
Having the quantity of the ingredients and the
particular prices, to find the price of fome part of
the mixture,
Ruk.
Multiply the ingredients feverally by their own
prices, and divide the fum of thofe produds by
the fum of the ingredients, and the quotient an-
fwers the queftion.
Example,
A Tobacconift would mix 2cft. of tobacco, aC
9 pence the pound, with 6o}fc. at izd. with 4ofb
at 1 8//. and with 12ft' at 2s. the pound. Place
the numbers of their value as follows;
ffe. s. d. £,
20 at 09 per ft. v.;ill coft o
60 at 10 - - - - o
40 at 16 - .__- _^
12 at 20--- - - -I
s. d.
15 o
o o
o o
4 o
Sum fimple 132
Total value 7 19 o
132 = IS. 2{d. = the
. Therefore 7/. 19^
Talue of one pound.
Alligatio>j altermte, is when the rates or qua-
lities of divers fimples are given, and the quantity of
each is required, necelTary to make a mixtute of
the given rate or quality; it likewife fliews the
proportion of feveral ingredients, and counter-
changes the places of fuch exce.Ces or differences as
arife between the mean price and the extremes;
afcribing that to the greater extreme which comes
from the lelTer, and contrarily. To refolve queftions
in alligation alternate, obferve the following rules.
Firft, when the prices of the fimples are expreffed,
but no quantity given, and it is required how
much of each fimple we muft take to fell onequan •
tity or meafure at a mean rate propounded ;
Ruk.
Link the extremes together, and take the difFe-
rence between each number and the mean rate pro-
E e pounded
ALL
ALL
pomnJed, anJ place that difFerence againfl- Its yoTce-
felbw which will be the quantity required of that
^oke-ftllow in this mixture. i
r ., *
hxample. I
A Merchant hath fpices, feme at gd. per pound,
feme at \2d. fome at 241^. and feme at ^od per
pound ; how much of each fort muft he take, that
he may fell a pound for 2od.
Link the numbers together in the following man
ner :
Pi ice propofed 20^.
The difFerence between 9 and 20 = ir, which
is placed againft its yoke- fellow 30, which denotes
that u pounds is to be taken off that at 30^: per
pound, to make the mixture: the difference be-
tween 12 and 20 is 8, which place againft its yoke-
fellow ; likewife between 24 and 20 is 4, and 30
and 20 is 10, which place in their proper places,
as in the example above, and the work is done ;
for the numbers 10, 4, 8, and 11, are the quanti-
ties of each required.
Note, That as many different ways as the num-
bers can be linked together, fo many different an-
fwers will be given, and yet all true.
Second, when the price of all the fimples, and
the quantity of one is given, to find the quantity of
all the reft, fo as one meafure or quantity may
bear a mean rate or price propounded.
RuU.
As the difference ftandlngagainftthequantity given:
To the reft of the differences befides : :
So is the quantity given :
To the quantity fought : -each to its refpe<Sllve dif-
ference.
Example.
A Tobaconift hath 3ot6. of tobacco at 2-\d.
per pound, which he would mix with fome at iid.
per pound, fome atgd. and fome at yd. per pound j
and he would know how much of each fort of the
faid lefs prices, muft be mixed with the 3otb. of
the beft, that he may fell it at a penny the ounce,
or for i6d. per pound.
Firft, fet down the numbers, link them toge-
ther, and take the differences, as in the laft ex-
ample. Thus,
7> 9>
20, 3c
8
6
12-'>
9 J 8
. 7 Js
Then fay, As 20, the difference againft the
quantity given : to 8 the next difference : : fo 30 :
to 12, the quantity required at I2</. per pound. J
And feeing the other differences are equal, it wlH
require i2ttS. of each.
Third, When the prices of each fimple is given,
and the mean rate or price, and it is required to
find how much of each fort muft be taken, to make
a certain quantity propounded, agreeable to the
mean rate given.
Ruk,
As the total fum of the differences :
Is to the total quantity given : :
So is any particular difFerence :
To its particular quantity fought.
Example.
A Grocer hath four forts of currants, one at 4</«
thetb. one at 6d. one at cjd. and the beft at iid.
the Id. he would mix 240 tfc. and to have fo much
of each fort in this mixture, as to fell a pound for
8^. how much of each fort muft he take?
Place your numbers with the mean price, linking
them, and take their difference as follows ;
JO 240
Then fay,
As 10 : 240 : : 3:72 the quantity at 4d. per ffi.
10 : 240 : : 1 : 24 D'' - - - 6d D'^
10 : 240 : : 2 : 34 D? - - - gd. D2 1
10 : 240 : : 4 : 96 D? - - - nd. D3
ALLIGATOR, in natural hiftory, an amphf-
bious creature common in South-America, fuppofed
by fome authors to be the fame with the cro-
codile found in Afia and Africa. Its head is long,
and {lender towards the extremity, gradually form-
ing a fnout like that of a hog. Both the upper
and lower jaws have a row of very ftrong and point-
ed teeth.
ALI/IOTH, in aftronomy, a fixed ftar of the
fecond maonitude, in the tail of the great bear.
For its right afcenfion, declination, &c. fee the
conftellation Ursa Major.
ALLIUM, garlick, in botany. See Gar-
lick.
ALLOCATION, an allowance made upon ac-
count in the Exchequer.
Allocatione Facianda, a writ for allowing to
an accountant fuch fums of money as he has law-
fully expended in his ofKce; direiStcd to the lord*
treafurer, and barons of the Exchequer.
ALLOCATO Comitattt, a new writ of exigent
allowed before any other county court, held on
the former not being fully ferved or complied
with.
ALLO-
A L M
A L M
ALLODIAL, ancplthet applied to an inheritance
held without paying any acknowledgment to either
lord or fupcrior.
The word is from the Saxon, a privative, and
Uof, lord ; q. d. held without a fuperior.
Allodial lands are what we term fiee lands,
which a perfon enjoys without paying any fine,
rent, or fervice.
ALLODIUM, free lands, or fuch as are the
abfolute property of their owner, withou',; his being
obliged to pay any acknowledgment whatfoever.
ALLOM. See the artiole Alum.
ALL-SAINTS, a feftival celebrated by the
Chriftian church on the firft of November, in com-
memoration of all the faints in general.
ALL-SOULS, a Chriftian feftival kept on the
fecond of November, in commemoration of all the
faithful deceafed,
ALLOY, or allay, a proportion of a bafer me-
tal with one that is finer.
All gold coin has an alloy of filver, and filver
coin an alloy of copper. A pound weight of ftan-
dard gold, by the prefent ftandard of the mint, is
two and twenty carats fine, and two carats alloy;
and a pound weight of ftandard filver confifts of
eleven ounces two penny weights of fine filver, and
eighteen penny weights of alloy. And in propor-
tion as gold or filver has more or lefs alloy than
that above-mentioned, it is faid to be coarfer or finer
than the ftandard.
ALLUMlNOR, a perfon who colours or paints
upon paper or parchment.
The word is derived from the French allumer,
to lighten.
ALLUSION, in rhetoric, a figure by which
fomething is applied to, or underftood of another,
on account of fome fimilitude between them,
ALLUVION, among civilians, denotes the gra-
dual increafe of land along the fea-fhore, or on the
banks of rivers.
ALMACaNTERS, Almacantaras, or Al-
*iACANTARATHs, in aftronomy, are circles of the
fphere parallel to the horizon, imagined to pafs
through all the degrees of the meridian, and are
the fame thing with regard to the azimuths and
horizon, that the parallels are with regard to the
meridian and horizon.
Almacanter-S/<z^, an inftrument formerly ufed
at Tea to obferve the fun's amplitude ; it was ufually
made of wood, and had an arch containing 15
degrees.
This inftrument is never ufed at prefent, as much
better are introduced in its place.
ALMAGEST, an Arabic name for a celebrated
book of Pioloniy's compofing, being a colie£lion
of many curious obfervations and problems of the
ancients in geometry and aftronomy.
Ricciolus alfo publifl^ied a body of aftronomy,
which, after Ptolomy, he called the New Alma-
geft, being a colle6lIon of the ancient and modern
obfervations and difcoveries in that fcience.
ALMANAC, a book or flieet of paper, ufually
containing the months, the days of the month, the
feftivals, rifing and fetting of the fun and moon,
length of days and nights, equations of time, high-
water, and pge of the moon, as well as the vifible
and invifible eclipfes of the fun and moon.
Authors difitr greatly both with regard to the in-
ventor of almanacs, as well as the etymology of
the word, fome deriving it from al and inanah, to
count; while others think it comes iiom ahfianaby
New- Years gifts, becaufe the Arabian aftrologers
made prefents of their ephemerides the firft day in
the year. For the method of conftrufting alma-
nacs, See Calendar, Ephemerides, &c.
Ht-refy ^/ALMARIC, a tenet broached in France
by one Almaric, in the year 1209. It confifted in
affirming, that every Chriftian was adually a mem-
ber of Chrift ; and that without this faith jio one
could be faved.
His followers went farther, and affirmed, thit
the power of the Father lafted Only during the
continuance of the Mofaic lawj that the coming
of Chrift introduced a new law ; that at the end of
this began the reign of the Holy Ghoft j and that
now confeffion and the facraments were at an end,
and that every one is to be faved by the internal o-
perations of the Holy Spirit alone, without any ex-
ternal ad of religion.
ALMENE, in commerce, a weight of two
pounds, ufed in weighing faff'ron in feveral parts of
the continent of the Eaft-Indies.
ALMOND-TREE, Amygdalus, in botany, a
genus of trees with rofaceous flowers, producing a
large oval compreflled fruit, which opened, difco-
vers a nut containing a feed of the fiime form, the
common almond-tree being cultivated in gardens
more for ornament than ufe, it making a beautiful
appearance early in the fpring when few other trees
are out. Every good fhrubbery (hould have a few
of thefe plants interfperfed with the others : they ,
•are propagated by inoculation on plum fuckers, or
flocks of almonds raifed from the feeds, and are to
be met with in every nurfery garden.
Almonds, the fruit of the almond-tree. There
are two kinds, bitter and fweet, of which confi-
derable quantities are imported from Spain, Italy,
Turkey, and other places up the Mediterranean,
and are much ufed in conRiftionary and medicine.
The bitter almonds are reckoned aperier.t, de;er-
five and diuretic, they are therefore recommended
in obftruclions of the liver, fpleen, mefentery, &c.
Their exprefied oil is much ufed to foften and de-
terge the wax out of the ears when flopped up,
and fome ufj them as a (ubflitute in making rati-
fia, they being more eafily procured than apricot
kernels.
Sweet Almonds are of a foft grateful tafte, and
are
A L O
A L O
are cooling, healing, and nutrimental : in the I
common medical pradice they are much prefctib-
ed in emulfions, and are good in all diforders a-
rifing from choleric and acrimonious humours ;
thev cool and cleanfe the kidneys, giving eafe in
cholic pains and all irritations of the bowels
The expreffed oil, which is fo frequently ufed, is
a Me and good remedy in nephritic pains, and
may be given in large quantities, for it not only
blunts the fharp points which irritate the mem-
branes, but alfo relaxes the paffages fo as very
much to favour the expulfion of all fuch matter;
' it is alfo much in efteem with nurfes for coffiive-
nefs and the gripes in children and is fometimes
ufed in glyfters.
Almonds, among lapidaries, fignify pieces of
rock-cryflal, ufed in adorning branch-candlefticks,
tic. on account of the refemblance they bear to
the fruit of that name.
ALMONER, an officer appointed todiftribute
alms to the poor.
Lord Almoner, or Lord-high Almoner of Eng-
land, is an ecclefiaftical officer, generally a bifhop,
who has the forfeiture of all deodands, and the
goods of felos de fe, which he is to diftribute a-
liiong the poor.
He has alfo, by virtue of an ancient cuftom,
the power of giving the firft difli from the king's
table to whatever poor perfon he pleafes, or, in-
ftead of it, an alms in money.
ALMUCANTARS. See Almacanters.
ALNAGE, or AuLNAGE, the meafuring of
woollen manufactures with an ell.
It was at firft intended as a proof of the good-
nefs of the commodity, and accordingly a feal was
invented as a mark that the commodity was made
liccording to the ftatute ; but it being now poffi-
ble to purchafe thefe feals, they are affixed, when-
ever the vender pleafes, to all cloths indifcrimi-
iiately, to the gieat prejudice of our woollen manu-
fa(5hircs.
ALNAGER, a public officer, whofe duty it is
to examine into the afTize of all woollen cloth, fix
feals upon the various pieces, and colledt the ainage
duty for the king.
ALNUS, in botany, the aider-tree. See Al-
pER TREE.
ALOOF, at a diftance. This is generally fup-
pofed to be a term of the marine, and thence to
have been transferred into common difcourfe ; but
this feems matter of doubt : the reafon of this con-
jecture is probably the refemblance of the phrafes,
keep aloof, and keep the lufF, which is the com-
mand of the officer who fuperintenJs the (hip's
courfe to the man who fleers, to dire£t her flcm
nearer to the wind, or nearer that point of the com-
|)afs from which the wind blows. If it was really
a fea phrafe, it appears to have Jegarded the dan-
gers of a lee-fiiore, wheie the pilot might apply it
in the fenfe commonfy underftood, that is, " keep
aloof," or keep off !
ALOE, in botany, a genus of plants producirjg
liliaceous fiowers, which are each defliitute of an
empalement, but are compofed of a tubulous {\n-
gle corolla, fpread open and divided into fix feg-
ments ; at the extremity in the center is placed an
oval germen, fupporting a fingle ftyle furrounded
by fix filaments ; its fruit is contained in an oblong
capfule, divided into three cells, filled with a
number of angulated feeds. There are great va-
riety of aloes, the major part of which are natives
of Africa, and of all the different claiTes of fuc-
culent plants, are the greateft ornament to oiir
green houfes. Some fortsproduce but trifling flow-
ers, but there is ample- amends made in the beauty
and fingularity of their leaves, which are fo very
different, that if contrafted together, they appear as
though they did not belong to the fame genus.
Thefe plants are increafed from off fets, which an
fome forts grow very plentifully, and (hould be
planted in a poor foil, fuch as brick, rubbifh, &c.
in the fummer months, and muft have but little
water till they are well rooted. Where there is con-
veniency to fuit, if plunged in a tan-bed in the
ftove it will facilitate their growth ; or they may
be ftuck in the bark till they are rooted and theri
potted. — Some forts that do not fo freely increafe,
it may be neceffary to multiply them by cutting
the top off, except in fome particular forts, which
will not admit of it, which will be a means of
producing feveral young plants around the place of
incifion, which at a proper feafon, may be taken
.off and planted, obferving to let them dry a few
days to heal their wounds which were caufed by
feparation from their mother-plant; for planting
them immediately may be a means of their rooting.
— Thefe plants, though moft of them will bear
being out in the air in fummer, yet in cool wea-
ther, which fometimes happens, they are apt to
have their colour changed, from a fine diverfified
green to a dufky colour, which makes them appear
unfightly ; therefore to have them in their greateft
beauty, which in moft forts confifts in their foliage,
they fhould be under ftelter all the year; and
though many forts may be kept in a common
green houfe, yet if placed on the ftue of a flave,
or hot-houfe, they will keep growing all the win-
ter, and feveral will fhew their flowers at a time of
yew when few plants produce their bloffoms ; like-
wife there is not the danger of rooting fo much as
when placed where there is no fire, for in fuch a
fituation they muft be kept extremely dry on ac-
count of their fucculency, and confequently are
in a ffate of inaction during the winter. Botanifts
enumerate between thirty and forty forts of aloes,
among whom was formerly claffed the large Ame-
rican aloe, commonly called fo; but as there is a
very confidexable difference, both in the compo-
nent
A L O
A L O
nent parts of the flower, as alfo in the plants them-
felves. Dr. Linnxus has thought proper to clafs
it as a diftind genus, by the name of agave. This
plant is fo flow a grower in this climate, that it
may, and has been kept fixty, feventy, or eighty
years before it produces its bloIToms ; but when it
is arrived to a ftate for blowing, the flower ftem
arifes from the center of the plant, and advances
with fuch rapidity in its growth, that in fix or fe-
ven weeks it will be eighteen or twenty feet high,
ornamented with large bunches of flowers of a
yellow colour, connected to foot-ftalks, in form
of an S, which are affixed alternately on the main
ftem, diminifliing in fize from about a third up-
ward of the ftem to the top. There have feveral
of the common aloes blown in England, which are
looked upon as great curiofities^: when the flower
is gone, the decay of the plant follows, but leaves
a number of fmail plants or fuckers to fucceed.
There are different forts of thefe aloes, but the moft
beautiful is a variety of the common fort, having
ftriped leaves; when this plant is grown to a large
fize, it makes a moft grand appearance.
Aloes, in the materia medica, a bitter, gum-
my, refinous, infpiffated juice, prepared from the
leaves of the above fpecies of plants. There are
three difierent forts of aloes found in the (hops dif-
tinguiflied by the names of faatrina, hepatic, aad
cciball'ine.
Aloe Socotorltta. Socotorine aloes are brought
from the ifland Socotora, in the Indian ocean, wrapt
in fkins ; and obtained from the aloe focotor'ma an-
gujiifolla fpinofci flore purpurea. This fort of aloes is
of a brighe furtace, and in fome degree pellucid, in
the lump ; of a yellowifh red colou'r, with a pur-
plifh cafl : when reduced into powder, of a golden
colour. It is hard and friable in the winter; fome-
what pliable in the fummer, and foftens betwixt
the fingers. Its bitter tafte is accompanied with
aromatic flavour, but not fufficient to prevent its
being difagreeable : the fmell is not very unplea-
fant, and fomewhat refcmblcs that of myrrh.
Aloe Hepatica- Hepatic, Barbadoes, or com-
mon aloes, are ufually brought from iJarbadoes;
the beft fort in large gourd {h^lls; an inferior kind
in pots; and a ftill worfu in calks; and extracted
from the aloe diofcoridii et alierum, of Sloan> This
jc darker coloured than the loregoing, and not fo
clear or bright. It is generally drier and morecom-
padt ; though fometinics, efpecially the ca(k fort,
quite foft and clammy. Its fmell is much llronger
and more difagreable; the tafte intenfely bitter and
naufeous, with little ornothingof the aromatic fla-
vour of the fccotorine.
Aloe CabalUna. Caballine, or horfe aloes, are
prepare.!, probably, from the ahe gu'menfu cahiUina
vuigari Jimilii fed Ijta maculata, and not, as is gene-
rally fuppol'ed, from the faces of the hepatic; the
difference not being in purita, but in quality. It
IS cafily difiinguiflicd from both the foregoing by
its ftrong rank fmell : in other refpefls it agreea
pretty much with iheheptic; and is, not unfre-
qucntly, fold in its place. Sometimes it is pre-
pared fo pure and bright as fcarce to be diftinguifh-
able by the eye, even from the focotorine; but its
offenfive fmell readily betrays it: and if this alfo
fhould be difTipated by art, its wanting the aroma-
t.c flavour of the finer aloes will be a fufficient cri-
terion.
Aloes is a ftimulating cathartic bitter : taken ir»
fufliciEnt dofes to purge effeftiially, as two fcruples
or a dram, it occafions commonly a great irritation
about the anus, and fometimes a difcharge of blood.
In fmaller dofes, as ten or twelve grains, repeated
once or twice a day, it not only evacuates the firft
paffages, but attenuates and diffolves.vifcid humours
in the remote parts ; warms the habit, quickens the
circulation, and promotes the menftrual and ha;-
morrhoidal fluxes: its continued ufe renders the
blood fenfibly more fluid, as appears on venefe£tion.
For a lime, in thefe fmall dofes, it does not adfe
by ftool ; but at length it produces a gentle loofe-
nefs, of longer continuance than that occafioned
by moft other purgatives: hence its utility in ha-
bitual coftivencfs. This ftimulating cathartic is
particularly adapted to peifons of a phlegmatic tem-
perament and fedentary life, to cachectic indifpo-
fitions, and opprefllons of the ftomach by vifcii
crudities contradled from irregularity : in dry bi-
; lious habits it is often iniurious, immoderately heat-
ing the blood, or inflaming the bowels.
This bitter juice is accounted deftru6tive to
worms (or to the matter which favoiirs their pro-
dudion) whether taken internally, or applied \n
plaifters to the umbilical region. It is powerfully
antifeptic; and commonly made an ingredient in
tinftures and balfams for cleanfing and healing
wounds or putrid fores.
Aloes is fometimes taken by itfelf, fometimes!
mixed with faponaceous medicines, warmed with
aromatics, acuated with pungent materials, com-
bined with the deobftruent gums, &c. Many of
thefe kinds of compofitions have been received as
ot'hcinals: a pill, for example, compofed of equal
parts of aloes and foap, with a proper quantity of
thin honey ; a powder, of eight par;s of aloes, with
two of canella alba, or with one of virginian
fnake root, and one of ginger ; a tindture made by
digefting five ounces of (h^fe powders in five or
fix pints of mountain wine; pills of four parts of
aloes, two of myrrh, and two or one of faffron,
made up with fyrup of faffron, or of orange peel ;
vinous and fpirituous tindlures of the aloes, with
different proportions of the myrrh and faftroOj
&c.
Among different aromatic materials made trial
of, cicves feemed the beft adapted for alleviating
the offenfivenefs of the aloes ^ the committee ap-
Y I pointed
ALP
A L S
•pointed by the London college for reforming their ''
pharmacopoeia, made choice of canella alba, on
account of its not rendering the medicine fo hot as
the necefiary quantity ot the clove itfelf would do,
a«d yet having fo much of the clove flavour, as to
cover the aloes in a fufEcient degree ; fame com-
mend the cafia caryophyelata, or clove bark, as
fcaving more of the clove flavour than canella alba,
and yet not being very hot. Where volatile fpirits
ase to be joined, a folution of the aloes, i-n dulci-
fied fpirit of fal ammoniac, or in fpirit of fal am-
moniac made with quick lime, are very elegant
preparations, an-; require little afliftance from aro-
matics to render them fupportable to the palat-c ;
the offenfivenefs of the aloes being greatly abated
fcy the fpirit, and the pungency of the fpiritflieath-
cd by the aloes ; the fpirit of fa! ammoniac made
fixed with alkaline fait, does not diflblve near fo
xnuch of the aloes as the tvvoabovementioned.
Aloes Wood. See Xyloalo£s.
ALOETICS, a general name for all medicines,
whofe bafis or principal ingredient is aloes.
ALOGIANS, in ecclefiaftical hiftory, a kO. of
ancient heretics, who denied that Jefus Chrift is the
logos, or eternal word ; and therefore they rejeft-
ed the gofpel of St. John as a fpurious produc-
tion.
The word is Greek, and compounded of a, priv.
and x-7 r, the word.
ALOlDES, in botany. See Stratiotes;
ALOPECIA, in medicine, implies a falling ofF
6f the hair, occafioned either by a defedl of nou-
rilhment, or a bad ftate of the humours.
ALOPECUE.US, fox-tail grafs, in botany, a
diflLndl: genus of plants; it produces a triandrious
flower, confiiling of one hollow valve with a long
awn or heard infetted on its back part; near the
bafe the germen is round, fupporting two ftyles,
and contains a fingle round feed in a cover.
ALP, a name given to the bullfinch, in feveral
parts of England. See Bullfinch.
ALPHA, the name of the firfl; letter of the Greek
alphabet, anfwering to our A.
As a numeral it flands for one, orthefiiftof
any thing ; hence alpha and omega, being the firfl
and lafl: letters in the Greek alphabet are ufed to
fignify the eternity of God.
ALPHABET, the natural or cuflomarj' feries of
the feveral letters of a language.
The word is formed from alpha and beta, the
fiiil and fecond letters of the Greek alphabet.
The number of letters is different in the alpha-
bets of different languages. The Englifh alpha-
bet contains 24 letters, to which if we add /' and v
oonfonant, the fum will be 26, the French 23,
the Hebrew, Chaldee, Syriac, and Samaritan 22
each, the Arabic 28, the Perfian 31, the Turkifli
23, the Georgian 36, the Coptic 32 , the Mui-
covite 43, the Greek 24, tlie Latin 22, the Scla-
vonic 27, the Dutch 26, theSpanifh 27, the Italian
20, the Ethiopic and Tartarian, each 202, the
Indians of Bengal 21, the Baramefe 19. The Chi-
nefe have, properly fpeaking, no alphabet, except
we call their whole language by that name; their
letters are words, or rather hieroglyphics, amount-
ing to about So, 000.
Alphabet is alfo ufed for a cypher, or table of
the ufual letters of the alphabet, with tl.e corref-
pondent fecret charaders, and other blank fymbols
intended to render the writing more difficult to be
decyphered.
Alphaeet, among merchants, a kind of index,
with the twenty-four letters in their natural order,
in which are fct down the nanr? of thofe who
have open accounts, referring the folios of the
ledger.
ALPHABETICAL, fomething belonging to,
or placed in order of, t'>e alphabet.
ALPHETA, in aftionrmy, the name of a fixed
flar of the fecond magnitude in the norihein
crown, and generally called iucida coraiii. See the
conftellsi'. n CoVioti a. ft-ptentrionale.
ALPHONSIN, in furgery, an inftrument for
ext'adfing bullets out of gun-fliot wounds.
This inflrument derivi;s its name from the in-
ventor Alphonfus Ferrier, a phyfician of Naples.
It confifts of three branches, which are clofed by
a ring. When clofed and introduced into the
wound, the operator draws back the ring to-
wards the handle, upon which tne hranchcj open-
ing take hold of the ball ; and then the ring is
pulhed from th,; haft, by which means the
branches grafp the ball fo firmly as to extradt it from
the wound,
■ ALPHONSIN E Tables, aftronomical tables
computed by order of Alphonfus, king of Caflile ;
that prince is even fuppofed to have affifted in the
conftruflion.
ALPHOS, among phyficians, a difeafe of the
fkin, otherwife called vitiligo, wh n that mem-
brane is fprinkled, or, as it v/ere covered with white
fpots. Several authors confider it as a fymptom of
the leprofy. See the article Leprosy.
The word is Greek, and fignifies white, which in
that language is a radix.
ALRaMECH, in aftronomy, the Arabic name
of a flar of the firfi: magnitude, commonly called
Ardlurus. SccArcturus.
ALSINE, chickweed, in botnny, a genus of
pentandrious plants. The middle kind called alfine
media, by C. Bauhine, is the chickweed of the
fhops, and grows wild in molt gardens, and oftea
on dunghills. The flowers which are fmall and
rofaceous, are produced in great plenty fom early
in the fpring till Midfummer. The whole plant
may be ufed medicinally, and is accounted cool-
J^juxir.
iji-ai%ft^ Altar.
ALT
ALT
^■ag, and therefore good in fevers, and in confump-, c
tions arifing from he£lical diforders. ;
ALT in mufic, a term applied to the high notes
in the fcale. See Gamut. /
ALTAR, a kind of table of wood, or ftone,
or metal, elevated above the ground, upon which
facrifices were offered to fome deity.
Amongft the Romans the altar was a fort of pe-
deftal, either fquare or round, or triangular, a-
dorned with fcujpture, bas-relievos, and infcrip-
tions, whereon the vidlims were burnt which they
facrificed to their idols.
The Greeks diftinguiflied two different kinds of
altars, one they called Ciu^oj ,1 which was the real
altar, on which they facrificed to their gods ; the
ether was termed £-;«*,•«, being much fmaller, and
only a fort of hearth, on which they offered up
facrifices to their heroes.
The heathens had a cuftom, when they made
any folemn vow, to lay hold on the altar ; to
which Pericles alludes, when he fays, " Ton may
be a friend as far as to the altar ;" as if he had faid, you
may love your friend fo well, as to .lo any thing but
forfwear yourfelf for him. Their altars could not
be touched, nor even approached, without facri-
lege, by perfons who had committed murder, or
women who had been defiled. They were the
moft facred afylums, as well to the innocent as the
guilty, none being forced from them, but thofe
who had commitied the moft enormous villainies.
Altars are of great antiquity amongft the Jewifli
nation ; Noah when he came out of the ark built
an altar, and offered up facrifices to the Lord : A-
braham eredled another in Sichem, and one in the
plain of Mamre. The altars, which God com-
manded Mofes to make, were to be of earth, of
rough ftones ; it being exprefly forbidden that they
fliould be hewn In the tabernacle were two al-
tars ; one the brazen altar, which was for burnt-
offerings, and the other the altar of incenfe, made
of gold-
Altar of Burnt offerings, was a kind of coffer,
made of bhittim-wood, covered with plates of
brafs ; its height was three cubits, and its breadth
five cubits. It was placed by Mofes to the eaft,
before the entrance of the tabernacle, in the open
air, that the fire which was kept upon it continu-
ally, might not fully the infide of the tablsrnacle.
hi each of the four corners of this altar, there
was a fpire in the appearance of a fiorn, wrought
out of rhe fame piece of wood with the altar itfelf,
and covered with brafs ; within the altar was a
grate of brafs, on which the fire was made ; and
through this grace fell the afhes, in proportion as
they increafed upon the altar, and were received
below, within a pan, which was placed under it.
At the four corners of this grate were four rings
acd four chains, which kept it up at the four horns
pf the altar. This altar was portable, and was
carried on the flioulders of the priefts, by fiaves of
Shiitim-wood, overlaid with brafs, and put into
rings fattened to the fides of the altar. Such was
the altar of burnt-offerings belonging to the taber-
nacle, eredied by Mofes in the wildernefs ; but the
altar of burnt-offerings, ere£led in Solomon's tem-
ple, was much larger, being twenty cubits fquare,
and ten high. It was covered with thick plates of
brafs, and filled with rough ftones ; and on the
eaft fide there was an eafy afcent leading up
to it.
After the return of the Jews from captivity, and
the building of the fecond temple by Zeruhbabel,
their altars were in fome refpedls different from'
thofe in ufe before the captivity, being compofed of
large piles of unhewn ftones, thirty-two cubits
fquare at the bottom, and twenty-four cubits at the
top. The afcent to this altar was by a gentle ri-
fing, thirty-tv;o cubits in length, and lixteen in
breadth. See Plate VJ . fig i-
h-Li i^Vi of hicenfe, was a imall table of Shittim-
wood, covered with plates of purs gold, one cubit
fquare and two high. At each of the four corners
thereof was a horn ; round it was a fmali border,
and over it a crown of gold. Every morning and
evening the officiating prieft offered incenfe upon
this altar ; for which end he entered with the
fmoaking cenfer, filled with fire from the altar of
burnt- offerings, into the fandtuary, or holy place,
where this altar was fixed over-againft the table of
fhew bread. The prieft, having placed the cenfer
upon it, retired out of the fanSuary. This was ther
altar which was hidden by Jeremiah before the cap-
tivity. See Plate IV. fig. 2.
Altar, or Table for the Jhew bread, was of
Shitem -wood, covered with plates of gold; it had
a little border round it, adorned with fculpture,
and was two cubits in length, one in breadth, and
one and a half in height. It was placed in tho
fanduary to hold the fiuw-bread; which were
twelve cakes, made in a fquare form, having as
it were four faces or fides. The Hebrew term foe
this fort of bread, fignifies literally bread of faces.
It was called the fhcw-bread, becaufe it was expofed
to public view before the ark : none but the priefts
could lawfully eat of this bread, which was ferved
up hot on the Sabbath day ; and at the fame time
the ftale ones, which had been expofed during the
whole week before, were taken away. The offer-
ing of the (hew-brcad was accompanied with fait
and frankinqenfe, which was burnt upon the tabic,
at the time when they fet on frefh cakes- Authors
are not agreed as to the manner of ranging the
cakes of ujew-bread upon the table. Some think
they were placed in three piles, containing four
cakes each ; others fay, there were but v.wo piles ol:
fix cakes. The rabbins tell us, that betweeiv
every two cakes, there were two golden pipes, fup-
potted by forks of the fame metal, whofe end
icfted
ALT
ALT
refted uoon the ground to convey air to the loaves,!
and hinJer them from growing mouldy. '
The Altar, which was obferved by St. Paul
at Athens, being dedicated thus, to the unknown
Cod, has puzzled the moft learned commentators,
to determine precifely what it was ; becaufe it was
lifiial among the heathens to engrave upon theirl
altars the name or proper enfign of the deity, to
■whom they were dedicated. Some follow the opi-
nion of St. Jerom, who informs us, that the in-
fcription was not exadlly as St. Paul relates, but
that the words were, " To the Gods of Afia,
*' Europe, and Africa ; to the unknown and
*' ftrange Gods." Others think that St. Paul
propofed to fpeak of thofe altars, which were to be
feen in feveral parts of Attica, without any parti-
cular infcription, and erefted after a folemn expia-
tion of the country, made by the philofopher Epi-
menides. But it feems to us unneceflary to go in
learch of foreign and difficult interpretations of
this paffage, as it may be taken in its plain and
literal meaning. Lucian in his Dialogue, en-
titled, Philopatris, fwears by the unknown God of
Athens ; and adds, " Being come to Athens, and
*' finding there the unknown God, we worfhipped
*' him, and gave thanks to him, with hands lifted
" up to heaven." This fmgle authority proves
incontenftibly that there was an altar at Athens
e;e£ted to the unknown God, with th<: very in-
fcription mentioned by the Apoftle.
Altar, in the modern ul'e of the word, fignifies
the communion table.
Altar, or Ara, in aftronomy, a conftclla-
tion of the fouthern hemifphere, containing feven
liars, whereof five are of the fourth magnitude, and
two of the fifth J this conftellation is not vifible in
our climate.
ALTARAGE, the profits which the prieft re-
ceives on account of the altar.
ALTERAN rS, in medicine. See the article
Alteratives.
ALTtRATE, in mufic and geometry. See
SesQIJI ALTER ate.
AL'l'KRATiVES, or Alterative medicines,
in the healing art, are fuch medicines as correiil
the bad qualities of the anima] fluids, without oc-
cafioning any fenfible evacuation.
ALTERCUM, in botany, a name given by
fome old writers to a plant now called hyofcyamus.
See the article Hyoscyamus.
ALTERN-BASE, in trigonometry, is a term
ufed in contradiftindtion to the true bafe. Thus,
in oblique triangles, when the true bafe is the fum
of the fides, then the difference of the fides is the
altern-bafe ; but when the difference of the fides is
the true bafe, then the fum of the fides is called
the altern-bafe,
ALl ERNATE, in a general fenfc, fignifies a
term applied to fuch perfons or things, as fuccecd
each other by turns.
Alternate, in botany, is fuch a difpofition
of the leaves of fome plants, that the firfl leaf on
one fide of a branch ftands higher than the firft ojt
the other fide, the fecond leaf the fame, and fo con-
tinued to the top.
Alternate, in heraldry, is faid with regard
to the fituation of the quarters. Thus the firft
and fourth quarters, and the fecond and third, are
ufually of the fame nature, and are thence called
alternate quarters.
Alternate Jngls, in geometry. See Angles.
Alternate Ratio, is the ratio of antecedent to
antecedent, and confequent to confequent, in any
proportion. Thus if A : B : C : D. then will
the ratio of A to C, be as the ratio of B to D.
which is alternate; he«ce this kind of proportion
can only take place when the quantities are of the
fame kind.
ALTERNATION properly fignifies a fucccf-
fion by turns.
Alternation of ^antit'ies is a term ufed to
exprefs the different ways, that any particular
number of things maybe varied, changed, or com-
bined. See Combination.
ALTERNATIVE, in a general fenfe, im-
plies nearly the fame as alternate. See Alter-
nate.
ALTHi^A, marfhmallow, in botany, a genu*
of plants producing a flower with a double em-
palement ; the outer one is monophyllous, irregu-
larly divided at the extremity into nine narrow parts,
the interior empalement is alfo compotd of one
leaf, cut at the top into five broad fegments, and
are both premanent, the ffower contains five heart-
fhaped petals, which join together at the bafe;
the filaments are numerous, joined below in a cy-
lindrical form, but loofe at the tops, and are in-
ferted in the corollae; in the center is placed an
orbiculated germen, fupporting a fljort cylindrical
flyle, topped with a numerous lligma; the empale-
ment becomes afterwards a round depreffed cap-
fulas, divided into feveral cellsi each containing a
fingle compreffed kidney- fhaped feed.
The common althaa grows in moift places in
divers parts of England, the root is perennial, but
the ftalk is annual, and dies to the ground every
autumn ; the ftalk is upright, with a few fmall fide
branches, and furni/hed with hoary foft angulated
leaves J the ffower blows in July and Augulf, and
comes out from the wings of the leaves fhaped
like the common mallow, but lefs, and of a paler
colour.
In medicine the leaves of this plant afford a
very foft mucilaginous fubftance in decodion,
which is therefore good in all complaints arifing
from acrimony i thus it is of great fervice in dy-
fentcries.
ALT
ALT
fenteries, and in many kinds of cholics ; it alfo
greatly affifts in obftru£lions of the reins and
urinary paflages, by lubricating the parts, and
tbereby making them yield better to the pa/Tage
and expulfion of fuch matter; it is likewife good
in ftranguaries and heat of urine : it is much ufed
in glyfters, and fometimes in maturatin^^ cata-
plafms. Mr. Ray mentions it as a pedtoral ; and
it muft certainly be of fervice to eafe the coughs
thence arifing, and is alfo of ufe in pleurilies.
The roots of this plant partake of the virtues of
the leaves, but are accounted more efficacious ;
they yield a great flime or mucilage to any de-
codtion or infufion, which renders it very fmooth
and emollient, whereby it makes the parts give
way to almolt any thing that prefles upon them,
and wonderfully facilitates the paifage of any fliarp
particles through the minutell canals, without
fufFering their points to wound and irritate the
membranes ; fometimes they are given inwardly,
not fo much to force the urine, as to (heath with
the mucilage it affords the fharpnefs and acrimony
of the humours. Thefyrup in the fhops, in which
this is the principal ingredient, and from whence
it takes its name, is good in the fame intention, but
not fo efficacious as the fame ingredients in de-
coiSlion only, becaufe fugar improperly mixes with
medicines of a mucilaginous nature.
Althjea Frutex. See Hibiscus,
ALTIMETRY, the art of meafuring heights
or depths, whether acceflible or inacceflible. See
Altitude.
ALTITUDE, in geometry, one of the three
dimenfions of a folid body, and is often exprefTed by
height, or depth ; thus we fay, the length, breadth,
and height ; or, the length, breadth, and depth of
a body ; where height and depth are the fame as
if we had faid, the altitude of that folid. The
altitude of an earthly objedt is commonly un-
derftood to be its height above the ground, or to
be equal to the length of a perpendicular let fall
from the apex of the objedt to tlie horizontal bafe,
or to the ground on which itftands.
Altitude of a Figure, the diftance of the
vertex from the bafe, or length of the perpen-
dicular line AD, (Plate Vl.fig. i.J where A is
the vertex of the triangle ABC, BC the bafe,
and AD:i:the altitude of the triangle.
The altitudes of objefls on the earth, are either
acceffible or iniicceffible. They are faid to be ac-
ceflible, when we can approach without obftacle
the foot or bafe of the objsft, at that point where
the perpendicular from the vertex falls ; and on the
contrary, they are faid to be inacceffible, when we
cannot approach the obje£l, by reafon of Ibme
hindrance or impediment, as a ditch, river, rock,
&c.
To talean accejjiblc A- titude. Let AB (Plate
VI. fig, 4.) reprcfent the objcia )ou would take
the altitude of. Firfl-, At any diftance from the
objea, with a quadrant or other inftrument, take
the angle of its altitude, as A ^ B ; then with a
chain or rod meafure the diftance e B, and you.
will have in the triangle ABt-, right angled at B,
the fide B e, and angle A * B, to find the fide
A B, (which is the altitude of the objeft above
the eye) which is found by the following propor- -
tion.
As radius ;
Is to the diftance of the eye from the obje£l=BC;
So is the tangent of the obferved angle ACB ; \
To the altitude of the objedt BA above the eye.
Therefore adding the altitude of the eye to BA, '
gives the true altitude of the objeiSl, let it be tower,
fteeple, tree, or any other fimilar thing.
If no inftrument be at hand for obferving ths
angular height, you may find the altitude of any
acceffible objea by the (hadow. Thus, Let EB, '
(Plate Vr. /^. 5.) be the fliadow of the fteeple '
AE, made by the folar rays coming from the fun;
then find a place, D, where a ftaff, or walking
cane, CD, being held or placed upright, fhall
caft the extremity of its fliadow juft upon the
point B; then meafure the length of the fliadow
EB and DB, and as the height of the ftaff is
known, the analogy will be thus ;
As the length of the fliadow BD:
Is to the fliadow BE :
So is the height of the ftaff DE r
To the height of the fteeple EA.
To take an hiaccejfihle Altitude. Let AC,
(Plate VI. fig. 6 ) reprefent a tower, which by
means of fomc ditch, river, &c. is inacceffible to
find its altitude. Firft, Pitch upon two ftations
any where in the bafe line CB, as at D and B ;
meafure the did ance DB, between the two ftations j
then take the angular height of the tower, both at
D and B, and you will then have given in the
oblique triangle ABD, the angle ABD=the
angular height of the tower at the ftation B ; and
the angle ADB = 180"— the angular height ac
the ftation D; likewife the fide BD to find DA,
which is done thus :
As the fine of the angle BADr: 180 — the fum
of the angles ABD and 413B :
Is to the fide DB, = the diftance of the ftations :
So is the fine of the angle DBA:
To the fide AD.
Then we have given in the triangle ACD, right- .
angled at C, the fide AD, found by the laft ana-
logy ; and the angle ADC = the angular height
of the tower taken at the ftation D, to hnJ
AC, the height of the tower, vi'hich is done
thus:
ALT
ALT
As radius:
Is to the fide AD::
So is the fine of the angle ADC
To the fidcC A =: the altitude required.
The way of taking the altitude of high moun-
tains, whofe funitnits are accefllble, is by carrying
a bsrometsr to the top, and obferving how many
divifions and parts the mercury differs from what
it flood at below in the valley ; by which means
you have the altitude in Englifti feet, by a table
of M. Caflini's, which is inferred in the Hiftoire
de I'Academie Royale, for the years 1703 and 1704,
which he founded on very accurate obfervations
and menfurations of the altitudes of feveial moun-
tains.
Altitude, in optics, is an angle fubtended
between a line drawn from the eye parallel to the
horizon, and a ray emitted from an objedt to the
eye. Thus, if through the two extremes of an
cbjeS A and B, (Plate VI. fig. 2.) two parallels
AD and BO be drawn, the angle BCA, inter-
cepted between a vifual ray paffing through the
vertex A, and terminating the fhadow thereof in
C, makes with the right line BC, what is called by
fome the altitude of the luminary.
Altitude a/"//;^ £)'4', in perfpe£live, is aright
line let fall from the eye perpendicular to the geo-
metrical plane, being the point from whence the
principal ray proceeds.
Altitude, in aftronomy, js the diftance of the
fun, or ftar, from the horizon, and is meafured by
an arch of a vertical circle intercepted between the
celeflial objefl and the horizon.
Altitude of the Pole, is the height of the pole
■above the horizon, and is reprefented by the arch
ph, (Plate yh fig. 3.) where h h is the horizon.
The elevation of the pole is always equal to the
latitude of the place, and the diftance of the pole
from the zenith, reprefented by the arch H p, is
always equal to the complement of latitude.
Altitude c/the Equinoiilal, is its height above
tl e horizon, and is always equal to the comple-
ment of the latitude of the place, and is reprefented
by the arch JE h (Plaie VI, /^. 3.)
Metidian Altitude of a Star, or Planet, is an
arch of the meridian intercepted between the cen-
ter of the planet and the horizon. To take a me-
ridian altitude, fee Meridian, Observation, or
AlTITuDE
Jpparent Altitude of a Star, Planet, he. is
the arch of a vertical circle intercepted between
the fenfible horizon and the center of the planet.
As, let C D (Plate VI. /j-. 3.) be the true hori-
zon, H O the fenfible horizon, Q_D a vertical
circle whofe center is C, the center of the earth,
and let L be any point in the heavens; let H be
the place of obfervation, and L M an arch of a
ciitle drawn through L on the center H, then is
L M the apparent altitude of the point L, whicb'V
is always lefs than the true.
True Altitude, which is the arch Q_D. of a
vertical circle whofe center is C, the center of the-
earth.
Parallax in Altttude, is an arch intercepted-
between the true and apparent place of a ftar, or.
planet, when diminiftied by the fmall arch of
RefraElion in Altitude, or the fmall arch»
whereby the altitude of a ftar, or planet, is in-
creafed ; confequently, as the arch of parallax di-
minifhes the altitude, the difference between the"
two arches is the true difference between the true •
and apparent altitude.
Altitude of Motion, a term ufed by fome wri-
ters, "to exprefs the meafure of any motion, com-
puted according to the line of direflion of the
moving force.
Altitude of the Nonagefimal Degree, is its alti-
tude reckoned from the point at which itrifes; or
it is the complement to a quadrant of the nonage-
fimal degree, from the vertex of any place. See
NoNAGESIMAL.
Altitude of the Earth's Shadoiv. See EcLlPsSi'
of the Moon,
Altitvue of the Moon's Shadow. See Eclipse '
oj the Sun.
Parallels of ALTITUDES. See the article Pa's-
RALLEL.
^adrani of Altitude. See the article Qua^
BRANT.
ALTO and Basso, in law, denotes the abfo-
lute ubmifFion of all difference, high and low to
fome arbitrator.
ALTOM, a name given in feveral parts of the
Turkifli dominions to what the Europeans call a
fequin. See Sequin.
ALTO-RELIEVO. See the article Re-
lievo.
ALTO-REPIENO, in mufir, the tenor of the
grand chorus, which fings or plays only now and
then in fome particular places.
ALTUS, in mufic. See Countertenor.
ALVARISTS were a branch of the Tomefts,
fo called from Alvares their leader, who afTerted
the dodlrine of fufficient grace, inftead of the efH-^
cacious grace of the ancient Thomifls.
ALUCO, in natural hiftory, a name by which
fome authors call the common white owl. See
Owl.
ALUDE, a kind of coloured fiieep's leather
dreffed with the wool on.
ALUDELS, in chemiftry, are earthen pots
without bottoms, inlerted into each other, and
ufcd in fublimations. See the article Sublima-
tion.
The firft aludel is fitted to a pot, containing the-
matter to be fublimed, and placed in the furnace ;
^ die fccond aludel is a(!julkd to the former j and
ALU
A L U
in this manner any number of aludels, lequifite in
the operation, are placed an each other, and the
upper one fitted to a blind head, where the flowers
that afcend higheft are retained.
ALVEARIUM, in anatomy, the hollow of the
auiicle, or external ear.
The word is Latin, and derived from alvenus, a
channel, or cavity.
ALVEOLUS, in natural hiftory, fignifies one
of thofe waxen cells which compofe the combs in
bee-hives.
Thefe cells ferve both for ftore houfes, wherein
the honey and wax for future ufe are depofited,
and alfo for nidufes to defend the embryo bees,
while hatching. See Bee.
Alveolus, in anatomy, the focket-like cavity
in the jaw, wherein each of die teeth are fet.
Alveolus, in botany, a name given to the cells
in which the feeds of certain plants are placed,
fuch as the fjr-3ower, &c.
ALUM, Jluwen, in natural hiftory, a femi-
fanfparent, auftere, flyptic fait, compofed of the
vitriolic acid, and a certain earth, found in all the
argillaceous foffils hitherto examined.
The greateft quantities of this fait are artificial-
ly produced from different kinds of minerals, whofe
nature and compofitionare little known.
The reddilh Roman alum is prepared from a
reddifh ftone found at the bottom of the hill Tol-
fa, near Civita Vecchia, in the ecclefiaftical ftate.
In Sweden and Lme parts of Bohemia, alum is
made from pyritae and other ores ; in England, at
Altfattel, and fundry other places, from bitumi-
nous minerals of the pitccalkind ; at Solfatara near
Naples, from a whitifh earth ; in Mifnia^ from a
blackifh one; at Leowenberg near Freyenwalde,
frcm a reddifii one, and from different minerals at
Saalfeld, Reichenbach, Leufetsdorff, Sufersdorff,
Eliard, Schwentzel, Duben, &c. There are wa-
ters impregnated with alum, though fev/ if any that
leave a perfeit alum on bare evaporation.
The pureft and moft perfect alum ore is the red-
difh ftone of Tolfa .this is laid to yield alum with-
out any additional matter, though oot v.'ithout
artificial management: the alum obtained from it
is tiiiiSlured with the reddifh colour of the ftone.
In its natural ftate it gives ho marks of alum ; and,
if expofed to the air, it continues a hard infipid
ftone. Calcined or roaftcd, and then laid for a time
in the air, it becomes by degrees aluminous, and
gives out its alum on being boiled in water. This
is the alum which the Italians call alu?n di rocca,
alum made from a ftore or rock ; among us, the.
name alumen rupeuni, or rock alum, is ofien applied
to the larger cryftalline maftes, whatever fubjefl
they have been prepared from.
The aluminous pyritse and bitumens require
110 calcination, unlefs they greatly abound with
fulphur. Thefe minetals, at hift taken out of the
earth, are compa(f>, and often bright and glitter-
ing: they have no manner of tarte, and difcover
no mark of their holding any tiling faline; the
vitriolic acid being as yet blended with an infiam--
mable matter, by which its acidity and all its fa-
line characlers are deftroyed. On baieexpofure to
the open air, the inflammable principle is diilipated,
and the acid is combined with the aluminous earth
into a perfe<St alum, th: ftone at the fame time
falling into powder.
The mineral, thus impregnated with alum. Is
e'ixated or boiled with water; the liquor boiled'
down, commonly with an addition of urine, or al-
kaline ley, or both together ; the clear part poured-
oft and fet to (hoot; the cryftals, if not fufficient-
ly pure, diflblved again, boiled down with a little
more alkali, and cryftallized afrelh. The ufe of
the urine or alkali fait is partly to clarify the li-
quor, and precipitate fuch metallic parts as it may .
contain, and partly to give a body to the alum,
and promote the cryftallization ; the liquor of it-
felf would not fhoot, but either continue fluid, or
if further evaporated, would yield only an unflu--
ous mafs. Alkaline falts are found to anfwer bet-
ter than urine, and hence are now in moft places
alone made ufe of, though fome ftill retain urine
from prejudice and cuftom. The alkali preci-
pitates not only metallic matters, but a grofs earth
which would injure the tranfparency of the fait,
and often alfo a part of the aluminous earth itfelf,
which falls to the bottom in form of a whi;e meal,
called at the works alum meal ; this is to be re-dif-
folved and cryftallized afrefh. The mineral re-
maining after elixation, expofed for fome years
to the air, becomes impregnated alum again ; in
fome place* this procefs is repeated a third and fourth*
time.
Some earthsj as the alum earth of Solfatara, and
the aluminous ftate, have a manifeft aluminous tafte
when newly dug; and hence are direflly elixated,
without expofure to the atmofphere. In fome kinds ■
offlates we may plainly diftinguifti the aluminous
matter lying in a, powdery form, betwixt the flakes
or fcales of which the ftone is compofed. In ge-
neral, where the mineral holds but little fulphur,,
it is fufficient to lay It for a time in open air, de-
fended from rain by a fheJ or flight covering; if
it participates confiderably of fulphur, it muft be
previoufly calfined ; il very rich in fulphur, a part
of the fulphur is firft extraiSled by fublimation, and-
the refidum worked for alum.
The alum flates near York, in England, are^
confiderably fu'phureous ; by lying long in the air
they become aluminous of ihemfelves, but to pro-
mote this effed: they are ufually calcined. The
boilers are large leaden pans, nine feet long, five
feet broad, and two and a half in depth ; the li-
quor is clarified and difpofed to cryftallize by the
i udcition i)f foda, there called kelp, and of urioe.
The
A- L U
A
A
The alum- ore of Schwer,tzel» near Duben in Sax-
iiny, above five miles from Hail, is likewife bitu-
minous; this is firft calcined, then expofed to the
air, elixaicd with water, and the liquor boiled down
wfth potrfh. At. , Altfattel, near CarKbade, the
workmen formerly u fed only urine, of which they
received conftant fupplies from the neighbouring
towns and villages. The moft curious alum ore
known is in Sweden ; fulphur, vitriol, and alum,
being here obtained from one mineral, which ap-
pears to be a kind of pyrites.. The fulphur is firft
extraflcd by diftillation ; the refiduum being flrong-
ly calcined, boiled in water, the liquor duly eva-
porated and fet to fhoot, the vitriol cryftallizes ;
the uncryftatlized liquor, treated with urine and a
ley drawn from alhes, yields alum.
The cryftallization of allum is ufually performed
in large ftrong wooden cafks, whofe ftaves and
hoops are all marked with numbers, that they may
be readily put together : in fome places iron veffeis
are ufed. The cafks being filled \\ ith the alum li-
quor, evaporated to a due confil^ence, and fet in a
cold place, the alum gradually fhoots into large
cryftals about the fides ; the liquor in the middle is
then let off by a cock in the bottom, the head of
the cafk knocked out, and the vefTel turned upfide
down, for the more effectual draining off of the
remaining liquid. ' The cryflals are then dried in
a warm ftove, and packed up in cafks : and the
mother-Icy, or uncryftallized liquor, mixed with
Irefli aluminous ley. The metallic or vitriolic
alum-ores occafion the greatefl trouble ; and the
alum obtained from them, though it appears white,
is never totallv free from fome metallic impregna-
tion. Confiderable differences are found in alum,
partly from its caufe, and partly from its being
prepared with urine or pot afli, or with fiefli or
Sale urine. Thefe differences are chiefly obferved
by the dyers, and thofe who prepare lakes for the
painters.
Alum requires about ten times its weight of wa-
ter to diffolve in. The folution, ifthe alum was
pure, makes no change in the colour of fyrup of
violets ; but the common forts change the fyrup
green, by virtue of the alkaline fait employed 'n
their preparation. Fixed alkalies, volatile alkalies,
and borax, added to folutions of alum, precipitate
the earth. Its tafte is naufeoufly fweetifh and
aflringent. In cryftallization, it fhoots into large
angular maffes, conlifiring generally of eleven planes,
fix of which are hexangular and fix quadran-
gular.
An ounce of alum contains about five fcruples
and a half of earth, one dram and eighteen grains
of vitriolic acid, and nearly five drams of water.
Great quantities of alum are ufed by the dyers,
jcalico printers, fee .
Burnt Allum is nothing more than alum expofed
lo tfe adhionofthc fiiej by which means it lique-
fies, and boils up like green vitriol; and when its
phlegm is evaporated, forms a white fpongy brittle
mafs ; by this treatment it lofes very little of its ,
acid ; and hence almoft totally diffolves again ia
wafer, and (Loots into hard compaifl cryftals as at
firft.
Alum TFattr, a compofition ufed by thofe who
colour prints, &c. and made in the following man-
ner.;
Take three ounces of alum, and boil it in a
quart of rain or river water, till the fait is diffolv-
ed. Then take it from the firej and after ftanding
twenty-four hours to fettle, pour cff the clear li-
quor for ufe.
With this water they wafli their prints in order
to prevent the colours from finking into the paper,
and give them a brightnefs which they would other-
wife want.
ALUMINOUS, an epithet applied to fuch^
things as partake of the nature or properties of:
alum.
AluSiinous Waters, thofe impregnated, either .
by nature or art, with the virtues of alum. The .
fpa at Scarborough is faid to be of thi; former kind.
ALSUS, in anatomy, the lower belJy or venter.
See Abdomen.
ALYSOIDS, in botany, a diftinfl: genus of ^
plants, with cruciform flowers, and elliptical fruit,
divided by an intermediate membrane intj twor ,
cells, which contain a confiderable number of v
fmall roundifh feeds.
ALYSSON, or Alyssum, in botany, is the name
of a genus of plants called in Englifli mad wort :
the flower is of the cruciform kind, and confifts of
four leaves; the fruit is a roundifli capfule, di- ■
vided into two cells, in which are contained a num-
ber of fmall roundifh feeds.
This plant is faid to be aperitive and diaphore-
tic; but is feldom ufed at prefent.
ALYTARCHA, a prieft of Antioch, who pre-
fided in the games inftituted in honour of the gods,
over the alutai, or officers who kept order and de-
cency at thefe feftivals.
The word is Greek, and compounded^ of i».\.T.',
and a T- , chief. ^
AMA, among ecclefiaftical writers, implies a
veffel in which wine or water were kept for the
fervice of the eucharift.
AMABYR, a barbarous cuftom which formerly
prevailed in I'everal parts of England and Wales,
being a fum of money paid to the lord, when a
maid was married within his lordlhip.
The word is old Britifli, and fignifies " the
" price of virginity.''
AMAIN, in the fea language, fignifies at orce.
Thus to lower amain, is to lower at once, cr let
go the fall of the tackle.
AMALGAMa, in chemiftry, a mafs of me cu y
united and incorporated with ibme metal.
The
A M A
The word is formed from the Greek, nfj-d, toge-
ther, and ycLUic,^ to join.
AMALGAMATION, in chemiftry, the ope-
ration of making an amalgama, or mixing quick-
ifilvcr with fome metal.
Trituration is often fufficicnt to make an amal-
gama ; but a proper degree of heat is alfo of very
confidcrable ufe.
Mercury amalgamated with a metal, gives it a
confiftence more or lefs foft, and e\en fluid, ac-
cording to the greater or fmalier proportion of mer-
cury employed. All amalgamas are fofteiied by
heat, and hardened by cold.
Mercury is very volatile ; vaftly more fo than
the unfi.xed metals : moreover, the union it con-
tracts with any metal is not fufficiently intimate to
entitle the new compound refulting from the union
to all the properties of the two fubftances united ;
at leaft with regard to their degree of fixity and
volatility : from all which it follows, that the beft
and fureft method of feparating it from metals dif-
folved by it, is to expofe the amalgama to a degree
of heat fufficient to make ail the quickfdver arife
and evaporate ; afcer which the metal remains in
the form of a powder, and being fufed recovers its
Kialleability. If it be thought proper to fave the
quickfilvcr, the operation muft be performed in
dlofe veflels, which will confine and colletft the
mercurial vapours.
■ Of all metals, gold unites with mercury with
die grcateli: facility ; next to that, filver ; then
lead, tin, and e^ery metal, except iron and cop-
per, the lall of which incorporates with quick-
i'llver with great difficulty, and the former fcarce
at all.
, The amalgama of gold is thus made : take a
dram of the regulus of gold, beat it into very thin
plates, and upon thefe, heated in a crucible red
hot, pour an ounce of quickfilver, ilir the matter
with an iron rod, and when it begins to fume, cait
it uno an earthen pan filled with water, and it will
coagulate and become tractable. Gold will retain
about thrice its weight of mercury.
To make an amalgama of lead : melt clean lead in
zn iron ladle, add to it an equal weight of melted
mercury, (lir them together with an iron rod; then
let them cool, and you will have an uniform mafs
of a filver colour, fomewhat hard, but growing
fofter and fofterbv trituration. Put this mafs into
a glafs mortar, grind it, and mix with it any quan-
tity of mercury at pleafure, and it will unite with
it, as fait with water.
: The amalgama of tin is made exaiTtly in the
f.ime manner, and this alfo may be diluted by the
addition of mercury.
■ To have an amalgama of copper : take a folu-
tlon of pure copper, made in aquafortis, fo ftrong
that the aquafortis could diffolve no more of the
metal; dilute the folution with, twelve limes jts
■ 7-
,i.
AM A
qiianhty of fair water ; heat the liquor, and put
into it poliflied plates of iron, and the copperwiii
be precipitated in a powder to the bottom, while
the iron will be diffolvcd : proceed thus till all the
copper is fallen ; pour oft" the liquor, wafh tiie
powder with hot water, til! it becomes perfeclly
infipid ; then dry the powder, and grind it in a
glafs mortar with an equal weight of hot quick-
filver, and they will unite into an amalgama,
which will alfo receive a further addition of mer-
cury. An amalgama of copper in any other way
is very difficult to make.
Pure filver, precipitated from aquafortis, may in
the fame manner be made into an amalgama.
From thefe operations we may perceive that the
making of amalgamas is the foundation of the art
of gilding, both in gold and filver ; and that
metals, by that art, may bj mixed, confounded,
and fecretly concealed among one another.
AMALTHEA, in mythology, the goat that
fuckled Jupiter, and was afterwards placed by that
god among the liars.
AMyVNUS, in mythology, a god of the ancient
Perfians. It is fuppofed to have been the fun,
whom they worfhippcd under the image of the per-
petual fire.
AMARANTA, or Am.^rante, an order of
knighthood, inftituted in the year 1653, by Chrif-
tina, queen of Sweden, in memory of a mafque-
rade, in which flie had afiTumed that name, which
fignifies unfadino;, or immortal.
AMARANT HOIDES, in botany, the globe
amaranth. See Gomthrena.
AMARANTHUS, in botany, the amaranth,
or flower gentle, the name of a genus of plants
which produces male and female apetalous flowens :
the empalement of each confifts of three or five
lanceolatcd leaves ; the male flowers contain three
or five hairy filaments, the length of the calyx
topped with oblong antherae ; the female flowers
produce an oval germen, fupporting three fhort
ilyles ; the empalement becomes afterwards an oval
feed veflel, containing a fingle cell, in which is
lodged one globulous comprefTed feed ; there are
feveral (pecies in this genus, fome of v.diich are
much admired for their beauty, as the amaranthus
bicolor and tricolor, alfo the prince's-feather, fa
called, which is of the fame genera. The bicolor
and tricolor amaranths being tender plants, fliouki
be fown in March on a hot-bed, and afterwards
plaiued finely in finall pots ; and as they advance
in growth, muft: be fhifted into pots of a larger
fize, removing them into frefh beds when the
heat of the former is declined, obferving not to
plunge them till the violence of the heat is over ;
but it is much better to remove them into a glafs
cafe built purpofely about fix feet wide, and of th^
fame height, floping from the back to the upright
glaffcSj which Ihould be moveable. In the infide of
' H h >h9
A M B
A MB
the place, fnould be a bark or tan-bsd about three
feet deep ; when the plants can no longer be con-
tained in the common hot-bed frames, then re-
move and plunge them in new bark, previoufly
prepared : here they may remain till thev are ar-
rived to their full perfection, obferving to give them
plenty of air in hot weather, and likewife fre-
quent waterings. , When they are full grov/n, and
the weather favourable, they m.ay be placed in the
open air in fuch a fituation, as to be protefted
from the violence of the winds, which would
otherwife greatly damage them. Thefe plants,
when properly managed, make a moft delightful
appearance with their fine variegated leaves, in
which their greatefl beauty coiififts : the prince's-
featlier is a beautiful plant about three feet high ;
the flowers are produced at the wings of the ftalks,
and in clufters ; at the extremity of the branches
they are long and hang downward, and are of a
bright purple colour. One fpecies of the amaran-
thus has formerly been ufcd in medicine ; it is ac-
counted drying and reftringent, and is reconmiend-
cd in fluxes of all kinds.
AMARANTHUS Codfcomh. See Celosia
Amar-jUh.
AMARYLLIS, in botany, the lily daffodil, a
genus of plants bearing liliaceous flowers, with
roots like thofc of the narciflus. There are various
fpecies of thefe plants, ibme of which produce very-
beautiful flowers ; the moft remarkable forts are,
the Guernfey lily, the Jacob^a lily, and the Mexi-
can lily, commonly fo called. The Guernfey lily
is a native of the Weft-Lidies, but thrives ex-
tremely well in Guernfey and Jerfey, from whence
the roots arc imported ; they are tolerably hardy, and
fliould be planted in Juiyand Auguft, to produce their
fine bloflbms in autumn ; but they fcarcely will blow
in England the fucceeding year. The Jacobaea and
Mexican lilies fhould be kept in a hot-houfe in
the winter. The Mexican generally blov/s in the
fpring, but the Jacobaea flov/ers at different times
in the year; the flowers of both forts are larger
than thofe of the Guernfey lily ; thofe of the Jaco-
boea produce bloflbms the colour of crimfon velvet,
and the Mexican of a red copperifn colour : they
are all encreafed by ofF-fets, which in general they
produce plentifully.
AMATORII 'MiifaiU, in anatomy, thofc muf-
cles of the eye that draw it fideways, and aflift the
look called ogling.
AMAZON, in antiquity, a bold daring wom.an,
whofe breafts have been cut off" to render her more
proper for lighting. In a mere limited fenfe, it
implied one of the ancient nation of women who
inhabited that part of the LefTer Afia, now called
Amafia. ^V"e alfo read of Scythian, German, Ly-
bian, and American amazons.
Amazons, in a figurative fenfe, is an appella-
tion given to bees, from their being governed by a
<lMeen.
AMBASSADOR, a perfon fcnt in a pubH
character from one fovereign to another.
The word is derived from the low Latin, nm-
hafdator, formed from ambaiius, which among the
ancient Gauls fignified fervant, client, domeilic,
or officer.
Ambafladors are either ordinary or extraordinary..
Ambassador Ordinary is a perfon reilding at
another court for keeping up a good intelligence
between the two powers, taking care of the intc-
refl: of his mafter, and negotiating fuch affairs as
may occafionally happen. Ambafladors of this
kind have not been known above two centuries j
before that time all ambafladors v.'ere extraordinary,
and retired as foon as they had finifhed the affair
they v/ere fcnt to negociate.
Ambassador Extraordinary is a perfon fcnt to
the court of a foreign power, on fome particular
and preffing afl^air, as to conclude a peace or
a marriage, make a complim.ent, &c.
In fact, there is no eflential difference between
ambafladors ordinary and extraordinary ; the mo-
tive of their ambaffies alone diffinguillies them r
they are equally entitled to the privileges given to
ambafTadors by the law of nations.
The name of ambafilidor, fays Cicero, is facred
and inviolable. And this has always been the
opinion of all nations ; for we find that David
thought the affront offered to his amlwfiadors, a.
fufficient reafon for making war againtt the Am-
monites ; and Alexander put the inhabitants of
Tyre to the fvvord for infulting his ambaflTadors. '
AMBERVALIA, in antiquity, a ceremony
among the Romans ; when, in order to procure
from the gods an happy harveft, they condudted the
victims thrice round the corn fields, in proceflion,
before they were facrificed.
AMBE, among furgeons, is the name of an
ancient inftrument for
flioulder.
Ambe, among anatomifls, implies the fuperfi-
cia! jutting out of a bone.
AAIBER, fuccifium, or e!e£?rum, in natural
hiftorv, a pellucid and very hard inflammable fub-
ftance, of an uniform ftrudture, a bituminoi;s
tafte, a very fragrant fmell when rubbed, and
highly endowed with that remarkable property
called eledtricity.
Amber is a folid mineral bitum.en ; not as fome
ha\'e fuppofed a vegetable refm, or infpiflated
juice, introduced into cavities in the earth, and
there indurated and fomewhat changed in its qua-
lity ; nor is it a true marine production, though
fometimes found in the fea.
This bitumen is met with plentifully in regular
mines in fome parts of Pruflia ; the upper furface
is compofed of fand, under which is a ffratum of
loam, and under this a bed of wood, partly en-
tire, but chiefly mouldered or changed into a bitu-
minous
reducing a diflocated
A M B
minous fubftance ; under the wood is a rtratum of
vitriolic or ratlier aluminous mineral, and under
this another bed of fand, in which the amber is
found. Strong fulphureous exhalations are often
perceived in the pits. Helving relates, that where-
cver there is amber, there is always a bituminous
earth and foffil wood, a gravelly matter, vitriol,
nitre, and fulphur ; and that the matter of the
amber relides in the folhl wood. The obfcrvalion
appears to be juft, except in regard to nitre, which
is never found in the amber pits ; fome aluminous
matter was doubdcfs miiiaken for nitre. Confider-
able quantities are met v/ith alfo in the fea, near
the arabcr fliores, particularly after a ftorm, the
fea having probably wafhed out the mineral from
the earth.
The digging of amber is a very dangerous work,
the ground not being ftony or rocky as m metallic
mines, but fandy or loamy, and hence very fub-
jecl to fall in when hollowed underneath. His
PruPiian majefty receives a large annual revenue
from this commodity : he has a peculiar council
called the amber-chamber ; and no one but thofe
appointed for that purpofe is permitted to dig or
filh for amber in his dominion.s. Small quantities
of amber are met with alfo in Bohemia, Silefia,
Saxony, Hungary, France, &c. The pieces of
amber now and then found in thefe places were
not perhaps originally produced there, but carried
thither by the flood.
Various kinds of fubftances are often enclofcd
in maffes of amber, as drops of v/ater, which pafs
from fide to fide, upon moving the mafs, fmall bits
of wood, mofs, leaves of plants, &c. a variety of in-
fedls, particularly gnats, flies, fpiders, ants, moths,
butterflies, grafshoppers, bees, worms, cantharides,
caterpillars, crickets, maggots, lice, and fleas.
Hence it is evident, that this bitumen has once
been in a fluid ftate, though wc cannot conclude
that it ever was a liquid or oily matter, and ac-
quired its confiftcncy and folidity by degrees. Ap-
pearances are rather contrary to this fuppofition.
The infefts found in amber have nothing of thofe
llrained or diftorted poltures which animals are
naturally thrown into upon endeavouring to difen-
gage themfelves when entangled in a vifcous liquid.
We often fee pieces of amber in which there are
perfeft flies, with the wings and feet beautifully
expanded as if they were ftill flying. It is there-
fore moft probable that the amber was generated
inftantaneoufly from the concourfe of mineral oil
or petroleum with vitriolic acid, in the form of
vapours, which at once concreted together, and
embalmed the infers that happened to lye in their
way, with a more durable and precious covering
than has ever fallen to the lot cf the moft magni-
ficent monarchs.
A bituminous wood is conftantly to be met v.'ith
iii the Pruflian arober pit? ; thi? however does not
A M B
ajjpear at all necclTary to the formation cf amber j
for that bitumen is alfo found in Italv, where
foffil wood is unknown, but plenty of mineral oil
or petroleum.
Oil and Salt of AyiHER. Amber melts and burns
in the fire, and emits a fi:rong peculiar fmcll.
Diftillcd i;i- a ftrong heat it yields a phlegm, an
oil, and a particular fpecies of volatile faline mat-
ter. '1 he diftiilation is performed in earthen or
glafs retorts, fometimcs with, and fometlmes with-
out the addition of fand, powdered flints, bricks,
lime, elixated aflies, bole, loam, pumice, fea-
falt, coals, &:c.
In order more perfectly to collect the fait, which
is the moft valuable prodinSt in this operation, the
receiver fhould be frequently changed during the
diftiilation, and the phlegm and the light oil w'ucli
arife at firft kept apart. The fait may be purified
by placing it for a time upon bibulous paper, whicli
abforbs a part of the oil, and changing the paper
fo long as it receives any oily ftain. I'his fait is
accounted aperient, diuretic, and antihyftcric : its
great price has prevented its coming much into ufe,
and probably its real virtues, though doubtlefs con-
fiderable, fall greatly fhort of the opinion that has
been generally entertained of them.
The oil of amber is reilified by diftilling it over,
either by itfelf, or with difterent additionSj as.
burnt bones, lime, elixated afhcs, chalk, tobacco
pipe clay, pot-alh, S:c. The beft method is to
diftil it with common water, and repeat the diftii-
lation feveral times with frefh parcels of water ;
by this method we obtain a clear limpid oil, a
large quantity of thick pitchy matter rcm.aining
behind. Tins oil has a flrong bituminous fmcll,
and a hot pungent tafte ; and approaches more to
the nature of the mineral petrolea than of the ve-
getable or animal diflilled oils. It is fomctim.es
given internally, in dofes. of ten or twelve drops,,
as an antihyitcric and emmenagogue; and fome-
timcs employed externally in antihyfteric, paraly-
tic, and rheumatic liniments, or unguents.
AMBERGRIS, Amhagrifea^ in natural hiftory,
a marine bitumen, about the confiftcnce of wax,
of a laminated ftructurc, as if the mafs vvas form-
ed by a fuccefiive appcfition of matter.
It is fometimcs found in the waters of the fea,.
fometimes thrown out upon the fhores, and fome-
tim.cs met with in the ftomachs of whales and
other fifties, frequently intermixed withlittle bones,
claws of birds, and other like matters.
Theic circumftances \\-x\t given rife to man.v
ridiculous opinions concerning its origin, as its
being the excrement of birds or fifties, generated
in the ftomachs of fifties like bezeiir. beins a fort
Oi v/ax pioduced by bees upon rocks, &c.
The greatcft quantities of ambergris are met
with in the Eaft Indies, about the ifla;ul Madag-af-
cir, the Molucca iHands, Maurititis and Ne\"ko-
tcrresj
A U B
1;UT>*, the wcftern Sumatra iflandi, about the id.md
jjoiiieo and Cape Comorin, near Malabar, and on
the Ethiopian coafl:, which, from Sol afa to Brana,
K fiiiil to be very rich in ambergris. Pieces are
lomctimes met with of an extraordinary fizc.
Chevalier and Garcias mention a piece weighing
no lefs than three thoulaiid poiuida, found in I555
.•It Cape Comorin, and fold for alphaltum ; and
Job. Hugo von Lindfchott informs u.;, that a mafs
of thirty quintals was found at the fame Cape.
Monaides and Francifcus Hernandez mention a
piece of an hundred pounds ; Garcias, one as large
as a man, and another which was ninety palms in
length and eighteen in breadth ; Montainis, one
of "an hundred and thirty pounds ; Kempfer, one
exceeding that weight, found in his time in the
province of Kinokuni, in Japan. 'i"he Dutch
Eaft-India companv purchafed of king Tidori in
1693, for eleven thoufand rix-dollars, a piece of
ambergris, weighing one hundred and eighty two
poimds, which was kept many years at Amfter-
dam, and feen bythoufands; but afterwards broken
:uid fold in pieces. It was of the fhape of a tor-
toife, and meafured five foot eight inches by two
foot two. Nicholas Chevalier has given a par-
ticular dcfcription of it in a treatiie printed at
Amflerdam in 1700.
Ambergris is of various colours, afli-coloured,
■whitifh, yellowifli, blackifli-grey, brown, black,
ttreaked, and fpotted. The pieces which have
been fwallowed by fifties arc the leaft cfteemed, as
deceiving an ill fmell froar the animal. The quite
blackifh and the quite whitifli are to be rejeifled ;
and thofe which are fmooth and of an uniform tex-
ture, we riiay fufpecl of being counterfeits. The
afh-grey-coloured ambergris, with whitifh, black-
ifh, and yellowifli ftreaks or fpecks, is accounted
the bell, efpecially when intermixed with beaks of
birds, bits of cuttle-bone, or other like matters ;
not that thefe arc eflential to the ambergris, but
they are marks of its behig genuine. The befl
ambergris is light, like wax to the touch, crum-
'bly, yet fomcwhat tenacious, fo as to flick to the
'ir.oitar or peftle ; it has an agreeable fmell, but
no remarkable taflc : it eafily melts in the fire,
takes flame from a candle, and burns away without
intermiffion.
It has been hitherto looked upon as exceedingly
tliflicult, and not at all totally Ibluble in fpirit
of v/ine ; the fpirit being fuppofed to extract only a
fmall part, as it does from amber. It has hovvevcr
■licen fouiid that this menftruum may be made to
diiiblve ambergris both readily and totally. If am-
[ bergris, broke in pieces, be put into twelve times
its weight of a good tartarizcd fpirit of wine, or of a
plain highly red:ified fpirit, the fpirit will extradl
little till it begins to boil, but will then quickly
tliflblve the whole of the ambergris, except its im-
purities. The tincture made in t;u-tarized fpirit is ,
A M B
of a deep reddifli colour ; that made in pure fpirit
fcarccly any. The refiduum appears of a large
volume, though when dried proves to be only a
very fmall quantity of a fine earthy matter, a-
mounting: when the ambergris is free from vifible
impurities, to a grain or two upon two fcruples.
It is probable that ambergris has often been dif-
folved, though the palenefs of the folution and
apparent bulk of the refiduum have induced the
operator to tliink othcrwifs. In keeping the tinc-
ture or folution, if the vcfTel be loofely ftopt, fo as
to fufFcr a part of the menflruum to exhale, a pro-
portionable quantity of the ambergris precipitates,
in form of a white uniStuous fubftance, like tal-
low, ioluble again upon adding niore fpirit. Le-
mery looked upon this as wax, and hence endea-
voin-ed to proxc that ambergris proceeded from the
labour of bee;.
Ambergris is ufed principally as a perfume, in
balfams, fnufFs, dentrifices, hair-powders, wafh-
balls, Sec. It was formerly held in fome e/leem as
a medicine, and faid to poffefs nervine, analeptic,
aphrodifiac, cephalic, and other virtues ; but is at
prefent little regarded. A tinfture of it is fome-
timcs prepared with fpirit of rofes. This fpirit has
no ad\'antage as a menflruum for the ambergris
above fimple fpirit of wine, though it may in fome
cafes be an ufeful addition in point of fcent ; folu-
tions of ambergris by itfelf having very little fmell.
And hence it is ufed as an ingredient for heighten-
ing the odours of other bodies, as aromatic waters,
fpirits, &c. The principal fecret jn this opera-
tion confifts in adding the perfume fo fparingly, that
while it heightens and improves the fmell of the
fubftance it is joined with, it may not betray its
own. A few drops therefore of the tin£ture of
ambergris may be very advantageoufly added to any
of the odoriferous waters, as hungary, lavender.
Sic. Common water diflilled from ambergris
proves confiderably impregnated with its fra-
grance.
AMBIDEXTER, a perfon who ufes both
hands alike, and with the fame dexterity.
The word is Latin, amhidexira, and compound-
ed of ambtt, both, and dextra, right hand.
Ambidexter, among lawyers, implies a juror
who receives money from both parties for giving his
verdict.
AMBIGENAL Hyperkh, is one of the triple
hyperbolas of the fecond order, having one of its
infinite legs falling within an angle formed by the
afymptotcs, and the other falling without that
angle. Thus, Let AC, CD, (Plate VII. fg. i.)
be two afymptotcs, EBF, one of thofe hyper-
bolas ; then if the infinite leg BE, falls within the
angle A CD, and the infinite leg BP\ without that
angle, the faid hyperbola is called ambigenal,' a
name firfl given it by Sir Ifaac Newton.
AMBIGUITY, in grammar, is a -defeA in
language,
A M B
language, ai-ifing either irom the particular ar-
rangement of the words in any fcntencc, or fVoni
the terms that are made ufe oi' being of a double
and doubtful meaning.
AMBIT, (imkitiis, in geometry, fignifics the
line or lines by which any figure is bounded, and
denotes the fame as perimeter. See Peiume'ier.
AMBLE, or Ambling, in horfemanfliip, a pe-
culiar kind of pace, wherein a horfe's two legs of
the fame fide move at the fame time.
The ambling horfe changes fides at each re-
move, two legs of a fide being in the air, and two
on the ground at the fame time. An ambic is
ufually the firft natural pace of young colts, which
they quit as foon as they have itrength enough to
trot : there is no fuch thing as an amble in the
menage, the riding-mafi:ers allowing of no other
paces befides walk, trot, and gallop ; their reafon
is, that a horle may be put from a trot to a gallop
without fuch a flop, which lofes time, and in-
terrupts the juftnefs and cadence of the menage.
AMBLYGONAL, among the ancient geome-
tricians, fignifies obtufe angular, as a triangle is faid
to be obtufe angular, when one of the angles is
^rnore than 90° degrees.
AMBLYOPY, among phyficians, fignifies an
obfcuration of the fight, fo that objects at a dif-
tance cannot be clearly diftinguiflied.
The v/ord is Greek, aij.ChvuTrtdii and, com-
pounded of ct//,'?A©'5 dull, and <avf,, the eye.
AMBO, or Ambon, among the ancients,
was a kind of pulpit, or reading-defk, where
that part of divine fervice called the gradual was
performed.
AMBON, in anatomy, the cartilaginous mar-
gin of thofe fockets into which the prominent
parts of bones aie inferred in fome fpecies of ar-
ticulation.
AMBROSIA, among the ancient pagans, fig-
nified the folid food of the gods, in contradiftinc-
tion to their drink, which was called netSlar.
The word is Greek, and compounded of ct,
priv. andpfoT©^, mortal, becaufe they fuppofed that
v/hoever cat of it was rendered immortal.
Ambrosia, in botany, a genus of plants pro-
ducing male and female flowers ; the male are com-
pofed of feveral fmall infundibuliform florets, which
are included in a monophyllous calyx, containing
five fmall filaments, topped with upright acuminated
anthera; ; the female flowers confift of an empale-
mcnt of one leaf, in which an egg-fhaped germen
is placed, fupporting a filiform fiyle of the fame
length as the calyx ; the germen afterwards be-
comes a hard oval capfule of one cell, containing
a fingle round feed. It is faid to be aft:ringent
and repelling, flops fluxes, and is prefcribed both
internally and externally : all the fpecies of this
<5enus are natives of foreign countries.
AMBROSI.^N Office, in ecclefiaftical hiftorv,
7
A M E
is a particular office or mode of worftiip, invented
by Ambrofs, archbifhop of Milan, in the fourth
century.
AM'BUSCADE, in military aflairs, implies a
body of men polled in fome fecret or concealed
place, till they find an opportunity of falling upon
the enemy by furprize.
ARdBUSTION, in furgery, the fame with
what we generally call a burn. See the article
Burn.
AMEA, in botany, a plant with large winged
leaves, which being dried and powdered, are, ufed
by the natives of Guinea for ilopping bleedings at
the nofe. It is not yet difcovered what genus of
plants it belongs to.
AMEL, a term frequently ufed by Mr. Boyle
for enamel. See Enamel.
AMEN, a Hebrew word, {CN, which fignifies
true, faithful, certain. It is uied as an affirmation,
by our Saviour, a.iJ.m, d.[j.m'-, hiya vyLiy, Verily,
verily, J fay unto you: it imjslies alfo awifh, that
what has been faid juft before may be true ; thus
in I Cor. xiv. 16. Ho%v fnall he that occupieth the
room of the unlearned, fay Amen, at thy giving of
thanks, feeing he underflandeth not ivhat thou fayefi ?
The Hebrews end the five books of Pfalms, ac-
cording to their way of difi'ributing them, with
the words, J??ien, Amen, which are tranflated in
the feptuagint, yn'oi^o, yivof]o ; and in the Latin
verfion, fat, fiat. The Greek and Latin churches
preferved this word at the end of their prayers ;
and it is fl:ill a folemn conclufion of thofe of our
church.
The rabbins are of opinion that this word.
Amen, was formed of the initial letters of the fol-
lowing words, Adonai, Melek Neeman, " The Lord,
" the faithful King;" which among the Jews was
a form of folemn alTeveration.
AMENDMENT, in law, fignifies the correc-
tion of an error committed in a procefs, which
may be amended after judgment, unlefs the error
lies in giving judgment ; for m that cafe it is
■not amendable, but the party muft bring a writ of
error.
Amendment, in a literary fenfe, implies the
correction oi fome impropriety in the former edi-
tion of a book.
AMENTACEOUS, in botany, an epithet ap-
plied to fuch flowers as have an aggregate of
fummits hanging down in the form of a rope or
cat's-tail ; which is alfo called an iulus, or catkin :
as poplars., willows, &c.
AMER'CEJMENT, or Amerciament, in
law, a pecuniary punifhment impofed on ofi'enders
at the mercy of the court.
It diflers from a fine in being impofed arbitrarily
in proportion to the fault ; whereas a fine is a
certain punifhment fettled cx^irefsly by fomi;
ftatute,
I i AME-
AM I
AMETHYST, Jmdhyjlus, in natural hiftory,
a gem, or precious ftone of a purple colour, fome-
times approaching to violet, and ibmetimes fading
to a pale rofe-colour.
Sometimes it is found colourlefs, and inay at
zny time be made fo by expofuig it to the fire ; in
which pellucid, or colourlefs fl:ate,_ it fo nearly imi-
tates the diamond, that even jewellers themfelvfs
are often deceived, it wanting nothing but the
hardnefs to render it equal to that gem.
Boet affirms, that he has feen one fet in a gold
ring which was fold for two hundred crowns.
They are found in India, Arabia, Armenia, Ethi-
opia, Cypr;;s, Germany, Bohemia, and jVI.fnia ;
but as they are generally as foft as cryftal, they
are not in very great efteem. The oriental are
haideft ; if tlity are without fpots, they are of the
greatsft value. They are found of various fizcs,
and in various (hapes, from the bignefs of a fmall
pea, to an '.nch and a half in diameter. They are
adulterated with maftic, tinged of a violet colour,
placed between two cryllals ; but the Germans do
r.ot think it worth while to counterfeit them, be-
;;aufe they are pretty common.
Amethyst, in heraldry, is a term ufed for a
purple colour in the coat of a nobleman.
Amethystea, in botany, a plant growing in
the mountains of Siberia, producing a diandrious
flower, containing a monopetalous ringent corolla ;
in the center is placed a quadrified germen, which
becomes four feeds wrapped up in the cmpale-
ment.
AMIABLE, or Amicable Numhers, in arith-
metic, are fuch as are mutually equal to the fum
of each other's aliquot parts. See Number.
AMIANTHUS, in natural hiftory, vulgarly
called earth-flax, is a fibrous, flexile, and mine-
ral fubftance, compofed of fhort and abrupt fila-
ments.
It is a ftony concrete, of the talky kind, though
different from talc in its external appearance. It
is net near fo bright, or fo fmooth and unctuous j
and compofed not of leaves or plates, but of long
filaments like flax : it has been fpun into cloth,
and formed into paper, incombuftible and inde-
itruftible in the fire.
There are fome forts of amianthus whofe fila-
ments are rigid and brittle, others more flexible : the
firft are not at all to be fpun or formed into cloth ;
and the latter v/ith very great difficulty. This
manufaifture appears to have been known among
the ancients, who, according to Pliny, wrapt the
corps of the dead in amianthane clothes, to pre-
ferve their afhes feparate from thofe of the funeral
pile ; an ufe to which thev are ftill faid to be ap-
plied among the princes of Tartary. The method
of preparation, as defcribed by Ciampini in the
Philofophicai TranfaiSions, N°. 273, is as follows ;
The ftone is laid to foak in warm water, then
6
A M M
opened and divided by the hands, th?.t the earthy
matter may be wafhed out. This earth is white
like chalk, and renders the water thick and milky.
The ablution being feveral times repeated, the flax-
like filaments are colle6led and dried ; they are moft
commodioully fpun with an addition of flax : two
or three filaments of the amianthus are eafily twift-
ed along with the flaxen-thread, if the operator's
fingers are kept oiled. The cloth alfo when woven
is belt preferved by oil from breaking or wafting.
On expofure to the fire, the flax and the oil burn
out, and the cloth comes out pure and white.
Probably from the diffipation of fome extraneous
matter of this kind proceeded tlie diminution of
weight which an amianthine napkin futl'ered in the
fire, in an experiment made before the Royal' So-
ciety ; for pure amianthus lofes nothing. The
fnorter filaments v/hich feparate in vvafhing the
ftone, may be made into paper in the common
manner.
The proprietor of a forge in fome part of France,
not named, upon taking down his furnaces to re-
pair them, found a great quantity of this fubftance
at the bottom, which, like the native amianthus,
was capable of being manufactured either into in-
combuftible linen or paper. Upon a farther en-
quiry, he difcovered that both this and the native
amianthus is nothing more than calcined iron,
deprived of the phlogiftic, and that uniting the
phlogiftic with this, or the foffil amianthus, he
can reftore it any time to its primitivje ftate of
iron.
AMICITIA, in the feudal cuftoms, were lands
granted to be enjoyed only fo long as the donor
pleafed.
AMIDSHIPS, in the marine, implies the middle
of the fhip, either with regard to her brcadtli or
lerrgth : as, put the helm amidfhips, i. e. at an
equal diftance from both the fides. The enemy
boarded us amidfhips, i. e. in, or ne.ar the middle
between the Item and ftern, or the two ends of
the fliip.
AMIESTIES, a fpecies of cotton cloths im-
ported from the Eaft-Indies.
AMMANNIA, in botany, a genus of plants
producing tetrandrous flowers, with four petals,
though they are often apetalous; the calyxis upright,
oblong, and campanulated, having four angles, and
divided at the extremity into eight fegments ; in
the center is placed a large roundiili germen, fup-
porting a fhort fingle ftyle ; the capfule is round
and quadrilocular, covered by the calyx, contain-
ing a number of fmall feeds. This genus of plants
are all natives of foreign countries.
AMMI. bifhop's weed, in botany, a genus of
umbelliferous plants, whofe flower contains fiverofa-
ceous heart-fhaped unequal petals, with five hairy fila-
ments, crowned with rounJifh antherse, and its
fruit a fmall roundifh and ftriated capfule, con-
ta"ning
A M M
taining two feeds, which are plain within, and
convex on the outfidc. The feed of thefe plants
is hot and drying, and is prefcribed in cholic pains,
in diftenfions of the belly, and in obftruiSions of
the uterine and urinary paiTages.
AMMOCHRYSOS, in natural hiftory, the
name of a ftone common in Germany, with gold
coloured fpangles. It is much ufed, after being
reduced to powder, to ftrew over writings.
The word is Greek, and compounded of a,uju^',
fand, and ypv<r<5^, gold.
AMMODYTES, the fand ferpent, in natural
hiftory, the name of a ferpent found in different
parts of the world, particularly in the torrid
zone, and fo called from its burying itfelf in the
fand.
The word is Greek, and compounded o{a.u[^:B-;
fand, and J^ua, to bury in, or get under.
This ferpent greatly refembles the viper, except
in its head and jaws, which are much larger. It
is about two feet in length, and of a fandy colour.
On the external part of its upper jaw there is an
eminence refembling a wart, whence it has alfo
been called the horned ferpent.
AMMON, or Hammon, in mythology, the
name of the Egyptian Jupiter, worfhipped under
the figure of a ram,.
Bacchus, having fubdued Afia, and pafling with
his army through the defarts of Africa, was in
great want of water ; but Jupiter, his father,
affuming the fhape of a ram, led him to a foun-
tain, where he refrefhed himfelf and his ai'niy :
in requital of which favour, Bacchus built there a
temple to Jupiter, under the title of Ammon,
from the Greek a/xu'^, which fignilies fand, al-
luding to the fandy defart where it was built.
This is the poetical account ; but it is more
probable that the Egyptians worftiipped the fun un-
der this name ; for hammah, in Hebrew, fignifies
the fun ; orperhaps thev meant it Ham, the fon
of Noah, whofe pofterity fettled in Libia.
Ccrnu AMMONIS, in natural hiftory ; fee the
article Cornu Ammonii.
AMMONIACUM, or Gum Ammoniacum,
in the materia medica, a concrete gummy-refmous
juice brought from the Eaft-Indres, and generally
in large maffes.
Both the plant which produces ammoniacum,
and the place of its produftion, are unknown.
The beft ammoniacum is compofed of white,
whitifh, or yellowifh tears baked into maftes : the
internal parts particularly are whitifh ; by age it
becomes more and more yellow and brown. It
cafily foftens and becomes tough betwixt the
fingers. Chewed, it difcovers a bitterilli, gluti-
nous, not difagreeable, tafte. Its fmell approaches
to that of a mixture of opopanax and galbanum :
feme refemble it to that of caftor, others to that
of coriander-feeds, and others to that of garlic,
A M O
Ammoniacum is accounted deobftrucnt ; pro-
motes urine ; and, in large dofes, opens the belly..
It is given particularly in obfhutStions of the
breaft, in cachedtic, hydropic, and apoplectic
cafes, from a fcruple to half a dram. It operates
more effectually in a liquid form, as that of an
emuifion, than in the folid one of pills ; but is
moft commodioufly taken in the latter form. It "is
fometimes diffolved in vinegar : externally it re-
folves hard fwellings. It is purified by diffolving
it in vinegar, wine, or water, and ftraining and
infpiffating the fckition.
5(7/ Ammoniacum. See Sal-Ammoniacum.
AMMONITE, in natural hiftory, the fame
with cornu ammonis. See Cornu Ammonh.
AMMUNITION, in military aftaiis, a gene-
ral name for powder, balls, &c.
Ammunition Breads Shd-s, kc. fuch as arc
ferved out to the foldiers of an army, garrifon, &:c.
AMNESTY, in civil policy, implies an act,
whereby two parties at variance mutually promi'p
to pardon and bury in oblivion all that is paft-.
But in a more limited fenfe, it fignifies a pardon
granted by a prince to his fubjeiSts, hy v.'hich tiie
former promifes to forget and annul all that is
paft.
The word is formed from the Greek, nfiViiniiL^
the name of an edidt of this kind publifhed by
Thrafibulus, at his expulfion of the tyrants out of
Athens.
AMNIOS, in anatomy, a thin pellucid mem-
brane furrounding the foetus.
It is an interior membrane, contiguous to the
exterior one called the chorion, having no veffeis,
or at moft very few ; and contains a pellucid glu-
tinous liquor, which flows out upon breaking this
membrane at the time of delivery.
AMOMUM, in botany, ginger, a genus of di-
andrious plants, containing a tubulous flower,
compofed of one petal, divided in three parts at
the extremity, inferred in a double fpatha, or llieathi
the germen is roundifh fupporting a filiform ftyle^
which is longer than the ftamina ; the germen
afterwardsbecom.es an oval three cornered feed veffel,
containing many feeds. The common ginger is
greatly cultivated in the Weft-Indies, the roots of
which are jointed and fpread in the earth, pro-
ducing many green reed-fhaped ftalks, furniflied '
with long narrow leaves ; the flower-ftems are
naked, and arife from the root by the fides of the
ftalks, terminating with an oblong fcaly fpike^
from each of which is produced a fingle blue
flower. The- roots of this plant are much ufed in
the kitchen and medicine; all the forts jequire a
warm ftove to preferve them in this climate : the
common ginger is very hot and penetrating, and
therefore a great warmer of the nervous parts ; it
is alfo found excellent for the ftomach, and
keeps the gout from that part.
AMOM'JiiJ'
. AMO
Amomum Fcrum, true amomum, in the mate-
ria mcdica, a clufler of round fruits, or feed veffels,
of an orient plant. Each fruit is about the fize of
a middling grape ; and contains, under a 'mem-
branous coicr, a nuinber of fmall rough angular
feeds, of a blackifli brown colour on the outfide,
and whitifh within : the feeds are lodged in three
diirinft cells, and thofe in each cell joined clofe-
ly together ; fo that the fruit, on being opened,
appears to contain only three feeds. Ten or twelve
of thefe caplulcs {land together, without pedicles,
upon a woody ftalk about an inch long : each
single capfulc is furrouuded v/ith fix leaves fet in
iprm of a ftar ; and the part of the flalk void of
fruit is dothed with leafy fcales. Of the other
parts of the plant, we have no certain account.
The feeds of amomum are a ftrong and grateful
aromatic, of ii quick penetrating fragrant fniell,
fomevk'hat like that of lavender, but more agree-
, able, and of a very warm pimgent talte, approach-
ing to that of camphor. They are faid to yield in
diitillation a large portion of a fubtile elFeritial oil.
The hufks have the fame kind of flavour in a
lower degree. Thefe feeds have long been a
Granger to this country. They are direifed as an
ingredient in the theriaca, in which they have been
commonly fupplied by the feeds of the amomum
vulgare ; and the London college, under the name
amcmum, have now allowed either the verum or
vulgare to be taken indifferently. The college of
Edinburgh, while they retained that compofition,
employed as a fuccedaneum to the amomum, a fpice
more approaching to the nature of cloves.
Amomum Vulgare, baftard flone parfley, in the
materia medica, an umbelliferous plant, very much
branched ; with a firm ftalk higher than the
branches ; deep green, winged, ferrated, parfnep-
Tike leaves ; upright umbels ; and fmall, narrow,
oblong, liriated, dark brownifh feeds, flat .on one
fide and convex on the other. It grows wild
under moifl hedges, and by the fides of ditches ;
flowers in June and July, and ripens its feeds in
Auguil.
The feeds of the amomum vulgare have a light
agreeable fmell, and a mild -warm aromatic tafte.
They have been fometimes given as carminatives
and diuretics, like the warm feeds, and ufually
fubftituted in the fhops for thofe of the amomum
verum, from which, however, they are very con-
fiderably difl"'erent in quality, as v/ell as in appear-
ance : they are not near fo hot or pungent, nor
is their flavour of the fame kind.
Thefe feeds, infufed in water, give out very
little of their virtue : by boiling, their flavour is
foon diffipated, and the liquor becomes difagree-
bly bitterifh : in difi-illation with water they yield
a Imall portion of a yellowifh eflential oil, which
taftes and fmells flrongly and agreeably of the
feeds.
AMP
Refiiified fplrit readily extracls their virtue, and^
what is pretty fingular, gains from them a green
tindfure : the fpirtt, drawn off by diftillation from
the filtered liquor, brings over with it nothing con-
fiderable of the flavour of the feeds : the remaining
extra£l tafl:es ftrongly and fmells lightly of the
amomum, and proves a moderately warm, bit-
terifh, not ungrateful aromatic.
Amomum Hlinii. See Solanum.
AMORIS Pomum. See Lycopersicon.
AMORPHA, in botany, a plant that produces
a papillionaceous flower, contained in a tubulous
cylindrical cup ; it hath ten unequal ilamina,
joined at their bafe, and are longer than the co-
rolla ; in the center is placed a roimdifh germen,
which becomes a reflexed moon-fhaped pod, con-
taining one cell, in which are lodged two kidney-
fliaped feeds. This plant is bv fome called baf-
tard indigo, likewife barba "jovis, or Jupiter's
beard : it is common in the nurferics, where it is
propagated as a flowering fhrub, for the ornament
of the fhrubbery.
AMPANA, in botany, the name ufed in the
Hortus Malabaricus, for the borafl'us of Linnasus.
See BoRAssus.
AMPELIS, in botany, the Greek name for
the vine. See Vitex.
AMPELITES, cannel-coal, in natural hiflory ;
fee the article Cannel-Coal.
AMPHLA.RTHROSIS, in anatomy, a fpecies
of articulation or jumSture of the bones, having a
manifefl motion.
The word is Greek, and compounded of n^pii
about, and ctpflpwa-zf, articulation.
It refembles the diarthrofis in being moveable,
_ and the fynarthrofis in its connexion. See Diar-
THRosis, and Synarthrosis.
The pieces which compofe it have not a particu-
lar cartilage belonging to each of them, as in the
diarthrofis ; but are both united to a common car-
tilage, v/hich being more or lefs pliable, allows
them certain degrees of flexibility, though thev
cannot Aide upon each other, fiy this fpecies of
articulation the bodies of the vertebrse are connecSt-
ed with each other.
AMPiilBIOUS, in natural hiflory, an epithet
applied to fuch animals as live part of their time on
the land, and part in the water.
The word is Greek, oi;/j/3/©^, and compounded
of ti.iJi(pt, both, and ;5.'^', life ; as living in two
elements.
Linnjeus has made a clafs of amphibious ani-
mals ; the firfl order of which contains the tor-
toife, the frog, the crocodile, the lizard, the fala-
mander, the cameleon, the fcinc, &c. and the fe-
cond the ferpents.
AMPHIBLESTROIDES, in anatomy, a name
given to one of the tunics or membranes of the eye,
generally called the retina. See the articlcREXiNA.
The
A M P
Tl>e word is Greek and compounded of Ajj.pt-
fi>.»7^ov, a net, and s;/*^, refemblance ; becaufe
the Itrufture of the membrane refcmbles a net ;
and hence the Latins call it rariformis.
AMPHIBIOLOGY, in grammar, implies the
fame as ambiguity, or that the phrafe is capable of
two different interpretations.
The word is Greek, ctjt/.^/Po^o^iet, and compound-
ed of a.fji'pi, and ^-^aa*., to throw.
AMPHIBRACHYS, in Greek and Latin
poetry, is the iiaine of a foot conllfting of three
fyllables, one of which is long, and placed in the
middle, between two fliort ones : as adunca candra,
&c.
It is derived from the Greek «.y.if /, and Pp4,xy<r,
fliort.
AMPHICTYONS, in antiquity, the deputies
fent from the different ftates of Greece to I'her-
mcpyla?, where they met regularly twice a year, in
the temple of Ceres, built in a large plain near
the river Afophus. They -decided all difixrences
that happened between any of the cities of Greece,
and their decifions were held facred and invio-
lable.
They had their name from Amphiftyon III.
king of Athens, who firft eftabliftied an affembly
of Amphiftyons, in order to unite the Greeks
more firmly together, and render them a terror to
the barbarous nations in their neighbourhood.
Acryfius alfo inftituted a council of Amphidfyons
on the model of the former ; and who met twice
a year in the temple of Delphos.
AMPHIDROMIA, a feall celebrated by the
ancients on the fifth day after the birth of a
child.
AMPHIMACER, the name of a foot in Greek
and Latin poetry, which confiils of three fyllables,
whereof the firii is long, the middle fliort, and the
laft long ; as, turht/luni, &c.
The word is of Greek extra£tion, and is com-
pounded of a.ij.x!i, about, and unKfOi, long.
AMPHIPOLES, in antiquity, the principal
magiftratesof Syracufe. They were eftabliilicd by
Timoleon in the logth Olympiad, after' the ex-
pulfion of the tyrant Dionyiius. They governed
Syracufe for the fpace of three hundred years ;
and Diodorus Siculus afTures us, that they fubfifted
in his time.
AMPHIPROSTYLE, in ancient architeflure,
implied a temple that had four columns in both the
fore and hind fronts, which were parallel.
The word is Greek, and compounded of cdw?;,
about, Tpci, before, and ^vk^-; a. column.
AMPHISCII, in geography, are inhabitants of
the torrid zone j and are fo called, becaufe the
fliadow of a perfon ftanding upright, moves as
well towards the right as the left hand of him that
obfetves it, and becaufe the noon-fhadow, at cer-
tain dilFerejit times of the year, is projccled to-
7
AMP
wards both the poles ; and when the parallel that
the fun moves in, is equal to the latitude of the
place, and on the fame fide the equator, then will
the noon-fliadow neither full north or fouth.
AMPHISB^NA, in natural hiftory, a kind
of ferpent, found in hot climates, and fo called
becaule it moves with either end forward.
The word is Greek, and formed from a^y/i about,
and jictiva, to go.
AMPHITHEATRE, in antiquity, a fpacious
edifice, of a circular or oval form, with a numb-.-r
of rifing feats, on which the people fat to behold
the combats cf gladiators, wild beafls, and other
fports.
The word is Greek, and compounded of ctttj/.
about, and 9=4Tpoc, a theatre.
Amphitheatres were originally built of wood ;
and Statilius Taurus, in the reign of Auguflus,
was the firll who ereiSted one of {lone. The
lowefl part v/as called arena, from its being gene-
rally ftrewed with fand, for the conveniency of the
combatants ; and round the arena were vaults, in
which the wild -bcafts, appointed for the fliews,
were contained.
Above thefe ceils was erefted a large circular
periilyle, for acconunodating the emperors, fena-
tors, and other perfons of diftindlion. Over tiie
periflyle were the rows of benches, which were
entered by axenues terminated by gates called vo-
mitoria;.
But the mofl: celebrated amphitheatre at Rome
was that of Vefpafian, a print of which we have
gi\en on Plate V. in order to convey fome idea of
this famous ftrudlure to the reader.
Amphitheatre, in gardening, a temple of
view, erected on a riling ground of a femi-circular
fiourc.
Thefe amphitheatres are formed of feveral forts
of ever-green.s, obferving to plant thofe of the
fhorteft growth in front, and the talleft trees be-
hind, as pines, firs, cedars, &c. They are alfo
made of Dopes on the fides of hills, and covered with
turf: but as the modern talte of gardening ex-
cludes regularity and fi:iffnefs, amphitheatres are
at prefent but little efteemed.
AMPHITRITE, in mythology, a goddefs of
the fea, the daughter of Ocean and Doris, and
wife of Neptune. She at firfl refufed the addrefle.s
of that god, and refoh'ed to preferve her x'irginity ;
but Neptune fent a dolpliin in ferarh of her, who
found her at the foot of Mount Atlas, and per-
fuadcd her to marry the god of the fea. Tv/o of
the Nereides were alfo crdled by this name.
Amphitrite, in natural hiftory, is the name
of a fmall naked fea infedl, of an oblong figure,
with only one tentaculum refemblin? a piece of
thread.
AMPHORA, in antiquity, a liquid meafure in
ufe among the Greeks and Romans ; that iifed by
K k the
AMP
AMP
the latter confcined about feven gallons one pint
Englifh wine meafure ; but the Grecian amphora
coiitained one third more.
Amphora was alio a dry meafure iifed by the
Romans, and contained about three bufhels.
Amphora, among the Venetians, is the largeft
nieaiure ufcd for liquids, containing about fixtcen
quarts.
_ AMPLIFICATION, in rhetoric ; fee the ar-
ticle Exaggeration".
AMPLITUDE, in aftronomy, is an arch of the
horizon, contairied between the true eaft or weft
point thereof, and the center of the fun, ftar, or
planet, at his rifing or fetting ; and it is called
north amplitude, when it falls in the northern he-
mifphere; and fouth, when it falls in the fouthcrn
hem ifp here.
To find the amplitude of the fun trigonometrl-
cally, having the latitude of the place and the fun's
declination given. Let H /i (plate XI. fig. 3.) re-
prefent the horizon, E Q_the equator, P the nortli,
and S the fouth pole, DC a parallel of declination,
and HJEP h Q_S (the primitive circle) a meridian ;
let O rcprelent the fun's central rifing, and
P O B S an hour circle, or circle of decimation :
then the arch A © is the amplitude.
Example..
■ Suppofc the latitude of the place 51° 32' north,
and the fun's declination 20° 10' north; then we
have given in the fpherical triangle AB © right-
angled at B, the angle at A equal the complement
of "latitude = h Q_= 38° 28' ; and the fide B © =
the declination =: 20" 10% to find the fide A © , or
tiypothenufe, r= the amplitude required;, which is
found by the following analogy, viz.
As the fine of the co-latitude
ofthepiaceor <A=: 38"28'Log.=: 9,7(544670
Is to radius or the fine of Qo° oo' =10,0000000
So is the fine of the
i'un's declination,
or of the fide © B :r: 20° 10' n 9,5375070
To the fine of the
fun's amplitude, or
of 'the fide © A = 33° 36' =: 9,7480000
To find the amplitude of the fun, liar, or planet
on the globe. See Globe.
MagneticalAMPLiTViyE, is an arch of the hori-
zon contained between the fun at his rifing or fet-
ting, and the eaft or v/eft point of the compafs; or
it is the apparent rifing or fetting of the fun from
the eaft or v/eil points of that compafs ; and is found
bv an amplitude or azimuth compafs, by obfcrving
the fun either at his rifing or fetting, and is always
equal to the difference between the true amplitude
and the variation of the compafs.
.Amplitude Compafs, in navigation, an inflru-
ment more accurately condrudled to obferve the
magnetical amplitude than the comm.on fea-com-
pafs ; and has been greatly improved lately by Dr.
Knight, who has the infpedtion of all that are ufed
in his majefty's royal navy. See Comp.'vss.
Amplitude 0/ the range af a frojeilile, is the
horizontal line fubtending the curve or path in
which it moves ; or it is the length of a line drawn
from the place where the projectile firft receives its
motion, to the place where it ftrikes the earth at
the greateft diffance.
AA'IPULLA, in antiquity, a round vefTel ufed
by the ancients in their baths for containing the oil
for anointing their bodies. It alfo fignified a cup
made of glafs or leather for drinking out of at a
table.
AMPUTATION, in furgery, the operation of
cutting off a limb or other part of the body.
Aianner 1?/" AMPUTATING a Lbnh .—L.vj your pa-
tient on a table three feet four inches high, which is
much better than a lov/ feat, both for fecuring him.
flcady, and giving yourfelf the advantage of ope-
rating without {looping, which is not only painful,,
but inconvenient in the other fituation. While one
of your affiflants holds the leg, you miift roll a flip
of fine rag, half an inch bj;oad, three or four times
round it,, about four or five inches below the inferior
extremity of the patella ; this being pinned on is to
ferve as a guide to the knife, whicli, without it, pei--
haps, would not be direiSled fo dexteroufiy ; the
manner of rolling has always been j>erpendicular to
the length of the leg; but having obferved, that
though the amputation at firil be even, yet after-
wards the gaftrocnemiiis mufcle, contradfing^
draws back the inferior part of the ftump more,
ftrongly than the other mufcles can do the reft of
it; I have lately, in order to preferve the regularity
of the cicatrix, allowed for this exccfs of contrac-
tion, and made the circular incifion in fuch a man-
ner rJiat the part of the wound which is on the calf
of the leg, is farther from the ham than that on the
fliin is from the middle of the patella.
In the mean time, one of your affiftants muft.
carry a ilrong ligature round the thigh about three'
or four inches above the patella, which, pafling-
through a couple of flits in a fquare piece of leather,
he muft twifl: v/ith a tourniquet, til! the artery is.
comprcfied, to prevent any great eftufion of blood ;,
and, to do it more efteflually, he may lay a bolfter
of tow or linen under the ligature, upon that part
where the artery creeps.
The courfe of the blood being flopped, 3-ou mufl
begin your incifion jufl below the linen roller, on-
tlie under part of the limb, bringing your knile to-
wajds you ; which, at one fweep, may cut more than
the femi-cijrcle : then, beginning your fecond
wound on the upper part, it mufl be continued,
from the one extremity to the other cf the firfl
•? wound
AMP
wound, making them but one line. The incifions
iiuill be made quite through the mcmbrana adi-
poi'a, as far as the mufclcs ; then, taking ofF the li-
nen roller, and an afliftant drawing back the (kin
MS far as it will go, you make your wound from
the edges of it, when drawn back through the flefti
to thebone, in the fame maimer as you did through
thefkin. Before you faw the bones, you muft cut
the ligament between them with the point of your
knffe.; and the afliftant who holds the leg while it
is fawing, muft: obferve not to lift it upwards,
which would clog the inltrunicnt.
In amputating below the knee, it is of advantage
to Itand on die infide of the leg, becaufe the tibia
and fibula lie in a pofition to be fawed at the fame
time,if the inftrumentbe applied externally: where-
as, if we lay it on the infidc of the leg, the tibia will
be divided hrft, and the fibula afterwards ; which
not only lengthens the operation, but is alfo apt to
fplinter the fibula when it is almoft fawed through,
unlefsthe afliftant be very careful in fupporting it.
When the leg is taken off, the next regard is to
1)6 had to the itopping of the blood, which muft be
effeclually done before the patient is put to bed,
or there will be great danger of bleeding again,
when the fever is excited, and the veffels of the
itump dilated,, botli which happen a very little while
after the operation. There is no method for this
purpofe fo fecure as tying the extremities of the
veflels with a ligature, which, with a crooked nee-
dle palled twice through the flefh almoft round
them, will, when the knot is made, neceflarily in-
cLofe them in the ftricture ; and to difcoverthe ori-
fice of a veflel, your afliftant muft every time loofen
the tourniquet : this is a much better way than
ufing the artery forceps, where the veflels are apt to
flip away out of the ligature ; and as to ftiptic appli-
cations, their want of fafety is fo well known now,
that the ufe of them, in ha;morrhages from large vef-
fels, is almoft univerfally rejedted.
It fometimes happens in a large ftump, that ten
or more vefiels require tying ; which dene, you muft
apply loofe dry lint to the wound, or, in cafe the
fmall veftels bleed plentifully, you muft throw a
handful of flour among the lint, which will contri-
bute to the more eftciStual flopping up their orifices.
Before you lay on the pledget, you muft hind the
ftump, and begin to roll from the lower part of the
thigh down to the extremity of the ftump. The
ufe of this roller is to keep the (kin forwards, which,
notwithftanding the ftcps already taken to prevent
its tailing back, would in fome meafure do fo, un-
lefs luftaincd in this manner. The dreffings may
be fecured by the crofs cloth and gentle bandage ;
and the method of treating the wound muft be the
fame as that for. other recent and incifed v.'ounds.
See article Wound.
Before the iiwention of making the double in-
cifion I have nowjuft defcribed, the cureof aftump
AMP
was always a work of time ; for by cutting down to
the bone at once, and fawing it dire£tly, the con-
fequence was, that the (kin and flefh withdrew
themfclves, and left it protruding out of the wound
two or three inches in fome cafes ; fo that it rarely
happened that an exfoliation did not follow; which,
beildes being tedious, alfo frequently reduced the
wound to an habitual ulcer, and at beft left a point-
ed ftump, with a cicatrix ready to fly open upon
the Icaft: accident ; all which inconveniencies are
avoided by this new method, and I know not of
any objeftion to it, unlefs that the pain of making
the wound is fuppofed to be twice as much as in
the other, becaufe of the double incifion ; but
when we confider that we only cut the (kin once,
and the flefh once, though not in the fame mo-
ment, I fancy, upon refledfion, the difi^erence of
pain will be thought inconfiderable.
In amputating the thigh, the firft incifion is to be
made a little more than two inches above the mid-
dle of the patella ; after the operation, a roller
fhould be carried round the body, and down the
thigh, to fupport the fkin and fleih. This is alfo
the moft proper bandage, as abfcelTes will fome-
times form in the upper part of the thigh, which
cannot difchar^^e themfelves fo conveniently with
any other, it being almoft imprafticable to roll
about the abfcefs, unlefs you begin from the
body.
The amputation of the arm and cubit differs fo
little from the foregoing operations, .that it will be
but a repetition to defcribe it. However, it muft
be laid down as a rule, to preferve as much of the
limb as polTible, and in all amputations of the up-
per limbs to place your patient in a chair.
There, are, in armies, a great many inftances of
gun(hot wounds of the arm, near the fcapula, which
require amputation at the fhoulder ; but the appre-
henfion of lofing the patients oji the fpotby the h.-s-
morrhage, has deterred furgcons from undertaking
it. I have heard of its having been done once; but,
though it had never been performed, v/e might learn
it is pradltcable from the cafe of a poor miller, whofe
arm and fcapula were both torn from his body by a
rope which -was accidentally twifted round his .
v/rift, and fuddenly drawn up by the mill. The
poor man recovered in a few weeks. It is remark-
able in this accident, that, after fainting, the hre-
morrhage flopped of iti'elf, and never bled afrefh,
though nothing but lint and turpentine were laid
on the great veffels. In cafe, therefore, of a wound
or frafture near the joint, or incurable fiftulas in
the joint, not attended with much caries, I think
the operation may be performed fafe'.y in this man-
ner : The patient's arm being held horizontal,
make an incifion through the membrana adipofa,
from the upper part of the fhoulder, r.crofi the pec-
toral mufcle down to the arm-pit ; then, turning
the knife with, its edge upwards, divide that muf-
cle.
A M Y
j\c, antl purt of the deltoid ; all which may be
tioiie without danger of wounding the great vcfTcls,
which will become expofed by thefe openings ; if
they be not, cut ftill more of the deltoid mulcle,
and carry the arm backward ; then with a llrong
ligature having tied the artery and vein, purfue the
circular incifion through the joint, and carefully
divide the velTels at a confiderable diftance below
the ligature ; the other fmall vefiels are to be Hop-
ped as in other cafes.
In performing this operation, regard fliould be
had to the faving as much fkin as pofiible, and to
the fituation of the proceflus acromion, which
projeiting confiderably beyond the joint, an un-
. wary operator would be apt to cut upon it.
The amputation of the fingers and toes is better
performed in their articulation, than by any of the
other methods : for this purpofe a ftraight knife
muft be ufed, and the incilion of the fkin be made
not exadfly upon the joint, but a little towards the
extremity of the fingers, that more of it may be
prcferved for the eafier healing afterwards ; it will
alfo facilitate the feparation in the joint, when you
cut the finger from the metacarpal. bone, to make
two fmall longitudinal incifions on each iidc of
it firfl. In thefe amputations there is general-
ly a vefTel or two that require tying, and which
often prove troublefome when the ligature is
•omitted.
It may happen that the bones of the toes, and
part only of ..the mctatarfal bones, are carious, in
which cafe the leg need not be cut off, but only fo
nmch of the foot as is difordered ; a fmall fpnng-
Jaw is better to divide with here than a large one.
When this operation is performed, the heel and
remainder of the foot will be of great fervice, and
the wound heal up iafely, as I have once found by
experience. Slunp^s Surgery.
AMSDORFIANS, the name of a feft of pro-
teflants, who appeared in the fixteenth century,
under one Amfdorf their leader, from whom they
took their name. They bore a very ftrong refem-
blance to fom.e of our modern fe6lai-ics ; maintaiji-
ing that faith was alone neceflary to falvation, and
that good works were fo far from being profitable,
that they v/ere even pernicious.
AMULET, a charm or prefervative againft
mifchief, witchcraft, and difeafes.
The word is Latin, aimiktum, which fignifies the
fame thing.
The ancients of all nations were extremely fond
of amulets ; but the prefent philofophy has pretty
well banifhed thefe and other impofitions of the
fame kind from the world.
AMYGDALES, in anatomy; fee the article
Tonsils.
AMYGDALUS, the almond-tree. See Al-
MOND-TREi;.
ANA, among phyficians, denotes an equal
'IAN A
quantity of the Ingredients that immediately pre-
cede it in prefcription.
ANABaPTIS rS, a religious fed, who fprung
up in the fixteenth century; fo called, becaufe
they rebaptized thofe who had been baptized m
their infancy ; condemning infant-baptifm, be-
caufe it is impoffible that children fhould give a
reafon of their fiiith, which they held to be nccef-
fary, before they could be received regularly
into the fold and family of Chrifl's flock. See
Baptism.
The word is of Greek derivation, being com-
pounded of ctva., again, and jict7r]i(a, I baptize.
It is not agreed as to the precife time when
this fe£i firlt arofe, nor who was the father of it.
Some pretend that the Bohemians began to lay the
foundations of it in the year 1503 : others trace jt
up ftill higher, as far as the twelfth century. Car-
loftad, Quinglius, Balthazar Pacimontanus, Pe-
largus, and feveral otliers, have been accufed of be-
ing tire authors of it : but the moft general opinion
fatners it upon Thomas Munfter of Zwickaw,
a city of the marquifate of Mifnia, and Nicholas
Storck of ttolberg in Saxony; two perfons, who
were originally difciples of Luther, but feparated
tnemfelves from him, under pretence that his doc-
trine was not fufficiently pure and perfei^t. They
affirmed that all Scripture was little more than
dead letter, without immediate infpiration from
God : for which reafon they pretended to vifions
and revelations, as the only means whereby they
could conduct themfelves righteoufly, and attain
to the true and eflcntial religion of Chrift. They
defpifed all laws civil and ecclefialHc, and infpired
the common people with the warmeit hatred of all
nobility, magiftracy, and power. They were for
having every thing in common, and would have all
men free and independent : they promifed theni'a
kingdom of their own, where they Ihould reign
alone, having firft exterminated all the wicked and
impious. Munfter preached up evangelical liberty
fo far, that he excited all the peafants of Suabia,
and other parts of Germany, who leagued together
to defend the purity of the Gofpel, and call oft' the
yoke of fervitude, which they had fo long, and fo
inglorioufly borne. 'i'hey diev/ up a manifefto,
which was as it were the ftand.ard of rebellion, that
fpread almoft throughout rdl Germany : but being
at laft defeated on all fides, they laid down their
arms, except in Thurin^ia, where Munfter had
placed the principal feat of his chimerical kingdom.
He had for his companion one PfhifFct, a bold def-
pcrate fellow, who pretended that God had re-
vealed himfelf to him, that he fhould take up arms
to extirpate the nobility. They were both of them
at laft taken at Mulhaufen, and beheaded in the
yeari585.
However, the fcdl was not thus extinguifhed ; but
a few years after rofe again to a very confiderable
height.
ANA
height, under the conduct of John of Leyden,
who from being their taylor, became at length their
king. They ravaged with t!ie utmofl: infolcnce and
fury all the places wherever they came, and feized
upon the city of Muniler. The Lutherans as
well as Catholics joined together to fupprefs them ;
which was at Jall: accomplished by the city of Mun-
fter's being retaken, and John of Leyden made
prifonor, who underwent foon after the punifhment
that he had fo richly deferved.
One of the arguments made ufe of by the Ana-
baptiils is taken from the following words of St.
Mark, where our Saviour fays, He that believes,
and it hapti'z.ed, ftiall be faveil. From this they rea-
fon, that as none but adults can pofTibly beiicve,
io none but adults are capable of being baptized;
efpecially, as there is no one paflage in all the New
Tefiamcnt where the baptilm of infants is exprefsly
cnjoijied. But to this it may be anfwered, that
ihe necelTity of infant baptilm has been handed
down by tradition, and is confirmed by the prac-
tice of the primitive church. Befides which we
are told, that children are capable o£ the kingdom
of heaven ; Suffer, fays our Saviour, Mark x. 14.
the little children to come unto me, for of fuch is the
ki?igdom of heaven.. Now if what St. John afferts
be true, chap. iii. 5. That unlefs a man be baptized,
}>e cayinot enter into the kingdom of God ; it follows
evidently, that little children are capable of being
baptized.
Another argument, by which the Anabaptifts
flrengthen themfclves in their faith, , is taken from
the following words of St. Paul, Rom. v. 17.
//" by one man's offence death reigned by one ; 77iucb
more they which receive abundance of grace, and of
the gift of righteoufnefs, fliail reign in life by one,
Jcfus Chrifl. Here, fay they, it is plain that by one
man's offence, (viz. Adam's) all are become cri-
minal, and obnoxious to death : but ihofe only can
reign in life who receive abundance of grace, and
of the gift of righteoufnefs. Now children not
having an aiflual faith, are not the objefts of grace,
are not within the covenant of grace, Vvhich ex-
tends only to thofe who believe in Jefus Chrift.
But why fo ? May not children have an actual
faith, not indeed of themfelves, but by others,
for inltancc, their godfathers and godmothers ?
Can any thing be more juft and equitable, than
that thole who finned in the will of another, ftiould
be juftified by the will of another ? Is it not rea-
fonable, that as through the offence of one, miny are
dead ; fo ih> ough the righteoufnefs of one, the grace
of God fhould abound unto many, that they may
live ?
ANABASII, in antiquity, were couriers who
were fent on horfeback, or in chariots, with dif-
patches of importance.
The word is Greek, and derived from w^Pst/yii),
to mount.
' 7
ANA
ANABIBAZON, in aflronomy, the Arabic
name for the Dragon's tail, or fouthern node of the
moon. See Node.
ANACALYPTERIA, in antiquity, were fell i-
vals obferved among the Greeks on the day when
the bride was permitted to lay afide her veil, and
appear in public.
The word is Greek, and derived from cn/a;taAu'T7<i')
to uncover.
ANACAMPSP:R0S, orpine, in botany, a fpc-
cies of fedum or houfeleek. Sec Sedum.
ANACAMPTIC, an epithet applied, by the
ancients, to founds produced by refleflion, and
particularly to echos. See Echo.
The word is Greek, and compounded of a,v<f.-^
again, and KA/jiYja, to turn.
They alfo, by analogy, applied the term ana-
camptic to that part of optics which relates to re-
fie£tion, now called catroptics. See Catoptrics.
ANACARDIUM Occidentalis, in botany, the
acajou or cafhew-nut. The flower of this plant
confirts of a monophyllous cup, containing a tu-
bulous petal reflexed in. five parts at the top, fur-
rounding ten flender filaments, which are crowned
with fmall antheras ; in the center is placed around
germen, fupporting a fingle fi-yle ; the germen
afterwaijs becomes a large oval flefliy fruit, having
a large kidney-fiiaped nut growhig to its apex.
This plant grows to a confiderable height in the
Weft-Indies, but will not eafily thrive in England,,
though th.ey promife fair to grow for the firll year
or two : they are propagated by planting the nuts,
in pots, and plunged in the bark-bed in the warm-
ell part of a hot-houfe.
The cafliew-nut is in fize and figure refembling
a hare's kidney, the outer fhell is very fmooth,
tough, and of an afh-colour, under which is ano-
ther which covers the kernel between ; there is a
large proportion of a fiery cauftic oil, which will
raife blifters on the fkin, and is very troublefome
to thofe that incautioufly put the nuts in their
mouths, to break the fhcll ; the oil exprefied from
the fliells, it is faid will dye linens of a black
colour ; but whether it has the fiime properties
as the eaftern anacardium, is not yet been fully
experienced.
Anacardium Oricntalis, or Malacca bean, is a
feed growing on the top of a conical fruit, the pro-
duft of a large tree growing in the Eafl-Indiesj
it is in fhapc and colour like a bird's heart flatten-
ed ; the kernel is covered by two tough fkins, in-
cluding between them a fpungy fubilance, full of
an acrid matter, in a liquid form ; when the nut is
frefh, the kernel has the tafte of an almond.
It is faid to be hot and dry ; but is feldom to be
met with in England.
ANACATHARSIS, among phyficians, im-
plies a difcharge of noxious humors, either by
vomit pr by fpitting.
L 1 Th^
ANA
The word is Greek, and derived from nvAzd.-
fia/poM*/, to purge upwards.
ANACATHARTICS, medicines that pro-
jnote an anacatharfis.
ANACEPHAL/EOSIS, in rhetoric, a recapi-
tulation of the heads of a difcourfe. See Recapi-
tulation.
The word is Greek, and compounded of cti'a,
again, and y.JsaM', a head, or chief point.
ANACHORET, or Anchorite, an hermit,
or religious perfon, who retires from all the vani-
ties and vices of the world, to fpend his life in
contemplation and folitary fanctity.
The word is derived from the Greek, ava, apart,
and ^<ape<u, I remove, or retire.
In the eariieft days of Chriftianity, many devout
perfons, who had embraced the religion of J -fus,
fled into caves and deferts, to avoid the temptarions
of the world, as well as the perfccuticr. they
were fure to meet with from the enemies of the
crofs of Chrift. Others in imitation of the pro-
phet Elias, and St. John the Baptift, fought out
tiie moft fequeflered abodes, that they might be
more at leifure to furvey the heiuities of the crea-
tion, and adore the goodnefe of providence. To
fludious and contemplative minds thofe penfive
pleafures that are ever to be found in folitude,
are far more dear and engaging, than all the noify
delights of the world, the pageantry of honour,
and the glare of riches. With what enthiifiafm
does our poet Milton v.'\{h for fuch a retirement
as this, when he cries out.
Oh ! may at laft my weary age
Find out the peaceful hermitage.
The hairy gown, the moffy cell.
Where I may fit and rightly fpell
Of every flar that heaven doth fhew.
And every herb that fips the dew ;
'Till old experience do attain
To fomething like prophetic ftrain !
Paul of Thebes is generally efteemed the firft
anr.choret : he was formerly a monk, but left the
fociety to which he belonged ; and chufuig out one
of the moft: fequcft^ered places in the deferts ot Egypt,
lived in the moil obfcure folitude, fufl:ained by the
fpontaneous produclions of the earth. There are
at prefent among the Greeks a great number of
anchorites, which are generally diftinguifhcd into
two forts : one are of monks, who not chufing the
bufinefs and fatigues of a monaftery, retire to fome
grotto or cell, where they live in the utmoft pri-
vacy, and never appear in the monaftery, except
upon ftated and folemn days : the other kind con-
fift of perfons who have nothing to do with any
religious houfe, but retire from the world, either
through fome difappointment or affliftions they
may have met with, or in compliance with the
folitarinefs of their own natural difpofitions.
ANA
ANACHRONISM, an error or miftake in
chronology.
ANACLASTICS, that part of optics which
confidcred the rcfravStion of light, and commonly
called dioptrics. See Dioptrics.
The word is formed from the Greek, ctfct, again,
or backward, a.nd y.ha^u, to break.
ANACLETERIA, a folenm feaft celebrated by
the ancients on the day their kings or princes came
of age, and afl'umed the reins of government ; on
wliich occafion they made a folemn declaration to
their people.
The v/ord is formed from the Greek, ava., and
K:£Asf', to appeal.
ANACREONTIC is the name given to a
particular kind of lyric meafure, which was either
invented, or at leaft much made ufe of by the
poet Anacreon. This celebrated bard was born
at Teos, a city of Ionia, about the fixty-fecond
Olympiad. He was a true votary of pleafure, de-
dicating his whole time and ftudy to love and wine.
He was ill repaid by Bacchus for all the fine things,
he faid of him, if it be true, that he was at laft
choaked by a grnpe-ftone. His verfes confift of
fcv;n f.llables, and are for the moft part iambics
and fpondees, though there is here and there a
fmall mixture of anapasfts. One cannot give the
reader a better idea of this poet, than by prefent-
ing him with the following fhort ode, tranflated by
Mn Cowley :
Oft am I by women told,
Poor Anacreon, thou grow'ft old !
See how thy hairs are falling all.
Poor Anacreon, how they fall !
^Vhether I grow old or no.
By th' effects I do not know ;
But this I know, without being told,
'Tis time to live if I grow old :
'Tis time Ihort pleafure now to take,
Of little life the moft to make,
And wifely manage the laft ftake.
ANACYCLUS, in botany, a genus of plants,
with leaves like chamomile trailing on the ground ;
producing female and hermaphrodite flowers, and
are natives of the Archipelago iflands.
ANADIPLOSIS, is the name given to a figure
in rhetoric, when we rc]ieat the laft word of the
former verfe in the fucceeding, as in the following
inftance from Virgil :
negat quls cannina Gallo^
Galls, a/jus omor iatitum rnihi crefclt in horas.
It is derived from the Greek ctvA, and S'lTrKoa,
to repeat, or double.
Anadiplosis, among phyficians, implies the
return of the cold fit in the femi-tertian ague, be-
fore the fit is entirely ended.
ANADROMUS, au epithet applied by natu-
ralifts
\
ANA
■lalifts to fuch fifh as go at ft.ttcd fcafons from
the frefli water into thel'ea, and afterwards return
again to the rivers.
The word is formed from the Greek, aca/frf/ii,
returning back.
ANAGALLIS, Pimpernel, in botany, a 'genus
of plants refemblingchickweed, producing awheel-
fhaped monopetalous flower, whofe pointal turns
to a dry fruit. Anagallis is very dcterfive, of a
Jieating and drav.-ing quality, v\hence it extracts
fplinters oiit of the flefii ; it has the virtue of dry-
ing, without mordacity; and, for that reafon, is
cfleemed proper for conglutinating wounds, and
helping putrid ulcers.
ANAGOGY, among ecclefiaftica! writers im-
plies the elevation of the foul to things celeltial
and eternal.
The word is Greek, a-va-yay,), and compound-
ed of (tvct, upward, and a-yay,], from ayu, to
draw.
ANAGRAM, a playing with the letters of any
rame, fo as to make by tranfpofition a new word
out of an old one.
It is a verj- ridiculous kind of punning upon let-
ters, which was firft introduced into Chriilendom
by a trifling Frenchman, called Daurat. The cab-
balifts among the Jews were all profeffed anagrr.m-
Hiatifts.; the third part of their fcience, which they
call thnnura, being nothing but tlie art of mak-
ing anagrams, or finding hidden and myilical mean-
ings in names. There are two kind of anagram.s ;
one is when a word only is divided, as the ajnig-
ma of the god Terminus, mentioned by Aulus Gel-
lus, tir tninus : the fecond is, when the order and
iituation of the letters is changed, as of Roma,
amor. Sec.
The beft anagram extant, is that on the quef-
tion put bv Pilate to Jefus, ^iH e/l Veritas ? which,
anfwered anagrammatically, is aiifwered moft trulv,
Eji vir qui adcjl.
ANAGRAMMATIST, a compofer of ana-
grams,
ANAGORIS, in botany; fee the article Bean-
trefoil.
ANAGYRIS, bean-trefoil, in botany, a genus
of plants with papilionaceous flowers of a bright
yellow colour growing in fpikes ; the vexillum is
ihorter than any of the other petals ; its fruit is a
large oblong pod reflexcd at the point, containing
levcral kidney-fhaped feeds.
ANAITIS, in mythology, a pagan goddefs
particularly worfhipped by the Armenians. The
greatelt men in the country dedicated their daugh-
ters to her fervice, who thought it an honour to
proftitute themfelves to all thofewho came to facri-
fice to this falfe deity ; after which they were eager-
ly courted in marriage, as being thought to have ac-
quired an extraordinary fanftity thereby. Upo.i
the feltiva] of this idol, the men and %yomen met
ANA
in crouds together, and intoxicated themfelves with
wine. The reafon of the inilitution oi the fcflival
was this : Cyrus, having undertaken an expedition
againil the tjacae, and, being beaten, fled v.'ith his
army; but afterwards, encamping in the place
where he had left his baggage, he refrcfhed his ar-
my, and then counterfeited a flight. The Sacs',
purfuing him, and fmding the enemy's camp de-
i'ertod, but rcpkniihcd with wine and provifions,
eat and drank till they had quite intoxicated them-
felves. Cjrus, returning, flew them all, and con-
fecrated that day to the goddefs.
ANALECTA, in matters of literature, implies
a colle^llion of fmall pieces of compofitions, as
efliiys, remarks, &c.
The word is Greek, and deri'/ed ficm ^vnKiya,
to collect, or gather together.
ANALEMMA, an agronomical inTrument,
whereby the ancients fol\'ed a great m;mv problems
relating to the doclrine of the fphere, which it does
with great eafe and perfpicuity, but. with no great
degree of accuracy, unlels the inftrument be very
large. It conllfts of a circular plate of brafs or
wood, on which is delineated the orthographic pro-
jedion of the fphere on the plane of the meridian,
where the eye is fuppofcd to be placed at an infinite
diftance, and in either the caft orweft points of the
horizon, according as the circun;flance3 of the
problem give, or require the time before or after the
fun's paflage over the meridian. We fliall firftfhew
how to conflrudl this inllrum.eiit, and then gi\e an
example or two of its ufe.
Being provided with a good fcclor, open it until
the diftance between the points marked 60 en the
line of chords be equal to the nidius you would hai-e
your inflrument, which take in your compafles, and
defcribe the circle H Z O N, (Plate Vli. /^'. i.)
which ihall reprefent the meridian of your pdace ;
and in projcftions is called the primiiive or plane of
projection, becaufe to the plane of this circle all the
others are referred : draw the diameters H O and
ZN, the former of which will be the horizon, and
the latter the prime vertical, which cuts the hori-
zon in the eafl: and weft points.
The fcclor {landing as before, take from the line
of chords the latitude of the place vou intend your
inftrument for, atid fet it from O to P, and draw
P S ; P and S being tl.e north and fouth poles re-
fpectively ; draw t perpendicular to PS for the
equino(5iia! ; and taking from the feclor the chord
ot' 23° 29', fet it each way on the circumference of
the primitive from E and CLto us and '■cf, and draw
the two tropics 25 'io, and Vf Vf, aUo draw the
ecliptic S5 '<f, and perpendicular thereto, its axis AK.
LetD.i'bc drawn ainwhereparalldto theequator,
to reprefent a parallel of the fun's declination, and
which will alfo. be hii diurnal arc for the day anfwer-
ing thereto : alfo M will be the point on which the
f'j.n will rile and feton that day, D his point of culmi-
nation.
ANA
ANA
nation, V M his amplitude, the arcs D M, d M,
his femi-diurnal and nocturnal arcs, or his half tar-
riiince above and below the horizon, H D his me-
ridian altitude, and O n the fme of his right af-
cenfion.
Now iappofe it be required to lav down on the
luialenima the lun's diftance from the next equi-
iioiilial point on any given day, as for example,
June the 3d, 1765, his place in the ecliptic that day
is n. 13°, whence his diftance from the tropic of
Cancer is 17°, which fet on the meridian or primi-
tive circle from 125 to n. 13°, and 'take the neareft
diftanca from thence to A K, which will be found
at K, and fet it from 'T to O , which will be the
fme of the fun's diftance from the next equinoftial
point.
The azimuths and hour circles in the analemma
are eilipies,and may be found in this manner. Draw
a fumcient number of lines parallel to the horizon,
as g /,G g. Sic. in which take gr, or GK, as ir O
and'Y> M, and. through thefe points defcribe the curve
ZR MN, whic'ii fhall be the vertical required. If
the meridians or hour circles be required, it is only
drawing parallels to P S, and proceeding in the fame
manner : or it may be done praiff ically thus ; fet
the fector to the radius of the parallel, and then take
from it the ftne of the azimuth's diftance from the
prime vertical or of hour-circle, and from the fix
o'clock hour-line or equinoiSfial colure, and fet it
from g to r, or from G to R, &c. which will find as
mcny points as may be necell'ary through which the
ellipfes muft pafs.
N'ote, In the analemma the circle HZ ON
fhould be divided into .degrees and minutes if pof-
lible, and the fines transferred from the fector on to
the diameters HO, PS, E Q_, 'is, Jcf, Z N, and
K A, by the help of which, and a pair of compaffes
only, almoft any queftion in aftronomy may be
folved in a general way.
ANALEPSIS, in the healing art, implies the
augmentation or nutrition of an emaciated body.
I'he word is Greek, and derived from cLyi.Ka.iJ.ipit.va,
to repair.
ANALEPTICS, , in pharmacy, fuch medicines
as are proper for nourifliing the body when weak-
ened.
ANALOGICAL, fomething belonging to, or
partaking of the nature of analogy. Thus an ana-
logical fyllogifm is that which is founded on the
analogy between the premifes.
ANALOGY, a certain relation fubfifting be-
tween two or more thino;s, which in other re-
fpecis are entirely different.
The word is Greek, a.y!tKoytci., and compounded
of 'j.va,., and Koy^-, ratio, or reafon.
Analogy, among m.athsmaticians, the fame
with proportion. See Proportion.
Analogy, in grammar, is the correfpondence
which a word or phrafe has to the genius and re-
ceived forms of a language.
ANALYSIS, in a general fenfe, implies the ra-
folution of fomething compounded into its origi-
nal and conftituent parts.
The word is Greek, and derived from ct.va.Kvi>y
to refclve.
Analysis, among mathematicians, is the art of
difcovering the truth or f?.lihood of a propofition,
or its poflibility or impoflibility, by fuppofing the
hypothefis or propofitions to be true ; and, by ex-
amining what follows from .thence, be enabled to
come at fome known truth or manifeft impoflibility,
of which the firft propofition is a neceflarj' conilv
quence whereby we eftablifh the truth or impoili-
bility of our firft propofition. The method of
anylifis confifts more in the judgment and quick-rr
nefs of perception, than in particular rules where
pure geometry is made ufe of, as it was among the
ancients ; but algebra, at prefent, is chiefiy made
ufe of on this occafion, which furnifli us with par-
ticular rules whereby we arrive at the end pro-
pofed. The analyfis of the ancient geometricians
confifted in the application of Euclid and Apollo-
nius's propofitions, till they difcovered, proceeding
ftep by ftcp, the truth required. The method of
our modern mathematicians is allowed, tho' not fo
elegant, to be much more ready and general. De-
monftrations in geometry by this laft is greatly>
abridged, and many truths often exprefl"ed by a'
fingle line, which enables us to attain in a few mi-
nutes what otlierwife we could not have done in.
many years ; and therefore may be allowed to be
the apex of human learning, being the great inftru-r
ment whereby fo many furprizing difcoveries hav&
been made in mathematics and philofophy of late.
years.
Analysis, with regard to it3 objciEf, is divided-
into that of finites and infinites. That of finitts^
is what we commonly call fpecious arithmetic, or.
algebra. See Arithmetic and Algebra.
That of infinite quantities, called the new ana-
lyfis, is particularly ufed for the method of fluxions,
or the dift'erential calculus. See Fluxions.
Analysis of powers, is the operation of refolving
them into their roots, and is the lame with evolu-.
tion. See Evolution, Power, Root, &c.
Analysis, in logic, fignifies the method of
tracing things backwards to their fource, and of re-
folving knowledge into its original principles.
This is ali'o called the method of refolution, and
ftands oppofed to the fynthetic method, or that of-
compofition.
The art of logical analyfis confifts principally in:
combining our perceptions, claffing them toge-
ther with addrefs, and contriving proper expref-
fions for conveying our thoughts and reprefenfing
their feveral divifions, claffes, and relations.
Analysis,
ANA
Analysis, in rhetoric, denotes the ftiipping a
diicouril- of all its gaudy drcfs of tropes and figures ;
or, fhewing what ufe the orator has made of thefe
decorations, in order to embellifli and fet off" every
part of his oration to the belf advantage.
A^'AL^SIS, in chcmiftry, implies the decom-
pofmg mixed bodies, or foparating their component
princtples, in order to obtain each of them unmixed
with the other.
The method mofl commonly ufed in the decom-
pofition of bodies, is by applying to them fucceflive
degrees of heat, from the gentlefl to the moll vio-
lent, in appropriated veffels, fo contrived as to col-
led what exhales from them. By this means the
principles are gradually feparatcd from each other ;
the moil volatile rife hrll, and the reft follow in
order, as they come to be acted on by the proper
degree of heat : and this is called diftillation.
But it being obferved that fire, applied to the de-
corapofition of bodies, mod commonly alters their (e-
condary principles very feiifibly, by combining them
in a diiferent manner with each other, or e\ en part-
ly decompofing them, and reducing them to their
primitive principles ; other means have been ufed
to fcparate thole principles without the help of
fire.
With this view the mixts to be decompofited
are forcibly comprefled, in order to ftjuceze out
of them all fuch parts of their fubfi-ance a;; they
■will by this means part with ; or elfe thcfe mixts
mc for a loniitime triturated, either along with wa-
ter v/hich carries oft all their falinc and faponaceous
contents, or with folvents, fuch as ardent fpirits,
capable of taking up every thing in thcni that is of
an oily or rehnous nature.
Analysis of Vegetable SuhJIamcs. — The princi-
ples already mentioned are the only ones that can
be obtained from any plant without the help of
tire ; but by the afliftance of that medium we arc
enabled to analize it more completely in the follow-
ing manner.
A plant being expofed to a very gentle heat in a
diflilling vefTel, fet in balneum marix, yields a
water which retains its perfedl fmell. This water
is by fome chymiils, and particularly the illuftrious
Boerhaave, called the fpiritus reftor. The nature
of this odoriferous part of plants is not yet thorough-
ly known ; becaufe it is fo very volatile, that it is
difficult to fubjecSl it to the experiments neceflary
for difco\ering its properties.
If, inllead of diflilling the plant in balneum ma-
rire, it be diflilled over a naked fire, with the pie-
caution of putting a quantity of water into the di-
flilling veflel along with it, to pre\'ent its fufFcring
a greater heat than that of boiling water, all the ef-
fential oil contained in that plant will rife together
with the above v/ater : and as no eficntial oil can
be extracted after the fpiritus rector has been drawn
7
ANA"
off, there Is reafon to think that the volatility of
thefe oils iii owing to that (pirit.
The heat of boiling water is alfo Aifficicnt to
feparate from vegetable bodies the fat oils they
contain ; but this mult be done by decodtion only,
not by diftillation ; becaufe, though thefeoils fwim
on water, yet th'.-y will not rife in v:ipours v/ithout
a greater degree of heat.
When the effential oil is come over, if the plant
be expofed to a naked fire without the addition of
water, and the heat be increafed a little, a phlegm
will rife that naturally grows acid ; after which, if
the heat be increafed as occafion requires, there
will come over a thicker and heavier oil ; from fomii
a volatile alkali ; and lall of all, a very thick, black,
empyreuniatic oil.
^Vhen nothing more rifes with the flrongefl de-
gree of heat, there remains of the plant a mere
coal onlv, called the caput morfuum, or terra
damnata. This coal, when burnt, falls into afiief,
which, being lixiviated with water, give a fixed
alkali.
It is obfcrvable that in the diftillation of plants,
which yield an acid and a volatile alkali, thefe two
lalts are often found quite diftindt and feparate in
the Hime receiver ; which feems very extraordinary,
confidering that they are naturally difpofed to unite^
and have a great affinity with one another. The
reafon of this phrenomcnon is, that they are both
combined with much oil, which embr.rrafies them fo
that they cannot unite to form a neutral fait, as they
would not fail to do were it not for that im-
pediment.
All vegetables, except fuch as yield a great deal
of volatile alkali, being burnt in an open fire, and
(o as to flame, leave in their afhes a large quan-
tity of an acrid, cauftic, fixed alkali. But if care
be taken to fmother them, fo as to prevent their
flaming while they burn, by covering them with
fomething that may continually beat down again
what exhales, the fait obtained from their aflies "will-
be much lefs acrid and cauftic ; the caufe whereof
is, that fome part of the acid and oil of the plant-
being detained in tlie burning, and ftopped from
being dijfipated by the fire, combines v/ith its alkali.
Thefe falts cryftallize, and being much milder than
the common fixed alkalies, may be ufed in medi-
cine, and taken internally. They are called Ta-
chenius's falts, becaufe invented by that chymift. ■
Analysis of Anhnnl Svhjlance'. — Succulent an!--
mal fubftances, fuch as nevv-killed flefli, yield by^
expreiiion a iuice or liquid, which is no other than
the phlegm, replete v.'ith all the principles of the
animal body, except the earth, of which it con-
tains but little. The hard or dry parts, fuch as
the horns, bones, &c. yield a fimilar juice, by
boiling them in water. Thcfe juices become thick,
like a glue or jelly, when their watery parts are eva-
M Tsx porattd ;
ANA
ANA
porated ; and in this ftate they are true extra<?l:s of
animal matters. Thefe juices afford no cryftals
of ellential fait, like thofe obtained from vege-
tables, and Ihew no figa either of an acid or an
alkali.
Gr^-'at part of the oil which is in the flefti of
•nimals may be eafily feparated without the help of
lire; for it lies in a manner by itfeif : it is com-
monly in a concrete form, and is called fat. This
oil fomewhat refembles the fat oils of vegetables ;
for like them it is mild, un6tuous, indiilbluble in
ipirlt of wine, and is fubtilized and attenuated by
tne action of iire. But there is not in animals,
as in vegetables, any light effential oil, v/hich rifes
with the heat of boiling water ; fo that, properly
fpeaking, animals contain but one fort of oil.
Few animal fubflances yield a perceptible acid.
Ants and bees are almoft the only ones from which
any ■ can be obtained ; and, indeed, the quantity
which they yield is very fmall, as the acid itlelf is
extremely weak.
The reafon is, that as animals do not draw their
nourifhment immediately from the earth, but feed
wholly either on vegetables or on the flefh of other
animals, the mineral acids, which have already
undergone a great change by the union contrafted
between them and the oily matters of the vegetable
kingdom, enter into a clofer union and combina-
tion with thefe oily parts, while they are paffing
through the organs and flraincrs of animals, where-
by thiir properties are deltroyed, or at leail: fo im-
paired that they are no longer fenfible.
Animal - matters yield in diftillation, firft: a
phlegm, and then, on increafing the fire, a pretty
clear oil, which gradually becomes thicker, blacker,
more fetid, and empyreuma-tic. It is accompanied
with a great deal of volatile alkali ; and, if the
fire be raifed and kept up till nothing more comes
o\-er, there will remain in the diftilling veffel a
coal like that of vegetables, except that when it is
.--reduced to aflies, no fixed alkali, or at leaft very
little, can be obtained from them, as from the
afhes of vegetables. This arifes from hence, that,
as we faid before, tlie faline principle in animals
being more intimately united v/ith the oil than it
is in plants, and beijjg confequently more attenu-
ated and fubtilized, is too volatile to enter into the
combination of a fixed alkali ; on the contrary,
it is more difpofcd to join- in forming a volatile
alkali, which on this occafion does not rife till
after the oil, and therefore muft certainly be the
production of the fire. It rnufl he obferved, that
all we have hitherto faid concerning the analyfis of
bodies muft be underftood of fuch matters only as
have not undergone any fort of fermentation.
Analysis of Mineral Subflanas, Minerals differ
greatly from vegetables, and from animals ; they
are not near fo comple>{ as thofe organized bodies,
and their principles are much more fimple ; whence
it follows, that thefe principles are much more
clofely connefted, and that they cannot be feparated
without the help of fire, which, not having on
their parts the fame aclion and the fame power
as on organized bodies, hath not the fame ill eii^ect
on them.
Thefe bodies gre compound maffes or combina-
tions of fevera! bodies ; that is, metallic fubftances
as they are found in the bowels of the earth, united
with feveral forts of faiid, ftones, earths, femi-
met;ds, fulphur, &c. When the metallic matter
is combined with other matters, in fuch- a propor-
tion to the reft that it may be feparated from them
with advantage and profit, theie compounds are
called ores : when 'the cafe is otherviife, they aie
called pyrites and marcafites ; efpeciallv if ful-
phur or aifenic be predominant therein, which
often happens. See the articles Ores and As-
saying.
Analysis, among grammarians, fignifies the'
explaining the etymology, conftruction, and other
properties of words.
Analy'sis is alfo ufed to imply a brief but me-
thodical illuilration of the principles of a fcience ;
in which (enk it fignifies the fame with fynopfis.
Analysis likewife denotes a table of the prin-
cipal heads of a continued difcourfc, difpofed in
their proper order.
ANALYST, a perfon fkilled in the analytic
metiiod of refolving problems.
ANALYTIC, or Analytical, fomething
that belongs to, or partakes of, the nature of
analyfis.
Analytics fignifies or denotes the mathema-
tical or logical analyfis.
The principal authors on the ancient analyfis,
were, Euclid, in his Data ia'Porifmata ; ApoUonlus
deSeSiione Raiiorth ; and in his Conies; Eratoffhenes,
De Mediis Proportionidibus ; and Ariftaeus, De
Locis Soltdis. The chief modern authors on the-
analyfis of infinites, are, Sir Ifaac Newton, the in-
ventor, Leibnitz, the marquis de I'Hofpital,
Carre, Manfredi, Nicholas Mercator, Craig,
Cheyne, Nieuvi-entiit, David Gregor)', Simp-
fon. Cotes, Pidaclaurin, and Robins, &c.
ANAMELEK, or Anamelech, the name
given to an idol of the Samaritans, reprefented un-
der the f.gure of an horfe ; one of the fymbols of
Mars. Some of the rabbin*, however, reprefented
it under the form of a pheafant. The Sephar-
vaites are faid, in fcripture, to have burnt their
children in honour to Anamelek and Adram-
melek.
ANAMNESTICS, among the profeffors of
the healing art, imply the figns by which the pre-
fent ftate of the body is indicated, in contradiilion
to prognoftics.
The word is Greek, and derived from Avti.iMa-o^<i-h
to remember.
ANA-
/i^.irt: u.
iJ^ari/u/Axxaxixorpho sis .
ANA
ANAMORPHOSIS, inperfpeaivepainting, flg-
nifics a diltortion, or monftrous projedtion of any
n;itur;il or well-formed figure, in fuch manner, that
when viewed in a perfedtly polilhed mirror, of a par-
ticular form, to which the pidture is adapted, it (hall
appear beautiful and natural.
In order to delineate the anamorphofis on a plane,
either to be viewed with a cylindric, conic, or fpheri-
cal fpeculum, it need only be confidered as a kind
of inverl'e perl'petitive, which is not lefs ingenious
than uftful, nor in the Icalt degree more difficult
than the direct method, fubjedt likewife to the fame
rules of art, and admits of as cafy mechanical me-
thods, as may be fecn from what follows.
Letthepicture intended to be difi:orted (as ABCD
Plate VI. Jig. 7.) be fubdivided into a number of
fmall fquares, or other equal and fimilar fpaces ;
then draw the line a b [Fig. 8.) equal to AB, and
divide it into the fame number of equal parts ; from
the middle of a b draw E V perpendicular thereto,
and continued at pleafure ; alfo draw V S perpen-
dicular to E V ; where note, that according to the
excefs of E V above V S, will the pitlure be more
or lefs diflorted ; frona each divifion in a b, draw
(Iraight lines to the point V, and join the points a
and S, and through the points where the line a S in-
terfects the lines drawn from the divifions in a bto
the point V, draw lines parallel to a b., which will
divide the trapezium abed into the fame number
of fpaces with the original picture ABCD: and
if the fame parts of the figure in each fquare in the
piiSure be drawn in the correfpondent ipace of the
trapezium, an anamorphofis will be obtained, which
viewed on a plane at the diflance V F, and height
V S, will appear in all refpe£ts like the original
ABCD; and by a proper application of the above,
and the elements of catoptrics, the an.imorphohs
may be adapted to a poliflied fpeculum of any form
whatever, if the following pradlical method be not
thought preferable.
Take a piece of pafteboard or vellum, in which
cut a fquare hole, the fide of which muft be equal to
the femi-circumference of your cylindric, fpherical,
or conical mirrour, which divide into the fame num-
ber of parts with the piilure ABCD, [Fig. 7.)
Then in each of thofe divifions, let the vellum, &c.
be perforated with a fmall hole, through which let
a fine thread be run both ways, which will divide
the hole in the vellum into the fame number of
fmall fquares with the pidlure : this being fixed on
the fpeculum, and that placed on a fheet of clean
paper, caufe a perfon to hold a candle at a proper
diftance and height, according as you would have
the figure more or lefs difiorted, and you will find
the fhadows of the threads refleded oil the paper,
which you may trace out with a pencil ; and if in
each fpace fo delineated, that part of the pidure
foimd in the ccuefponding fquare be drawn, you
ANA
will have the anamorphofis (Plate VII. Jig. 3.) re-
quired.
Or, it may be otherwife conftrudted thus : Let
the pi6turc intended to be difiorted. A, B, C, D,
Jig. 4. be divided into a number of equal and fimi-
lar fquares : then draw Ail, Jig. 2- at pleafure,
and with any radius fweep the arch D E ; then let
oft' AD, and EC, equal to A B m Jig. 4. and
divide it into the fame number of equal parts ; then
("weep concentric circles to cachofthefedivifions,and
from the center B, draw lines too, A, c, d, e,f,g,
equal the number of parts in the fide AD, Jig. ^.
and you will have the cylindrical diltortion in
k- 3-
ANANAS, the pine-apple, in botany, a genus
of plants, whofe flower confiits of three narrow
lanceolated petals, produced from the protuberan-
ces of the fruit, before it is arrived to a fiate of
maturity : within the flower are placed fix filaments,
crowned with ereiSt anthcra; ; the germen is fituat-
ed belov/ the flower, fupporting a fingle flender
ftyle, topped with a trifid iligma ; the germen
afterwards becomes a cell, in which are lodged
feveral angulated feeds.
The fruit, which furpafi^es all others, is either
oval, or in the form of a fugar-loaf, according to
the fpecies, aad refembles the cone of the pine-
tree, from the fimilitude of v/hich it is commonly
called in England the pine-apple. But what makes
this fruit more fingular is, that it produces on its
top a young plant, commonly called a crown ;
which taken oft' and planted, becomes afterward
a mother plant : and from this particular, together
with its excellent flavour, it is called the king of
fruits. It arifes from the center of the plant, which
is herbaceous, and refembles fome forts of aloes;
but the leaves arc much thinner, and not fo fuccu-
lent as the aloe. All the forts known in England
are fawed at the edges, except one, the leaves of
which are plain.
This plant is in great plenty in the Eaft and
Weft Indies. It grows fpontaneoufly in Africa,
in fuch quantities as to perfume the air fome miles
round. At the Brazils alfo, and other parts of the
continent of America within the torrid zone, it
is found in great plenty ; and from thence the
V/ eft-Indian iilandswere originally fupplied; thefe
produce their golden fruit extraordinary large and
fine flavoured.
Thefe plants have been known feveial years in
European gardens, but the art of bringing them to
fruit, (which is praii\ifcd at prefsnt in great per-
fection) has been found out but of late years.
The firft perfon who fucceeded was Monfieur Le
Caur, of Leyden in Holland, who after feveral
trials, at laft hit on a proper method to manage
them, fo as to produce fruit equally as good fla-
voured, though not fo large, as thofe produced in,
the
ANA
ANA
the AVeft Iniue.5 ; and to tills fj-^ntlemaii therefore,
;ill lovers of this fruit are obliged for introdiicinij; it
■.imoiig us, as it was from him the gardens in Eng-
land were fuft: fupplied ; though we have fince had
1 large quantities of plants brought from the Weft
■Indies.
The ananas being fo jiillly efteemed, that fev/
psrfons who can afford the expence would be
without it, we fliall give a particular account of
the culture of thcfe plants, from the experience
of feveral emijient crardeners.
The pine-apple being a native of the warmer
countries, mult in this climate require a hot-houfe,
[See an original defign for one peculiarly adapt-
ed for the Ananas, facing the article Hot-
house] or rather two, a large one to contain the
fruiting plants, and a leffer one (commonly called
a nurfery pit) to hold the fmall plants ; having
procured a fufficient quantity of increafe, com-
monly called crowns and fuckers, which are gene-
rally produced from the fruiting plants in July,
Augull, September, and fome at other times in the
year; but thofe produced in July and Auguft are
to be preferred, as they will have time to be well-
rooted before winter comes on, which is very ne-
ceffary. Soon after the fruit is ripe, the fuckers
are fit to be taken off, when they fhouki be laid to
<!ry fome time, to heal the part of feparation from
the mother plant, as immediate planting might
taufe them to rot. Then having a warm bed of
new tan prepared in the nurfer\' pit, if the fuckers
are not very large, they fnould be planted fingly in
a halfpenny pot, in tolerable dry earth, and plunged
in the tan; and in very hot weather, fliould be
Jhaded frcim the violence of the fun, while they
:ire taking root. In a month they will be tolerably
well rooted, when they will require to be often
watered, till cold weather comes on ; then the
watering? muft be lefs frequent. When the heat
of the tan begins to decline, it fhould be ftirred
up ; and, if neceffary, fome frefh added to keep it
to a proper height; obferving to cover the glaffes
with mats, &c. and making a tire in winter in
\ery damp or froily weather, though fparingly ;
ibr much tire will make them fruit a year too foon.
They may alfo be kept very well in lafgc boxes
with glafs lights, and in cold weather, v/el! cover-
ed on both fides and the top with ftraw. In the
latter end of February they fhould be taken out of
the pots, and fliifted into others a fize larger, filled
with entire frefla mould, compol'cd of equal parts
of frefli earth from a pafture, rich loam, and the
dung of a melon-bed well confumed, well mixed
together. You fhould obferve to cut off all de-
cayed roots ; it will even not be amifs, if tliey aro
intirely diverted of all their roots; for they will
produce frefli ones if the former roots are left on,
which then decay ; ftill minding to keep a good
tan heat, and rtirrlng the bed occafionally, and
giving the plants at the fame time proper air ;
efpecially, as the fummer advances, in very hot
weather they fhould have plenty. In July they
will require to be fhifted into pots another fize
larger ; but without difturbing the roots : obferv-
ing to keep them properly watered, according to
the weather. In October they {hould be fliifted
into pots ftill more capacious, which will be large,
enough for them to be.ir their fruit in, and remov-
ed into the fruiting-houfe, prepared witli frefli tan,
which, by this time, is fuppofed to be cleared.
In December they fhould have a good heat of tan,
and briflc fires kept up to form them, for fruitinj; ;
giving them, at this feafon, but little water ; for
if they are kept frequently watered, they are apt
tomifs fruiting until the fucceeding autumn ; which
is a very improper feafon ; as the fruit will be ripe
before hot weather comes on, when they will have
a very infipid flavour. Sometimes indeed diey will
pafs over till the proper feafon, and are generally
called three years old plants ; tho' they feldom pro-
duce fuch large fruit as thofe of a year younger,
notwithftanding the plants are confiderably larger.
But when it is perceived they are inclined to (htvf
their fruit, then moderate waterings are neceffary,
ftill keeping up good fires till warm weather comes
on : for if this be neglected, the fruit will be fmall
and ill-flavoured. If the fruit fhows in January
or February, as may be expedted, fpare not for a
tan heat, when they are near bloffoming. They
will be about fix months from the time of their
fliowing to their ripening, which is known by
their fragrancy and from obfervation ; for as the
feveral forts differ from each other in the colour 6f
their fruit, that will not be any direction when to
cut them. Nor fiiould they remain fo long as to
become flat, as they alfo do when they are
cut long before they are eaten. The fureft way,
therefore, to have this fruit in perfection, is to cut
it the fame day it is to be eaten ; but it muft be
cut early in the morning before the fun has heated
the fruit ; obferving to cut part of the ftalk with it,
and lay it in a cool drv place until it is eaten.
The following method of cultivating the pine-
apple plants was communicated by the late Mr.
Allen of Bath, and has been praftifed with great
luccefs : — Let the pine-apple plants be planted
as foon as poilible, in pots of about eight or nine
inches diameter, and plunged into a bed of tan-
ners bark, about three foot and a half thick ; and
let the lait half foot on the top of the bed be old
tan that has loft its heat, which will prevent the
plants being fcorched at the roots. — In September
fhift them into large pots with all the earth about
them ; at the lame time fliaking up the tan to die
bottom of the pit, adding fome frefli to keep it up
to its proper height; ftill obferving to keep about
fix inches of old tan at the top. This will be fuf-
ficient to keep them till theyfhcw their fruit, which
3 ■ will
ANA
ANA
wilt probably be ia Februar\' or Maich ; v/hcrv being
prepaied with a bed of fretfi t.ui, cover it over about
VAO ijicbes thick witJi eartli ; thea turn the phints
out of the pots, without difturbiiag the roots, and
place them on the bed at proper dilhnces, filling up
the interftices witli good earth ;, where they may
lem.ain till the fruit is ripe : v/atcr them about
twice a week all over the bed, but not on the
fruit.
There may be few ob)e£tiorts raifed againft this
method, the principal of which is. That thofe plants
which do not fhew when they are turned out of
the pots, there is a great probability of their paf-
fing the fummer without fruiting ; or, it there
fhould be ;'.ny that ripen late, the houfe cannot be
at liberty to receive the plants for the fucceeding
year ; and if it is all new tan, as propofed, it is apt
to cake and want frefh ftirring when the fruit is
three parts grov/n, in order to f'Aeli the fruit out to
a large fize.
There are two forts of the ananas, principally
cultivated in England ; one called the Queen-pine,
the other the Moiitferrat. The Queen is moft ef-
teemcd among the gardeners, as being more regu-
lar and certain in their bearing ; whereas the Mont-
ferrat fort frequently mils the proper feafon ; and
m.any that are brought from that ifLand, though
fine plants to look at, are apt to produce but tri-
fling fruit. One caufe of this, perhaps, may be,
the ill choice that is made in promifcuoufly taking
the fuckers from the plants that have produced but
inditferent fruit.
It generally happens that pine plants which
are brought from the Weft-Indies, have a white
infeil .idhering to them, and which, if not de-
ftroyed, may infeft a whole houfe of plants
to their great prejudice, as they never thrive
while thefe infects prey on them, borne gardeners
mfufc the plants in tobacco water, in order to dc-
itroy thefe iufecls, but this often rots the pl.-.nts :
a much better method therefore is, when the plants
arrive, to ibip the fmall lea\'es from the roots,
and clean them dry ; for it is in that part thefe
infects moftly harbour. While the bottoms of the
^alants are hardening, make a hot-bed with dung,
and lay feven or eieht inches of old tan on it,
which cover with glailes. When the violence of
the heat is a little abated, ftick the plants in the
tan, and let tliem remain there about three weeks ;
by v/hich time they will be fit for patting, and the
infecls intirely dellroyed by the fteam of the dung.
/\s for plants tha;t do not immediately come from
abroad, they are never troubled with thefe infers,
imlefs the waterings have been neglected, or tlie
j'lantsby fomc other means are become uiihealthy ;
ibr they will net prey upon any perfeftly healthful
plant.
ANANCITIS, in antiquity, a kind of figured
Hone, cthcrwife called fvncchitis, famous for its
magical virtues in raifing the umbrae, or fiiadowa
of the infernal' gods.
ANAPjftiST, the name of a foot or meafure,
in Greek and Latin poetry, which confifts of three
fvllables, the two- firlt fhort, the laft a long one :
it is the rcverfeof a dadiyle ; thus, a'avh, &c.
ANAPHORA, in rhetoric, a repetition of the
fame word or words that concluded one (cntencc at
the beginning of the next.
The word is Greek, and derived from avA^fif^y^.
to transfer.
ANAPLEROSIS, in a geneml fenfo, impl'cs
the fame as repletion. See Repletion.
The word is Greek, avu.vKnoxe'i.i, and dcriveJ
from ct("x:rA«p:fc), to till up., or recruit.
An.^pleros-is, among furgeons, fignifics the-
fupplyinc deficiencies.
ANAPLEROTiCS, in pharmacy, fuch medi-
cines as promote the growth of the flefh, often
called incarnatives.
ANARCHY, a confufion introduced into a
ftate oE kingdom, from its bciiig deltitute of a head
or ruler.
The wo*d' is Greek, a.Yi:i.u'/jcL, and compounded
of a, priv. A^y^v, chief.
ANARTHRA, in natural hiftory, a clafs of
naked infe£ls, dilHnguifhed from all others in hav-
ing neither wings nor legs. The leach and all the
fpecies of worms belong to this clafs.
ANASARCA, in medicine, a fpecies of the
dropfy, wherein the flcin appears pufled up and
fwelled, fo that it yields to the impreflion of the
finger like dough. Sec Dropsy.
The word is formed from the Greek, acci, upon^
and fl-oto^, flefh.
ANASTATICA, in botany, the name of a
genus of plants, called in Englifh the rofe of Je-
richo. The flower confifts of four roundifh pe-
tals, difpofed in the form of a crofs ; and its fruit-
h a fhort biocular pod, containing in each cell a
Gnglc roundifh feed.
ANASTOMaSIS, inanatom.y, the opening of
the mouths of the vefTels in order to difcharse their
contained fluids ; as in the flux of the menfes, hae-
morrhoids, bleeding at the nofc, Sec.
The word is Greek, and compounded of avct^
and ro/jtct, a mouth.
Anastomasis alfo implies the communication
of two veflTels at their extremities ; as the arteries
with the \cins, &c.
ANATHEMA, in fcripture, means a folemn
curfc or execration, by which the pcrfon on whom
it is palled is devoted, and let apart from fociety.
It means in ecclefiaftical writers an excommu-
nication, or cutting off' from the communication
of the church.
There are two kinds of anathemas ; one the
judiciary, the other the abjuratory : the former
can only be pronounced by a council, a pope, a
N n bifliop»
ANA
ANA
bifliop, or other qualified perfon ; and differs from
an excommunication in this, that an excommuni-
cation only prohibits the criminal from entering
within the church, or from holding communion
with the faithful ; whereas an anathema cuts him
oft from all converfe and fociety, and delivers him
over immediately to the devil. The latter kind of
anathema ufually makes a part of abjuration, the
convert being obliged to anathematize the errors
which he abjures.
ANATOMICAL, fomething belonging to ana-
tomy.
ANATOMY, the art of difiefling or feparat-
ing the feveral parts of animal bodies, in order to
dilcover their flrucfure and ufe.
. The word is Greek, ava.Toy.n, and derived from
e.V!f.Tiy.\'co, to diflecl.
. The ancients did not make any remarkable pro-
grefs in anatomy ; but the art was not neglected
when the rays of learning began to fpread their in-
fluence over Europe. Dr. Harvey publiflied his
Difcovery of the Circulation of the Blood in 1628,
from which time anatomy made a furprifing pro-
grefs ; and a multitude of writers on that fcience
appeared : and it would have been fortunate for
anatomy, and fludcnts in this fcience, if authors
could have been fatisfied with publishing their own
tlifcoveries, and animadverting on the errors of
others ; but, initead of this, many have thought
that a difcovery, fometimes trifling enough, or a
profeflbr's chair, have entitled them to write an
entire fyftem j and by that means rendered it necef-
fary to fearch large volumes for difcoveries which
a few pages were fufficient to contain. Clopton
Havers, an Englifii phyfician, wrote admirably on
the bones, and made fome confiderable difcoveries
with rcfiject to the periofieum and the marrow.
He difcovercd in every joint particular glands, out
of which iffues a mucilaginous fubltance, whofe
nature he examined by fevera! experiments; v/hich,
with the marrow fupplied by the bones, conftantly
oil tire joints, that both they. and the mufclcs might
anfwer thofe ejids of snotioh for which nature de-
iigncd theui. This was a very ufeful difco\'cry ;
fmce it has rendered abundance of things, before
obfcure in that part.of a;iat.omy, plain and qi^- to
be underftood.
Dr. \Yillis, .another ErigHfli phyfician, was an
excellent anatpmin:, pgrticjilai ly in what relates to
the brain, nerves, flomach, and inteftiiies. .Picol-
hominus hp.d, before him, obferved that the brain,
properly io called, and the cerebellum, confift of
two diiiinil fubllances, an outer afh-coloured fub-
.llance, through which the blood veffels which lie
under the pia mater in inumerable foldings and
windings are difleminated ; and an inner, every
.where united to'it, of a nervous nature, that joins
this fubflance to the medulla oblongata, which is
the original of all the pairs of nerves that ifllie
4-
from the brain, and of the fpinal marrow, that lies
under the brain and cerebellum. Dr. Willis great-
ly improved thefe diicoveries ; he was fo exadt,
that he traced this medullary fubftance through all
its infertions ; and examined the progrefs of all the
nerves to every part of the body. Hence he not
only demonftrably proved the brain to be the foun-
dation of fcnfe and motion ; but alfo, by the cour-
les of the ncrxes, the manner how every part of
the body cohfpires with others to procure any par-
ticular motion, was clearly explained.
Penuet difcovered the receptacle of the chyle,
and fliewed, beyond contradi£+ion, that the ladieal
vcflels convey tlie chyle to this receptacle, and
px-oved that it is thence carried by particular vefiels
through the thorax, into the left fubclavian vein,
and fo directly to the heart.
Alphonfus Dorellus ga\c a mechanical account
of the motion of animals, drawn from the ftruc-
ture of the parts. As he had the advantage of
.Dr. Lower's difcoveries, with refpeft to the order
of the mufcular fibres of the heart, he was enroled
to give a folution of all the appearances of the
motions of the heart, and of the blood in the ar-
teries, upon mathematical and mechanical princi-
ples. Marcellus Malpighius was defervedly .cele-
brated for his great fkill and fingular anatomical
refearches. His induftry was not confined to the
more perfeft animals, but was extended to infe£ls,
and even to vegetables, to the great improvement
of natural knowledge and his own honour. He
difcovered, by means of his own microfcopes, the
texture of the brain, tongue, lungs, liver, and
fpleen ; the mechanifm of the reins was wholly
unknown till Malpighius found it out; and by that
means cffeiTtuallv confuted i'everal notions, before
entertained, of fcmie fecondary ufes of thefe parts»
by proving that every part of the kidnevs is im-
mediately and vvlrolly fubfervient to that nngle ope-
ration of freeing the blood from its fupenluous
ferum aiid falts. He alfo made fome new and cu'ri-
ons obfer\atrons on the lymphatic vetTels and glzni^,
Frederic Riiyfch greatly contributed to the im.-
provemcnt of anatomy. This gentleman, from
his infancy, devoted himfelf to phyfic, and began
his firft refearches with the materia medica. The
\irtue of plants, the fiructures of animals, the
qualii;ies of mineral bodies, chemical operations,
and anatomical diffe£tions,.v.'ere the objefts diat
firll {truck his fancy, and called for his improving
hand. He was none t f thofe fuperficial enquirers,
who, either through prejudice or indolence, reit
fatir-fied before they have attained the truth : for he
had ilripped his mind of all thofe unreafonable
attachments, which are inconfiftent with the tem-
per of a philofopher ; and acquired fuch an inde-
fatigable turn, that his hardeft labours in the pur-
fuit of truth became his higheft pleafures and his
only recreations.
Swammerdam,
A N C
A N C
Swammerdam, having difcorered a method of iii-
^efling the vclltls with a certain matter, commu-
nicated his difcovcry to Rufch, who greatly im-
proved it ; and difcovcred a multitude of things
before unknown.
Louwenhoek obliged the world with a great
number of difcoveries relative to anatomy, by
jneans of his microfcopes ; particularly the anafto-
mafcs of the arteries and veins. Several other in-
genious anatomifts followed him, and carried the
(Irience to a great degree of pcrfeil:ion.
Comparative Anatomy, that which is employed
in examining; the bodies of brutes.
Anatomy is ufed by feme writers to denote the
fubjeft anatomized.
Anatomy of Plant!. See the article Plant.
ANATRON. See Natron.
ANAXIMANDRIANS, the followers of A-
naximander, the firft of the philofophical atheifts,
who admitted of no other fubftance in nature but
body.
ANCESTREL, in law, fomething relating to,
or that has been done by, a perfon's aiiceftors.
ANCHILOPS, in medicine, a fmail tumour
formed in the great angle of the eye, frequently
degenerating into an abfcefs, or fiftula lachrymalis.
ANCHOR, in the marine, a heavy ftrong
crooked inftrument of iron, funk from a fhip into
the bottom of the water, to retain her in a road,
harbour, or river.
By the conftruiflion of its parts, an anchor is
artfully calculated to fink in the ground as foon as
it reaches the bottom, and to bear a very great
firain before it can be diflodged from thence, by
the weight of the fliip, preiied back from the
anchor by a great itorm, and drawing on the cable :
the anchor indeed very feldom lofes its hold, un-
Icfs in bad ground, (fee the following article) fo
that the cable, or rope faltened to it, commonly
-'breaks before the anchor gives way. It is corn-
pofcd of a ihaft or fiiank, a (lock, two arms, two
flrroks, and a ring.
That the form of an inftruirient fo \'ery ufeful
in preferving our {hips, from the moft imminent
dar.gcr, may be mce clearly underftood ; let us
firppcfe a long mafiy beam of iron, b, c, (Plate IV.
fis- 3O ftaf^-ding perpendicularly eretSt, at the lower
end of which are two arms, d^e, of equal thick-
nefs v/ith the beam, (which is called the fhank)
only that they are taper towards the points, which
are elevated above the horizontal plane about thirty
degrees, or inclined to the fhank at an angle of fix y
degrees. On the upper part of each arm (in the
anchor's prefent pofuion) is a flook, which is a
ilrong, thick plate of iron, e,f, coa.monly form-
ed like a parabola, or an ifofceks triangle, whofe
bafe reaches inwards to the niidt'le of the a m.
On the upper end of the flisft is fixed the frock,
V/hich is a long fquaie beam of oak, g, h, in two
parts, bolted and hooped together with iron rings.
As the flock lies at right angles with the direction
of the flooks, we fhall fuppofe that the fiooks
point north and fouth ; the ends of the flock then
are eaft and weft. The ufe of this fituation ot
the ftock is to guide one of the flooks into the
ground, upon which the ftock falls flat as foon as
the anchor reaches the bottom. Clofe above the
flock is the ring, a, to which the anchor is faften-
ed, which feamen call bent ; the ring is curiouily
covered about with a number of pieces of rope,
equal in length to its circumference, which are
flrongly faflened to it to prevent the cable from
being fretted or chafed by the iron.
Every fnip has, or ought to have, three princi-
pal anchors, with a cable to each, viz. the fheet,
the beft bower, and fmall bower. There are be-
fides fmaller anchors, for removing a fliip from place
to place in a harbour or ri\'er, where there may not
be room or wind for failing : thefe are the flreani
anchor, the kedge, and grappling ; the laft of
which, however, is chiefly calculated for boats.
Anchor-Ground is a bottom which is neither
too fhallow, too deep, nor rocky ; as in the firft
the fhip's bottom is apt to ftrike at low water, or
in a high fea when the wave falls from her ; in the
fecond, the cable bears too nearly perpendicular,
and is thereby apt to jerk the anchor out of the
ground ; and in the third, the anchor is liable to
hook the broken and pointed ends of rocks, and
bear away its flooks, while the cable, from the
fame caufe, is ever in danger of being cut through
as it rubs on their edges.
An anchor is faid to come-home, when the vio-
lence of the winds, waves, or current, acting
upon the fliip, as (he rides, makes her tear it up
from the bed into which it had funk, and drag it
along the ground. An anchor is calledyi///, when
it eitlier hooks fome other anchor, wreck, or
cable, under water ; or when by the wind fuddcn-
ly abating, fhe flackens her flrain, and ftrays round
the place of her anchor, taking a hitch, or turn
with the (lack cable about the upper-flook, which
muft necclliirily draw it out of the ground, as foon
as the cable becomes tight : to prevent this, it is
ufual when fiie is found to approach the anchor, to
draw in the flack cable as faft as pofldble.
Anchor, in architefture, a fort of carving re-
fembliiig an anchor. It is ccmmonly placed as
part of the enrichments of the boultins of Tufcan,
Doric, and Ionic capitals, and alfo of the boultins
of the Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian cornices ;
anchors and eggs being carved alternately through
the wholt: building.
Anchor, in heraldi-y, is ufed as an emblem of
hope.
ANCFICRAGE, in law, implies a duty taken
ci" ihips for the ufe of the pert or harbour where
hey come to an anchor.
AN-
AND
ANCHORED', iji heraldry, is ("aid; of a cvols
Tvhen its four extremities refembles the flook. of
an anchor.
ANCHOVY, in natural hiftory,. the name of a
fmall fifh, found in the Mediterranean, fo near-
ly refembling the common fprat, that the latter
has been often pickled and fold for anchovies.
(See Plate VII. fy. 8.)
ANCHUSA^ buglofs, in botaiw; fee Bug-
loss.
Anchusa, alkanet, in boLiay ; fee Litho-
SPERMUM.
ANCHYLAS. See ANCHitoPa.
ANCLE, in anatomy ; fee Talus..
ANCON, in anatomy, the gibbous eminence
or flexure of the cubit.
ANCONES, ill architeifture, the corners or
coins of walls, crofs-beams,, or rafters.. Vitruvius
calls the confales by the fame name.
ANCONY, in mineralogy, denotes a. bloom of
iron faihioned into a flat bar, about three feetloiig,
with a fquare rough knot at each end..
ANCYLE, in antiquity, a kind of fhield which,
as the Pvomans pretended, fell from heaven in the
reign of Numa Pompilius ; and at the fame time
it was figiiilied by a voice that Rome fhould b;
miftrefs of the world, as long as (he preferved this
facred buckler. It was therefore kept, with the
utmoft care, in the temple of Mars, under the di-
rc6lion of twelve priefls, and leil any fhould at-
tempt to Ileal this precious piece of armour,, eleven
others were made fo like it, as not to be diftin-
guifhed from the original. Thefe bucklers were
carried annually in proceflion rouad the city of
Rome.
Ancvle, or An'cylosis, in fu-'gery, implies a
diftortion or ftiffnefs of ths joints, caufed by a
fettlement of the humours, or a diftention of the
nerves ; and therefore remedies of a mollifying and
relaxing nature are required.
ANDANTI, in mufic, fignifies that the notes
are to be played diftinftly.
ANDENA, in old writers, fignifies the fwarth
made in mov.-ijig of hay, or as much ground as a
man could llride over at once.
ANDRACHNE, in botany, a. genus of plants,,
called the baftard orpine, one of which is a low
plant, trailing on the ground with fmall oval
ihaped leaves of a fea-green colour, producing
male and female flowers ; the corolla of the male
flower is formed of five emarginated flender petals,
Ihorter than the cup which is pentaphvllous, and
decays ; the female flower produce, no corolla, but
has a globular germen, which becomes a capfule,
containing three cells j in each arc lodged tv/o ob-
tufe trigonal feeds. This fort grows wild in Italy
ajid the Archipelago Iflands ; the other fpecies of
ihc genus are natives of America.
ANDRE'W, or Knlgbti of St. Andrew, an or-
AND
del- of knighthood' i-nfiiituted in Scotland, ge--.
nerally c.iUed the order of the thillle. See
Thistle..
Knights of St. Anhrew is alfo an order infti-
tutcd by Peter the Great, czar of Mufcovy, in the
year 1698, the badge of which is a golden medal ;
on one fide of which is reprefented St. Andrew's
crofs ; and on the other thefe words are enoraved,
Czar Pierre monarque de tout la Ruffe.
St. Andrew's-Day, a feftiv.il obferved by the
churcli on the 30th of November, ia honour of
die apoftle St. Andrew.
ANDROIDES,. in mechanics, ahumanfiTure,
which, by certain fprings, performs feveral exter-
nal functions of a man.
The word is formed from the Greek,, aoip, a
man, and e/cT©^, refe.mblance.
ANDROMACHUS'.- Tr.aiU,. in pharmacy;
fee Thekiaca.
ANDROMEDA, in aftronomy, the name of a
conftellation in the northern hemifphere, repre-
fented by a beautiful woman chained to a rock.
In fabulous hiftory we ate told, that Andromeda
was the daughter' of Cepheus and Ca/Tiope, king
and queen of Ethiopia, and that fhe was bound to
a rock by the nymphs, to be devoured by a fea.-
nionfter, becaufe her mother Cafliope prefcTed her
beauty to theirs. But the unhappy cafe of this
fair nymph, reaching the ears of Perfeus, fon of
Jupiter and Danae, who, with his falchion and
wings to his feet, took his flight throuo-h the air
to Ethiopa, where he flew the monfter, releafeol
the fair nymph Andromeda, and then m.-irried her.
They were afterwards made conftellations, and
placed in the nothern hemifphere ; in which are
the following ftars :
CATALOGUE:.
tD
o!S
I
.^•4
2
6
.S
6
4
6
S
6
b
6.7
7
S.6
8
6
9
6
10
6.7
11
6
12
6
i,-^
6
14
6
IS,
6
16:
4
Na
Right
Afcenfion
Declina-
tion.
O
ad A
342.52
343- 2
343-3'
344.10
34423
344-59
.345-33
346-59
346-53
347-'5
347-'5
347-27'
349- 2.
350. o.
350-51-
351-36-
22]4I
5241
. 6.10
.32.1c
.49.12
■ 9-47
• 3-21
.19.42
9.49
48
45
48
42
48
47-46-5sl39
Var.in
Right
Afcen.
1440
18:40.
2147'
3436-
9;4>-
'9:37-
5538-
j'45-
31-27
49-24;
22.23 42
56.19142
39.1842.
5^-5043
59-39 43
14- 3143
Var.;
Detli
nation
ig.2
19.2
10.2
19.3
J 9- 3
.9.1
19.4
19.5
19.5
,9.5
19-5
19.6
19-7
'9-7
l|i9
I
■('9-^,
Platk ru.
I /'acin^ >\ji chov v.
/^///ur .
7
rn
-^
/
^
\.,
j i
^
h
^^
N
V
y
;
1^
■^
^
y\
\
^
\
/^
/
(
33 c^-^--^ . ,^ c
J.L»il^* Smift
AND
i8
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29!
30
31
32
33
34
!i5
36
37
38
39
40
4-1
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
56
4
6
4
5-6
2
5
6
4.5
5
6
5
6
4-5
4
3
6
neb
4
4
6
4-3
4-5
6
6
5
5
2
6
5.6
4-5
6
5
5
6.5
5
6
5
4
neb
6
2-3
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
5
6.7
Na
Caput
Mirach
Perfei
2''" ad
Perfei
Alamac
Right
Afcenfion
Declina-
tion.
Vjr.in'Var,"
Riglit .Dccli
AiicuJnaUon
351.44.2241. 59.12
352. 2.4449-12.18
352.17.4043- 4-32
353.40.21
358. 8. 5
359.36. o
0.24.36
1. 14. 6
1.32.40
I •39- 7
2.12.50
4.27.43
6. 6.42
6-35-36
6.46.71
7.10.44
7-3I-57
8.48.22
45- 924
,27. 49- I
44.48.14
39.46.38
36.14. 8
45.30.48
42.31.
36.41.48
28.28.29
32.26.52
28. 3.36
29-35-43
38.11. 26
40. 1.2
23. 0.41
9.15.49I39.50.41
0.42. 3122.24.21
0-57-4I 37-I4-
1.16.36 28.12. I
2.31. "6J40. 7.4
2-35- 5I30-34-42
3.43.19J42.43.28
4. 4. 846. 2.12
4-I3-50 34-23-4I
4-20.27l30.52. 5
4-35-ioi36-3o-3
12.45j44.19.12
7.38.48
8.29.10
9. 6.10
20.50. 9
20.58.15
36.30.51
44.13.12
45-48-54
30.25.36
47.28
21-23.5347.13. 4
21.45.45
22.19.15
24-53-30
25-38-31
27.28. 7
28.40.15
29.15.34
29. 42. 28
30.44.52
31. 8.17
39.24.27
49-31-54
39-35-22
36- 6.53
41-13
36-45-34
37.56.48
43- 8.51
43-2 19-
43.1
43.2-19.8
43-3^9-9
44.6,7.0.5
44.0,20.0
44.6120. 1
45:3 20.1
45.3:20.1
45.2120.1
45.3' 7.0.1
45.4^20.0
46.o:-2c.o
46.6J20.0
47.4J20.1
47.8 20.0
48.020.1
48.0 2C.0
49.0 20.0
48.020.0
49.3:19.8
48.0 19.8
50.019. 8
49.5I19.7
9.619.5
49.8:19.5
49.519.4
19.5
19.5
19.-'
19.1
19.1
19.1
19.0
18. 9
18.7
18.5
18.5
18.2
18.0
17.8
17.6
49-6
49-5
49.8
49-7
49.8
49.8
49.8
49-9
49-9
49-8
50.0
50.0
50.0
51.2
51.0
52.0
53-0
47-45-26152.5
46.
52.6
52.5
53-1
53-3
'/-5
17.4
17.2
17.2
17.1
17.0
17. c
53.4I16.9I
8-37
31.27.38J49. 5.11
32.49.2448.57.18
32.46.5049.13.43
33- 9- 8I49.32.31
The right afcenfion and -declination of the above
catalogue is fettled to the year .1770.
Andromeda, in botany, a genu.e of plants,
bearing a monopetalous flower, of an oval and
S
,A N E
campanulated form, divided into five fegments a*
the brim, which are.reflexcd : it contains ten .tubu-
lated filaments, which are {horter than the corolla ;
and affixed to it in the center is placed a roundi(h
germen, which beccmes.a pent«.gcnial capfule, con-
taining five cells, which are filled with many fmall
round feeds : moft of the fpecies . of this genus are
natives of North America ; one of which is the
chamredaphne of J. Euxbaume. ■.
ANDROSACE, in boiany, a genus of umbel-
liferous plants, v/hofe flowers confill of a five cor-
nered monophvllous cup ; the corolla is a. mono-
petalous- oval tube, inclofed in the empalement,
• di\ ided at the brim into five part,«, in which i.s in-
ferted five fhort filaments, crowned with obiong
erect anthers ; the germen is round, fupporting a
fhort filiform. Ityle, topped with a globofe ftigma ;
the calvx afterwards becomes a globo.'e capfule of
one cell, opening in five parts, containing feveral -
rpundifii feeds. This genus are all natives of
foreign countries.
ANDROS-^MUM, tutfan, in botany, con-
' (lituting a dillinc^ genus of plants, according to
Touniefort; but is comprehended by Linnaeus
r.moiig the hypericums. See. the article Hype-
ricum.
ANDRYALA, in botany, a genus of plant?,
called by -Vaillant eriphocus, and in Englifb downy
fow thifUe ; the cup of the flower is fliort, hairy,
and round, cut i^n m;iny parts ; the flower .is com-
pofed of many equal hermajihrodite florets, which
are m.onopetaiotis, and contain five iliort haiiy fila-
ments, topped with cylindrical tubulous anthers ;
the oviarj', which is fituated at the bottom of e.-ich
floret, fupports a filiform flvle, the length of the
filaments, crowned with two reflexed iligma; the
oviary becomes afterward an oval feed, topped with
down. 'I'he fpecies of this genus are natives of
France, Spain, and Italy.
ANECDOTE, among hiftorians, implies fome
fa£t not formerly publilhed to the world, or very
little known.
The word is Greek, a.viKJ'oT^, and compound-
ed of d, priv. and sy./orf^, publifhed.
- ANEAiUS, in fome chemical authors, implies
a wind-furnace uftd in making llrong fires for
fluxing metals, ^'c.
The \\'ord is formed from the Greek, cf.v;y.<^,
the wind.
ANEMOMETER, an inflrument to meafure
the force or power of the v.-ind, firft- invented by
^Volfius, and mentioned i;i his Areometer pub-
lifhed in the year 1709 ; and likewife in his Elcm.
Matheof. as well as in his Mathematical Diction-
ary. He tells us, the flruiStuie is fuch that it may
be p.'eferved even to meafure the force of running
water, or that of men, horfes, &c. when they
draw. In the Memoirs of the Acadcmiy of Sci-
ences, there is given the defcription of a new ane-
O o momeler.
AN E
A NE
mometer, which not oniy exprefles on paper the
lc\ijral winds that have blown for twenty-four
hours, but a'fo the power and velocity of each.
See the articles Wind and Velocity, for the dc-
fcripticn, conftiuction, &c. of this inftrument.
ANEMONIE, the wind-flower, in botany, a
genus of polyandrious plants: the flower conhth ot
nvo or three orders of petals, which are oblong,
and uifpofed in thiee fcries oxereach other; the hla-
iTientsai'C capillary and numerous, topped with double
■apright anther.x ; the gerniina are many, and col-
k'liiHjd in the head of the flower, each crowned
\«, irh an obtufe rtigma. It is deftitute both of calyx
and pericarpium, but iha receptacle is globofe or
oblong, attenuated and pun<5luated, and produces
-numerous and acuminated feeds, inclofed witli a
down, having the ftyles affixed to them. There
aie two forts of fpccies in this genus, the cultivated
and the wild. Thofe that are ralfed in gardens,
produce a fine variety of beautiful flowers, which
bloffom in April : the root is tuberous and irregu-
lar, of a darkiih brown on the outfide, whitifh
within, and hung with many thick fibres, dividing
i :;'elf in time into numerous heads. The leaves, fup-
ported by footflalks, arife from the root, and are
divided into a number of fcgments, and thefe are
again fubdivided into others : the flo\\-er ftalk is
round, and tolerably upright ; it is not divided or
branched, and is bare of leaves, except at one
ph.cc is fituated a foliaceous involucrum, which is
divided at the leaf, and on the fummit of the ilalk
is placed tl>e fmgle flower. Thefs flowers have of
late years been cultivated with care, and as they
are very beautiful, deferve a place in every curious
garden.
The fcafon to plant their roots is in Oeiobcr,
obfcrving to cover them in fevere we;\ther, and i.n,
the fucceeding fpring they produce their flowers :
when the flower and leaves are decayed, the roots
fhould be taken out of t!ie ground, and wafhed
clean, dried, and put in a dry place, till the fea-
fon of planting. To have new varieties the feeds
Ihould be faved, and as their dov.-n makes them
.idlicre together, they fbould be mixed with fand',
and well "rubbed in the h^nd, to make them fspa-
ratc and proper for fowing ; the time to do Vi'hi^ch
is in the month of Auguft, in light rich earth, ob-
ferving to {hade them from the fun, and properly
watered, where they fhould remain till they blow,
which will be in two or three years, v.'hen the
goodnefs.of them may be judged of, and feledted
accordinailv.
ANEMOSCOPE, an inftrumcnt for fliev.'ing the
velocity of the wind, and alfo the point of the com-
pafs from which it blows, by means of a hand or
index to :n upright dial, or circular p'.ate, on which
the fitid points are delineated.
The index is turned by a horizontal axis, which
TiXis is turned about by an upright {\atF, at the top
of which is the vane, and at the lower part is a
cog-wheel, which puts the horizontal axis in mo-
tion, by means of a trunalc-head fixed at its inter-
nal extremity. This inilrument is extremely fim-
ple in its conftruction, and requires nothing more
than that the number of rounds in the trundle-head
and cogs or teeth in the wheel be equal. The
anemofcope, as defcribed in Plate IV. fig. 4. is
what was invented by R4r. Pickering, and publifli-
ed in thePhilofophical Tranfaitions, N''4.73. The
explanation, as given by the inventor, is as,
follows : ■
This anemofcope is a machine four feet and a
quarter high, conflling of a broad and wdghty,
pcdcftal, a pillar faiieued into it, and au iroi>.axis,
of about half an inch diameter, falbened into the
pillar. Upon this axis turns a wooden, tube, at the
top of which is placed a vane, of the- fame mate-
rials, 21 inches long, con/iiring of a quadrant,
graduated and fhod with an iron rim, notched to
each degree ; and a counterpoife of wood, as in
the figure, on the other, 'i'hrough the centre of
the quadrant runs an iroQ. pin, upon which are
fattened two fmall round pieces of wood, which
ferve as moveable radii to defcribe the degrees upon
the quadrant, and as. handles to a velum or fail,
whofe plane is one foot fquare, made of canvas,
ftretched upon foiu' battens, and painted. On the
upper batten, next to the fliod rim of the quadrant,
is a fmall fpring, which catclies at every notch
corrcfponding to each degree, as the wind fnall,
by preffing againft the fail, raife it up ; and pre-
vents tire falling back of the fail, upon lefTening
of the force of the wind. At the bottom of the
wooden tube is an iron index, v/hich moves round
a circular piece of wood faflcncd to the top of the
pillar on the pedeftal, on which are defcribed the
thirty-two points of the compals. The figure of
this machine may be feen, (Plate IV. fi-^. 4.)
where a is the pedeflal ; i, the pillar in which tlie
iron axis is fitted ; f, the circle of wood, on which
are defcribed the 32 points of the compafs; e, the
wooden tube upon its axis ; /", the velum ; ^, the
graduated quadrant; /<, the cou:.terpoife of the vane.
Fig. 5. The velum lakes o!f ; a, the plane of
the velum ; />, the fpring ; c, c, the wooden radii ;
il, d, the holes through which the pin in the
center of the quadrant goes. Its ufes are the
following :
1. Having a circular motion round the iron
axis, and being furnifhed with a vane at top, and
index at the bottom, when once you have fixed
the artificial cardinal points, defcribed on the
round piece of wood on the pillar, to the fame
quarters of the heavens, it gives a faithful account'
of that quarter from which the wind blows.
2. By having a velum or fail elevated by the
wind along the arch of the quadrant, to an height,
proportionable to the pov/er of the. column of wind
preffing
A NE
prcfllng ag;iinft it, the relative force of the wind,
;iiid its comparative power, at any two times of
examination, may accurately be taken.
3. By having a fpring fittl'J to the notches of the
iron with which the quadrant is fliod, the ^■clum is
prevented from returning back, upon the fall of the
wind ; and the machine gives the force to the
higheft blafl: fmce the Lift time of examination,
without the trouble of watching it.
The ingenious contriver of this machine tells
us, that he carefully examined what dependence
may be had upon it, ilu ing the floims of Febru-
ary, 1743-4, and found that it anfwered exceeding
well ; for that, in fuch winds as the failors call
violent Ifornis, the machine had fix degrees to fpare
for a more violent guft, before it comes to a hori-
zontal pofition.
It is certainly to be depended upon in ordinary
■weather, the velum being hung fo tenderly as to
feel the molf gentle breeze. There is however rea-
fon to fear, that the expofing th? anemofcope to
;\jl winds for a continuance, muft diforder it, efpe-
cially irregular blafts and fqualls. It may not
therefore be amifs, in violent weather, for the ob-
ferver to take the tube with its vane and velum in
his hand, in order to know the force of the wind ;
and, when he has finilhed his obfervations, to
carry the machine info the houfe, till the violence
of the ftorm is abated, when it may be replaced in
its former fituation
ANEl'HUM, dill, in botany, an annual um-
belliferous plant, with very finely divided leaves,
and yellow flowers ; producing pale ycllowifh oval
feeds, flatted on one fide, marked with three-longi-
ludinal flrias on the other, and furrounded about
the edges with a leafy margin. It is a native of
the warmer climates, cultivated with us in gar-
dens, flowers in July, and in September fheds its
f^cds, by which the plant is plentifully pro-
pagated .
The feeds of dill have a moderately warm pun-
gent tafte, and an aromatic ftnci], but not of the
moil agreeable kind ; they are given as carmina-
tives, to the quantity of a dram at a time, in flatu-
lent colics, and indigedion from a laxity of the
organs and \ifcidity of the humours. 7'he leaves
arc weaker and kfs grateful than the feeds ; the
roots have nothing of their flavour.
Water extrafts very little of the virtues of dill
feeds by infufion or digeilion for many hours. In
boiling, their whole flavour exhales along v/ith the
watery vapour, and may be collected bv diftilla-
lion : the diftilled water, drawn off to the quan-
fity of a gallon from a pound of the feeds, is kept
in the fhops, and occafionally made the bafis of
carminative draughts and juleps. Along with the
water arifes a confidcrable portion of eflcntial oil,
ih tafte moderately pungent, and fmelling ftrong-
iy of the. dill : this is gi'/en from .one to three
ANG
or four drops, or more, as a carminative, and in
hiccups.
Rectified f])irit, digefted on dill feeds, readily
extracts both their fmell and tafte : the colour of
the tinfture is a bright yellow. The fpirit, gent-
ly diftilled oft' from the filtered liquor, brings over
very little of its flavour, leaving in the cxtradl
nearly all the aiSlive parts of the dill.
ANEURISM, in furgery, a tumour arifing
from the dilatation or rupture of the coats of an
artery. Aneurifms ufually proceed from an artery
being accidentally cut or pricked in bleeding, or
from preternatural diftention, or a corrofion of its
coats, t^vc.
When an artery happens to be cut off by a
lancet, the blood gufhcs out impetuoudy by ftarts,
and is not eafily ftopped ; an inflammation and
change of colour in the part about the vefiel fuc-
ceed, with a tumour and inability to move the arm,
if the lancet were ufed there, from a colleiSfion of
cxtravafated blood lodged between the integuments
and the interftices of the mufcles. If the coats of
the artery have been corroded, the fymptoms are
nearly the fame, but come on more flowly, and
prove Icfs violent, without any hemorrhage. The
iigns of a true aneurifm, that is, when the dilata-
tion of the coats of the artery happens, are a
pulfation eafy to oc felt, and fometimcs vifihle to
the eye, the tumour generally appearing of the
natural colour of the ftcin. This tumour varies in ,
magnitude, being fometimes as large as an orange,
and at others, as big as a child's head ; and,
when prefied with the finger, generally gives
way, but prefently reftores itfelf upon removal
thereof.
An aneurifm happening upon fome error in ve-
nnefeftion, is dangerous ; but if the blood ceafes
to flow from the wounded artery, and parts itfelf
between the interftices of the mufcles, the chirur-
gical operation is neceftary ; or if that be delayed
for a few days, the extirpation of the limb becomes .
indifpenfibfe. It is alfo dangerous if it proceeds
from a corrofion of the coats of the artery ; and
the more fo, v.'hen it happens in a part where the
operation cannot be performed : but an aneurifm
from J diftention of the canal, without anv rup-
ture, is feldom fatal ; though reckoned, when
large, incurable ; the chief inconveniericies being
the magnitude of the tumour, and pulfation. .
The diet in all thefe cafes fhould be flender and
ballaniic, and the exercife .gentle.
ANGARIA, in antiquity, a kind of public
frrvice impofed upon the provinces, which con-
fifted in providing horfrs and carriages for the
conveyance of military ftores from one place to
another.
Angaria alfo fignified any kind of oppreflion
or fervice performed by compulfiom
ANGIOGRAPHY, /imong ahatoirrifts, %ni-
fies
A N G
3d Hierarchy,
Piincipalities,
Archangels,
Angels
fic-s a deicriptiGti of the feveral veflels of the hu-
man body ; as the arteries, veiris," lymphatics,
nerves, &c.
The word is formed from the Greek, ayyuiV')
. ^veJFel, and y^dfsc, to defcribe.
ANGEIOTQMY, in iurgery, implies the
opening a. v^in or artery, as in bleedinj; and
confequently includes both atteriotomy and phle-
botomy.
The word is formed from the Greek, ayyuoy, a
vcflej, and Tiuva, to cut.
ANGEL, a name given to the firft and moft
exalted of all created beings ; to thole pure, Ethe-
rial, intelligent fpirits, who are employed by the
Almighty to declare his will, or execute his com-
. mands, being for this rcafon called tr.yyiKoi, (from
.ctyyiWay I fend) that is mellengers.
Angels have been diftributed by ancient writers
into three hierarchies, and thefe divided again into
three clafles.. As thus :
1(1 Hierarchy. zd Hierarchy.
Seraphin, Dominations,
Cherubim, Virtues,
Thrones, Powers,
The Seraphin are the moft of all other fpirits
inflamed with holy love : the cherubim are the moft
enlightened, and communicate their rays and fci-
ence to the other orders : the Thrones are thofe
that encircle the majefty of God : the Virtues are
mighty to work wonders and miracles : the Powers
counteract and prevent the malevolence of evil
daemons : the Dominations have the government ■
of man : the Principalities have the charge of
ftates and kingdoms : Archangel's are coinmilHoned
only on extraordinary occafions ; and Angels are
the common heralds and mefTengers of heaven.
Whatever grounds there mav be for this parti-
cular arrangement of fpiritual beings into fo many
different clafTes, allotting to each their peculiar
departments, it is not our prefent purpofe to en-
quire : certain it is that there muft be angels, or
miniftering fpirits, fince there has been no age or
nation fo blind or barbarous, as to have doubted
of their exiftence. The Greeks and Romans had
their genii or daemons, whom the Platonifts in par-
ticular thought to have part in the government of
the world. The Mahometans and Jews have al-
ways admitted them ; and our Saviour and his
Apoftles bear teftimony to their exiftence. We
find them in the holy fcriptures commilHoned by
the Almighty to correft, improve, exhort ; to de-
clare his will, or manifeft his anger ; to affifc the
good, to comfort the afflifted, and to appal and
punifh the evil.
It is generally agreed by divines, that angels are
pure and incorporeal fubftances, created by the
great Author of Nature before the world, or at
the fame period. They are the minifters of hea-
AN G
ven, font down to fuperintend human affairs :
they have the charge not only of kingdoms and
provinces, but of particular perfons, over whom
they are perpetually watching, as fo many faithful
and afte£tionate guardians. This is a confidera-
tion, which, if duly attended to, would not fail
to make us cautious in what manner v/e conduct
ourfelves ; fince there is no afiion fo filent and
fecret, that is not immediately known to thefe at-
tendant fpirits.
It is impoflible for us to know any thing certain
of the nature of angels ; but we m.ay believe, that
though of an order highly fuperior to that of men,
they are not-ccmpleat and perfect: for if they had
been created thus originally, they could not have
fmned ; which the holy fcriptures inform us fome
of them did, in rebellinfr aoainft the Almishtv.
For this reaion, as they are themfelves imperfecit
beings, they cannot properly be the objefts of our
adoration ; which fhould be paid alone to that
O.N'E Supreme, who is omnipotent, immortal,
inrinite, the fource and centre of every thing that
is great, and good, and perfe6t.
Angel, in comm.erce, the name of a gold coin
formerly current in England. It has its name from
the figure of an angel. reprefented upon it, weighed
four pennyweights, and was twenty-three and a
half carats fine. It had different values in different
reigns ; but is at prefent only an imaginary fum, or
money of account, implying'ten fhillings.
ANGELICA, in botany, a large umbelliferous
plant, with hollow jointed ftalks, and indented
oval, pointed leaves, fet in pairs along the middle
rib, and having an odd one at the end, containmg
a milky juice, which on drying contracts a yeltow-
ifh colour ; the ribs of the leaves are channelled on
the upper fide, aird joined to the ftocks by large
membraneous bafos or (heaths-. The feeds are of
a pale whitifli colour, fomevvhat oval, flat on one
fide, and convex', with three longitudinal ridges on
the other, furrounded about the edges with a leafy
margin. The roots are long and thick, of a dark
brown colour on die furface. But the internal white
and juicy ; and, when dry, of a fpongy texture.
There are two fpecies of angelica,' the wild and
the garden, diftinguifhed by the epithets fylvejiris
and Jativ/i. The former grows wild, in moift
grounds, in feveral parts of England ; is perelinial,
and flowers in July : the latter is cultivated in gar-
dens. They are fimilar in quality ; but the latter
is fuppofed to be the ftronger.
The garden angelica is naturally a biennial
plant ; but if the ftalks are cut down before they
run to flo%ver, the roots will fend forth new heads,
and may by this means be continued for many
years. The roots are in their greateft perfection
in the fecond fpring : they ftiould be thoroughly
dried, kept in a dry place, and frequently aired, other-
wife they will grow mouldy, and be eaten iy worms.
3 The
J^^TE I'm.
'/'tiri>/tjr ^ug-le.
B
^^f./.
♦ v^. S. '
^. S. '^^n^^
^-^/^.^. L^'^ia^.
T'z^TE zr
'/'i^./' //m4-
y^tt 4 *-yyjta/^
f^.i.f '///y/^' ^-^^ ^^ *-'/■' /y^^ o//o/iAwd^
*y'iy//. ^^^ty^.
JXi'ii^f Satfyt.
AN G
The roots of angelica arc one of the principal
aromatics of European grov/th, though not much
regarded in the prefent practice. They have a fra-
grant agreeable fmcli, and a bittcrifh pungent, mix-
ed with a pleafant fweetiih tatte. On wounding the
frefh roots early in the fpring, it yields from the
inner part of the bark, an unttuous and odorous
juice, of a yellowifh colour ; and which, being
gently exficcated, retains its fragrancy, and proves an
elegant aromatic gummy refin. On cutting the
frelh root longitudmally, the yellowifh matter, in
which the virtue and fla\our of the angelica re-
fides, appears concreted into little veins. In this
Itate it readily and totally diflblves by redifi-
ed fpirit of wine, and tinges the menftruum of a
bright golden colour. On diftilling off the fpi-
rit from this folution, very little of the flavour
of the angelica rifcs with it, nearly all the a£tive
matter of the root remaining concentrated in the
extract. Water alfo gains from this root a pretty
deep yellow colour, but extracts little of its tatle or
fmell. In drftillation with water, there arifes a
finall portion of eflenti;d oil, of a highly pungent
talte, and imelling ftrongly of the angelica : the
remaining decodtion, thus divelTed of the aromatic
matter of . the root, is naufeoufly Iwectifh iind
fubacrid.
The other parts of the plant have the fame tafte
and flavour with the roots ; but their atStive princi-
ples are far more perifhable. The feeds, which come
neareft to the roots, can fcarcely be kept till the
fpring after they have been gathered, without lonng
their vegetative power, as well as diminifhing their
medicinal virtues ; and, with regard to the lea\cs,
they lofe the greater part of their virtues on being
barely dried : for fome purpofcs, hovve\er, they are
well adapted ; the frefh leaves, as well as the feeds,
beingdillilled with water, give over to the liquor the
whole of their aromatic matter, which in this form
proves fufliciently durable. The virtues of the
feeds, like that of the roots, is very imperfeftly
extracted by water, and completely by fpirit ; and
though it rifes totally by diftillation with water,
is left by the fpirit almoll entire in the infpiflTated
extract. The fpirituous tincSture is of a briglit
ftraw colour ; the watery infufion of a dark brown.
The ftalks, candied with fugar, make a very
agreeable fweetmeat.
Angelica, in antiquity, the name of acelebr-ated
dance performed at the pagan feafts of Greece ; and
fo called from the dancers being dreffed in the ha-
bit of mcilengers.
ANGELICS, AngcHci, in ecclefiaftical hiftory,
an ancient fedt of heretics, fuppofed to have obtain-
ed this appellation from their e.xcefTive veneration
for angels.
Angelics is alfo the name of a congregation of
nuns, "founded at Milan in 1534, by LouifaTorslli,
8
A N G
countcfs of Guaftalla. They obferve thi rule of
St. AugulHne.
Angelics is likewifc the name of an or3er of
knights inftituted in 1191, by A-igelus Fbviuj
Comnenus, emperor of Conilantinople.
Some will have this order, which flill fubfifts in
Italy, to have been much more ancient, and tliat
CouRantine the Great v/as its founder.
ANGELITES, a fedt of heretics, fo named
from a certain place in Alexandria, called A^cl-
lius, or Angellius, v.'here they firlt of all afTembled.
They followed the errors of SabelliusJ
ANGELOT, the name of a gold coin flruck at
Paris while fubje£t to the Englilh ; and fo called
from the figure of an angel, fupportij; t the arms of
England and France.
ANGER, a violent pailion of the mind, confiit-
ing in a propenfity to take vengeance on the author
of fome real or fuppofed injury done the offended
party.
ANGERONA, in mythology, the name of a pn-
gan deity whom the Romans prayed to for the cure
of a diftemper, called the quinzy, in Latin, angina.
Pliny calls her the goddefs of iilence and calmnefi
of mind, who banifhcs all uneafinefs and melan-
choly. She is reprefented with her mouth co\'er-
ed, to denote patience and refraining from CQir-
plaints. Her Itatue was fet up, and facrificed to,
in the temple of the goddefs ^'olupia, to {hew
that a patient enduring of afHiction leads to plea-
fure.
ANGERONALIA, feafts inftitutcd at Rome in
honour of the goddefs Angerona. Thev were cele-
brated on the 2 1 ft of December.
ANGINA, in phyfic, a violent inflammation of
the throat, generally called quinzy. See the article
Quinzy.
■ Angixa Lni!, in botany, a name by which
fome call the dodder growing on flax, from its
choaking that plant.
ANGI0SP::RMA, in the Linnsan fyftem of
botany, implies thofe plants of the didynnemia clafs,
which have their feeds inc'ofed in a capfule or feed
veffel.
ANGLE, in geometry, is the mutual inclination
of two lines, or of one line to another, which meet
in a point; asthe lines BA, CA, (plateVII./^. 7.)
meeting together in the point A. The lines AB
and A C are called the legs of the angle, and the
point of interfedion A, the vertex.
Angles, either denoted by a fmgle letter affixed
to the vertex as A, or by three letters, whereof the
middle Oiie denotes the angulr.r point, as the ant^Ie
formed by the lines AB ar.d AC, is fometimes
called the angle BAC, or GAB.
Angle Acute, is one which is lefs than a risht
angle, or angle of go°, as the angle D B C
(plate VIII. /^'. 2.)
P.p Angles,
AN G
A N G
Anclks jidjacent, are Aich as have dicir verteses
■ n one point, being formed hy one, two, or more
J ght lines fafling on another right line ; or, by
t A'o or more circfes interfedting anotlier circle in
the fame point. Thus the angles ADC, CDB
(plateVIL.^A^ 6.) are adiacent.angles ; and in plane
•jeometrv, their fum is always equal to two right
angles ; and therefore, If one of them be acute, the
other mull be obtufe, and the contrary : whence,
al'fo, if one of them be given, the other will be had,
it being always the fupplement to the other. See
Angle Ol'tufr.
Angles Aitemnte arc thofe,- whether acute or
cbtufe, formed hy a right line interfeftina; two pa-
rallel right lines. So, if AB and CD (plate VII.
fig- S-) are parallel the one to the other, and GH
cuts them in E and F, the angles C E G, B F H,
?.nd A F E, D E F, are alternate angles.
The alternate angles are always equal to each
other, per Simpfon's Geom. 8. I. lil edit.
A'^CLEs ill j^Jirolor'y fignify certain houfes in a
figure, or fcheme of the heavens, conftrucled for any
given time. Thus the horofcope of the firft houfe
IS termed, the Angle of the Eaft.
Angles sfa Battalion, in the military art, are
thofe foldiers who are placed where the ranks and
flies terminate. See Battalion. The angles of a
battalion are faid to be blunted, when by any acci-
dent, or violent charge of the enemy, thole, fol-
diers are broken cr killed. It was very com-
mon amongft the ancients to remove thofe parts
of the battalion, and by that means form the fquare
IrAttalion into an oilagonal one, and charge the
enemy in tlrat form ; but tliis is now difufed.
Angle of a Bajiion, in.fortifica.tion, is the angle
ABC, formed by the tv.'o faces of the baflion AB
and BC" (plate X. fig. 4..)
Angle at the Center of a Circle, is an angle de-
fcribed in- a circle, whofe vertex, or angular point,
is in the center of that circle.
Angle (7/ the Center, \n fortificaticn, is the angle
BOD (plate X. fig. 4..) formed at the center of
the polygon, by lines drawn from tlience. to the
points of the- two adjacent baflions.
Angles cf the Circumfereuce, in fortiHtration,. is
the angle made hy the arc drawn from one gorge
to another.
Angle, at the Circumference of a. Circle, is an
■angle formed by two chords meeting in the circum-
ference of a circle. Thus AD, DC (plate Vlli.
fig. 5.) are two chords of the circle ABC, mak-
ij-.g an angle D at the circumference, and is alfo
called, an angle in a fegmcnt.
Per Simp, Geom. 11. 3. 2d edit, all angles at
the circumference, {landing on the fame arc, are
equal. Thus the angles ADC, and A G C, are
equal to each other,; and per 10. 3. of the fame
book, each equal half the angle at the center
A EC.
If the arc ABC (fig. 10.) be a femi-circle,
then the angle B will be a right angle : if it be
greater than a fcmi-circle, as C D E (fig. 9.) the.
angle D will be an acute angle ; but when lefs,.
as £ F G, (fig. 8.) it will be an obtufe angle, per
1 1.. 3. of Simp. Cicom.
Angle of Commutation-.m aftronomy, is theangla
comprehended between the true place .of. the fun
feen from the earth, and that of a planet, reduced to
the ecliptic. Thus, let ATBG CplateVIlI./^-.y.),
be the orbicof the earth,, A P.Cj that of any planet,:
S the fun, and B, the planet's place reduced to
the ecliptic; then will the angle TSB be the
angle of commutation ; which is thus found : fub-
traft the planet's heliocentric place from that of.
the fun, and the remainder fliall be the angle of
commutation.
Note, As the fmc of the ajigle of.comn3utation>
is to the fine of the angle of elongation, fa is the.
tangent of the heliocentric latitude of a planet to-
that of its geocentric.
Angle of the Complcmeut cf the Line of Defience,.
in fortification, is an angle made by the interfectioii :.
of the two complements one with another.
Angle ofi Contaa, is the angle ABK, (plate IX..
fig. 3.) formed by the tangent A B. and cua'e.
K B, at the point of contatl B. Euclid, prop. 16..
b. 3. dcmonilrates a very remarkable property in
the circular angle cf contact, viz. That it is lefsi
than any aiSgnable right-lined angle ; which, not-.
withflanding it is there demonilrated as clearly as.
any propofition in the whole book, has given rife
to many difputes amcngft the mathematicians of;
alinoft everv a2;e fince Euclid. Pelatarius, aFrenchs
mathematician,, afierts, that wh:.t Euclid calls the-
angle ofcontadl is no angle at all : in anfv.'er to ,
whom, old Clavir.a fays, and perhaps rightly, that
angles of conta<rt are true angles ; but of a difFerenti
kard from a right-lined. angle : but may be compar-^
ed to it in the fame, manner as, a line to a furface ;
and he gives this reafoji, " Becaufe, if it be ever,
fo cxften multiplied, it will never beequrd to, or ex-,
ceed a right-lined angle." Tacquet alfo, and our;-
Dr.. '^Vallis, fecm to have f^^llen into the fame error,
vvith Peletarius : the latter of which, in his difcourfei
upon this fub)e(rt, publifhed in his Arithmetic of.
Infinites, fays, with Peletarius, that it is no angle ;
arid the former, in a fcholium to Prop. 16. 1. 3,;
of his edition of Euclid, denies that any an-gle what-
foever can be compared to a finite quantity, being,j
he fays, modes cf quantities only ; from whence it,
follows that angles cannot be compared to equality,
and inequality, but to iikenefs and unlikenefs ;
which, if true,, muft overthrow every other propo-,
fition he has attempted to demonflrate throughout,
the whole book.
Upon the whole, angles of conta£l are certainly-
true angles, and may be compared with one ano-.^
■ thcr, though not with right-lined angles, ?4 bein»-
infinitely
A N G
infinitely fniiillcr. The circular angles of contaift
ABE, ABG, are to each other in the reciprocal,
riibdiiplieate ratio, of the diameters B D, and B E ;
parabolic ones in the fame ratio to their refpective
parameters ; but elliptical and- hyperbolic angles of
contact arc reciprocally in the fubduplicate ratio
of the ratio compounded of the ratios of their pa-
rameters and. tranverfe axes; and Sir Ifaac Newton
fays in his- Pr.'fiap!^, that if the curve H A E, (plate
VIII. fx- I-) ^'^ ^ cubic parabola, the angle of
contact- B AF will -be in-finiteiy greater than the cir-
lalar one ; alfo, that if there be- a feries of par;u-
bolas of the- higher ki:ids, defcribed to-t!>e fame
axis and- vertex:, whofe- abciffas AD, are -as the
ordinates DF % DF% D F *, D F ■, DF% Sec-
there will arife a feries of angles of contaft, every
one -of wliich WhU be infinitely greater, than that
immediately preceding it. - It is to be regretted
that this ingenious author proceeded no farther in
this affair than he has done, as no doubt his pene-
trating genius would have difc-overed, and fet this-
matter in the clearcll light; whereas, without a-
demonftration; it may almolf be clafTed amongft
the marvellous. Mr. Stone. has attempted to ac-
count for it in the fallowing manner. It is knowii,
favs.he, that if x be put- for the abfcifla, and fup-
pofed infinitely fmall quantity, that x, x', a-', x*, Sec.
and Arf, A-f, xl-, will be each a feries of qu2:>tities
continually decreafing ; alfo, that x, xl, x\, x^. Sic.
and a'y, x^, xi, will be each a feries of quantities
continually increafing ; ivow- as .v is fuppofed infi-
jiitely fmall, every one of thefe terms muft be infi-
nitely greater than that which jji-cceu^d it; between
which progFeiri(5n, and the fubje£t we have been
Jreating of,- he spprehend.'* fome analogy. •
Ancle cftbe Courfc, in navigation ; fceCour^sfi
and RuMB. '
Angle of the Counterfiayp, in fortification, is
that made by the two fides ef the counterfcarp
meeting before the middle -of the curtain.
Angle ;!/" the Curtain ; fee Angle tj' the flank.
Angle, C«;ir lined; {cefpherical Angle.
At^Gl-E -Dlmim/hee/, in fartmcation, -is th-at which
is made by the meeting of the outermoft fide of the
polygon with the face of the baftioi;.
KiiC^S. of ihs Ecliptic; fee Piiral!a£iic Ksci^E.
Angle cf Elevation, in gunnery, is that which
the- axis of the hollow cylinder, or barrel of the gun,
m^akes V.'it-h a -horizontal line; fee Elevation. -
Angle of Emergence, is that which any body,
^'c. projected from one fluid, or -medium, into ano-
ther, makes at its quitting the latter with a- per^
penJicular to its- furface. Thus let a b,z.vA cd,
(plate IX. ^^. 7.) be the parallel furfices, or boun-
daries of any medium whatfoever, fuppcfe B e the
dire<5tion of any projedled body, entering it at e,-
and going out of it atF, ory, in the direction F D,
or/H i alfo C F, and JG be perpendicular to ab.
A N G
to cd, then will the angle C F D, or G/K b? the
aiiiile of emergence.
It the projected body pafs through the medium
as A E/", the fine of the angle of emergence G/ H-
will not always be equal to that of incidence, but
in a conftant ratio thereto But when the direction-
oi the projcvited body is fuch, the points of inci-
dence and- emergence happen both on the fame fide
of the fluid-, or medium, as B ,? F 1), then will the-
angle of emergence C F E> always be equal to the
angle of -ineidehtce. -This is the cafe if a fiat itone
be thrown obliquely i.ito t+ic water, which wilt
fometimes dip and emerge feveral times, according
to the velocity with which it is throv/n, the figura
of the Hone, or the obliquity of its incidence.
Sir Ifaac Newton, in the XI\'^th Sedt. of thd
ftrft Chapter of his Primipia, has given very ele-
gant demonftrations of the two preceding ufeful
propofitions, by confidering the emerging mediums
to confift of particles that uniformly attraft the
emerged body in its paflage through it, and froni
thence concludes the curve ^ F to be a parabola ;
he then fhews how the firfl propofition follows- from
the nature of that curve ; and the fecond he gathers
from a propofition founded upon the firf!:, which is
this. The velocity of the body before its incidence
is to th.at after it has emerged, as the fine of the
angle of einergence is to tlvat of incidence. From
this propofition he alfo deduces another, which is^
that the-inotion before the em.ergencymuft be greater
than after it, to caufe the body to be reflected.
Hence the propofition on which the whole fci-
ence-of catoptrics is founded, viz.- the equality of
the angles of incidence and reflc£tionj follows as a
corollary, ■■ by fj-ppofing the depth j or way of emer-
gence, to be infinitely final! ; -or that the body, or
ray of light, is refleckd frotn the point of incidence
-without entering the- medium.
AiNGLE of the Epauie,QX Shoulder, in fortifica-
tion, is the angle formed by the flank and the face,
of the baftion ; as the angle B C E (plate X.flg. 4.)
Angles Equal are .fuch -as are meafurcd by the
fame, or equal- arcs of equalcircleSi '
Angle of Evecilon. • See E y eg t i o n.
Angles External, are thofe formed by any fi.'e
of a right-lined figure, and its adiacent fide pro-
duced. -Thus the angle ABC (plate IX. /j. 9.)
formed by the fide A B, and its adjacent fide D B,
fwoduced toC, is an- external- angle of the trapezi-
um A B DE, per Euclid. B. I. Theo. 2. All the
external -sngles of- any right-lined figure taken to-
gether are equal tO'foitr rijiht-angles ; alfo />«• Prop.
-32. B. I. the external angle in any triangle is equal
to both the internal oppofite ones.
Angle Flanked, the fame with the angle of tha
baflion, which fee.
AscLE' of the Flank, is the angle formed by the
flank and the curtain.
AfXLE
A N G
Akgle forming ihe Flank, is that confilling of
one flank, and one demi-gorge.
AfiG-LTS. fankiv.g Inward, is the angle made by the
flanking line with the curtain.
Ai^GLE fimi-ing Outward, the fame with Angle
of the teuaiile, which fee.
Angles Hvnologous, in fimilar figures, are fuch
as retain the fame order, reckoning from the lirit:
in both figures. . Thus in the ilmilar triangles,
ABC, and a b c, (plate X. fig. 2, and 3.) the an-
gles A and a, B and b, C and c arc homologous
angles. .. See Similar Figures.
Angle of Incidence, in optics, is that wliich is
contained between a ray of light incident on any
reflefting furface, ,and a line drawn perpendicular
to that furface. Thus the angle A C B, (plate IX.
f.g. 4.) comprehended between the incident ray AC,
and perpendicular C B, is an angle of incidence. ;.
Angles Internal, are thofe made by the inclina-
tion of the two adjacent fides of any right-lined
figure within it ; and their fum, per Euclid. B. I.
Theo. I. in every right-lined figure whatfoercr, is
equal to twice as many right angles,, abating four,
as the figure hath fides.
Angle of Interval .between two' Places, is that
formed by two lines diredfed from the eye to thofe
places : luch is the angle B A C {fig. 10.)
Angle of Longitude, in aftronomy, is the an-
Ijle comprehended between the meridian and circle
of longitude of the fun, or a ftar, at the pole of
the ecliptic.
Angle Lunidar, is an angle formed by the in-
terfedfioa of two curves, the one concave, and the
. other convex.
Angle [the A4eafure of) is the arc of a circle in-
tercepted between the legs of the angle, and whole
centre is in the angular point. Thus tlie mcaiure
of the angle BAC'is the arc D E (plate VII. /^.
7.) comprehended between the legs A B and B C,
and the number of degrees and minutes, he. con-
tained in that arc, is faid to be. the meafure or
quantity of the angle B A C.
Hence it is very eafy to meafure the quantityof
any angle geometrically ; for, if you open the
feiSor until the points marked 60 in the line of
chords be equal to the radius. of the circle, or A E,
and then taking the dillance D E in your compafies,
and try it backward or forward .on the :re.£i:or, till the
points of the ccmpafs fall both on the fame. number
of dcgreco.and minutes, you will. have the true mea-
fure of the angle: or, it may:,be done otherwife,
thus ; apply the centre of a protraiftor to the an-
gular point A, in iuch manner that the leg AC,
and radius of the protraftor, perfciSlly coincide ; then
the degree en the limb of the protra^ffor which is
cut by the other leg AB, will fhew the quantify
of the. angle which was required.
Angle, n:ixed Line, is that formed by a right
line and a curved one.
7
A N G
Angle of the Mote, in fortification, is that which
is made before the curtain where it is intcrfec'ted.
Angles Oblique, are all thofe which are either
greater or lefs than a right angle.
Angles Ohtufe, are thofe which are greater than
a right angle.
Angle of the Polygon, is an angle formed by tv/o
lines drav/n from the point of one baftion to an-
other ; fuch is the angle L BD (plate X. fi.g. 4.)
Angles .Kfi;7/7/;zf(3/, or right-lined, are thofe whofe
legs are both right-lined ; fuch is the angle CAB,
(plateVII./..;.) ^
At^GLV.s Rc-e!^tering, in fortification, are thofe
whofe angular points turn inwards, and legs open
towards the field.
Angle of RcfieStion, is the angle B CD, (plate
IX. fi'g.4-) comprehended between the line of di-
rcifion C D, which a body moves in after it has
been reflected from the fui-face of another body
E F G H, and a line B C, drawn perpendicular
.to the furfacis of that bodv, from the point of con--
taa, C.
Angle of RefraBion, in dioptrics, is the angle
ACB (plate IX. ^^. 5.) which a ray of light, C A,
after it has been refrafted through the medium
D E FG, makes v.'ith the incident ra^-, © C, pro-
duced to B..
Avgle Rcfracled, is the angle which a ray of
light makes after it has been refraiSled with a line
drawn perpendicular to the furface of the rcfrafted
medium. Thus let DEFG (fig. ^■) be the re-
fracting medium contained between the parallel
furfaces DE and F G, HC perpendicular there-
to, and CA a ray of light after -it has been re-
frafted ;. then will the angle A C B be the refraiEl-
ed angle.
The ratio of the- fine of the angle of incidence
to that of the refrained angle, hath by numberlefs
experiments been found to be invariable in the
fame medium ; but in different mediums it diiiisrs
greatly. . Sir Ifaac Newton, in his Optics, hath
Ihewn that in glafs it is nearly as 3 to 2 ; in rain-
Water nearly 35.4 to 3 ; and in fpirits of wine
nearly as 10107: it may likewifeherc beobferved,
that when the ray moves out of ara^e into a denfer
medium, the-refra£fed angle is always lefs than the
angle of incidence ; and the contrary.
,There have been many methods invented where-
- by the quantity, or law of refradf ion, may be ob-
ferved : the following one, as it is not only the
moft eafy, but as it alfo determines the lav/ of
refravSlion from air into glafs, which is what is
moft wanted, we fliall give as an example. Let
/BEF (platelX. /^. u.) be a well polifted
glafs cube, {landing on a plain deal board, abed;
at the end of which there is another /' c H E fixed
at richt anp-les, havin.^ the fame height with
the fide of the cube Hi", and let their com.mon
breadth be hs greater than the fide of the cube b H,
and
AK^G
A N G
and'the length c/c much longer than cither; then
let thofc boards with the cube fixed on them
dole to the perpendicular one /'EHr, be turned
toward the fun at dirterent altitudes, and at every
time note th.e fliadovv of the top of the perpen-
dicular board, both within the cube at A, and
without it at I ; now, fince FA is the refracted
rav, and FI the unrcfra6tcd one, HF'Kwill be
the refracted angle,., and H F I the angle of in-
cidence ; and if F H be fuppofed the radius, then
wiil A H he tfce tangent of the refrafted angle,
and H 1 a tangent to that of incidence ; and if HA
and HI be carefully meafured on an exact fc;de ot
equal parts at everv different altitude, you v/i!l have
their fevcral ratios in- numbers, from whence thofe
of their fines may. eafily be had by trigonometry.
An'Cle Right, is that made by two right lines,
-or the planes of two-eircles, drawn -or defcribed
perpendicular to each- other ; and its meafureis al-
ways a quarter of a circle, or go°.
Ancle Right-lined, is tltat'whofe legs are both
right line?, as the angle CAM (plateVll. /%. 7.).
Angles S.^hant,-- in tbrtiiication, are fuch v/hofe
angular points turn outward ; as the angles of the
baltions, &c.
Angle /'.■: a Segment. See Angle at the Cir-
cumfa encs.
A^.CLE cf a Segment, h the angle which a tan-
gent makes with a chord line, drawn from the point
of contact to any otlier point in -the circle's peri-
pherv. Thus, let the right line AC (plate VIII.
_/!». 4.) be a tangent to the c-ircle D li-E in B;
then if a chord, as D B, be drawn from the point
of contact, the angles A B D and C B D are an-
gles of a fegment ; and the meafures of thofe angles
jirehaif the arcs BD and BED refpeci:ively>
A B D being equal to the angle BED, per Eu-
clid 3a. 3. and fo of the other.
N'jte, The angle A B D is called the angle of
the leffer fegment, and C B Dahajt of the greater.
Angle of a Semi-circle^ is that whicli tiie diame-
ter, of a circle makes Avith t.he circumference. Eu-
clid and feveral others have given us the following
parado.x coucerning this angle, viz. That it is lets
than a right angle, and yet greater than any acute
right-lined angle v/hatfoever ; the truth is, it is of
much the fame nature with the angle, of contadt,
and, indeed, of equal ufe : which is itone at ail.
Angles SiiniLir. See FIomologous Angles.
Ancli; Si'iil, is the meeting .of three or more
lines in the fame point, but net in the fame
plane. Thus a foiid a-.iglo is form.ed v/here the
tv.K) fides and cieliiig of a room meet, by the line
which, is the (lerpendicular or common fection of
the walls, and thofe lines which are the common
fections of the two Wvilk and thexieling : thefe three
lines form a foiid angle, confifting of three plane an-
gles ; and /if>- Euclid, 20. ii: th'c'fam of af.v two
of thofe angles, howfo;vcr taken, is grca:er t.^iiii
o
the remaining one ; and /ifr Prop. 21. the fum of
the angles, hov/ many focver they be, forming any
foiid angle, is lefs than four right angles, or 360°.
A perfect knowledge of the properties of foiid
angles will be found very ul'eful by thofe who
would form a right underltanding of the nature of
the five regular bodies.
Angle Spherical, is an angle formed on the (ur-"
face of the fphere by the interfedtion of two great
circles; or, as it is forrvetimes defined, the mu-
tual inclinations of the planes of two great circk'-j
Thus, let A D BE (plate IX. fig. 6.) reprcfcnt a
fphere; on the furface of which, let two arcs of
great circles,, as A B, and DE, be defcribed, lo
interfect one another in- C ; then will AC D5
DCB, BCE, and EDA, be fpherical angles.
All fpherical a!igles are mcafured on the arc of a
great circle, defcribed on the point of .interfecTtion
C, as a pole, at the diftance of 90° : and the fum
of all the fpherical angles which can be formed
about 2 -point are equal to four right angles, per.
Emerfon's Trigonometry, b. 3. prop. 3.
Ancl£ of the Tcrmille, in fortification, is the ,t!i>
cl.e- made by theinterfovStion of th'e two lines of de-
fence before the curtain ; fuch is the angle BID
(plate X. fig.i,.)
Ancles Fertiia!, are the oppofite angles formed
by theinterfeifticn of two right line?, or the planes
of two great eircl:'^-.- Thus of the former kind ar»
the angles ADC, EDB (plate VII. fig. 6.) an.d
of the "latter, the angles ACD, ECB (plate IX.
fig. 6.) each pair bemg faid to be vertical, with,
refpedt to each other.
Angle cf l^if-ju, or the optic Angle, is the anglj
BAC, (plate IX. fg. 10.) formed at the eye \y
two rays A B; AC, coming- from the extreme points
of an chject.
ANGLING, the a.-t of f.ihing with a rod,. .to
which are fitted a lincj hook, and bait.
The following rules -are ncceflarv to be obfervr-i
in angling, i. To place yourfelf (b that your fha-
dow do not at -any time fall upon the water, efpe-
cially if it be fhallo.w. 2. 'Fo angle in a pond near
the foKl where cattle go to drink, aiid in rivers, .in.
fuch places as the fifh you angle for ufually frequent ;
zs, for breams in the deepeit ivarer ; for eels under
banks ; for chub' in deep-fliaded holes; for perch
and roach in fcowrs ; for trouts in quick dreams.
Thebcft times for angling, are from April to
Oftcsher ; for in cold (Fm my weather, or bleak eaf-
terly winds, the fiih will not bite. 'Fhe time cf
the day, in v/aari inonths, is in the morning, aboi t
nine o' clock, ;.'id in the afternoon between three
and four. I.u order to attract hfh to the? place in-
tended for angling, it will beproper once in fouror
five days to throw in fome corn boiled foft, garbage,-
worms chopped to pieces, or grains fteeped in blood
and cried; and, if you fifli in a ilream, it will be
beft to ifeiew'in the grains i.bcve the hook.
^ Q. q The
A'N H
The bell method of angling with a fly is down
the ftream ; and, in order to make tlie fifli bite
freely, be fure to ufe fuch baits as you know they
are naturally inclined to, and in fuch a manner as
they are accuftomcd to receii'e them.
The feveral methods for angling for falmon,
trout, carp, tench, perch, pike, dace, gudgeons,
roach, flounders, Sic. will be found under the ar-
ticles Salmon FlSKlNG, Trout FlSHli:G, dec.
ANGLO-SAXON, r. name given to the lan-
guage fpoken'by the Englifli Saxons, in order to
diftinguifh it from the true Saxon, and alfo from
the modern Englifn.
ANGONvEUS, in anatomy, a name given to a
mufcle of the arm inferted into the ancon, or ex-
tremity of the elbov/.
ANGUILLA, in natural hiftory, the name by
v/hich the writers in that fcience call the eel. See
Eel.
ANGinUA, in botany, a name ufcd by different
authors for two very diitinil gcnufes of phmts, cal-
li-d bv Linnxus trichofanthes and calla. See
■ the articles TricKosanthes and Calla.
ANGUINEAL Hyperhla. -See Hyperbola.
ANGULAR, in a general fenfe, fignifies fome-
thing belonging to. or that hath angles. See the
article Angle.
Angltlar ^/ip//5w,in aftronomy, is the incrca-
fing or decrcafmg angle made by two lines drawn
from a central body, as the fun or earth, to the ap-
parent places of two planets inmotioH. The
angular motions of a planet and the fun made in
the fame time, are reciprocally proportionable to
their periodical times,
A'tiCVLAR Capital. T r Capj
Angular Column.
Angular Niche.
Angular Seifioti.
ANGURIA, the water-melon, in botany, tigenus
of plants that produce male and female campaniform
fiOwers ; the male have three fhort filaments joined
together ; the female flowers reft -iipon an oviary
lupporting a c/lirudrica! ftylc, the oviary after be-
comes an oblong fl&fhy fruit, containing five cells
filled with cempreiled feed. This,plant is little
raifed in En2;land, b-ut cultivated greatly in the
warm countries ; and the fruit is much efceemed by
the inhabitants for their- cooling flavour : they are
managed here likethe m-ufl-: melon, requiring more
room to extend, and in iomc places produce toler-
able fruit.
ANHELATIO, or Anhelitus, among phy-
f cians, a lliortnefs of breath, or a difricult and
fmall, but quick, refpiration, which happens to
found perfcns, efpecially to vaktLidinarians, after
•violent exercife.
The word is Latin, :nl derived from anhek, to
pait, and breathe with diffirulty.
ANKIMA, in r.a'.u;al hilioVv, the nam: of a
}r Capita-l,
c J Column.
^" j Niche.
1. Section.
A Nl
bird, common in Brazil, refembling a crane in foirt'e
particulars ; but differing from that and all other
birds by a flender horn of a bony fubftancc, inlerted
a little above the origin of its beak : its v/ings too
have each a horn of this kind growing out of the
fore-part of the bone. It is larger than a fwan,
'' and mottled with black, grey, and white; in fomc
parts are fmall fpots of yellow.
ANHINGA, in natural hiitory, an extremely
beautiful water-fowl, found in the Brazils, about
the fize of our commdri duck. Its beak is about an
inch and an half in length,- and lias a row of hooked
prickles both above and below ; its neck is long and
flender, and together with its head, of a yellowifh
colour ; the upper part of the back is brown, fpot-
ted with yellow; and the breaft, belly, and thighs,
■are of a -iilvery white.
ANIL, in botany, the Indian name for the in-
digo plant, called by Lir.nEus indigofera. See the
article Indigo.
ANIMA, the foul, or principle of life in r.nimals.
See the article Soul.
Anima A'Juntii, the foul of the univerfe, 'is, ac-
cording tofome, a certain, pure, stherial fubllance,
which, being diiFufed through the whole -mafs of
matter, informs, actuates, a'ld unites the various
parts of it into one great, perfetSt, organical body.
Others define it to be an ignific virtue infufed into
the chaos, and dilleminatcd through the whole
frame for its confervation, nutrition, and vivi-
fication.
The moderns rejecfl this notion of an anima
mundi, as it is abfolutely repugnant to expe-
rience.
ANIMADVERSION, a term fometimes ufcd to
fignify correction, fometimes remarks, and fome-
times ferious confideration.
The word is Latin, animadverfio., and compound-*
ed oi animus, the mind, and verto, to turn.
ANIMAL, in natural hiftory, an organized
body, endowed with life and fpontaneous motion.
Animals may be confidercd either as aerial, ter-
reftrial, aquatic, orranphibious. Wecall tholeaerial
which have wings, with which they can fupport
themfelves in the air.
Terreffrial are thofe whofe only place of refl is
upon earth. Aquatic are thofe whofe conftant
abode is upon the water.
Thofe are called amphibious which live freely in
the air, upon the earth, and yet are oblerved to live
long on the water, as if they were natural inhabi-
tants of that element.
Aerial animals may be fubdivided into birds and
flies. Fifties, which are the chief part of aquatic
animals, may be divided into fticll-fifhes, (caly
fifties, and thofe that have neither apparent fcales
nor fhells.
And tcrreftrial animals may be divided into
quaJrupedcs, or beafts ; reptiles, which h:;v«
7 - many
ANI
A NI
•■many feet ; and ferpents, which have no icci ai
all.
Infedls, which in their feveral changes belong
to feveral of the before-mentioned divilioiis, may
be confidered together as one great tribe of animals.
They are called infers, from a feparation in the
middle of their bodies, whereby they are as it were
cut into two parts, which are joined together by a
frnall ligature, as wc fee in v/afps, conmion flies,
and the like.
Befides all thefe, there are fom.e animals that are
not perfedly of thefe kinds, but .placed as it were
in the middle betwixt them, by having fomething
of both ; as bcafls and birds in them.
The gceateft part of animals have five fenfes,
■viz. feeine, hearing, fmelling, tafting, and feeling.
Some reptiles of the e.irth, and fome of the aquatics,
want one or more of the fenfes which arc in perfect
anim.als, as worms, oylters, cockles, &c.
One would wonder to hear fccptical men difput-
ing for the reafon of animals, and telling us it is
only our pride and prejudices that will not allow
.them the ufe of that faculty. Reafon fliews itfclt in
all occurrences of life : whereas the brute makes no
difcovery of fuch a talent, but in what immediately
regards his own prefervation or the continuance of
his fpecles. .Animals, in their generation, are wifer
than the fons of men ; but their wifdom is confined
to a few particulars, and lies in a very narrow com-
pafa. Take a brute out of his inltincff, and you
find him wholly deprived of .underflanding.
Animals confift of folids, or firm parts, as flefli,
bones, .membranes, &c. and fluids, as blood, &c.
The folids are mei-e earth, bound together by
fom.e.oily humour ; and accordingly are reducible
by fire into fuch earth again.
Thus a bone, being perfeiSfly purged of its nioi-
fture by calcination, is found a mere earth, v/hich
the Icait force will crumble into duil, for want of
the natural gluten ; yet the fame bone, by immerg-
ing it in water or oil, becomes firm and ftrong again,
and more fo in oil th.m water. And thus cupels
will fuftainthe utmoU efFe£is of fire.
The parts of animals are diiHnguifhed from thofe
of vegetables by tv/o circumftances : the firft, that
when burnt they are found petfcdfly infipid, all ani-
•mal falls being volatile, and flying oft' with heat;
the contrary of this is fomid in vegetables, which
conilantly retain fome ilxed fiilt in all their aflies.
The fecond, that no true acid is contained in any
animal juice; nor can any acid fait be extrafted
from the fame ; the contrary of which is found in
ail vegetables.
Yet are animals reconverted into their vegetable
:»a!ure by putrefaction.
■ Animals make the fubjeci: of that branch of na-
•tiirfd hiftory called zoology.
The ftruclure of animals, with their diforders,
remedies, Ike. make the fubjc£l of anatomy, mc~
dicine, &c.
As to the ftruclure of animals, it is obferved that
the make of every kind of animal is different from
every other kind ; and yet there is not the leall
turn in themufcles or twift in the fibres of any one
v/hich does not render them more proper for that
particular aitimal's way of life, than any other caft
or texture of them would have been.
Animal, ufed adjeifively, fignifies fomething
belonging to, or .partaking of, the nature of ani>-
mals.
Animal Oicomnif. See OeconomV.
Animal OU. See the article Oil.
Animal Secretlin, the feparation of the feveral
juices of the body from the blood. See Se-
cretion.
Animal Spirits, a very fubtile fluid, fuppofeti
to be feparated from the brain, and thence diffufeil
into all parts of the body for the performance of
all animal and vital funifllons. See the article
SPIIIIT.
ANIMALCULE, a minute animal, fc.ircc, if
at all, vifible to the naked eye.
The word is Latin, animalculum, a diminutive
of animal.
Animalcules, though fo very minute as to be
only feen by the aililtance of the mici'ofcope, are
valtly more numerous than any other part of the
animal creation. They have been difcovered in
moft liquors, "In feveral of the chalybeat as well as
in common water ; in oats, barley, wheat, peas,
&c. and in the puifules of the itch.
ANIMATED, fomething infpired with lite, or
that exhibits marks of being infpired by fome fpi-
rit or foul.
Animated Mercury, a term made ufe of by
Mr. Boyle to denote mercury impregnated v/ith
fpirituous particles, which when mixed with gold
grows hot.
Animated "Meedle, one that is touched v/ith a
magnet, or loadifone. See Needle and Mag-
net..
Animated Power, in meclianics, fignifies that
the power made uie of is a man, horfe, or fome
animal, in oppoUtion to v/eights, &c.
ANIME, or Gnm Anime, in natural hiftory,
is a kind of gum, or rather refin, of a friable fub-
ifance, inflammable, and foluble in oil. I'here
are two kinds of this gum-refin, diftinguifhed by
the epithets of oriental and occidental.
Tlie oriental or Ethiopian anime, is a dry and
folid refin, brought to us in large cakes or maifci',
of an irregular figure, and of a very uncertain
colour ; fome of them are greenifh, fome reddifh,
fome brown, and fome of the colour of myrrh ;
thev all agree in this, however, that they arc
moderately pellucid, of a tolerable compa.ft tex-
ture*
ANN
tvire, light and eafily powdered, of a fragrant fmeil,
very inflammable, and of a refuious and fomewhat
liit cr tafte. This, which is the genuiuC: and- true
aniine, is now very rare in the flxops.
The occidental anime is a whitifli, dry, and
folid rcfni, fomewhat refembling frankincenfe in
colour, it is often of a fine yellowifh white, be-
tween that of frankincenfe and maftich, and in the
pureft pieces is very- clean and tranfparcnt ; in
general, however, it is much inferior to the orien-
tal in thefe refpedlsj It is moderately- heavy, fri-
able, and fomewhat oleaginous to the touch. It is
cxtteraely fragranf, efpeeially when burnt-, and is
of a refinous-, acrid, and fomewhat bitterifh tafte.
' It is broiight'-to us from maiv*; parts of America,
particularly- from New Spain and theBrafils. The
natives call it joticacicaand ietaicica. Our people,
from their name of the tree-, vulgarly c;dl it refin of
courbaril.
Anime, in heraldry^ a termufedwlren the eyes
of any rapacious creature are borne of a difFsront
tiniSlure from that of the creature itfelf.
ANINGA, in commerce,, the name of a root
growing in the y\nt!lks !ilai>ds, nearly refembling
the china roeti It ■ is- ufcd, in the-fi'.gar VvorJcs for
refilling the fugar.
ANlSU-M,'"or ANfsE', in -botany, af.nali'an-
nuarumbellifei-ous-herb, which producos flowers
and feeds in Jiilyi It is cultivated in Germany ; hut
the beft feed, which -is dip-finaikr forts, comes
from Spain. The feeds to be go&dfliould be frefh,
plump, free from mouldinefe, rfCcompanicd with, a
very ftrong aromatic fnitll ; they arc- in common
ufe as a warm -carminative, and good ta expel wind
out of the bow'ilj and ftomach, and are uied by
confcilioners in fugar- plumbs of various -denofnina^
tions. By diftiilation an- oil may' be extrasited
from annifceds, which arifcs with the water .in-a
confiderable quantity : this oil is of- a yejlowifli
colour, and congeals into a butyraceous-wliit* con-
crete-; its- fh-kelli which exailly rtiemblcs that of
the feeds, is extremely- durable and dlffuGve, zrA
its tafte milder and lefs pungent tlian almoft any
other diftilled Vegetable c»ih
Another fort of ■anife, ciUed by fo^ne botanical
authors anife ftellatum, is the fruit-, or feed-vcflel,
of a fmall tree, growing in -Tartary, China, and
the Philippine Iflands, but is little, if at uJl;, ufed
in pharnviicy. The common anife in the Linnsan
fyftcm is claffed as-a fpecies of the pimpinella. See
PlMPIKfLLA.
ANKER, aliquid-meafitreat Amfterdam, con-
taining about thirty-two gallons Englifh.
ANNALES, a- fpecies.. of hlfwry, wherein
events are related in the. chronolfrgical oder they
happened.
It differs from a: perfec'.l: diiilory, in being, only a
tnccr rc!atic»n- of v.-hat-paflls every year, as .a jour-
ml is of v/hat paflcs every day ; v.'hereas luftory
ANN
relates not only the tranfaftions themfelves, hnt'
alfo the caufes, motives, and fprings of fuch ac- •
tions. Annales require brevity only ; hiftory de-
mands ornament.
Cicero informs us that the pontifex maximus,
in order to preferve the memory of events, wrote
what paffcd each year on tablets, which were ex--
pofed to public infpeftion in his own houfe.
Thefe tablets wsre. called antiales maxhni ; and hence
the writers who imitated this fimple method of
writing wereftiied annaiifts.
ANNATES,. among ecclefiaftical writers, im-
plies the firft year's revenue of a fpiritua! living.
Thefe annates were formerly given to-t'ae pope ;-
biit at the. Reformation they were veft.^d in the
king. . Queen Anne, however, reftored them to'
the chuixh, by appropriating them to the augmen-
tation of fmrdl -livings.
ANNEALING,"" or.. Ne-vl-ing, an- operation,
performed on- glafc,- earthen- ware, &c. in a parti-
cular oven or. furnace crefied for that purpcfe.*
See the article Nealing.
Annealing of Glojs, Iron, Steel, Lfc. See* a
Glass, Iron, Steel, &:c. 1
ANNE, ox Si. hKK^'s Day, a feftival ohferveJ-
in the Greek. and Latin churches, in honour of-
Anne oi' Anna, motjier of tlve Virgin Mary. It-
ii celebrated by the former - on- the ninth of
December, and . by t!;c Litter on tlie tweiity-fixtb
of- July.
ANN-EXATIO'Ny i.i> law, implies the unidn.g-
lauds or rents to. the crown.
ANNI Nubiles, in law, fignifies the marriage-*
al>!e .?ge of ,a woman,' viz. after flie has reached
her tv/elfth year; :
ANNIENTED, in la.v., imports annulled civ
fnade void.
ANN-IHILATiQN, the rit of reducing any?
crtjated being to nothir>g, a,nd flap.ds oppofcd tO"
creation. The word is formed from- the Latin;
ad, to, s,iid- /lihi/iiw, nothing.
ANNIVERS^\RY, the annual return of an^
remarkable day.
The word is formed from -tke Latin, annus, a ■
year, and vei:to, to^um.
Formerly anniverfary days- particularly denotedr
thofe days on -which an office was performed fon
the foul* of the acceafed, orthe martyrdom of the
faintsvva:; celebrated in tlia chiwch. '
ANNO DOMINI, the year of our- Lord, the
ccn^pLltation of time from our Saviour's incarna^.
ticn. . See Epocha..
ANNOMINAi:iON, i;i rhetoric-; fee Paro-
nomasia..
ANNONA, in botany, the cuftard apple, s
genus of trees that grows in feveral places of the
X\'',eft-Indies, whofe fruit are in great cfteem ii»-
thcfs. parts, eitb.er to .pleafe. the palate, or. by- way
of medicine ; one of the forts grows in pic-i^ty in
the
ANN
the Bahama iflands, which is called bv the inhabi-
tants papaw, and \\411 thrive in the open air in
England.
ANONIS, reit-harrow, in botany. See Q-
KONJS.
ANNOTATION, in matters of literature,
a brief commentary, or remark on a book or writ-
ing, in order to clear up fome pafl'age, or draw
ibnie conclufion from it.
Annotation, among phvficians, implies the
beginning of a febrile paroxyfm, when th-j patient
begins to (hivcr, yawn, and ftretch.
ANNO TTO, in dying, an elegant red colour,
formed from the pellicles of ihs feeds of a tree
common in South-America. It is alfo called or-
lean, and roucou.
The manner of making annotto is as follows :
The red feeds, cleared from the ppds, are fleepcd
in water for fe\en or cighfdays or longer, till the
liquor begins to ferment ; then ftrongly ftjrrcd,
Hamped with wooden paddles and beaters, to pro-
mote the feparation of the red fl-cins : this procefs
is repeated fevera! times till the fc-cds are left white.
The liquor, paffed througli clofc cane lic/es, is
pretty thick, of a deep red colour, and a very ill
imell : in boiling, it throws up its colouring mat-
ter to the fiirface in fonn of fcum, which is after-
wa;ds boiled down by itfelf to a due confidence,
and made up while fdft into balls.
The annotto, commonly met with among us,
is moderately hard and liry, of a brown colour on
the outfide, and a dull red within.' It is with dif-
ficultly iuSfcd upon by water, and'tinges the liquor
-only of a pale brownifli yellow colour. In'recti-
'fied fpirit of wine, if very readily diflolves, aind
; communicates a high orange or vellowifli red.
Hence it is ufed as an ingredient in varnifiles, for
giving mere or lefs of an orange caft to the fimple
yellows. Alkaline fiilts render it perfeftlyfoluble
i.n boiling water, without altering its colour.
Wool or hlk boiled in the folution, acqulies a deep,
but not a very durable, orange dvc. Its colour is
not changed bv alum or bv acids, any rrore than
-by alkalies ; but when imbibed in cloth, it is
difcharged by foap, and deftroyed by expofure to
the air.
ANNUA Pevfione^ in law, an old writ for grant-
ing an annual perdloii to one of the king's chap-
lains.
ANNUAL Motion of the Earth. See Earth.
Annual Equation., in aftronomy. See E<^a-
TION.
Annual Argument of longitude. See AnGU-
flENT.
Annual EpaSi. Sec Epact.
ANNUITY, a yearly rent or revenue, paid ei-
ther for term of life, or of years, or in fee, and
for ever.
In common law, the diiierencc between a rent
ANN
.ind an annuity confills in thi.s, that rent is pay-
able out of land; whereas an annuity charges i/i;ly
the perfon of the grantor ; and that, for the reco-
very of a rent, an ac'tion lies : whereas for tliat tf
an annuity, there only lies a writ of annuity agair.li
the grantor, his heirs and fuceeflbrs. Add, that
annuities are never taken for allets, as being no
trceholjs in law.
For the computation of the value of annuities
irt arrears on lives, in perpetuity, &c. See Inte-
rest aria Progression.
ANNULAR, in a genera! fenfc, implies fome-.
thing in the form of a ring.
The word is formed from the Latin, a-muLais,
and derived from annulus., a ring.
Annular, in anatomy, is an epithet applied i')
feveral parts of the human body ; thus the fecond
cartilage of the larynx is called the annular carti-
lage ; the ligam.ent that encompalTes the vvrift, and.
ties the bones together, is termed the annular liga-
mient ; and a protuberance of the medulla oblon-
gata is ftiled the annular p.tieds.
AvNiiLAR is alio a' peculiar narPie for the fourih
finger.
ANNL^LETS, in architciflurc, a fmall fquare
number in the Doric capital, under the qu:;rter
round, fometimes called a fillet, liftel, or cindture,
rabbit, fquare, eye-brow, and tinea. It is alfo a
narrow, flat moulding, comm.cn to divers places
of the columns, as in the bafe, capitals, &c.
Annulet, in heraldry^ is a mark of diftinctioh
proper to the fifth brother of a family. .
ANNULLING, a term fometimes ufed for
cancelling, or rendering a deed,' fcntence, 5:c. void,
ajid of no efFecl:.
ANNUNCIADA, an o.-der of- knighthood i;i
Savoy, originally inftituted by Amadeus I. in the
year I4C9-, and called by the founder, the knot of
love. The collar confilted of fifteen links inter-
woven with one another, in the form of a true
lover's knot ; and the motto F. E. R.T. foriitudo
ejus Rhodiim tenuit. But Amadeus VIII. changed
the name to that of Annunciada, and inftead of
the image of St. Maurice, which was appended to
the collar, placed that of the Virgin Marv. At
the fame time he iubllituted the v/ords of the angel's
lalutation, inilead of thofe in the above motto.
ANNUNCIADES, feveral religious orders in-
flituted in honour of -the' annunciation.
The firft order of-this kind was founded by fe-
ven merchants at Florence, 1232. The fecond
was a nunnery at Bourges, founded by Joan, queen
of France, after her divorce from Lewis XII. The
third was a luinnerv founded bv a Genoefe lad^' in
the year 160;. The fourth a friary, founded by
ca.'dinal Torrecrcmata, at Rcime.
ANNUNCIATION, a fdtival celebrated by
the church on the twcirty-fifth of March, in me-
mory of the anniii'icir.tioiij or tidings, brought by
R r the
A N O
the ar.G:el Gabriel to the Virgin Waiy, of the in-
carnation of Chrift.
The feaft of this annunciation appears to be of
very great antiquity. There is mention made of
it in a fernnon, which goes under tlic name of Atha-
nai'.us. Others carry it up to the time ot Gregory
Th^umaturgus, becaufe there is a fcrrnon Hicewiie
r.'itributed to him upon the fame fubjedt. But the
beft critics rejeiSt both thefe writings as fpurious.
However, it "is certain, this feftival was obfcrved
before the time of the council of Trullo, in which
there is a canon forbidding the celebration of all
fcflivals in Lent, excepting tiie Lcrd's-day, and
the fealf of the annunciation : fo that we may date its
original from the feventh century.
ANODYNE, among phyficians, fignifies a me-
dicine that mitigates or removes pain.
The v.'ord is compounded of the Greek j£, priv.
and «<rui/ti, pain.
There are two fpecies of anodynes, diftinguifhcd
by the epithets proper and improper. T he former
are fuch as mitigate the pain by removing the caufe.
The latter that "ajleviate it for a time by ftupifying
the fcnfes. The proper aiiodynes are called pare-
gorics ; and the improper opiates, and narcotics.
See the articles Pa^regorics, Opiates, and Nar-
cotics.
ANOMALISTICAL Ve'jr, in aftronomy, is the
time Vvfhich the carih takes in paCing through its.
o;b't, and is moflly called the periodical year ; for-
the fpace of time belonging to. this yaar is greater
than the tropical year, on account of the preceflion
of the equinoxes. See pREtEjsicf.'.
ANOMALOUS, in a general fenfe, is applied
to vvhatever is unequ.il, irregular, or that deviates
from the rule oblcrved by iimilar things i.". fimilar
cafes.
The word is form.ed from the Greek, tt, priv..
and 0U4A©--, equal.
Anomalous Pulfey among phyficians, i.mplies
a pulfe whole flrokey mx unequal with regard to
firength.
Akoualovs. Fi-rbs, in grammar, are fuch as are
irre;ju!arly conjugated, or formed in a manner dif-
ferent from the general rules.
ANOM.ALY, in grammar, implies an irregu-
larity or a deviation from the common rules.
Anomaly in aftroncmy, is an irregularity in
the motion of the planets, v/hereby they deviate
from the aphelion or apogee, which irregularity or
inequality is called either mean, eccentiic, and coe-
quote, or true a.ioma'y.
ExceKtric Anomaly, or A.momaly of the Centre,
in the new aftronomy, is an arch of an eccentric
circle, AEMGP '(phite X. fig. I ) terminated
by A P, and by the line D p E drawn through, the
tenter of the planet /- (w lich is fuppofed to be its
place in the elliptic orbit A /> H P) perpendicu-
l.u- to A Pj but in the old aftronomy is an arch of
7
A NO
the zodiac, terminated bv the lines of the apfides..
and the line of the mean motion of the center.
Mian Anomaly, in the new elliptical aftrono-
my, is the area contained imder the line S p, drawn
from the fun, which is fuppofed to be in the focus
of the ellipfe A /> H P to the planet in its orbit at
p, and under the line A S and A /> ; but in the old
allronomy is an arc , of the ecliptic, between its
mean place and apogee.
Tiue or coequnte ANOMALY, is the difiance of the
fun trom, its apogaum, or of a planet from its aphe-
lium; or it is reprefented by die angle A S/i, when
the planet comes from A to />, but when the mo-
tion of the planet is reckoned from the vernal in-
terfeclion of the equator and the ecliptic, or from
tlie beginning of Aries, it is called the motion in.
loiigitude, wliich is either a, mean motion, fuch as
the planet wtmid have, did it move uniformly in a
circle round tlie I'un ; or elfe the true motion where-
with the planet defcribes its orbit, and is reckoned
by the arch of the ecliptic it is feen to defcribc j
which true motion is fometimes accelerated and
fonietimes retarded, according to the diftance of
the planet from the fun in the various points of its -
orbit.
Therefore at any given time aficr the planet has
left its aphelion, we find out its place in its orbit
by dividing the area of the ellipfe A /> H P by the-
line S p, fo that the whole elliptic area may have;
the fame proportion to the area A S />, as the whole
periodical time wherein, the planet defcribes its cr-<
bit is to the time, given. : there has been many me-
thods given to divide an ellipfe in this manner by
Geometricians, which is finding the difference be-,
twecn. the true and mean anomaly, or in other words
to folve the famous Keplcrsan problem. Sir Ifaao
Newton having den»nibrated that this pi-oblem.
cannot be folvcd in finite terms, recourfe has.
therefore been had to. ap^ro.ximations : the follow-
ing method which we prefume has the advant;r>e-
of every other,, as well in. point of acciu'acy as ex-
pedition, was given by that ingenious aflronom.er-
and mathematician Mr. Cjeorge Witchel, in thet.
Mathematical Magazine, NumJj. L .
Solution.
Lot the femi-circle A G P be defcribed upon tfie
tranverfe axis A C P, and through p, the place of
the planet, let D p E be drawn, parallel to the fe-,
mi-cc?ijugate H C, meeting the femi-circle in the
point E ; join E, S, and the femi-circle will be di-
vided by the line E S, in the fame ratio, as the fe-r
mi-cUipfe AH? is by the line /' S, as is_ demon-
ftrated by the writers on conies ; let E, C, b°!
joined, upon which, produced if needful, let fall
from S, the perpendicular S F ; take the arc EM
equal in length to the right-line SF, and join M,C:-
Then it is evident, that the area of the fectoc.
E C M, will be equal to the area of the triangle
ECSi.
J'jATi-; nr
I
^triiiii/ \no\mi\\.
\ E-
-D
/%?.. .i. » >^,
B
a h c d
JXo{^f Sett^.
X
A NO
ECS, and confequently, the area of the fcccor
ACM, will be eqiiul to the trilinear are;i A S E :
Hence the feaor AMC, or the angle ACM, will
be proportional to the elliptic areu A /> S, which is
called the mean anomaly of the planet, as the
angle ACE, is denominated the cxcentric ano-
maly, and the angle A S p, the true, or co-equate
anomaly.
In order to find the excentric anomaly, and
from thence the true anomaly, let the angle ACM
be taken equal to the given mean anomaly ; join
M, C, and M, S ; and upon the right-line M S,
ilet fall from C, the center of the femi- circle, the
perpendicuiaf C B, which will, when the excen-
tricity C S is but fmall in refpedl: to A C, be very
nearly equal to the right-line-S F, or the arc ME ;
'that is, to the difference'between the mean and ex-
centric anomalies: Take the arc M^', equal in
length to the right-lin* C B, join c, C, upon which
produced, if necefiary, let fall the perpendicular
Sy"; then if the arc M^ be increafed, and the right-
line Sydiminiflicd in. the j-atio of ^ C to C /", until
they become equal to each other, they will then -be-
come equal to M E and S F refpeiSlively, without
fenfible error, even in Mercury's orbit ; v^hence the
following method of foiution is evident.
In the triangle M C S, thenc is given the two
fides M'C^ clre radius of the femi-circle, and C S,
the excentricity, with the included angle MCS,
the complement of the mean anomaly to two right-
angles ; wheijce the angle CMS will b>icome
kiiown : Then, in the right angled triangle M C B,
there will he given, the angle lafl: found, together
■with, the fide M C, whence, CB alfo becomes
known ; but C B, is equal to the arc M e, which
meafures the angle A'l C e : This angle being taken
from the mean anomaly A C M, leaves the angle
A Cf, eqtial -to the. ai.gk S Cy"; whence in the
right-angled triangle CyS there are known, the
fide C S, and the angle b Cf, by which, S/ and
C f will be foiind : Then is M e-\- eQ X ~^^
f= M E extremely near; but ME is the meafure
ofi the aiigle M C E, which is the difference of the
mean and excentric anonialies ; and, confequently,
the excentric anomaly- will become known.
The excentric anomaly being thus found, the
true snomaly, -or angle AS/», together with the
line S/), or the planets diitance from the fun,
may be eafily obtained by the two analogies given
by-M..dc la Caille, in his Elements of Aftronomy ;
of which, it may not be imj>roper to fubjoin the
following demonftrations, though fomewhat difte-
xent from his.
Analogy I.
As the fquare-root of the aphelial diftance S A,
is to the fquare-root of the pcrihelial dillance S P,
fo is the tangent of half the excentric anomaly, to I
the tangent of half the true anomaly. '
ANO
Demonstration.
Let the radius of the femi circle AC:=i,CS=ic,
and the tangent of half the excentric anomaly rz t •
then, by trigonometry, we (liall have i -{-e: i — e::t:
t + l—e X t
J—eXt , . r ' ^ ^
1+^
; and therefore ■
= the tan-
'X/'
gent of A S E
2 t
i-\-e—i—e><.r
GC(r) : HC (v/7^) :: ED :PD
It \/~
J + e
— : And per conies.
2 t
1+e—i—eXt i + e—i—ext''
the tangent cf
AS/.:
)v/l -hex k/-
^/T-
-ext
■e Xt
1 X-
v/7
+ <•
l->[ e—l—cxt'^
I ~ e X t-
the tangent o^lA&p + i;Aiip; and, therefore,
\/i —ext
=: the tangent of f ASP, which refolv-
\/i+e
ed into an analogy becomes v i+f : v'^i —ey. t:
tangent of I ASP.
A N A L O G Y 11.
As the fine of half the true anomaly, is to the
fine of half the excentric anomaly ; fo is the fquare-
root of the perihelial dilfance S P, to the fquare-
root of S /), the diftance of the planet from the
fun.
D E M N S T li A T I O NT.
Let = reprefent the excentric anomaly, and a. thd
true, the reft of the fymbols denoting the fame ai
before; then from what has been proved above, wc
\/i —ext
have the tangent of \ a =
fin. i c X VI — e fin. i ,
v/7
+ e
co-f
J whence.
co-f i I X ^1 + e ^""' to-
co-f f 5 X \/i +e fin. J 5 X v/i— f ,
—-.— = --^ — ; and per cc-
co-l. { a, Im. V a.
nics,GC (i) :HC(v/i"i:7) :: ED (fin .) :
p D = fin.5 X\/i— ^^=fin. s X v/i + f X s/r— 7 ;
but, by trigonometry, we have, fin. a. : fin. 5 x
fin £ X s/ \ -h-eX \/ i—e
iin. cL
— Sp, in which exprcilion, inftead of fin, * and
fin.
A NO
fin. 5, fubftitutlng their equals, 2 X fin. la. Xco-f.
I a, and 2 X fin. { 5 X co-f. {- =, we get S /> =
fin. i 5 X co-f. i 5 X_v/i+i? X y/i— ?
fin. f ct X CO f. I
fin. i^ cV X 1—e /
fin.f? V
by writing for
cn-f J ? X \/i + '
its equal
fin. I € X v/i — f
(in. i ct
co-f.' T a,
'. J and confcqucntly
fin. 4e X v/ 7ir,_^y^_ therefore fin. ^ 4 : fin.
fin. r *
i -: : : v^i^ : ^&7- ^ ^- -O-
I fhall now reduce what has been faid into the
following pra£t:ical rule, and then proceed to give
fame examples of its utility.
Practical Rule.
It will be moft convenient to have th« excentii-
city expiefled in decimal parts of the femi-trani-
verfe axis : that done, from the log, of the perihs-
lial diflance, fubtraft the log. of the aphelial dif-
tance, and let the rem.ainder be called A ; likewife
to the log. of theexcentricity add the log. 1.758123
(beins; the log. of the number cf degrees contained
in aji arc equal to the radius) and c^ll the fum B ;
to the loo-. A, .add, t\\e log. tangent of half the
n;ean anomaly, .gnd the fum will he the log. tan-
gent of an arc; fubtrafl; tliis arc from half the
mean anomaly, and to the log. fine of the remain-
der add the log. i. 7581 23, and the fum will be the
loo- of the difference of the mean and exccntric
anomalies, very nearly : then if the mean anomaly
be lefs than 180°, fubtraft this difference there-
from, otherwife add it thereto, and it will give the
firft value of the. excentric anomaly, -which will be
fufficiendy exa£t in each of the planets, except
i.Iars an(l Mercury : in the former the error, when
greateft, v^'ill be about three-fourths of a fecond ;
but in the latter, it will amount to one-third of a
minute : in order therefore, to correfl it, let the
1o:t. fine of the ?xcentric anomaly, as found above,
be added to the log., B, .and the fum vyill be the
log. of the difference of^the two aiioinalics to a flill
greater exacSlnefs : then, if to. die log. c.-o-fine of
the excentric, anopo.alv, there be added the log. of
the cxcentricity, the fum will be tlielog. of a frac-
tion, \yhich, if the excentric anomaly is - more
than 270°,. or lefs, than 90°, niu!!: be .added to
unity, otherwife fubtrafted therefrom, and the
fum, or difference, will be a number, by which if
the difference of the two values of the excentric
anomaly be divided, the quotient will be the error
of the firft value of the excentric anomaly : tiieii
if the excentric anomaly is in the firll or third
^ quadrant, let the error be fubtracted therefrom.
AN O
otherwife added thereto, and it will give the ec-
centric anomaly to a very great degree of exaft-
ncfs ; laftly, to the log. tangent of half the ex-
centric anomaly add half the log. cf A, and the fum
is the log. tangent of half the true aaoinaly.
Example I.
In the orbit of Mercury whofe. excentricity is
0,20589, when the mean diffancc is unity, it is
required to find the e.-'xentric anomaly, mid from
thence the true, together with the diilance of the
planet from the kin, ccrrefponding to the mean
anomaly I30°,2i6igi.
From the log. of the 7
perihelialdiftance J
0,79411
1,20589
,20
189
9.8998807
0-0813077
9.8185730
9.9092865
9- 3 '36353
1. 7581226
1. 0717579
will be con-
9.8185730
'0-3334699
10.1520429
9-25 '4339
- - - I. 7581226
10,222486 - 1.0095565
Which, becaufe the nr.eananom. 130,216181 is lefs
than i8o'-, is to be fubtrafted therefrom.
Difference, or firft
value of the ex- (. 1 19,993695
centric anom
The log. fm
which is
The log. B, add
Subt. the log. of the 7
aphelial diftance i
And there remains J
the log A. 5
Half the log. A. -
'I'o the log. of the 7
cxcentricity J
Add the log. of the 7
radial arc J-
And the fum is th.c 7
logB. ^ - - - -
Thcfe logarithms, wnen once found,
ftant logarithms in each orbit.
To the log. A.. - - - -
Add the log. tang.
oi' half the mean
anom.
And the fum is the'
long. tang, of '.
The log. fine of the 7
difference 3
The log. of thera- 7
dial arc, add J
The log. of
65,108090
54,830575'
10,277515 is
sr firft J -
le ex- (.
smaly j
9-9375582
1.6717579
The log. of
A lean anomaly
Difference, or fe-
cond value of the
excentric anom.
The log. co-fine of
the firlt value of
the excentric
r.omaly
10,216830
130,216.181
ii9>99935'
- i.009Jibi
119,9 ^695 is 9 69?887i
Th3
AN O
J 0,20589 add 9.3136353
AND
The log. of the ex-
centncity
The losr. of the) ,,
fraaion } 0,102925
Which, becaufe the excentric ano- -
nialy is more than go" and lefs
than 270°, muft be lubtracted
from unity, and there remains
0,897075 ; the log. of which is j
Which taken from the log. of
0,005656 the difference of the
two values of the excentric ano-
maly, which is
There remains the lo^;. of the
9.0125225
9,9528288
7.7525094
rule being added
7.7996806
to the
error 0,006305 - -
Which according to the
firft value of the excentric anomaly, will give the
true value thereof, viz. 120°, 000000.
Then to the log.
the >
Y J
tang, of half the
excentric ano-
maly - -
Addinghalf thelotj. )
of A - - ^ -
We have the
tang, of half
true anomaly
'Therefore the true
anomaly is
To the log. fine of
half the excentric
anomaly - -
Add the log. of the
fquare-root of the
pcrihclialdiftance
y\nd from the fum
of the logarithms
Subtraft the log.
fine of half the
true anomaly -
And there remains 1
the logarithm - j
^Vhich multiplied-^
by 2, gives the
log. of the true
diitance of Mer-
cury from the fun
60,000000 - 10.2385606
- 9.9092865
54,5695202 - 10.1478471
1 og, 1 390404 = 1 09''8'2o",5 5
o
60,0000 - - 9-937530
- - - - 9-949940
i747o
54.5095
0,89705
- 9 91 1061
- 9-976409
9.952818
In the preceding example the error is a maxi-
mum in this orbit, and amounts to no more than
fj'j^ part of a fecond ; but as there is no neceffity
for this great accuracy, we may abridge the ope-
ration in fomc meafure, and yet obtain the conclu-
fion fufficiently exact for real ufe : thus, if wc pro-
ceeded no farther than the fecond value of the ex-
centric anomaly, in this example we fiiould not err
above two feconds ; but if this be thought too
much, let the difference of the two values of the
excentric anomaly 0,0057, taken only to four
9
places of decimals, be divided by 0,9, infleaJ of
0,897075, and the error will be but t'o of i
fcCOild.
Example II.
Let the excentric anomaly of Mars be required,
wlien the mean anomaly is 64°,59i75.
In this orbit the excentricity is 0,09254, and the
log. thereof 8.996323 ; the log. A is 9.919391,
and the log. B. 0.724446 : Then
To the log. A
Add the
32'2959
lean >
log. ta
of half the me
anomaly
And the fum is the )
log. tang, of - 3
Difference - - -
Log. of the radical 1
arc, add - - j
The fum is the ]
log. of - - i
Which, according
to the rule,
mufl be fubtract-
ed from the mean
anomaly -
And there remains
the firff value of
theexcent. anom.
9-9'9i9i
9.800767
27,6994
4,5965 fine
- 9720158
8.903S3S
1. 758123
4,5916
64.5917V
0.661961
60,000 1 1 ; which differs from
the truth only by o,000i|,
or half a fecond ; but if the fecond value thereof
be found, the error will become too inconfiderable
to be regarded. As all the other planets have their
excentricities much fmaller, the lirll value of the
excentric anomaly, in each of them, will be fufH-
ciently exact, without further trouble.
I fliall nov.' conclude with the following Table,
which exhibits all the conftant logarithms for each
of the planetary orbits ;
Planets.
Excenrrici-
lies, the
mean dit'i.
being unity
Logaiithmi
0!" the ex-
centricities
The
logarithm
A
The
logariihm
B.
Log. ot the
fquaie-root
ot'the peri-
helial dift.
Saturn
0,05700
S.755S75
9.950434
0.5 1401 1
9.987156
Jupiter
0,04821
S. 683157
9.95S085
0.441280
9.989271
Mars
0,09154
8.966323
9.919:91
0.724446
9.978914
Earth
0,01681
8.22556S
9 98539S
9.98369'
9.996319
Venus
o,Go6g3
7.S43953
9993936
9.602076
9.998479
Mercu.
0,20589
9.3'5635
9.818575
J. 071758
9 949940
Moon
0,05505 S. 740757
9.952136
0.498880
9.9S7704
ANOMOEANS, in 'ecclefiaftical hiftory, the
name by which the pure Arians were diftinguiflied
in the fourth century, in contradiftindlion to the
Semi-Arians.
The word is formed from the Greek, dvcfj-ois^;
different, dilTimilar : for the pure Arians aflerted,
that the fon was of a nature different from, and in
nothing like, that of the father: whereas the
Semi-Arians acknowledged a likenefs of nature
S f in
A N O
in the foil ; at the fame time that they denied,
with the pure Arians, the confubftantiality of the
word.
The Sefni-Ari.ans condemned the Anomoeans in
the council of Scleucia, and the Anomceans in their
turn condemned the Semi-Arians in the councils of
Conftantinople and Antioch, erafing the v/ord
e.i/oi >>-■, like, out of the Formula of Rimini, and
that of Conftantinople.
ANONYMOUS, fomething without a name.
l^he word is Greek, av&^vvfji.^-, and compounded
of a.., priv. and ovoy.n., a name.
It is generally applied to fuch books as are pub-
lifhed v/ithout the name of the ai'lhor; and to
<uch authors whofc names are unknown.
ANOREXY, among phyficians, implies a want
of appetite, or a loathing of food.
The word is Greek, acops^/tt, and compounded
of (t, priv. and of-yoij.ut-, to covet or defire.
The anorexy is either an efiential difeafe, pro-
ceeding from a fault in the fl:om.ach, or derived
from other difordcrs. When it is an original
difeafe, it generally proceeds from a voracioufnefs,
and a hard diet ; whence crude and undigelled
humours will arife and prevent digeftion ; which is
often known from a fenfe of weight in the ftomach,
or from copious wind and erudlations of various
kinds, chiefly the nidorous and acid ; or from a
naufea and reaching to vomit. In old perfons,
when the whole body is feeble, it may proceed
from want of fpirits, or the fluids being dcfeftive,
or from a debility of the contraftive force and
motions of the ftomach, whence an miivcrfal decay
proceeds.
This diforder is often a fymptom of other
difeafes, particularly the acute, as inflammations,
afthma, dropfy, hypochondriac paflion, melan-
choly, the gout, vomiting, ordvfcntery; or when
the humours are fo corrupt, and the fpirits fo op-
preffed in malignant difeafes, that the faculty of
digeftion is depraved, or nature may be fo bufied
in expelling another difeafe, as to neglect this. In
the laft cafe it cannot be cured till the difeafe itfelf
is vanq^uifhed.
In the fpontaneous ajiorexy, when the ftomach
fs loaded with crudities, which caufe a reaching to
vomit, a Imgle emetic will often perform a cure,
ioined to a Itomachic remedy : but if there is no
reaching, the hum.ours are to be incided aud di-
gefted with bitter falts, fuch as the fahs of bitter
herbs, tartar vitriolated, arcanum duplicatum, or
the like, given in powder from a fcruple to half a
dram, (everal times in a day ; or terra foliata tar-
tari diftblved, to fixty drops or more. After this
the cathartic, compofed of bitter ingredients, or
Epfom fait, may be given.
When the ffomach and iiitcftines are purged,
bitter elixirs and tintlures fliould be ufed, com-
bined with aromatjcs, from fifty to fixty drops, or
ANT
upwards, to rcftore the tone of the ftomach.
Candied ginger, orange-peel, or elixir vitrioli,
efpecially when the peccant humour is alkalious or
bilious, may be properly added to the infufions of
bitter-roots and herbs, with aromatics in wine,
efpecially wormwood wine, and the like ftomachic
liquors.
When the crudities of the ftomach are acid, ab-
forbents are proper, fuch as crabs eyes, mother of
pearl and coral, and then a fuitable purge of aloe-
tlc pills or rhubarb, or a bitter cathartic fait,
Magnefia alba is likewife ufcful on this account,
being abforbent and ufefui in the hypochondriac
paffion. This fhould be taken for fome days,
from fifteen to twenty grains ; if the dofe be en-
larged to a dram or two, it will purge pretty brifk-
ly. The crudities being evacuated, bitters and
aromatics are proper, as well as chalybeates and
tindtures of fteel ; fpa waters, and other mineral
waters of the fame kind, together with exercife,
and now then a draught of generous wine will be
found very advantageous. Smoaking tobacco fre-
quently is hurtful, as well as drinking of drams ;
the diet fhould be regular, and the patient muft
avoid aliments that are hard of digeftion, fat, or
flatulent, and alfo intenfe ftudies.
ANS^'E, in aftronomy, are two parts of Saturn's
ring, which appear on each fide that planet, when
viewed through a telefcope. Thcl'e anfa?, or
handles, fometimes appear open, and fometimes
not ; the reafon of which fee under the article
Saturn'.
ANSER, the goofe, in natural hiftory ; fee the
article Goose.
Akser, in aftronomy, a fmall ftar of the fifth
magnitude in the milky-way, between the eagle
and fwan. For its right afcenfion, declination,
&CC. fee the conftellation V'ulpecula.
ANSES, in aftronomy, the fame with anfae.
See Aks^e.
ANT, Farmiid, in natural hiftory, the name of
a well-known infec!:, celebrated both for its in-
duftry and ceconomy.
The fight of ants is really very inftrucVive.
They are a little people united, like the beei, in
a republic governed by its own laws and politics.
They have a kind of oblong city, divided into va-
rious ftreets, that terminate at different magazines.
Some of the ants eonfoiidate the earth, and pre-
vent its falling in, by a furface of glue with which
they incruft it. Thofe which v/e commonly fee,
aniafs feveral fplinters of wood, which they draw
over the tops of their ftreets, and ufe them as
rafters to fuftain the roof; and acrofs thefe they
lay another rank of fplinters, and cover them with
a heap of dry rufhes, grafs, and ftraw, which they
raife with a double flope, to turn the current of
the water from their magazines ; fome of which
are appropriated to receive their provifions, and in
the
ANT
the others they depofit their eggs, and the worms
that proceed from them.
As to their provifions, they take up with every
thing eatable, and arc indefatigable in bringing
home their fupplics. You may fee one loaded with
the kernel of (bme fruit, another bends under the
weight of a dead gnat. Sometimes feveral of them
arc at work on the carcafc of a May-fly, or feme
other infeiSt. \Vhr.t cannot be rtmovcJ they eat
o;i the fpot, and carry home all thit is capable of
being prcfcrved. The whole focietv is not per-
mitted to make e.xcurfions at random : fome are
detaclied as fcouts, to get intelligence ; and, ac-
cording to the tidings they bring, all the commu-
nity are upon the march, either to attack a ripe
pear, a cake of fiigar, or a jar of fweet meals ;
and, in order to come to this jar, they leave the
garden, and afcend the houfe ; there they find this
mine of fugar, this rich Peru of fweets, that opens
all its treafures to their viev.'. But their march to
it, as well as their return from it, is under fome
regulation : the whole band is ordered to aflemble
and move in the fame track ; but the injunction is
not executed with much feverity, and they have
liberty to expatiate v.'hen they have an opportunity
to ipnng any game in the country. The green
venr.in that make an infinite wade among flowers,
and cockle the leaves of the peach and pear trees,
are furrounded with a glue, or kind of hone)',
which is fought for by the ants with great avidity ;
but they are not folli'citous either for the flefh 'of
thefe creatures, or for any part of the plant.
Thefe are the vermin who are the authors of all
that deftru6tion to cur trees, which is fallcly im-
puted to the ants, and draws upon them a \'cry un-
juft and cruel 'perfecution.
The ants, after they have palTcd the fummer in
a conftant employment and fatigue, fliut themfelves
up in the winter, and enjoy the fruits of their
labour in peace ; however, it' is probable, they eat
but little in that feafon, and are cither benumbed,
or buried in flccp, like a multitude cf other in-
fers ; and therefore their induftry in ftoring up
provifions is not fo much intended to guard againft
the winter, as to provide, during the harveft, a
necefiary fuftcnance for their vcung. They nourifh
them, as foon as they leave the egg, v/itii an afli-
duity that employs the v;hole nation ; and the care
of their little progeny is eiteemed a matter of im-
portance to all the ftate.
When the young quit the egg, they are little
worms, no longer Iha'n common" grains of fand,
and after they have for feme time leceived their
aliment, which is brought to them in common,
and diftributed in equal proportions, they fpin a
thread, and wrap themfthes up in a white web,
and fometimes in one that is yellow ; at which
period they ceafc to eat, and becom.e aurelias. In
»his ftate, fome people fancy they are the eggs of
ANT
ants, when in reality they arc the nymphs, out of
whofe ruins the nev.' pifmircs are to rife. Though
the young difcontinue their eating, their nurture
flil! proves \erv fatiguing to their parents. 1 hefe-
ha\e generally feveral apartments, and remove their
young from the nurfery to fome other manfioii
they intend to people. They either raife the au-
relias toward the furface of the earth, or fink thcni
to a diflance from it, in proportion as the feafon is
either warm or cold, rainy or dry. They raifc
them when the weather proves ferene, or when a
lone; drought is fuccecded by gentle dews ; but,
at the approach of night and cold, or the appear-
ance of Ihowers, they clafp their beloved charge
in their arms, and defcend with them to fuch a
depth, that one mufl then dig above a foot into
the earth before thofe aurelias can be difcovered.
If a moufe, frog, or other like animal, be
placed in an ant-hill, he will be devoured, in ;i
few days, to the bones and ligaments. Hence we
are furnifhed with a method of obtaining llceletons
of thofe animals, exquifitely beautiful and perfeiS,.
far furpafling any thing that can be executed byar-
ficial anatomy. The fubject is for this purpofe to
be inclofed in a wooden box, and properly diftend-
ed, to pre\ent the parts from collapfiiig or being
crufhed together by the earth. The box is to be
perforated with a number of holes, through whic-li.
the infefts will prefently find their way.
Ant-Eater, in natural hiftory, the name of
.an American quadruped that lives upon ants.
l^his creature is as long and as tall as a middle-
fized dog ; his hind legs refemble thofe of the
bear ; but his fore legs are more flender. His fore
feet are flat, and divided into four toes, armed with
long claws ; but thofe behind have five toes. His
head is long, with a fharp prominent fnout, fmall
round black eyes, and very black ears. Thofe
that have meafured the tongue, affirm, that they
ha\e found it upwards of tv/o feet in length, but
very flender: he is obliged to bend part of it back
when he keeps it within his mouth, the jaws being
too fliort to contain it without this artifice.
He lives upon ants, as was obferved above, and
when he has found out one of their nefts, he opens
the upper part of it with his claws, that he may
have room to put in his fnout and tongue. This is
befmeared with a flimy liquor, and is foon covered
with ants, when he draws it into his mouth and
fwailows them. He repeats this praftice as long as
they will run into the fame fnare.
The tail of this creature is very remarkable,
and in fome meafure refembles that of the fox.
It is generally two feet in length, almoft flat, and
covered on all fides with hair, from fifteen to twerr-
ty inches long: it is a little harfh, which gives it
fomewhat the appearance of a horfe's tail ; is very
ftrong, and he can move it jull as he pleafes ;
when he turns it upon his back, it entirely covers
ANT
■v., arnl defends the creature from the rain, which
lie greatly diilikes.
Ant-Bear, the fume with ant-eater defcribed
iii the precceding article.
AiJT-HiLLS, in hulbandrv, are little hillocks
of earth v/hich the ants throw up for their habita-
tion for the breeding their young. They are a
■\ery great mifchief to dry paftures, not only by
"waiting fo much land as they cover, but by hinder-
ing the fcythe in mowing the grafs, and yielding a
poor hungry food pernicious to cattle.
The manner of deftroying them is to cut them
ijito four parts from the top, and then dig into
them fo deep as to take out the core below,, fo
that, when the turf is laid down again, it may lie
fomewhat lower than the level of the reft of the
hnd ; and this will prevent ants from returning
to the fame place, v.'hich otherwife they would cer-
tainly do. The earth that is taken out muft be
f:attered to as great a diftance as may be, otherwife
they will collect it together and make another hill
jult'by. ^ . , .,
The proper time for doing this is winter, and, if
the places be left open, the froft and rains of that
time of the year will deftroy the reft ; but in tliis
cafe care muft be taken that the holes arc covered
lip early enough in the fpring, otherwife they will
be lefs fertile in grafs than the other places..
In Hertfordfhire tliey ufe a particular kii-ni of
fpade for tl^is purpofe. It is yjvy fliarp, and formed
at the top into the fhape of a crefccnt ; io that the
whole edge makes up more than three fourths of a
circle : this cuts in every part, and does the bufi-
iiefs very quickly and eftedlually : others ufe the
fame inlhuments that they do for mole-hills.
Human dung is a better remedy than ail thefe,
TlS is proved by experiment ; for it will kill great
aiumbers of them, and drive all the reft away,
if only a fmall quantity of it be put into their
hills.
ANTA, in ancient architesSure, a fquare pi-
lafter, placed at the coniers of the buildings.
Le Clerc ufes the term to fignify a kind of fhaft of
a pillar, without bafe or capita!, and even without
anv mouldintr.
ANTAGONIST yl/«/c/«, in anatomy, are
thofe which have oppofite funftions, as flexors and
extenfors ; abdui^Lors and adductors, &c.
ANTARCTIC, or Antartic, in a general
fenfe, denotes fomething contrary or oppofite to
the northern or arftic pole; thus the antarctic pole
is the fouthern end of the earth's axis ; and the an-
tarctic circle is one of the lefter circles of the
fphere, parallel to the equator, and diftant 23° 30'
from the fouth pole : it is likewife one of thofe
circles which in geography and aftronomy are
called the polar circles.
ANTARES, in aftronomy, a bright ftar of the
firft magnitude in fcorpio. This ftar is proper to
4
ANT
be obfcrved with the moon, v/hen ftie has fouthern
declination, for determining the longitude, as well
as fettling the moon's place, &c. Sec the con-
ftelKxtion Scorpio.
ANTE, in heraldry, implies the pieces being
let into one another, in the form expreffed in
blazoning; as by dove-tails, rounds, fwallow'-
tails, or the like.
ANTECEDENT, in a general fenfe, implies
fomething that goes before another, either v.'ith
regard to time or place.
The word is Latin, ant:ccdens, and compounded
of aute^ before, and cedo, to go.
ANTECEDE^fT, in grammar, is the word to
which the relative refers. Thus in the fentence,
" The book that we read," the word book is the
antecedent.
Antecedent, in logic, is the firft propofi-
tion of an enthyraema. See the article Enthy-
MEMA.
Anteceeent, in mathematics, is the firft term
in any ratio, or proportion, when the terms are
compared together. Thus, in the ratio of 7 to 8»
or c,i X to J, - and .v, are the antecedents, and if
and V, the confequents.
Antecedent Decee, in the fchool philofophy^
is a decree preceding fome other decree. It is a.
famous difpute whether predeftination be a decree-
antecedent, or fiibiequcnt to faith.
Antecedent Si^ns among phyficians, fuch as
are obferved before a diftemper is formed fufficiently
to be reduced to any particular clafs. Thus a bad
difpofition of the blood is an antecedent ftgn, be-
caiife it precedes an infinite number of difeafes.
ANTECEDENTIA, in aftronomy, an appa-
rent motion of a comet, planet, or other point ia
the heaven toward the weft, or contrary to the
order of the fi2;ns.
ANTECHAR/TBER, in architefture, implies
the chamber that leads to the chief apartment.
The word is compounded of the Latin prepofi-
tion, O'lti', before, and chamber.
ANTEDATE, in law, implies a fpurious or
falfc date, prior to the true date of any writing.
The v/ord is coiripounded of the Latin, ante., be-
fore, and dati.m., a date.
ANTEDILUVIAN, fignifies in its general
fenfe, fcmething that exifted before the deluge.
It is a Latin word, compounded of anie., before,
and diluvium, a deluge.
Antediluvian PbUofophy, means that philo-
fophy which was known and pra*ftii'ed by the
patriarchs before the flood. This in all probability
was very confined and iuiperfedt ; as it is obferva-
ble that in all countries, where the arts and fcien-
ces have flourifhed, they have advanced by a re-
gular progreffion to maturity. Indeed it is in thefe,
as in the body natural j which by a daily, yet
imperceptible encreafe, goes on fiom infancy to
youth.
ANT
ANT
youth, and from vouth to mi'.nhtjod ; 'till at length
it arrives at its full ftrength and vigour.
Antediluvian U'orUl, the earth with its in-
habitants, as they exifted before the deluge. Dr.
Burnet in his Pbilofopbicd Rmimnce, which he calls
a Theory of the Earth, fupirofes, that before the
flood there was no fea, no mountains, no rocks,
or broken ca\es, but all was one continued and
regular mafs, fmooth, fimple, and compleat. He
carries us back, to prove this hypothefis, to the
original chaos ; in which were mingled together
air, water, and earth, without any order of higher
,or lower, heavier or lighter, folid or volatile.
When the earth firft arofe out of this chaos, he
fuys the heavier and grofler parts funk down to
the middle, (for there he fuppofes the centre of
grayity) and the lighter fwam above : this lighter
fluid part was impregnated with oily and bitumi-
iious fubftances, as well as the finer and more
I'ubtile parts of the earth, which concreted, and
formed a crufl: upon the water. This cruft was
.tb.e ant.'diluvian earth ; in praife of which the very'
ingenious dccior expatiates largely, as the fittelt
Ibil that could ■ poffibly have been invented," to
produce ev^ry thing necefiary for the fupport of
.its inhabitants. " In this fmooth earth, fays he,
" were the firft fcenes of the world, and the firft
" generations of mankind ; it had the beauty of
'' youth and blooming nature, frefh and fruitful,
" and not a wrinkle, fcur, or frafture, in all its
" body ; no rocks nor mountains, no hollow
" caves nor gaping channels, but even and uni-
" form all oven And the fnioothnefs of the earth
" made the heavens fo too ; the air was calm and
-■*' ferene ; none of thofe tumultuary motions and
" confli<Sls of vapours, which the mountains and
" winds caufe in ours : it was fuited to a golden
," ane, and to the firft innocency of nature."
What a deplorable thing was the tranfgreffion of
Adam, and the licentioufnefs of his defcendants,
that they fhould deprive us of fo charming a world,
as is here defcribed ? and how little providence
muft there have been in the wile Author of nature,
to create fo beautiful a frame as this, which in fo
fhort a fpace as about fixteen hundred years, was
to be changed into its prelcnt form ? a form that is
-all over rugged and uneven ; with crofs and un-
couth defarts, rough and craggy mountains, wild
and tempeftuous oceans, hollow grots, and dreary
caverns, with a thoufand other difnial appearances,
the very idea of which would have frightened poor
Adam out of his fenfes. What Jhall we fay new,
if nntwithflanding what Dr. Burnet has told us,
the world was fafhioiied by the divine Architeft,
pretty nearly as we fee it at prefent ? Dr. V.'ood-
ward is clearly of this opinion, that the face of the
terraqueous globe, before the deluge, was the fame
as it is now, viz. unequal, diftinaiuiftied into rocks
and plains, dales and mountains : that there were
9
fpring? and rivers ; that the fea was then fait, as if
is at prefent, and fubjedt to winds and tides; thit
there was the fame fuccciTion of weather, and the
fame viciiutudcs of feafons.
Mr. Wiiifton imagines that the chaos, out of
which this earth of ours was formed, had been the
atmofphcre of a comet ; that the annual motion of
the earth began as foon as it afTumed a new form,
but that the diurnal motion did not take place tiil
after the fall of Adam ; that before the deluge the
year began at the autumnal equinox, which is not
improbable, as the Jews began their year at that
period, before they returned from their captivity in
Egypt ; that the orbit of the earth was a perfect
circle, and that the fclar and lunar years were the
fame, each cojififting of juft three hundred and
fixty days.
ANTELOPE, in natural hiftory, the name of
an animal called, by Latin authors, gazella Afri-
car.a^ and thought by foine to be the fame as the
Lybian goat.
The antelope is very fwift ; has a white bellv,
and the reft of the body of a fallow colour ; the
white and the fallow on the fides are parted by a
black ftripe ; the ej'es are black, the ears large,
the tail blackifh, and a ftripe a little more brown
than the reft of the hair defcends from the e}e
down to the muzzle. He is about the fize of a
roe-buck, and his hair very ftiort. The eyes are
black and large ; and the horns are likewife black
ftriped, crofsways. They are about fifteen in-
ches long, and near an inch in diameter at the
bottom.
ANTENNAE, in natural hiftory, flender bodies,
with which nature hath furniftied the heads of in-
fects, being the fame with what are called in Eng-
lifh the horns or feelers.
AN TEPENULTLMA, in grammar, the third
fyllable from the end of any word, or the laft
fyllable but two.
ANTEPREDICAMENTS, in logic, certain
pfreliminar)' queftions tending to illuftrate the doc-
trine of predicaments and categories. See Predi-
caments.
ANTEVIRGILLA.N Hujhandry. See Hus-
bandry.
ANTHELIX, in anatomy, the inward protu-
herance of the external ear. See Ear.
ANTHELMINTICS, among phyficians, me-
dicines proper to deftrov worms- See Worms.
ANTKEM, a church fong, confifting of fome
pafl'ages of Scripture fet to mufic, and adapted to
fome folemnitv.
ANTHEMIS, in botany, a name given by
Linna.'us for the chamremelum of Tournefort.
See Chamomile.
ANTHERiE, among botanifls, are the fmall
buttons or fummits, which grow on the tops of
the filaments or ftamina of flowers, and contain a
T t prolific
AN T
ANT
prolific powJcr, analogous to the male Jperm of
uiiimals.
ANTKERICUM, in botany, a name given by
Linnrc\is to the phlangium and afphodcl of other
botanifts. Sec the article Spiuerwort.
ANTHOLOGY, a difcourfe or treatife on
fiowers.
The word is compounded of the Greek, av^^y
a flower, and aj^©^, a difcourfe.
Anthology is alfo a nante given to a collection
ol Greek epigrams.
ANTHONY, or Knights of St. Anthony, a
military order inflituted by Albert, duke of Bava-
ria, Holland, and Zealand, when he meditated a
war againfl the Turks in 1382. The knights
wore a collar of gold, made in the form of a her-
mit's girdle, from which hung a flick, cut in the
form of a crutch ; as r«prefeiued iii the pictmes of
St. Anthony.
St. Anthony'j F'ue, a name fomctimes given to
the eryfipelas. See Erysipelas.
ANTHOCEROS, in botany, a genus of moffes
which are deflitute of flower, petals,, and ftamina
inftead of which there is a fingle,, very long,, and
fubulated anthera, arifing from the bafe of the
calyx : the female flower, which is monophyllous,.
and divided into fix parts, is often found on the
fame plant witli the male, and fomctimes on a,
difFerent plant; it commonly contains three round-
ifh feeds, which are naked, and, lodged in the bot-
tom of the calyx.
ANIHOLYZA, in botany,, a genus of plants
in the Linnaean fyflem, producing liliaceous
flowers ; the roots are bulbous and roiuid, from
which arife fev.eral deeply furrowed leaves about a
foot long ; between thefe arife the flowei- flem,
which hath Icveral flowers, confiding of one leaf
divided into fix unequal parts at top; one of thefe
fegments is ftretched far beyond the other, and is
erect ; the m.argins are waved and clofed togetlier,
enveloping three fiJaments crowned with pointed
anthcrK : beneath the flower is placed the germen,
fupporring a fingle ftyle, v,'hich is topped with a
trifid reflexed ftigm.a ; the germen afterward turns
Xo a three-cornered capfulc of three valves, con-
taining feveral triangular feeds. This genus is
comprehended among the gladiolus by other bo-
tanifi.-;.
ANTHORA, in botany, an appellation gi\en
to feveral fpecies of the aconite, called by fome
helmet-flower, and antithora, fuppofed to be the
ZL-doary of the Arabians. The anchora radix of
the fliops is the root of the aconitum falutiferum
of C- Bauhine, and is what the officinal prefcrip-
tions intejid, whenever this is ordered. It grows
in the mountains of Switzerland and Savoy, and
is of a warm bitterifh tafte, and reckoned; a cardiac
and alexipharmic : it is efteemed good in malignant
fevers ; and is prefcribcd as an .intidote agaiuU
poifons, particularly to obviate the bad efFecls of
the poifonous aconite. It is much of the fame
nature as the contrayerua root, on which account
it is called by fome the German contrayerva.
ANTHOS, in botany, a name gi\en by fome
writers to the rofemarv. See the article Rose-
mary.
ANTHRAX, a name by, which the ancient*
called a gem known at prefent by the name of car-
buncle. See Carbuncle.
ANTHROPOGRAPHY, the defcription oP
the human body, its parts, ftru£lure, he.
The word is formed from the Greek, a.v^^wx'^-^
a man, and ^pct^w, to defcribe.
ANTHROPOMORPHITES, was the name
given to a fe<£t of heretics, v/ho through ignorance
and fimplicity took e^ery thing that was fpoken of
God in Scripture in a literal fenfe , as that Adam
heard the voice of God walking in the garden ;
from which they concluded that the Almighty had
the fliape of a man, with real hands and feet, and
the fame organization of members that we havs.
And when it is faid. That Gad created man in his
own image, they fuppofed this to mean as to his
outward form, as well as his foul; which was
thought by them to be corporeal, and to have a
real aiid vihble fhape and figure.
'i'he word is derived from the Greek, *c9p6)-y5v,
3 man,, and lAoncf, die fcnn or figure. They were
alfo called Audiens.
ANTHJIOPOPHAGY, the aa of eating
human flcfh.
The word is formed from the Greek, atSpuTr^-, a
man, and (^ayc., to e.'.t.
ANTHOSPERMUM, in botany, the amber-
tree, fo called from tlie leaves when bruifed emit-
ting a fragrajit fcent : it is a. polygamious plant,
producing male, female, and hermaphrodite flowers ;
the male flowers are apetalous, but its calyx fup-
ports four upright capillary filaments ; the female
flowers are the fame as the male, but inflead of
ftamina there is an oviary fupporting two recurved
ftj'les, which becoreses a roundifli capfulc, contain-
ing fc'/eral angular feeds ;. the androgvnous flowjr
partakes of the male and fcm.ilc, having two
pilrils and four filaments, v/ith the germen belov/.
This plant has been called by fome, fiutex /ifii-
canui (wibram fpirans, or. The African ihrub fmell-
ing like amber..
ANTHYPOPHORA, in rhetoric, the fan?e
with hvpophora. See Hypophora.
ANl'ICARDIUIvl, in botany ; fee the article
SCROBICULUM.
ANTICHRIST, in fcripture, implies one wlvo
will oppofe the religion of Jefus Chrift, and will
appear upon the earth as the great enemy of Chrif-
tianity, fome time before the end of- the world.
This is he whom St. Paul, in his fecond cpiMe
to the Thcil'alonians, fpeaks of aa " the man of
" fin,
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*' fin, the Ton of perdition, who oppofeth and
*' exaltcth himfelf above all that is called God, or
" that is worfhipped ; fo that he, as God, fitteth
" in the temple of God, fliewing himfelf that he
" is God." The coming of Antichrift will be
preceded by many figns in heaven, and upon the
earth : " The fun fhall be darkened, and the
" moon fliall not give her light, and the ftars
" fhall fall from heaven, and the powers of hea-
" ven fliall be fhaken." His reign however will
be fliort, and for this reafon, becaufe otherwife
" no fle(h would be faved," fince he will " de-
" ceivc if it is poflible even the eledl." Some are
of opinion that it will laH three years and a half,
according to thefe words of Daniel, " and it fhall
" be for a time, times, and an half." This thev
pretend is confirmed by feveral other pafliiges of
Scripture, particularly in the Revelations, where it
is ftiid, " the holy city fliall be trodden under foot
** forty and two months." Enoch and Elias will
be fent by God to affifrand encourage the faithful
for twelve hundred and fixty days, and to fight with
Antichrift, who fhall overcome and flay them ;
but after three days and a half the Spirit of Life
from God (hall enter into them, and they fhall be
revived. .
Some furious Proteftants have endeavoured to
prove, with far more zeal than charity, that this
prophecy has been already fulfilled, and that Anti-
chrift is neither more nor lefs than tiie Pope of
Rome.
ANTICOR, in f.irricry, implies an inflam.Tia-
tion of a horfe's throat, being the fame with the
quinzy in the human fpecies.
ANTIDOTE, among phyficians, implies a re-
medy againft peftilential diieafes.
It alfo fignihes a medicine which prevents the ill
effedls of poilon.
ANTIEN7% or Ancient, a term applied to
things that exifted long ago.
Antient, in a military fenfe, implies the enfign
or colours.
Antient, in naval affairs, fignifies the flag car-
ried at the ftem of a fhip.
■ ANTILOGARITHM, is the logarithm of the
co-ime, co-tangent, or lecant. See the aiticle
Logarithm.
ANTILOGY, in literature, denotes an incon-
fiftency between two or more paffages of the fame
book. ,
ANTIMONARCH-ICAL^ a name given to
whatever oppofes monarchical government.
ANTIMONY^ in. natural hiftory, a blackifh
mineral fubftance, ftaining the hands, full of long;,
fiiining, needle-like ftris, hard, brittle, and con-
fiderably hea\y.
It is found in different parts of Europe, as Bo-
hemia, Saxony, Tranfylvania, Hungary, and
France, commonly in mines by itfcif, inttTmixed ,
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with earthy or ftony matters. Sometimes it is
blended with the richer ores of filver, and renders
the extraction of that metal difficult j antimony
volatilizing a part of the filver, or, in the language
of the miners, robbing the ore. Antimony is fe-
parated from its natural impurities by fufion- in an
earthen pot, whofe bottom is perforated with a
number of holes ; the fluid antimony pafling
through, whilft the unfufible matters remain be-
hnid. The melting veflel is let into another pot
funk in the ground, and which ferves as a receiver :
this laft is of a conical figure, and fuch according-
ly is the fliape of the loaves of antimony met with
in the fliops. The jundture of the two velfels is
clolely luted ; the uppermoft one covered, and a
lire made round it ; and feveral fets of this appara-
tus worked at once. In f )me places, inftead of a
pot with a perforated bottom, .one is taken which
has no bottom, and a perforated iron-plate placed
betwixt it and the receiver ; but the other method
is to be preferred, as antimony in fufion. is apt to
diflblve a part of the iron.
Antimony is not a pure but a fulphurated femi-
metal. Thrown into the fire, it burns with a blue
flame and fulphureous vapours : on digefting pow-
dered antimony in aqua regia, the metallic part
is diffolved, and the (ulphur left. The fulphur
of antimony, purified from the metallic part, is •
perfeiStiy the fame with the com.mon brimftone of
the fhops, pofieifing the fame properties, and air-
fwering the fame ufes : if the femimctal, freed
from tlie fulphur naturally mixed with it,- be after-
wards melted with common brimftone, it refumes
the appearance and qualities of crude antimony.
Many have imagined, that this mineral, befides
common fulphur, contains a golden or folar ful-
phur; becaufe antimony purifies and heightens the
colour of gold, and becaufe it difTolves, as gold
does, in aqua regia. But, with regard to the fo-
lubility in aqua i-egia, it is not the fulphureous,
but the metallic matter of the antimony that dif-
folves ; if nothing befides gold and antimony were
afted upon by that menftruum, there might be
fwr.e plaufibility in the .-.rgument ; but furely,when
fo many fubftances difi'olve in it, as iron, copper,
lead, tin, quickfilver, zinc, various earths, kc.
folubility in aqua regia ci'.n be no proof of a folar
impregnation. In the purification of gold, the
fulphur of antimony has no other efFecl than conr-
mon brimftone v/ouid equailv produce : when gold,
containing an admixture of other metals, is melted
u'ith antimony, the fulphur, having little- affinity
with its own femimctal, forfakes it, and unites
with the filver, copper, or other metallic bodies
mixed with the gold, but has no adtion on the
gold itfelf : thus only the impurities of 'the gold
are combined with the fulphur of the antiniojiy in-
to a fcoria, which flows on the fiirfiice ; whilft: the
gold ?iid th« femimct.il ot' the antimony form one
compound
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compound at the bottom : if this compound be ex-
polcd to a ftioiig fire, and a free draught or blaft
of air, it evaporates in fumes, and leaves the gold
pure behind it. This procefs fhews the refiflance
-of gold to fulphur, and to the volatilizing power
of the antimonial femimetal, but furely gives no
foundation for imagining a folar fulphur to exift in
antimony. As gold is the only metal (platina
excepted) that totally refdis antimony or its ful-
phur, this mineral has been called by the che-
mifts balneum folius foils, balneum regis., lupus, ul-
ihiius judex, ijfc.
Hoffman has given an account of the different
medicinal cffedts of antimony, as depending on its
different treatments. He obferves, that crude an-
timony, on account of the regulus being corrcdfed
by the fulphur, is not only fafe, but in many cafes
a medicine of great fervice, both for man and other
animals. That by ftmple fufion it acquires a de-
gree of malignity ; but a far greater if melted with
half its weight of nitre, which confumes nearly all
•the fulphur, and leaves the regulus bare. That
.antimony, or its regulus, mixed with common fait,
: calcined over a gentle fire for ferei-al hours, and
.kept continually flirring, and afterwards edulco-
. rated with water, yields an a(h-grey calx, which
is fo fixed as to bear a melting heat, and proves a
mild and fafe diaphoretic, void of any malignant
or emetic quality. That antimony, by calcina-
tion with a gentle fire in an earthen vcffel, in the
open air, changes into a calx, Avhich melts with
difficulty, and which has no malignity. That if
this calx be melted with a ftrong fire into glafs, it
becomes fo active, that a few grains fhall occafion
violent vomiting and purging, or even mortal con-
vulfions and inflammations. That the powdered
regulus, calcined in a glafs-vi.al placed in fand for
feveral days, becomes a greyifli diaplioretic pow-
der; v/hich reduced into regulus by fufion with
pov/dered charcoal, nitre, and a little fat, proves
again virulent. That when antimony is melted
■with one fourth its weight of fait of tartar, the
whole poured into a mould, the fcoria feparated,
and the more ponderous m.attcr pulverized ; the
reddifh powder thus obtained, is falutary : but that
v/hen antimony is melted with three or four times
its v/eight of lalt of tartar, both the fcoriai and
the regulus arc virulent. That equal parts of an-
timony and nitre, melted together, yield a virulent
mafs ; but one part of antimony, with two or
three of nitre, is an ufeful diaphoretic. That on
melting the diaphoretic calces with fat, charcoal,
powder and nitre, the virulejit regulus is revived.
And thus one preparation may be changed into
another, a falutary into a poifonous, and a poifon-
ous into a falutary one.
Prefarations of ANTIMONY. The preparations
.of antimony are extremely numerous. Lemery, in
his Treatife on Antimony, defcribes no lefs than
ANT
two hundred ; among which there are many good ,
and many ufelefs ones. That gentleman was an
excellent chemlft, but an unhappy philofopher :
we may depend on his operations, but we fhould
diftruil: his theory. "iVith regard to the antin.o-
nials, the greater number even of the common
preparations is unneceffary ; many of them differ-
ing little from one another, and all of them being
either emetic or diaphoretic. The preparations of
antimony may be ranged, according to the general
operations by which they are produced, under four
heads ; thofe obtained by folution, bv dillillaticn,
by fublimation, and by calcination.
Gloden Sulphur of Antimony. If powdered an-
timony be boiled in alkaline lixivia, or fope leys ;
the fulphur, and, by the mediation of the fulphur,
a part of the regulus, v.'ill be diilblved into a ycl-
lowifh red liquor. Any acid added to this folution
precipitates what the alkaline liquor had taken up,
in form of a yellowifh or reddifti powder, called
fulphur, or golden fulphur of antimony ; the pow-
der which fettles firlt is groffer and darker-coloured
than thofe which follow ; it appefirs of a deep red-
difh brown, vvhilll that v/hich fubfides laflr is of a
pale yellow. The firft is alfo the mofl: ai'tive.
There are fundry variations of this procefs, both
in regard to the folution and the precipitation.
A difference in the manner of preparing the folu-
tion does not feem to affe£t the virtue of the me-
dicine ; but a difference in the acid ufed for the
precipitation does ; different acids having verv dif-
ferent effe<Sls upon antim^ony : thus, whilll the
marine renders it highly corrofive, or emetic, the
addition of the nitrous deflroys the virulence of
both preparations, and renders the antimony mild-
ly diaphoretic.
All the antimonial fulphurs are emetic and ca-
thartic : .thofe which precipitate firft are much
more llrongiy io than the powder which falls laft ;
the lalt precipitates, if they prove emetic once or
twice, ceafe .to have that effect upon continuing
their ufe, a.nd aft chiefly ;>s diaphoretics ; and
hence are greatly to be preferred to the firft. A
powder is vended by thcvCarthufian friars in Paris,
at a coiifiderable .price, as a fpccific againft fun-
dry diforders ; commonly called j)oudre des char-
trcux, but by themlelvcs kermes mineral. See
Kermes Mineral.
Butter of Antimony. For diffolving the regu-
lus of antimony without the fulphur, the moft
concentrated fpirit of fait, or aqua regis, is ne-
cefl'ary. For obtaining the folution in fpirit of
fait, mercury fublimatc and powdered antimony
are mixed together, and digefted in a glafs-retorc
placed in fand ; the marine acid in the fublimate
forlakes the mercury, and corrodes or dillblves the
antimonial regulus ; whilft the mercury of the
fublimate unites with the antimonial fulphur.
But the folution of the regulus, thus effeded,
caunoc
ANT
cannot be commodioufly feparated from the other
matter but by diftillation : on increafing the fire,
the regulus arifes, diflblved in the concentrated
acid not in a liquid form, but in that of a thick
unftuous fubftance, like butter ; hence called but-
ter of antimony. The butter liquefies by heat ;
and requires the cautious application of a live coal
to melt it down from the neck of the retort. By
rciStiiication or expofurc to the air, it becomes
fluid, but Itill retains the name of butter. The
addition of water, either in its thick or fluid {late,
by diluting the acid, precipitates the regulus dif-
folved in it. The proportions of fublimate and
antimony commonly employed, arc three parts of
the former to one of the latter.
Flowers of Antimony. Thefe are prepared by
fubliming either the crude antimony, or the regu-
lus, with a number of aludels ; the fire being kept
up ilrong, and a blall of air impelled occafionally
by a pair of bellows upon the matter in the fublim-
ing pot, to promote its evaporation. The antimo-
nial flowers are in general of great aftivity, and
though recommended by fome as arcana in par-
ticular difordcrs, require to be ufed with great
caution.
Cinnabar of Antimony. After the diftillation
of butter of antimony, the mercury and the ful-
phur, contained in the ingredients made ufe of for
that procefs, remain behind in the retort. This
compound appears of a black colour ; urged with
a ftrongcr fire than that which elevated the butter,
it fublim.es into a red mafs, called cinnabar of an-
timcn)-. This cinnabar has been by many prefer-
red to the common factitious cinnabar, but on no
juft foundatioji : they both confift: of mercury
combined with fuiphur ; and the only difference
betwixt them is, that the antimonial cinnabar con-
tains fcmewhat more fuiphur than the other, and
hence appears of a darker colour.
Gl/ifs if Antimony. This is chiefly prepared
by fome particular perfons at Amfterdam and
Rouen, who have furnaces contrived on puipofe
for calcining large quantities of antimony with
little expencc of fuel. The glafs may be eafily
made, by urging the calx in a crucible with a
ftror.g fire, and throwing in, towards the end, a
little crude antimony or fuiphur. When thevitre-
fication is completed, the glafs is poured on a cop-
per plate, or on a fiat fi:one. l^he glafs of anti-
mony is ufed only for making other emetic prepa-
rations, as the emetic wine, &c.
Hepnr Antimonii, liver of antimony. Equal
parts of crude' antimony and nitre mixed together,
fet on fire and fuffered to deflagrate in an iron
mortar, which may be covered with a perforated
plate, or injected by degrees into an ignited cruci-
ble, yield a liver-coloured mafs, called hepar an-
timonii, which pulverized and edulcorated with
v/ater is named crocus metallorum. Two, three,
9
ANT
or even one grain of either of tliefe preparations
occafion \'iolent anxieties and vomitings ; though
a dog will bear a dram, and a horfe a whole ounce,
without being apparently any otherwife afFc£lcd
than in having the alvine difcharge increafed.
The emetic wine, emetic tartar, and other medi-
cines made from the glafs, may alfo be made from
the crocus.
Diaphoretic Antimony. One part of antimony
and two and a half or three of nitre, mixed toge-
ther and deflagrated, yield a calx void of all emetic
power, called diaphoretic antimony.
The marital Diaphoretic Antimony, or Specifc
Stomachic cf Poierius, is prepared by melting equal
parts of antimony and iron filings, injefting upon
them in fufion thrice their weight of powdered
nitre, and after the detonation is over, edulcorat-
ing and drying the calx. The jovial diaphoretic
antimony, or antihei£lic of Poterius, is made in
the fame manner, from a mixture of tin and mar-
tial regulus of antimony, in the proportion of one
part of tin to four of the re?ulus. This prepara-
tion has no claim to antiheftic virtues, nor indeed
to any falutary operation.
Regulus of Antimony. The fimple regulus of
antimony is commonly prepared from equal parts
of antimony, nitre, and tartar, mixed together
and injected into a red-hot crucible : when the
whole is thrown in, the crucible is to be covered,
a ftrong fire kept up for a quarter of an hour, and
the matter poured out into a conical mould previ-
oufly warmed and rubbed with greafe. The yield
of^ regulus v/ill be larger, if the quantity of nitre
is dirniniflied ; or if the nitre and tartar are defla-
grated together, in the proportion of one part of
the former to tv/o of the latter, before their mix-j
ture with the antimony. The falts are reduced by
the deflagration ijito a black alkaline coal ; this is
the fubftance commonly ufed by the chemifts for
promoting the fufion of metallic calces, and re-
viving them into their metallic form, and hence is
diuinguiftied by the name of black flux. Some have
been accuftomed to fave the expence of nitre, by
taking pot-afli or other alkaline falts : the regulus
is in both cafes the fame. "When the matter is ■
grown cold, the fcoria found on the furface are
knocked off, the regulus reduced into coarfe pow-
der, melted in a frefli crucible, and about one
fourth its weight of purified nitre injefted upon it;
this depuration may be twice or thrice repeated
with fmallcr proportions of nitre, till the fcoris
become femitranfparcnt and of an amber colour.
Martial Regulus of Antimony. This prepa-
ration is obtained very commodioufly from four
parts of powdered antimony, tv.-o parts of iron
nails or wire, and one part of nitre. The iron, -
made red hot in a crucible, foon melts upon adding
the antimony ; after which the nitre is to be injeft-
ed, the crucible covered, and the matter, when
U- u brought •
ANT
"liroiight into thin fufion, poured expeditioudy into
a warm gve.iied cone. The rcj^iilus freed from the
■icoriae is to be melted afrefli, witli about one fourth
its weight of nitre ; and this purification, if ne-
ceil'ary, repeated. If the regulus retains any luper-
fluoiis iron, it will look greyifli, fpongy, prove
hard to break, and difficult of fufion : in fuch
cafe, the fcorification of all the iron, by means of
nitre, would be a tedious work ; but the addition
of a little crude antimony, or common fulphur,
will abforb it at once ; and the injection of nitre
will now foon complete the purification, and ren-
der the regulus of a fparkling white colour. 1 he
fcoriae arc yellow and femitranfparent, like amber;
if the quantity of nitre has not been too lare;e,
they prove an excelTively Icrong fiery alkali, difnn-
guilhed by the name of nitrum caidticuni. The
yellow fcori.-E, which feparate in the depuration of
the fimple regulus wixh nitre, are likewifc alkaline,
but want the caufticity of thef; : the fcorise pro-
duced from the martial regulus, by calcination
with tartar, take fire on being expoled to the air.
If either regulus, after due purification, be haflily
poured into the mould whilfl: in exceeding thin
fufion, and if the quantity of fcorix covering the
furface is confulerable, the regulu?, when grov/n
cold, exhibits the appearance of a i\ds upon the
top. For producing this appearance, there is no
cccafion for any particular fort of antimony, or
any particular iron, or any particular conllellation,
or feafon, or weather, as many have idly imagined ;
the whole depending upon the circunillance above-
mentioned.
The fimple regulus is caft into cups, which,
like thofe made from the glafs, communicate an
eme'.ic quality to wines ; and into pills, like fhot,
v/hi(.h prove flrongly purgative, and do not lofe
their virtue in paiEng through the body ; whence
.their nan:-? pilulcc perpetua;.
Tinciitre of Antimony. There are various
tinctures of antimon}', which fcm.e have fondly
imagined to participate of folar, venereal, antim.o-
jiial, and other impregnations. They appear to
be all no other than fimple alkaline tin6lures ; their
colour proceeding from the oily matter of the ipirit
-of wine, heightejied by the cauftic alkali. Spirit
of wine confifts of an oil highly attenuated and
combined with water into one feemingly homogene
liquor; if the moft highly rectified (pirit, which
exhibits no mark of any phlegm, be employed for
niaking thefe tindures, it will now yield in diflil-
lation a g*od quantity of water ; the oil, before
combined with that water, having been abforbed
.by the alkali. If cauftic alkaline fait, alone, be
poured hot into reflificd fpirit, and the mixture di-
gefted for fdnie time, a tindure will be obtained, not
'diftinguifhable from the antimcnial. If fulphur be
added in either cafe, the tiniSlure will receive a, con-
iiderable tafte and fmell from ih::t ingredient.
5
ANT
ANTTNOMIANS, a fed of heretics fo called,
becaule they rejciSted the law as of no ufe under
the Gofpel difpenfation. The word is derived
from the Greek ai']/, againlt, and vo<j.'^, the
lav,'.
They held that good works were not profitable,
nor evil works pernicious to the foul ; that God
never punifhed any nation for the fins of its in-
habitants ; that murder, adidtery, drunkennefs,
and fuch like, were real and damnable crimes in
others, but not in them, juft as equivocation and
lying was no fin in faithful Abraham ; that the
children of God, being once affured of their fal-
vation, can fin no more, or as Mr. Wefley fixys,
are in a finlefs ftate ; that no man's confcience
fliould be offended becaufe it is llained with guilt j
that a hypocrite may have all the graces which
Adam had before his fall ; that faith in Jefus
Chriil is the only and all-fufficient means of fal-
vation ; that God regards no one for his piety and
virtue ; with many other abfurd tenets too tedious
to enumerate. One John Agricola is faid to have
been the author of this fed, in the year 1535.
ANTIPARALLELS, in geometry, are thofe
lines, as DE and BC (Plate 'K.Ji^. 5.) v/hichform
the fame angles as ADE and K C A, with the two
lines A B and C A cutting them, but in contrary
vyays or oppofite diredions, like parallel lines. Mr.
Leibnitz in the A6ta Erudit. an. 1691, p. 279. calls
thofe lines antiparallels, as GI, HK (plate X./ig.
6.) which cut two parallels AD and EF, fo thst
the outward angle AB I, together v/ith the inward
one AC K, be equal to a right angle. When the
fides AB and AC of a triangle, as ABC (Plate X.
/f^.5.) are cut by a lincDE, antiparallel to the bale
BC, the faid fides are cut reciprocally proportional
by the faid line DE ; that is, AD : BD : : EC : AE,
the triangles ADE and ACB being fimilar or
equiangular.
ANTIPATHY, a natural averfion of one body
to another ; the oppofite to fympathy.
The v/ord is Greek, eLVTiTrnS-id., and com-
pounded of ctcT/, againft-, and -rrciQ^-, affedion.
ANTIPERISTALTIC A4t[io„ of the Intcflhm,
is a motion direitly oppofite to the periftaltic. See
the article Peristaltic.
ANTIPERISTASIS, in the peripatetic philo-
fophy, an imaginary method of increafing the
pov/er or force of any quality, by the oppofition of
its contrary. Thus cold is faid to augment the
heat of fire ; a diidrine now iufficiently ex-
ploded.
The v/ord is Greek, c(i'T;-r;p/racr/<, and com-
pounded of cLvrti about, and TTipi^cui, to encom-
pafs, or furround.
ANTIFHONY, altcrn.itc finging ; as when a
congregation, divided into two parts, repeats or
fings a plalm or anthem, vsrfe for verfe, one after
the other.
The
AN T
The word is compounded of tlie Greek, dcr/,
■oppofite, and aacu, a voice.
Antiphony is oppofed to fymphony, which is
finging jointly, or ail together. St. i-iui1:in carries
the original of this way of finging, in the weftcrn
church, no higher than the tnne of St. Ambrofe,
when it was firfi: introduced into the church of Mi-
lan ; which example was foon followed by the other
weflrern churches. What was the original of it in
the eaftern church, is not fo certainly agreed upon
by writers, either ancient or modern. It was a me-
thod of fmging fo taking and delightful, that it was
often ufed, when only two or three were met toge-
ther for private devotion. And Socrates particu-
l.irly remarks of the emperor 'I'heodolius the
Younger, and his fifl:ers, that they fung alternate
hymns together every morning in the royal
palace.
ANTIPHRASIS, in rhetoric, a figure, by
which, in faying one thing, they mean the contrary.
See the article Irony.
The word is Greek, and compounded of ayji,
oppofite, and aps^a, to fpcak.
ANTIPODES, in geography, a name given to
fuch as live diametrically oppofite to each other on
oppofite meridians and parallels : at 180 degrees di-
llant they have all things contrary ; the one has
fummer and long da\ s, or no nights, at the fame
time as the other has winter, fhoit days, or perpe-
tual nights ; it is likewife 12 o'clock at noon with
one when it is midnight with the other.
When we confider that the horizon of one is 90
degrees dillant from the zenith of the other, it v/ill
be eafy to conceive that when any cueleitial objeiSc
rii'es to one in the ealf, it lets to the other in the
eaft ; and when it fets to one in the well, it rifes to
the other in the wed:.
In former times it was confidered as a fable for
any one to fay people walked with their feet oppo-
fite to ours i nor could they conceive that men or
trees could iubfill fufpended in air with their feet
upwards ; not confidering that upvi'ards and down-
wards fignify nothing more than a lefs or greater
diftancc from the center of the earth, to which all
heavy bodies gravitate.
Plato is faid to have firft hinted that there was
any fuch thing as antipodes, and is fuppofed to be
the fill! inventor of the name. We need not won-
der that this great philofopher concluded the exift-
cnce of antipodes, when he before apprehended the
earth to be fpherical. However, their exigence were
greatly difputed by the ancients, efpecially by St.
Auguilin, Lactantius, Boniface archbiihop of
Mentz, and m.any others, which held it even to be
herefy to believe there were any inhabitants on the
oppoiite fiJc of the globe.
In theHiflory of the Academy of Sciences 1741,
die antipodes are confidered in the following man-
ANT
ner, with regard to their being diametrically oppofite
on the glebe to c.ich other :
It we luppole that a perpendicular or vertical line
bo drawn through any place \i/hatever, and which
confequently palfes through the zenith of that
place, the oppofite part on the furface of the globe,
which this vertical line continued v/ould cut, is the
fituation of the antipodes to that place ; but this de-
pends on a fuppofition of the earth's bemg a per-
feift fpherc ; for if the earth be not a perfect fphere,
but an oblate or prolate fpheroid, there are no reci-
procal antipodes : that is, for inftance, if a line be
drawn through the zenith of London, and center
of that city, which is in the northern hemifphere,
this line would cut thefouthern hemifphere in a point
v.'hich will be diametrically oppofite to London ; but
London then will not be the antipodes to this place.
7"hus the reciprocal equality of fituation, latitude,
day and night, in the oppofite hemifpheres at fi.-c
months diftance, and all that we are ufed to include
in the idea of antipodes, as infeparable from it, is
no longer fo ; and mull: alter, in proportion as the
figure of the earth deviat-js from a true fphere. A
little attention will convince us of this.
What we have advanced is founded on this
pofition, that the fphere, or, to render t!ie theory
more fimple, the circle, is the only regular figure
which all diametrical lines dravvn through the cen-
ter cut at right angles : therefore, in every figure
terminated by another kind of curve, to inftance in
the ellipfis, the perpendicular drawn to one of its
foci, or to its tangent, except the two axes whicli
correfpond to the polar line, or a diameter drawn at
the equator, will not pafs through the center, nor
cut the oppofite part of the ellipfis at right angles ;
therefore the nadir of Paris or London is not the
zenith of their refpedlive antipodes. So if, in the
center of London or Paris, a perpendicular co-
lumn v.'ere erected, and another in their refpeclive
antipodes, it would not make the fame right-line,
but v/ould form an angle more or lefs acute, in pro-
portion as the ellipfis departed more or lefs from a
circle ; and confequently the latitude, days, nights,
feafbns, &c. would alter in the fame proportion.
Places fituated under either pole, or on the equator,
are excepted for the reafon we have before fugo-eft-
ed ; becaufe, in the former cafe, it is one of the
axes of the ellipfis that joins both foci, and in the
latter it is always a circle, the other axis of whicli
is the diameter of the ellipfis ; the fpheroid, how-
ever oblate or prolate, being always fuppofed to re-
fult from the revolution of the elliptical meridian
round the axis of the world.
ANTIPOPE, in the Romifli church, implies a
pcrfon elciSted pope in an irregular manner, in op-
pofition to another.
ANTIPTOSIS, in rhetoric, is a figure which
puts one cafe for another.
The
ANT
The word is Greek, and compounded of a.vri,
oppofite, and TTsaa-/;, a cafe.
ANTIQUARIAN Sodety.—A fociety of anti-
quaries was formed in the city of London, about
the year 1580, by fome of the moft learned men in
the kingdom ; but having been frequently inter-
rupted and difcontinued, very little can be faid con-
cerning the fame till the year 1717, when it was
again revived by a number of gentlemen, ftudious
of antiquity in general, but more particularly de-
firous to obtain all poffible knowledge of the anti-
quities of their own country. With this view they
agreed to meet one evening in every week under cer-
tain regujc.tions ; they encouraged correfpondencies
with all parts of the kingdom ; they fubfcribed an
annual fum to defray the expence of engraving on
copper-plates whatfhould be thought deferving to be
!b preferved, and limited their nutnber to 100. And
in this manner they continued their weekly meeting
with great reputation, till his majcfty king George
II. was graciouHy pleafed to grant them a royal
charter of incorporation, dated November 2, 1751,
and to declare himfelf their founder and patron.
Under this charter they became a body corporate,
by the name of the Society of Antiquaries of Lon-
don, with a power to have and ufe a common feal,
ro fue and be fued, and to take, hold, and enjoy,
by purchafe, gift, or otherwifc, any lands, tene-
ments, or hereditaments, not exceeding in the
whole one thoufand pounds per annum. And it is
therein direfted, that the council of the faid fociety
fhall at all times confift of twentv-one perfons, the
prefident for the time being always to be one; and
Martin Felices, Efq; was by charter appointed the
firfl: prefident, and alfo twenty other perfons theicin
named to be the firft council, impowering them,
within two months from the date thereof, to no-
minate, choofe, and admit, as fellows of the faid
fociety, fuch perfons as fliould excel in the knov/-
ledge of the antiquities and hiflory of this and
other nations, and be eminent for piety, virtue, in-
tegrity, and loyalty. This firft prefident and
council were to continue till the 23d day of April
next enfuing ; on vvhich day, in e\ery year here-
after, the council and fellows affenibied to nomi-
nate and eleft a prefident and council for the eniu-
jng year : and it was particularly directed that
eleven of the former council fliould be continued,
and ten other perfons chofen out of the members of
the fociety ; ten and no more of the council being
to be changed annually. The prefident is impow-
ered to nominate four perfons of the council to be
his deputies, and fupply his place, in cafe of fick-
nefs or abfence ; and the prefident, council, fellows,
or any twenty-one or more, are impowered to make
flatutes, rules, orders, and bye-laws, for the go-
vernment and diredlion of the faid fociety, their
ellr.tcs, goods, &c, and for the admifiion and
ANT
amoval of all and every the members and officers
thereof. And the prefident, council, and fellows,
may at any time appoint treafurers, fecretaries, and
clerks, may have and employ one ferjeant at mace,
and fuch other fervants as they think neceffary.
And laftly, if at any time abufes or differences
fliould arife, the archbiiliop of Canterbury, the
lord chancellor or keeper of the great feal, and the
lord privy feal, and the two fecretaries of ftate for
the time being, were appointed vifitors, with the
full power for any three of them to compofe and re-
drefs fuch differences and abufes. Piovifion is alio
made to fill up any vacancies that fhould happen by
the death of the prefident or any of the council.
On the receipt of this charter, the firft prefident
and council nominated and admitted, by a writing
dated the 14th of November 1757, all the former
members, together with fome others, in the whole
one hundred and twenty-one, to be fellows of the
faid fociety of antiquaries of London ; and foon
after drew up a body of ftatutes for the good go-
vernment thereof, v/hich v/as unanimoufly agreed
to and confirmed in the month of July 1752.
It was enacled, that the numlser of members
fhould not exceed one hundred and fifty ; but that
number being very foon filled up, and feveral
men of quality and fortune, as well as perfons of
great learning and eminence, being continually ap-
plying to become members, which they could not
be till the vacancies Ihould h.ippen by death, the
fociety thought proper, in the year 1755, to enlarge
their number to one hundred and eighty (to which
they are limited at prefent) exclufive of peers, pri-
vy-counfellors, and judges, that fhould be chofen
after that time. A little before this, the fociety
gave up the management of their eftate and reve-
nues, the payment of monies, and the publication
of their papers and drawings, which were before in
the body in general, and thereby attended with
many inconveniencies, intirely to the care of their
council, which .ire nov/ a ftanding committee for
that purpofe ; and thereby the government of this
fociety is become nearly the fame as that of the
Royal Society, which was doubtlefs a proper pattern
to copy after.
On the 23d of April, being St. Geo-i-ge's day,
the focietv annually eleif their council and officers,
viz. a prefi<!ent, a treafurcr, two fecretaries, and a
director, who has the care of all their publications.
Then the prefident appoints four of the council to
be his deputies, or vice-prefidents : and after the
eleffion is over, the fociety dine together at their
own expence. Martin Folkcs, Efq; was annually
elecled prefident, till his death in 1754.5 fince which
time the Right Hon. Lord VVilloughby of Parham
was every year cliofwi till his deceafe in 1765.
Every perfon defirous to be elefted a fellow of
this fociety, except peers, privy-counfellors, or
judges
ANT
judges of Great Britain or Ireland, muft be recom-
mended bv three or more of the members, in a pa-
per figned by themfch'cs, fpccifying the name, ad-
ditio?i, profcllioii, and chief qualification of the
candidate, and alfo the place of his abode. When
this has been read at one of the fociety's meetings,
and then hung up in their public room, during the
time of four other meetings, the clctSlion is deter-
mined by ballot. Fe?rs, privy-coanfellors, and
judges of Great Britain or Ireland, if propofed by
any fingle member, w.ull be balloted for immedi-
ately. E\'cry new member mull pay an admiflion-
fce of fire guineas, and fign the obligation, where-
by he proniifes that he will, to the utmoll of his
power, promote the honour and intereft of the fo-
ciety, and obferve the ftatutes and orders thereof;
which being done, he is led up to the chair, when
the prefidcnt or vice-prcfident rifmg t.;k.es him by
the hand, and fays, " I do, by the authority and in
" the name of the focicty of antiquaries of Lon-
" do:i, admit you a fellow thereof."
Every member muft further pay one guinea an-
nually for the ufe of the fociety, or ten guineas at
once in lieu of all contributions.
I'hc meetings of this fociety are on Thurfday
evenings weekly, from about fix till nine o'clock,
at their houfe in Chancery-lane. Their bufmefs is
to recei\'e, read, and coniider all informations from
rheir own members or others, concerning the anti-
quities of all nations ; (for which purpole they ad-
mit eminent foreigners to be correfponding mem-
bers) but they more particularly attend to theftudy
of die ancifi'.t hiftory, cuftoms, manners, grants,
charters, coins, medals, camps, churches, cities,
and all monuments whatever, ccc'cfii-.ftical, mili-
tary, or civil, which are found in or relate to
Great Britain and Ireland ; and the communica-
tions they have received concerning thefe matters
muft be very valuable, as may be judged by the
many curious remains of antiquity thev have caufed
to be engraved on copper-pl.\tcs, and permitted
lately to be fold ; though as yet they have not
thought fit to puhliih any of their differtations.
They have a unal! but choice library, which is in-
creafing dailv ; alfo a fine colIeiSlion of prints and
drawings.
ANTIQUARY, a pcrfon who ftudics and
fearches after remains of antiquitv.
ANTIQUE, among architciTlr, a building exe-
cuted v/hen architeflure was in its utmoit perfection
among the ancient Greeks and Romans; that is,
from tlie age of Alexander the Great to the reign of
the emperor Phocac, about the year of Chrift 6co,
\-ihen Italy was over-run by Goths and Vandals.
Thus antique architeti^ture is diftinguirned from or
oppofcd to ancient and modem architecture.
ANTIRRHINUM, calve's fnout, or fnap-dra-
gon, in botany, ;; genus of didynamious plants,
producing a monoprtaldus pcrfonated flower, di-
9
ANT
vided into (wo lips, the upper one of which is bifid
and rcflexc'd on each fide, the lower lip is trifid and
ubtufe : the fruit is a roundifh bilocular capfule,
containing many angular feeds. Some forts of an-
tirrhinum grow wild on the tops of old walls,
where they make an agreeable appearance, ar,d
thrive much better than ifcultivatcd in gardens.
ANTISAGOGE, in rhetoric, the fixme with
conccflion. Sec the article Cokcession.
ANTISCII, in, geography, people who inhabit
difterent fides of tlie equator, but may have different
longitudes and latitudes. 7"hus the people of the
north are antifcii to thofe of the fouth, and their
fhadows are projected different ways.
ANTISCORBUTICS, among phyficians,
medicines good in nil fcorbutic "cafes. See
Scurvy.
ANTISEPTICS, among phyficians, a name
gi\-en to all lubllanccs that rcfiff putrefaction.
"I he word is formed from the Greek, eicT/,
againft, and s-^TTa, to putrefy.
Dr. Pringlc, in an appendix to his Obfcrvations
on the Dil'eafes of the Army, has given a very
curious and uTTuI fet of experiments on ahti-
fcptics.
AN ri3IG?vIA, among tl-.e ancient gramma-
rians, implies a note or fcntcncc affixed to thofe
verfts whofe order was to be changed.
ANTISTROPHE, in lyric and dramatic poetry,
is the name of the fccond I'tanza of the ancient ode
and chorus, in finging of which the dance was in-
verted. Moft of the odes, as well as tragic cho-
rufes, were.ccmpofcd to be fung ; the former of-
thefe either at the entertainments given by the con-
querors (to whom they were infcribed) or by their
friends on account of their vidories, or at fo-
lemn facrifices m.-ide to the Q;ods uron thofe oc-
canons.
Tiiey confifted generally of three flanzas ; the
firll of which was called rtrophc, the fccond anti-
flrophe, and the third cpode. When the firoph'e
was fung, they danced to the right round the altar ;
and when the antiftrophe was fung, returned back
again by the left. This is the reafon why the ftro-
phe and antiftrophe confided exadlvofthe fame length
and meafure. When the dancers were returned from
the place where they fet out, before they renewed
the dance they {food ilill while the epode was fung.
Perhaps the llrcphe and antillrophe, as it required
fo m.uch breath to fing and dance at the fame time,
were only a kind of recitative, while the epode was ■
the more complete air. See Epode and Strophe.
Aktistrgphe, in grammar or rhetoric, fio-ni-
nes a fort of repartee, whereby two terms or things, .
mutually dependent on each other, are reciprocally
inverted : it is a fort of playing with the Vi'ords ; as '
in this line of Pope's,
Whom, folly pleafes, and v.'hofc foliies pleafe.
X X ANT-I--
ANT
ANTITACTES, in ecclcfiaftic:!! hiilory, n
name given to a branch of the Gnoftics, who held
that God v.-as good and jul}-, but that a creature
liad created evil ; that v/c are therefore to oppofe
this author of evil, ia order to avenge God of his
enemy.
The word i? derived from the Greek, Amjcmiiv,
to oppofe.
ANTITHENAR, in anatomy, the name of a
mufcle, generally called adduftor indicis. See the
article AnnrcTOR Indich.
ANTITHESIS, in rhetoric, a figure of fpeech,
Avhich confifts in oppofing the thoughts to each
-other, in order to place their oppohte qualities in a
more confpicuous point of light.
The vvitino'S of the ancients abound v/ith this fi-
gure. Cicero, in his oration for Chientius, fays,
Ficit pudorem libido, timarem audiiaa, raiiohtm
air.ent'ia.
Antithesis, in grammar, is a figure whereby
■one letter is fubftitutcd in the room of another ; as
when Virgil fays olli for ////, in order to make a kind
of oppofition.
ANTITHETARIUS, a term occurring in the
tide of a chapter of the laws of Canutus, but not
in the chapter itfelf. It fignifies a perfon who en-
deavours to acquit himfelf of the crime laid to
his charge, bv chars-incr his accufer with the fame
fadt.
ANTITRAGUS, in anatomy, the part of the
external ear oppofed to the tragus. See Ear and
Tragus.
ANTITRINITARIANS, is a general name
given to thofe who deny the myftery of the trinity,
that there are three perfons, and but one God. Un-
der this title are comprehended the Macedonians
and Samofatians, but more particularly the Arians
.and Socinians. See Arian and Socinian.
ANTITYPE, a word which is taken from the
Greek, and fignifies a pattern, model, example, Sic.
There are two places in the New Teflanient,
where this word occurs, which have occafioned
jbme doubt and difput.ition amongft commentators.
One is in the epiftle to the Hebrews, ix. 24. where
ihe word tL\']l]vrA is rendered figxirei ; " Chrifl is not
" entered into the holy places made with hands,
" which -iVQ figures of the true." It does not feem
in this place to be well tranllated : the apoftle in
this chapter had been drawing a comparifon be-
tween Chrift and the high-priell:, who entered into
the holy of holies once a year, not without blood,
to make an atonement for the fins of the people :
he then fays, that our Saviour is not entered into
the holy of holies, which was made with hands, as
that of the tabernacle was ; for this was only—
What ? An antitype, a place built after the model,
of the true: for God commanded Mofes (Exod.
XXV. 40.) to make the tabernacle after the model
that was ftiewn him in the mount.
-A NU
In thefirfl; epiftle of St. Peter, iii. 21. baptifmis
called the antitype of the ark, becaufe in that fome
were faved by water. This is by no means clearly
tranflated in our verfion ; " The Wkc figure wherc-
" unto, even baptifm, doth alfo now fave us."
The v/hole paflage v/ould have beeji better rendered
thus : " While the ark was preparing, wherein a
" few, that is, eight fouls, were faved by water :
" in imitation of which (« dLi>']i]vjw) or as a re-
" femblance of which, baptifm doth even now favs
" us." The ark was the type or figure, baptifm
was the antitype or accompliiiiment of tliat figure.
The word antitype was frequently made ufe of
in the Greek church, to fignify the bread and wine
after confecration.
ANTLER, among fportfmcn, implies a ftart or
branch of a deer's horn.
Brczv Antler fignifies the branch next the head.
Bcs Antler, the branch next above the brow-
antler.
ANTQi]CI, in geography, are thofe people
which live on the fame meridian on different fides
of the equator, but at equal diftances ; confe-
quently, if their latitudes be greater than the fun's
declination, their fliadows will be projected different
ways. They have noon at the fame time, but it is
winter with one when it is fummer with the other;
and the night of one is equal to the day of the
other. If the antoeci both turn their faces towards
the equator, the ftars and planets will rife to one on
the right hand, and to the other on the left.
ANTONIAN IFater, in the materia medica,
the name of a medicinal water of Germany, re-
markably pleafant to the tafte, and of fervice in
many cafes as a medicine.
It is very temperate, not too ftrongly operating
either by (tool or urine : and hence it is a very
proper drink for perfons in chronic and many acute
difeafes, either alone, or mixed with wine, to fup-
ply the place of malt liquor, which is proper but
in very few difeafes. A long ufe of it alone may
alfo prove of confiderable fervice in hypochondriac
cafes. Hcffmayi.
ANTONOMASIA, in rhetoric, a figure by
which the noun appellative is ufed inftead of a
proper name, and the contrary.
'Ehe word is compounded of the Greek, avti^
for, and ovoud, a name.
Thus, becaufe Sardanapalus was a voluptuous
prince, and Nero a cruel emperor, we give an
epicure the name cf Sardanapalus, and a barbarous
prince the appellation of Nero.
ANTRUM Highmoriawan, in anatomy, is a
cavity difcovered in the maxillary bone, called alfo
finus maxillaris.
Antrum Pylori, in anatomy, is a large cavity
at the bottom of the pylorus. Sec Pylorus.
ANUBIS, in mythology, a name given to Mer-
cury,
A O R
cury," \vho was worfliippcJ by the Egyptians under
the figure of a dog.
Diodonis Siculus tells us, that Anubis, follow-
ing his father Ofiris to war, bore the enfigu of a
dog on his fhield ; for which reafon he was wor-
fliipped, after his death, under the figure of a
dog.
ANVIL, in mechanics, is an inurnment on
which the fmith hammers or forges his work.
The uppermoft face of the anvil ihould be very
flat and fmooth, and fo hard that a file will not
penetrate it ; it is generally placed on a large wooden
block ; at one end there is fometimes a round pike,
or beak-iron, for the rounding of hollov.' work,
or bending iron into different curves.
ANUS, in anatomy, the extremity of the in-
teftinum rectum, or orifice of the fundament. It
is furrounded with a large quantity of fat, that it
may eafily dilate in difcharging its contents, and
is furnifhed with three mufcles, called elevatores
and fphindlcr. See Sphincter.
Anus is alfo the name of a fmall aperture in
the third ventricle of the brain, leading to the
fourth ventricle of the cerebellum.
AON IDES, in mythology, one of the many
appellations of the mufes, fo called from the
Aonian mountains in Baeotia, where they were
feigned to refide.
aORASIA, in antiquity, the invifibilit\' of the
gods.
The word is Greek, cio^atia, and deri\'ed from
ct, priv. and o^xa, to fee.
The opinion of the ancients, with regard to the
appearance of the gods to men, was, that they
never fliewed themlelves face to face, but were
known from their backs as they withdrew : whence
it followed, according to them, that every being
they had time to look at in the face, was not a
deity. Neptune alTumed the form of Calchas to
(peak to the two Ajaxes ; but they knew him not
till he turned his back to leave them ; and difco-
vered the god by his majeftic ftep, as he went from
them. Venus appeared to y?lneas in the charadler
of a huntrefs ; but her fon knew her not till fhe
departed from him ; her divinity was betrayed, if
we may ufe the word, by her radiant head, her
flowing robe, and her maieftic pace.
AORIST, in the Greek and French grammars,
is the] name of a tenfc, which denotes the preter
indefinite, or indeterminate. The word is com-
pounded of * priv. and op^', a limit. Thus, I have
made, is the preterperfect tenfe, becaufe it fpeaks
abfolutely ; / maile, is the aorift, becaufe it is not
determinate, for there wants a word to fix the
time, as, I inade yejlertlay.
The aorift is not made ufe of, except in fpeaking
of a timedilliniEt from theprefent : thus, ifwe would
c.xprefs ourfelves with propriety, we fhould fay, I
read Plutarch formerly ; and, I have read Plutarch
5
APP
this morning; becaufe this morning is looked upon
as part of the prefent day.
AORTA, in anatomv, the great artery which
rifes immediately from the left ventricle of the
heart, and thence diftributed to all parts of the
body. It is divided into two grand trunks, dif-
tinguiflied by the epithets afccnding and defcend-
ing. See the article Arter"/.
APAGOGICAL Dcmonf.ration, implies an in-
direct method of proving the truth of a propoli-
tion, by Ihewing the abfurdity of the contrary.
The word is formed from the Greek, -L-ar)-, from,
and tL-ye, to bring, or draw.
APANAGE, or Apennage, in the French
cuftoms, are lands afiigned by the fovereign for
the fubfiftence of his younger fons, and which re-
vert to the crov/n upon failure of m.?de ilTue in that
branch to which the lands were granted.
APARINE, goofe-grafs, or clivers, in botany,
a plant with a flender fibrous root, and thin, qua-
drangular, rough, jointed, climbing ftalks. At
every knot there are placed five or feven narrow
rough leaves in the form cvf a ftar ; the flower is
campanulated and monopetalous, containing four
fubulatcd filaments ; tlie fruit, when ripe, is dry,
covered with a blackilh fkin, confifting of two
globofe berries joined together, and containing
fingle roundifh feeds. This plant grows wild in
many places, and flowers in May or June : it is
faid to be warm and dry, and is recommended in
cachexies, promoting both urine and fweat.
The juice of this plant is efficacious in dropfical
diforders, evacuating the water by urine.
APARTMENT, a portion, or part of ah houfe,
containing the necefiary conveniencies for a perfon
to refide in it.
APATHY, among the ancient philofophers,
implied an utter privation of paflion, and an infen-
fibility of pain.
The word is compounded of ^, priv. and ■rctSS)-',
affection.
The Stoics affected an entire apathy; they con-
fidered it as the higheft wifdom to enjoy a perfeiSt
calmnefs or tranquility of mind, incapable of be-
ing ruffled by either pleafure or pain.
"The primitive Chriftians ufed the word to exprefs
a contempt for the things of this world.
APATURIA, in antiquity, a folemn feaft cele-
brated by the Athenians in honour of Bacchus.
APE,' in natural hiftory, the Englifli name of
an animal of the monkey kind. See Monkey.
A-PEEK, in the marine, the anchor is faid to
be a-peek when fo much of the cable is drawn into
the ftiip as to bring her perpendicularly over the
fpot on which the anchor is laid.
APELLITES, the name of a fed of heretics
who fprang up in the fecond century, and fo called
from their founder Apelles, who was a difciple of
Marcion. They maintained that Chrift had only
a bodily
APE
8 Tr.ociHy appearance, but not a real body of flc-Ih
•.'nd blood : that when hz defcended from heaven
he took upon him an aerial form, which at Jiis
afcenfion diffolved again into air. They denied
the refurredion of the body, and profeflcd'lhe fam^e
doftrine as the Marcionites.
APEPSY, yfpcpfm, among phyficians, implies
crudity, or a want of digelMoii.
The word is Gr^ek, and compounded of cj, priv.
and TiniJTc)., to concoft.
APERIENS Palpebram irflus, in arwtoni)', a
inufcle in the eye-lid. It arifes fharp and flefliy
from the profoundeft part of the orbit, near the
place where the optic nerve is tranfmitted, pailiiig
directly over the mufculus attoUens ; it becomes
tendinous, as it marches over the ball of the eye ;
v/hence it iHll grows broader and thinner, till it is
inferted into the whole fuperior part of the upper
eye -lid.
APERIENTS, in the materia medica, fuch me-
dicines as facilitate the circulatitm of the juices
in their containing velTels, bv removing all ob-
itructions. See the ;frticle Deobstruekts.
APERTURE, in general, fignines the opening
of any thing ; or a hole, cleft, or vacant place in
fome continuous fubjec^.
Aperture, in geometry, is the opening of two
right lines, v/hich inclining towards each other,
meet in a point, and form an angle, which is called
the aperture ; or the angle contained between the
tv/o legs of a pair of compalTes, when opened to
any radius, is properly called the aperture.
Aperture, in architecture, are doors, windows,
•chimneys, &c. It is a rule among good archi-
■ tefts to have as few apertures as convcniency will
admit, becaufe the flrength of the building is di-
miniflicd in proportion to the number of aper-
tures.
Aperture, in optics, is a hole next the obiect
p-lafs of a teiefcope, microfcope, izc. through which
tlie light and image of the objefts are tranfmitted
•lown the tube to the eye. 'Fhe diameter of this
aperture or hole:, (which is moftly cut in a fmali
piece of wood, brafs, tin, &c. fitted to the fhape
of the tube) is beft determined by pradtice ; as all
tlieory will be found to vary from the truth, for
•JifFercnt objcft glafies of the fame dimenfions are
-found to require different apertures, as well .-s dif-
ferent objedts, according as they are more or Icfs
luminous : however, it may not be amifs to ap-
proach as near as poffiWe by theory, and complete
the aperture by obfervation and experiment Thus,
for example, to find the aperture iiearlv, fay, As lo
is to I, fo is the fquare root of the dillance of the
focus ofany glafs multiplied bv 30, to its aperture;
then liaving provided yourfelf with fome pafte-
board paper made black, and cut in circular pieces,
with apertures gradually diminifliing and increaiing
in diameter from the aperture found by the above
A P H
proportion, place them on the obje>fl glafs>and by
looking at any object, you will quickly find which
fhews the objeft moll diftimfl. Likewife by try-
ing at difPerent obiects, (as the planets) you may
find which aperture fuitt; belt for each j and bv
marking each paper aperture, have them always at
hand to ule according to the obiedt you would
view. The diameter of the aperture ot an object
glafs, by being made of differesu lengths, docs not
increafe or diminifli the area of the object, but
fliews it to the eye more or lefs diftinet, by ad-
mitting a quantitv of luminous rays which ob-
fcuies the object, by reafon that the great gl.ue
dazzles the eye.
Aperture, is alfo underftood of that part of
the objedt-glafs itielf which covers the former,
and which 'is left pervious to the ravs. See Te-
lescope.
APETALOUS, among botanifts, a term given
for thofe flowers which are deltitute of corolla or
petals.
APEX, in geometrv, the fame vith vertex. See
Vertex.
APHACA, in botany, a kind of vetrh clafied by
Linnjeus amongit the lathvrus. Sec the article
Lathvrus.
APHiERESIS, in grammar,Js a figure by which
a letter or fyllable is cut oft" from the beginning c*
a word.
APHANES, in botany, a genus of plants pro-
ducing apetalous flowers with two egg-fhaped ger-
men, and two ovated acuminated leeds approaclt-
ing nearly to the alchimilla.
A.PHE.A, in mythology, a goddefs worfhippcd by
the Cretans and people of iEgina.
Aphea, before fhe was made a deity, went by
the name of Britomnrtis in Crete. Her p.affion for
hunting attached her to the train of Diana, and
dedicated her virginity to the goddefs ; to avoid
the piirfuit of Minos, who was defperately in love
with her, flie threw herfelf into the fea, and was
taken up in tlie nets of fome filhermen. Diana re-
warded her \irtue with the honours of immortality.
Britomartis afterwards appeared to the people (..f
iEgina, who paid adoration to her under the name
of Aphca.
APHELION, in aftronomy, is that point in the
elliptic orbit of any planet, which is at the grcatelt
diflance from the focus of the ellipfe, or that poiiii
where the planet is at its grcatcft diltauce from the
fun. Thus fuppofs A HP (Plate X.Jg.u) to
be the elliptic orbit ofany planet, C, thq center,
and S, the focus or fun ; tlicn the point A, which
is at the greateft dlftance froin S, is.callcd the aphcr
lion, in oppofition to P, the perhelion, which is
the neareft point in the orbit to S the focus, or
place of the fun. — Every planet moves quickeli
when in or near the perhelion, and iloweil when in
the aphelion. Likewifq their apparent diameterj
are.
A P H
are leaft when in the aphelion, and greateft in
the perhelion, which things being accurately
obferved, it will be eafy to hnd their places, and
confequently their motion. The nature and me-
thod of making calculations from fuch obferva-
tions may be feen in De la Caille's PraiSlical Aftro-
nomy. Likewife Dr. Halley has given a ftri£t
geometrical method of finding the planets aphe-
lion in the Philof. Tranf. N°. 128. Sir Ifaac
Newton has proved that the aphelia of the pri-
mary planets are at reft ; fee Principia Prop. 14.
lib. 3. and in the icholium to the fame propofition,
he fays that the planets neareft the fun, viz. Mer-
cury, Venus, the Earth, and Mars, from the adlion
of Jupiter and Saturn upon them, move a fmall
matter in confequentia with regard to the fixed
Itars, and that in the fefquiplicate ratio of their
refpcftivc diftances from the fun. Hence, if the
aphelion of Mars move 35 minutes in confequen-
tia, or, according to the order of the figns, in 100
years, that of the Earth, V^enus, and Mercury,
will m.ove in the fame time 18' 36", 11' 27",
and 4' 29".
Kepler and Dc la Hire place the aphelia for
the year 1700, as below, as well as their annual
ir.otion :
K E P L E R's.
A P I
Plac.
of the Aphelion.
Ann. Mot.
Tj in
U
9
5
28 3 48 of i
8 10 40 £=
51 29 "X
3 24 57 ~
8 25 30 vf
I 10
I 47
I 7
I 18
' 45
DE LA HIRE'
Place of Aphelion.
Aim. Mot.
1^
/ ..
in 29 14 41 of
t
//
1 22
■4
10 17 14
^r^
I 34
(?
33 25
"E
I 7
?
6 56 10
™
I 26
5
31 3 40
Vf
I 39
APHONIA, among phyficians, implies a lofs of
voice or fpeech.
7'he word is Greek, and is compounded of a,
priv. and tow, voice.
APHORISM, a maxim, or principle of fome
ftience ; or a fentence comprehending, in a few
words, a great deal of matter.
The word is formed from the Greek, a^z^ktuI^,
and derived ficni a^cci^n, to chufe, or feparate.
APHRODISIA, in antiquitv. feftivalsinhonour
9
of the goddefs AjpoZ/TM, or Venus. There were
feveral of thefe Aphrodifia obferved in divers parts
of Greece ; the moft remarkable was that at Cy-
prus, firft inftituted by Cinyras, out of whofe fa-
mily certain prielh of Venus were eleited ; and for
that reafon named KtvvfctS'iA. At this folemnity
feveral inyfterious rites were pra6tifed : all who
were initiated to them ofFered a piece of money to
Venus as an harlot, and received, as a token of the
goddefs's favour, ameafureof fait, and a <fa.t.K'^; the
former becaufe fait is a concretion of lea-water,
to which Venus was thought to owe her birth ;
the latter, becaufe {he was the goddefs of wan-
tonnefs.
APHRODITE, a name of Venus.
The word is Greek, and derived from etsp^,
foam; becaute, according to the poets, Venus fprung
from the foam of the lea.
APHRODITES, in natural hiftory, a name
given by fome autliors to the rineft fpecies of
amethyft.
The ancients had a way of diftinguiiliing what
they allowed to be gems, into feveral kinds, ac-
cording to their degrees of colour : thefe they cal-
led fo many fpecies, and gave to each its particular
name. This has been the occafion of no little
confufion among the writers on thefe fubjedls, by
feeminglv enlarging the number of gems. The
paederos and gemma veneris of the ancients are the
iame ftonc with this, though many have applied
thefe names to the opal.
APHRONITRE, in natural hiftory, a natr.e
given by the ancients to a particular kind of na-
tron, or native nitre ; fuppofed to be the froth or
fpume emerging on the furface of nitre in fufion.
The \> ord is formed from the Greek cLzfovir^w,
compounded
of ctsp'^, froth, and r/rps
and
nitre.
APHTH^^, in medicine, fmall round fuperfi-
cial ulcers arihng in the mouth.
The word is derived from the Greek, eiTra, to
inflame.
Mel rofatum, or honey of rofes, acidulated with
fpiric of vitriol, is a good medicine in the cure of
the aphthre.
APHYLLANTHES, the blue Montpelier pink,
in botany, a genus of plants containing hexapeta-
lous flowers with fix filaments ; the capfule is tur-
binated and triangular, containing oval feeds.
APIARY, a bee-houfe, or place where bees are
kept, and properly furnifhed v/ith all the appara-
tus neceft'ary for that purpofc.
The word is formed from the Latin, apis, a
bee.
Methods of tnakhig an Apiary. — AVhen there
are but few bees, it is ufual to ,fet them in any
corner of the garden, or court, and fometimes in
clofes adjoining to the houfe ; though fome, for
want of room witho«t doors.
have fet them in
: lofts
AP I
API
lofts or upper rocms ; but this is not fo proper
for them. If a perfon intends to have a confider-
able Itore of bees, a fquare plat muft be made by
itfelf, proportioned to the number of bees intend-
ed to be kept, not quite a fquare, being rather
longer extended from eaft to weft, but fo contrived
that they may have as much of the morning and
evening fun as poffibje. The apiary fliould be fe-
curely defended from high winds on either fide,
either naturally by hills, trees, &c. or artificially
by houfes, barns, walls, (5ic. It is alio to be
well fenced from cattle, eipecially hogs, and from
:i!l-forts of fowl, their dung being very prejudicial
to them ; neither fliould there be any ill linells,
nor any poultry kept near the place. The apiary
Ihould be fiirnifhed with ilools or benches of wood
or ftone ; but th? firft is beft, ftone being hot in
fummer, and cold in winter : thefe are placed at
different heights, but about twelve inches is a
good height;
thev
fhouid be fet a little {helving.
that the rain may run off"; they fhouid alfo be two
or three inches wider than the hives fet upon them,
and at leaff five feet diftant from the other.
To have a compleat apiary, for every flock of
bees intended to be kept, make a cot or houfe
about two feet fquare, and two and a half high,
fet on four legs about ten inches above the ground,
covered over with boards or tiles to keep off' the
rain, the back or north fide being clofed up ; and
the fides, facing the eaft and weft, to have doors
with latches and hafps to them ; the fore or fouth
fide to have a falling-door to cover one half thereof,
which is to be raifed up at pleafure ; and in fum-
mer-time ferves for a pent-houfe, not only to keep
off the beating rains from the hives, but to defend
them from the extreme heat of the fun, which at
noon-day is apt to melt the honey. The other
lower half fhouid have two fmall doors to open
to either hand, which will ferve to defend the doors
or holes of the hives from injurious winds ; all the
doors may be faffened in winter, when the weather
is too cold ; or in fummer, when it is too hot for
the bees, only making a little open fquare at the
bottom of the little doors againft the bee-hole, that
the bees may have fomc liberty to ily abroad, after
the doors have been fliut : by means of the fide
doors, efpccially if the weft door be made to open
to the right hand, a perfon may fit fafe, and fee
the feveral workings of the bees in glafs hives, if
any fuch are ufed ; if not at thefe places he may
order, view, and obferve them better than when
they ftand on naked ftools, and with lefs offence to
the bees, and more fecurity to himfeif.
In the winter fcafon, if the apiary fl-und cool,
good fweet ftraw may be fluffed within the doors
about the hives, to keep them warm ; but extre-
mity of cold does not hurt bees fo much in winter
as wet, from which thefe cafes beft prcferve them ;
cr as light, and the warm beams of the fun, at
fuch time when there is no provifion abroad for
them, againft which this houfe or cot is the beft
prefervative ; for, when the doors are fhut, though
the fun fhine, yet they are infenfible of it, the
hives ftanding fix or eight inches within the doors ;
whereas, after the common way of benches or
ftools, the >'^un cafts rays to their very doors, which
warmth and light together, draw them out, at
the expence of their pro\'ifions and lives together,
as is evident from frequent experience, the mildeft
and cleareft winters Itarving and deftroying moft
bees ; when, on the contrary, the colJeft and moft
frozen belt fecurethem. See the article Bee.
APICES, in botany, are the knobs which grow
on the tops of the filaments of flov>^ers, containing
the male duft, which, when ripe, fecundates the
oviary, rendering it prolific, and is the fame as
anthen-B, See Anther^e.
APIOS, the knobbed-rooted Virginian liquorice
vetch, in botany. See Glycine.
APIS, in mythology, a famous deity among the
Egyptians, reprefented by an ox, with certain ex-
ternal marks. Into this animal, according to the
Egyptians, the foul of the Great Ofiris retired,
and withdrew itfelf from the world. He gave this
creature the preference, becaufe the ox is the fym-
bol of agriculture, the perfedlion of which this
prince had very much at heart.
The ox apis muft have a ftar in the fcrelicad ;
that is, a fquare white mark, the figure of an eagle
on his back, a knot under his tongue in the form
of a beetle, the hair of his tail double, and a cref-
cent on his right flank ; and the cow that bore
him muft have conceived by a clap of thunder.
As it is difficult to apprehend nature fhouid pro-
duce an animal with all thefe marks, requifite for an
apis, we nmft fuppoi'e that the priefts took care, by
imprefiing the neceffary marks on young cahes, to
be provided always with one : and if it happened at
any tim.e an apis could not immediately be found,
and they were obliged to put it oft" for iome time,
it was certainly becaufe they were very careful not
to be thought guilty of the impofition. But this
artifice feems needlefs ; people, on thefe occafions,
voluntarily fhut their eyes. When they had found
the apis, before they carried him to Memphis, they
fed him forty days in a city on the Nile. Women
only were permitted to fee and wait upon him, and
thefe were obliged to prefent themfelves before the
divine ox in an undrefs. After thefe forty days, they
put him on board a fuperb veffel, and brought him
down the Nile to Memphis, where the prieft re-
ceived him with all imaginable pomp ; they were
attended by numbers of people, and children were
happy wno could fmeli his breath, becaufe they
imagined it infpired them with the gift of pro-
phecy.
On his arrival at Memphis, they conduiled him
to the temple of Ofiris, wherein were two magnifi-
cent
AP O
cent ftalls ; oiie of which was built by Pfammeti-
cus, fupportcd by ftatues, after the manner of the
Coloflus, twelve cubits high : here he continued
almoft always (hut up, being hardly ever feen but
by ftr.->ngcrs, to whom he was fliewn in a little mea-
dow joining to the temple. If they at any time led
him about the city, he was attended by officers to
keep off the croud, and accompanied by young
children vvhofunghls praifes.
APIUM, in botany, the name of an herb called
in Engli/h parfley. See Parsley.
Apium Palujlre, fmallage. See the article
Smallage.
Apium Macedoniciim. See Bubon.
Apium Pyrennticum. See Crithmum.
APOBATERION, a Greek word which fig-
nifies a farewel difeourfe. Among the ancients this
term iignified any poem, compliment, or fpeech,
which a pe:fon, upon quitting his own country, or
any foreign land, addrclTcd to his relations, or any
friends, amongft whom he had been kindly and
hofpitably treated. Such is the farewel which
j^neas tikes of Helenus and of y\ndromache, in the
third bock of the i^neid.
On the contrary, thehrft falatation which a per-
fon made, upon entering a foreign country, or re-
turning from a journey home, was called epibate'-
rion. See Epibaterion.
APOCALYPSE, the Revelations, a name given
to one of the facred books of the New Telbment,
written by St. John, and containing revelations
concerning feveral important points of Chriflianity.
The word is derived from the Greek, ojitok-j.
^ut7&i, I reveal.
It contains twenty-two chapters, which treat of
the date of the church from the afcenfion of Chrift
till the lail judgment, and are as it were the con-
clufion of the Holy Scriptures. Thcfe Revelations
were made by St. John the Evangellrt, daring his
exile in the ifle of Patmos, whither he was ba-
nifhed by the-emperor Domitian. The concatena-
tion of fublime and prophetic ideas which compofe
the Apocalypfe, has ever been a labyrinth in v/hich
the brighteft geniufes have been loft and bewildered,
and the ableft commentators fo puzzled and en-
tangled, that it is v,ith the iitmoft difficulty they
could extricate themfelves out of it. The many
frivolous explanations which they have given of
fome parts, and the wild reveries they have been
thrown into by confidering others, is enough to
mortify the wit of man, and teach it not to grafp
at things Co far beyond its comprehenfion. How-
ever, dark and a'nigmatical as the greateft part of it
is, enough of this prophecy has alrea;ly bc-n ful-
filled to afford fufficient inftances of God's divijie
providence. Many Protellant writers hnve been of
opinion that Rome is frequently alluded to, under
A P O
I the name of Babylon, the great fcarlct whore, fcatcd'
on fcvcn hills. *
There have been great difputes in the iirfi: ages
of the church whether this book (hould be efteemed
Sfuthentic and canonical. Seme pretend that it is the
work of Cerinthus, who made ufc of the name of
St. John, to give a weight to his v.-ild and fantaftic
vifions. Others fay that it was written by a pcrfon
named John, but notby St. John the Evangelift. But
there v/ill be little reafon to doubt of its authenticity^
if we confider, iff, That St. John the Evangelift is
plainly marked out in thefe words, " Who bare re-
" cord of the word of God, and of the tcftimony
" of Jcfus Chrift, and of all things that he faw."
adly. That it is addreffcd to the churches of Afia,-
of which St. John had the government. 3d!y,
That it is written from the ifle of Patmos, whither
Iraeneus, Eufebius, and all the ancients agree that
St. John was banifhed in the year 95, and returned
from thence in the year g8. 4thly, That many
writers who lived near the time of theapoftles, fuch
as Juftin, Irena;u;:, and Origen, and after them a
whole tribe of fathers, attributed it, to St. John the
Evangelift.
As to its being canonical, though doubted of, as
St. Jerom informs us, by many churches in Greece,
yet it has been quoted and acknowledged as fuch by
Juftin, Irenaeus, Origen, Cyprian, Clemens of
Alexandria, and all the fathers of the fourth, fifth,
and following centuries.
There have been manv other books of Revela-
tions. Clemens fpeaks of the Apocalypfe of St.
Peter : there is mention made of another of St.
Paul : Eufebius fpeaks of one of Adam : Epipha-
nius of another of Abraham : Gratian of one of
Mofes : Jerom of one of the prophet Elias, £cc.
&c. &c.
APOCLYSMA, in pharmacy, the fame with
rob. See the article Rob.
APOCOPE, the name of a figure in rhetoric,
wliich cuts off a letter or fyllable from the end of
the word, as negoti, for negotii. Sic.
The word is compounded of the Greek, ctTCj
from, and ko-h^u, I cut,
APOCRASlAPvIUS, in antiquity, an officer
who delivered the meflagcs of the emperor. He
was afterwards chancellor, and kept the feals.
APOCRUSTICS, in pharmacy, the fame with
repellents. Sec Repellents.
APOCRYPHA, in its original fignification,
implies hidden. It is compounded of the Greek-
tLTTo, from, and nf-vTr^i^-.; I hide.
This term apccrypha has been made ufe of a lonp-
time by ccclefiaftical w ritcrs, to figriify books that
are doubtful and fuppofititious, as one may fee in
St. Jerom, and many other of the fatlisrs Greek
and Latin. In this fenfe it was adopted from the
Jsws,
A P O
Jews, who called only fuch of their facred books
canonical as had been made public ; to thofe that
ftill remained in their archies, they gave the ap-
pellation of apocryphal.
The books that are reckoned apocryphal by
our church, are the book of Tobit, Judith, Eflher,
the book of Wifdom, Jefus the fon of Sirach,
Baruch the prophet, the fong of the Three Chil-
dren, the hiftory of Sufannah, the hiftory of Bel
and the Dragon, and the firft and fecond'book of
Maccabees ; as well as thofe that are cfteemed
fuch by the church of Rome, viz. the praver of
Manaflch kin.g of Judah, the third and fourth
book of Efdras, St. Barnabas's epiflie, the book of
Hermos, the addition at the end of Tob, and the
151ft Pfalm.
It is no wonder that the Romi/h church adopted
.thofe books that are regarded by us as apocryphal,
into the number of their canonical writings, as
they have been fo extremely ferviceable to them,
in Supporting, I fhculd have faid in giving a glofs
to certain tenets and doftrines, for which they
could not have found the very fhadow of a reafon
in the other Scriptures. Happily for us. we have
jio occafion for their affiftr.nce ; and have always
Jooked upon them as apocryphal ; as they vrere not
to be found in the catalogues of the' canonical
books of Scripture that ha\-e been given us by
Grigen, Athanafius, Hilaiy, Cyril of Jeruralem",
and all other orthodox writers,' and bcildes were
utterly unknown to the Chriflian church for fome
ages. No books but fuch as ha\-c been cited by the
earlicft writers in fupport of Chriftianity, and ap-
proved by the council of Laodicea, are regarded
by Proteltants as of divine authority.
APOCYNUM, dogs-bane, in botany, a genus
of _ plants, whofe leaves are produced oppolue in
pairs on the branches. The flower is monopeta-
jous and campanulated, cut into five parts at the
brim. In the bottom of the flower are five corpuf-
cular nedariums, which are oval and furround the
gcrmcn. The filaments are five in number, and
very fhort, which are topped with oblong erect an-
thers;. In the center are placed two efj2;-fhaped
germen, which fupport tv^o ftyhs, fcarcVvifible :
the germen afterwards becomes a fruit or pod,
which opens from the bafe to the top, inclofing many
fmall comprefled feeds having a long pappous down
adhering to them.
The down of fome forts of thefe plants are much
iifed in France for fluffing eafy chairs, it being ex-
tremely light and elaftic : it is alfo ufed in quilts,
which are very warm ; on which account there are
icvcrai plantations of apocynums raifed' in the fouth-
crji parts of that kingdom. All the fpecies of
the apocynums abound plentifully with a milky
juice.
APODICTICAL A gummt, or Syllogifm, im-
plies a clear convincing proof of a proj-cfilion.
A PO
The word is formed from the Greek, (fanhiitnui,
to demonftrate.
APODOSIS, in rhetoric, the fame with axiofis.
See Axiosis.
APODYTERIUM, In the ancient baths,
the apartment where perfons dreffed and un-
drefTed.
The word is Greek, a.-joi'vivi^iov-, and derived
from cL'TToS'vu, to undrefs.
APOGEE, or Apog^um, in aftronomy, is that
pomt in the orbit of a planet which is at the great-
eft difrance from the earth, according to ancient
aftronomy, when the earth was placed in the center
of the fyllem ; but fince the moderns have placed
the fun in the center, they have changed the terms
apogseum and perigseum into aphelion and perhe-
lion for the planers T? If- <? ¥ ? , but retain them
for the fun and moon.
Apogee of the Moon, is that point of the moon's
orbit which is at the greateft diftance from the
earth; as in Plate XI. fig. i. where BPAD
reprefents the elliptic orbit of the moon, in which
it moves round the earth T, which is placed
in the focus of the cllipfe. The point A, which
is the highcft apfis, is called the apogee, or apo-
gajon of the moon.
This apogaum of the moon has an unequal
motion, and fometimes moves backwards and
fometimes forv/ards : v.-hen it is coincident with
the fyzygial line, its motion is forwards; but when
it cuts that line ?.t right angles, its motion is back-
wards, and its progrefs and regrefs are no ways
equal. But when the moon is in her quadratures
with the fun, the apogsum goes but flowly for-
v.'ard, or e\en may ftand ftill, or go backwards;
but when the moon comes to be oppofite, or con-
joined to the fun, the apogseum has a quick motion
forward.
The caufe and quantities of thefe motions have
been demonftrated by Sir Ifaac Newton's Univer-
■ fal Law of Gravitation ; namely, that its force is in
an invcrfe ratio ofthefquare of the dijlance.
But Mr. Clairaut, in a mem.oir which he read to
the academy in the year 1747, pretends to have
found by his calculations, that this law of Sir
Ifaac's would give only one half of the motion of
the moon's apogee, v.'hich aflronomers have difco-
vered by their obfervations : from whence he con-
cludes, that it was neceflary to change this law by
adding foniething to correct its infufficiency. Hew-
ever, this memoir was overturned by a pamphlet
written by Mr. Walmfley, and the above law
again eftablifhed, and Mr, Clairaut made fenfible
of the error he had made in his calculations. The
method of calculating the motion of the moon's
apogee may be feen in the above-meiUioned pam-
phlet, with a demonftration of Machin's Theo-
rem, for the fame purpofe.
Apcgee */ the Eqtiant is the farthcft diftance
from
Tj^^tejxt
I'diy/K/ Apo^'e o
JXof/af Sat^K
I
A PC
from the earlh, or that point where the circuriifc-
reiicc of the ctjuaiit i^ interltitcd by the line of the
apfides, iji the rcniotefl; part of the diameter. — The
irican apogee of theepicyle is a point where the epi-
cyle is cut above by a right line drawn from its cen-
ter to the center of the cquant, or the point where
the epicycle is moft remote from the earth.
Apogee of the Sun is the point of the earth's
orbit which is the greateft diitance from the Am ;
and confequently the fun's apogee and the earth's
aphelion are the fame point.
To find the place of the fun's apogee, obferve
the fun's right afcenfion, relative to a known ilar,
when it is near the times of its greateft and leaft
velocity. Its longitudes are deduced by feeking
the two places, and the times when the fun comes
to two points, at the diilance of 180'' o' 31^ , in
the middle of its lemi-anomaliflic revolution, which
is 182 days, 15 hours, 7 minutes, and i quarter
of a minute. One of thefe points is the earth's
aphelion, and called the liin's apogee, becaufe the
earth's motion is attributed to the fun ; the
other, its perihelion, and called the perigee of
the fun.
For example : On the 30th of December i 743,
at o*" 3' 7" mean time, the longitude of the fun
was found by means of the flar Arfturus, to be
8° 2g' I2r" in Vf ; and on the 30th of June 1744,
at o''3'o", it was 8^51' i^" in 'is. "The diffe-
rence of thefe two places is 180° 21' 49", which
exceeds 180° o' 31I'' by 21' 17!"; but the fun de-
fcribing 57' 12'' per day, about the 30th of June;
therefore, on the 30th of June at 3*' 6' 49'' in the
nic«-ning, the fun muft have been in 8° 29' 43" of
Cancer, at i8o''o'3ii" from the place where it
was on the 30th of December at o'' 3' 7'' at night.
The interval of time is 182 days, 15 hours, 3
minutes, 42 feconds, which is 3' 33" lefs than the
half anomaliftlc revolution of the fun ; therefore,
on die 30th of June, at 3*' 6' 49" in the morning,
.the fun had not yet paffed. through the apogee.
Saying then. As 4' o", the difference between the
diurnal motions of the fun on the 30th of June
and on the 30th of December, is to 57' 12", its
diurnal motion on the 30th of June; fo is 3' 33"
to 50' 46", which added to 3'' 6' 49", gives the
fun's paifage through the apogee, on the 30th of
June, at 3'' 37' 55" in the morning, at which in-
ifantthe fun was in 8° 31' 35" of Cancer ; there-
fore, the fun's apogee, was in 3 figns, 8 degrees,
31 minutes, and 35 feconds. See De la Caille's
yf/lroHomy.
The annual motion of the fun's apogee is found
by accurate obfervations to be i' 6".
APOLLINARIAN Games, in antiquity, an
appellation given to certain theatrical enter-
tainments annually performed in honour of
Apollo.
APOLLINARIANS, or Apollinarists, a
JO
A PO
name given to tlic followers of Apollinaris, who in
the fourth century was bifhop of Laodicea. He
maintained that Chriil: had no foul, but that his
divinity wa<: to him inftcad of one. Sometimes he
conf:fl(?d that our Saviour was born a man of the
Virgin Mary ; and at other times held that he de-
fccnded in the flcfh from hcd\cn, and that his body,
being coeflential and coeternal with his divinity,
ought equally to be worfhipped. He publiflied
many other abfurd and wild dodtrines, which his
followers im|)roved upon no little, by adding to
them a large mixture of the errors of the Mani-
cheans.
APOLLONIA, in antiquity, an annual fefli-
val celebrated by the .iEgialians, in honour of
Apollo.
APOLLONIAN Hyperbola and Parabola. See
the articles Hvperbola and Parabola.
APOLOGUE, amoral fable, or ingenious kind
of fiiSion, whofe end is to mix inftru6lion and
entertainment together; of this fort are the fables
of /?ifop. Some writers have pretended to diflin-
guifh between an apologue and a parable ; in the
former they fay only bealts fpeak, in the latter
men; fo that the one may be real, the other is ne-
ceflarily falfe. But thefe two words are made ufe
of promifcuoudy by the beil authors.
APOLOGY, a defence or excufe for fomp
perfon, adlion, or the like, either by words or
writing.
The word is Greek, etTTcKoyia, and derived from
cL'& oKoyLifJ.a.i, to defend or excufe.
APONEUROSIS, in anatomy, the fpreading
or expanfion of a nerve or tendon, in the manner
of a membrane.
The word is Greek, and compounded of ec'sroj
from, and csiipor, a nerve.
APONOGETON, in botany, a name given
by fome to the zannichellia of Linnaeus. See
Zannichellia.
APOPHYGE, in architecture, the convex part, '<
or ring, of a column, lying either above or below
the flat member. It was originally nothing more
than the ferril or ring, fixed on the extremity of a
wooden pillar to prevent its fplitting ; and was
afterwards imitated in ftone.
The word is Greek, and properly [\gn'Ats Jiight ;
and hence fome architects call it the fpring of the
column.
APOPHYSIS, in anatomy, a protuberance of
a bone, or a part jutting out beyond the reft.
APOPLECTIC, fomething that relates, or be-
longs to, an apoplexy.
APOPLEXY, among phyficians, any diforder
which inftantaneoufly deprives a man of life, who
a few minutes before was, or at leaft feemed to
be, in perfect health ; but it is ufually confined
to fudden diforders caufed by afFeflions of the
brain.
Z z The
A P O
The word is derived from the Greek, ttTroTKYmu,
to llrike fuddenly.
In an apoplexy the patient is fuddenly deprived
of the exercife of all the fenfes, both external and
internal, and of voluntary motion, whilft the
pulfe, which is generally ftrong, remains, together
with a laborious and deep refpiration, attended
with a confiderable elevation of the breaft-, with a
llertor, and the appearance of profound and per-
petual fleep.
A multitude of the moll: accurate obfcrvations
have made it appear, that this diforder arifes from
whatever caufe is capable of preventing, either
totally or in part, the influx of the nervous fluid,
fecreted in the cerebrum, to the organs of lenfe
and voluntary motion, and the reflux of the fame
fluid from the abovementioned organs to the com-
mon fenfory in the brain -, v/hilft the progrefs, and
perhaps the return, of the fluid, fupplied by the
cerebellum, to and from the heart, and organs of
refpiration, is preicrved in a degree fufficient to fup-
port, in fome meafure, their functions.
All thefe caufes, as obferved and delivered by
authors, may, for the greater perfpicuity, be
reduced to clafles ; in the firft of which may be
reckoned,
1. The natural make of the body : thus, when
the head is naturally large, the neck fhort, and, as
it fometimes happens, confifting only of fix verte-
bra?, whereas there ought to be feven, this fl:ruc-
ture difpofes to an apoplexy, as it favours the con-
geffion of blood and humours in the head. Thus
alfo, if the body is corpulent and fat, the capillary
arteries in general v/il! be fubject to compreffion ;
and, in confequence thereof, a greater quantity of
blood and humours v/ill flow into the veifels which
convey them to the brain. Thus alfo a plethoric
habit, and a redundance of pituitous humours in
the blood, lay a foundation for the ftagnation of
the juices, and a fubfequent rupture of the vefl'cis
in the brain.
2. To the fecond clafs belong all thefe caufes
which induce fuch a change in the blood, lymph,
and nervous fluid, as to render them incapable of
circulating freely through their refpeftive vcffels in
the brain. Amonglf thefe are.
Polypous concretions in the carotid or vertebral
-arteries, wherher formed originally about the heart,
or within the cranium ; which are difcovered by a
palpitation of the heart, an unequal pulfe, a ver-
tigo, and temporary lofs of fight, often recurring,
and which are increafed by motion or heat.
3. To the third clafs belongs whatever com-
prelfes the arteries then;felvrs, or the nervous vef-
fels of the brain, fo as to prevent a free circulation
of their refpeftive fluids through them.
People who are plethoric, that is, full of blood,
and bloated with bad humours, are much fubjed:
to this fpeci'.s of apoplexy; cfpecially if extraor-
A P O
dinary motion or heat increafe the velocity of the
circulation. Hence it is apparent that the diforder
mull be promoted in fuch conftitutions by high
feeding and fpirituous liquors ; medicines which
are acrid, and excite the motion of the blood,
fuch as cardiacs, vol.itilcs, and emetics ; by excef-
five heat and motion ; and by intenfenefs of thought,
elpecially if long continued, and frequently re-
peated, becaufe this determines a more copious flu.x:
of humours towards the brain.
4. To the fourth clafs belong all thofe caufes,.
which, by any means, fo dilTolve the texture of the
arteries, veins, or lym.phatic duds, belonging to
the internal part of the cerebrum, as to caufe an
extravafation of their refpeiStive fluids, which then
prefs upon and injure the medullary origin of the
nerves of the cerebrum. Such, for example, arc
an acrimonious ferum in hydropic and leucophleg-
matic cafes ; a redundance of blood in a plethora ;
an atrabiliarious acrimony prevalent in melancholy ;
fcorbutic, and arthiitic conflitutions, which fre-
quently produces an apoplexy, and ufually operates
betwixt the fortieth and fixtieth years of life.
Now, all thefe may remain latent in the conftitu-
tion for fome time ; but, upon being excited by
adequate caufes, they are frequently productive oi
a fudden apoplexy ; which may be forefeen by com-
paring the materials fubfiifing in the conltitutionr
with the caufes capable of exciting them to action^
which are principally violent afFe£tions of the mind,,
and intenfe ftudies ; to vsliich, perhaps, imprudent
and exceflive venery may be added.
5. Some forts of jx)ifons, which are fuddenly
deleterious, may be ranked in the fifth clafs ; but
thefe may be either reduced to the fecond, third,
or fourth ; or may be more properly faid to aft
upon the lungs than the brain. Amongft thefe are
the fumes of mijieral fulphurs, of charcoal, and
that gas iylveftris, or incoercible ipirit, which
exhales from vegetable juices during fermenta-
tion.
The anatomical infpedicn of bodies which have
died of apoplexies, and the hiftorical obfervation of
fuch circumflances as occur in the treatment of
fuch cafes, furnifh us with a knowledge of thefe
caufes ; and a due refleftion upon thele naturally
leads us to a diflribution of them into the preced-
ing clafles, which are admirably adapted to the in-
veftigation of the befl methods of cure.
As to the cure and prevention of an apoplexy,
no univerfal rules can be laid dov/n ; for as the
predifpofmg and exciting caufes, together with the
parts principally affcfted, are various, the method
of relief muft alio \ ary ; and muft be attempted
before the diforder grows inveterate, otherwife it
will be difficult to do it with fuccefs.
If, therefore, an apoplexy, from a glutinous,
inert cold caufe, is forefeen from the figns above.
fpecified, the intentions m.ufl be direded, firil,
to
A PO
to avert the prcffui'e of the glutinous juices from
the head.
Secondly, to attenuate the glutinous vifcidity in
the brain, and in the whole habit.
The prcfl'ure on the veflels of the brain are to be
diininiflied,
Firft, by a derivation of the humours to other,
and thefe oppofite p.irts.
Secondly, bv univerfal evacuations.
A derivation of the humours is effected by va-
pours, fomentations, and baths, applied to parti-
cular parts, by which it is intended the humours
fliould be invited ; by fudtion with cupping-glalfes,
by fmapii'ms and veficatories, among which can-
tharides are of great in\portance, as they both in-
vite the humours to the part where they are applied,
and attenuate at the fame time ; by cauftics, illues,
fetons, and friclions ; by ligatures made upon the
large veins of the feet, legs, and thighs. To
thefe may be added collutions, gargarifm.s, and
mafticatories, which excite a difcharge of faliva,
and apophlegmatifms applfed to the mouth, fauces,
and nofe. Boerhaave.
APOSIOPESIS, in rhetoric, implies the fup-
prefling, or omitting to relate part of the fub-
jea.
Tlve word is Greek, and derived from ci.T07ta'7ifa.(-},
to keep filence.
APOSTACY, the act of abandoning the true
religion.
APOSTHUME, in furgery, the fame with ab-
fcefs. See the article Abscess.
APOSTIL, a marginal note, or remark in the
margin of a work.
APOSTLE, a meflenger fent by fome perfon
on a bufmefs of importance ; and hence the wonl
is applied by way of eminence to imply one of the
twelve difciples commiiTioned by Chrift to preach
the Gofpel.
The word is formed from the Greek, ctxoroA'^,
and derived from a,a-()r5A;,&>, to fend on a mef-
fage.
There are various conieflures with regard to the
reafon which induced our Sa\ iour to make choice
of twelve apoftles ; but the moft probable is, that
he did it in allufion to the twelve patriarchs, as the
founders- of their feveral tribes ; or to the twelve
chief heads or rulers of thofe tribes, of which the
body of the Jewifh nation confifted.
APOSTOLIC, or Apostolicai., fomethlng
connected with, or derived from, the apoliles.
APOSTOLICS, a name which two fedts of
Chriftians took upon themfelves forlherly, under
pretence that they imitated the manners and con-
tluiSl of the apoftJes. The firft of the Apolfolics,
otherwife called Apotaftiques, furang up in the
third century, and profefTed abftinence from mar-
riage, from wine, and from flefli. The others
arofe in the twelfth century, and. likcwife con-
A PO
demned marriage, but allowed the ufe of concu-
bines : they would not admit of baptifm, and
in many refpefls imitated the errors of the Mani-
cheans.
APOSTROPHE, a figure in rhetoric, when
an orator abruptly breaks ofF his difcourfe, and
addrefles himfelf immediately to any perfon, qua-
litv, or thing, animate or inanimate, as if it was
prefent, and was capable of being affected by
him. Such, for inftance, is that paflage in the
fifteenth chapter of the Corinthians, where St.
Paul, after he had fhewn that this corruptible
body fnould put on incorruption, and this mortal
be cloathed in immortality, calls out, with an air
of triumph, Death, u.here is thy JUng ? O
Grave, ivhere is t'i:y viiiory ?
If this figure is introduced with propriety, it has
a moft happy effect ; as it takes off the languor of
a dull narration, and con\erts a dry and cold dc-
fcription into life and aflion. But it ought to be
made u'e of very fparingly ; for the tiiread of an
orator's difcourfe ftiould never be broken off, to
turn the eyes of his audience on objeifts that are
either trifling of themfelves, or made fo by be-
ing introduced, when they are foreign to the bufi-
nei's in hand.
The word is compounded of the Greek, ^tj,
from, and cp?an!, to turn.
Apostrophe, in grammar, fignifies a mark
placed over a word, to Ihew that there is a letter,
or fyllable wanting, 7s mourn d, for mourned, and
deum, for dcorum.
APOTACTITES, in ecclefiaftical hiftory, the
fame with apoflolics. See Apostolics.
APOTHECARY, a perfon who pradifes the
art of pharmacy.
The word is formed from the Greek, ctTo-S-juii,
a {hop.
This is a very genteel bufinefs, and has been in
very great vogue of late years, there being, as has
been computed, upwards of icco in and about
London.
APOTHEOSIS, was a kind of confecration^
or ceremony, made ufe of by the heathens, by
which they inferted any of their emperors, or great
men, into the nurTiber of the gods.
The word is compoundeded of the Greek, dTf,
and y; 5i-, a god.
It is of longer {landing amongft the Romans
than fincc the time of Auguftus, to which its
origin has generally been afcribed : for during the
republican ftate of Rome, there were inftituted in
Greece and Afia Minor, feafts and games in honour
of the proconfuls fent from Rome ; and priefts
and facrifices were appointed, and temples and
altars built, where thty were worfhipped as dixini-
ties. From thence it was adopted, as a mod ful-
fome and Impious kind of flattery, to pay court to
the emperors, Temiples were built to Auguftus,
while
A P O
wJiile he was yet alive ; and when he was dcaJ, he
was folemiily and ceremonioufiy ranked among
their gods ; which paflcd at length into a cuftom,
and was conferred upon all his fuccefiors.
As foon as the emperor was dead, tlie whole city
put on mourning ; the body was buried in the ufual
manner, but Vv'ith amazing pomp and magnifi-
cence. In the vcftibule ot" the palace, on a bed of
i\ory, covered with cloth of gold, was laid a
figure of wax ; which exaftly refcmbled the de-
ecafed, with a pale and languid look, as when he
was fick. The fenate in mourning weeds were
ranged along the left fide of the bed, during the
grcatert part of the day ; and on the right, were
the matrons, and young ladies of the firii: quality,
drefled in flowing robes of white, without collars
or bracelets. This lafted for feven days fuccefiive-
ly, during which the phjficians approached the
bed from time to time to vifit the patient ; and al-
ways made their report, with folcmn deipairing
faces, that he grew worfe and worfe, and there
were no hopes. Herodian, from whom this ac-
count is taken, does not tell us whether the phy-
ficians pirfcribed or not ; in all probability they
did, as otherwife they could not be entitled to
fees.
At the end of feven days this waxen image died ;
and was carried on the flioulders of the Roman
knights, and young fenators, along with the bed
of ftate, through the Via Sacra to the Old Forum,
where was erefted a painted alcove of wood.
Upon this alcove were a row of pillars, adorned
with ivory and gold, on which they placed the
image. The new emperor, the magiftratts, and
ladies fat down here, while two choirs of mufic
fang the praifes of the dead ; and after his fuc-
ceflbr had Ipoken his euloglum, the body was car-
ried out of the city into the Campus Martius,
where a funeral pile was prepared. It was com-
pofed of wood in the form of a fquare pavilion,
four or five ftories high, decreafing gradually to the
top like a pyramid. The infide was filled with
combuftibles ; and the outfide adorned with cloth
of gold, inlaid with ivory, and rich paintings.
Every Itory compofed a portico, fupported by co-
lumns; and on the top of the edifice was ufuaJly
placed, in a gilded chariot, an effigy of the de-
ceafed emperor. The new emperor, with a torch
in his hand, fet fire to the pile, and the chief
magiftrates doing the fame on all fides, the flame
jnounted foon to the fummit, from which it af-
frighted an eagle, or a peacock, that flying in the
air carried with it, according to the notions of
the people, the foul of the emperor to heaven ;
from which moment altars were built to him, and
he was worfhippe ' as a god.
The apothcid'is nas been conferred on the fa-
vourites of princes, or their miilrefles, &c. but in
ge^icjral, this honour was never bellowed in Greece,
A P O
but at the command of an oracle, nor in Rome,
but by a decree of the fenate.
It was thus the ancients deified their princes,
their heroes, the inventors of arts ; and we re.ad
in Eufebius, TertuUian, and Chryfollom, that
upon the fame of the miracles done by Chriil,
Tiberius propofed to the fenate of Rome, to rank
him amongft the gods : but the propofal was re-
jected, becaufe it was contrary to the laws to
introduce into Rome the woifliip of llrange gods :
by this name they diftinguifhed the gods of all
other nations, except the Greeks, whom alone they
did not look upon as barbarous.
The vail number of perfons to whom the
honours of the apotheofis were paid, rendered the
ceremony at lafl vile and contemptible. In Juve-
nal, Atlas, fatigued with the weight of fo many
new gods, groans defperately, and declares that
he is ready to fink under the burden of the
heavens : and the emperor Vefpafian, who was
naturally fond ot raillery, in the very agonies of
death cried out to thofe around him, " I find that
" I am beginning to grow a god every miOment."
APOTOME, in geometry, is the difl^erence
between two incommenfurable quantities or lines;
thus the line DE, (Plate X. yf^. 8.) istheapotome
of AC, and CD. Eucl. x. 74. If we fup-
pofe AD equal to a, and AC = /^ then will
theirapotomebea— v^T*; or in numbers, % — \/~^.
Hence alfo the difterence between the fide BD — 2,
(Plate X. figT 7.) of an equilateral triangle A ED,
and the perpendicular AC=:v3,' is an apotome,
viz. =2 — \/^; and univerfally if BD, [fig. g.)
be a femi-parabola, whofe axis is AB, isf latus rec-
tum be =1, and if BC be a tangent to the vertex
at Bj and this be divided into the parts B(7:z:2,
Bi=:3, BcTr4, B(^=5, &c. and perpendiculars
a I, ^2, ^3, ^^4, thefe will be from the nature of
the curve ■x/? V^S? v/TT's/sj ^c. refpeitively,
and therefore half Be ( — i) — <Ji will be 1— x/?;
Ba — l/2 will be 2—y/j^ Bb — c^ will be 3— v/4 j^
and Bf — ^4 is 4 — \/ ^ ; &c. hence by this means
we have an infinite feries of difi^erent apotomes.
Euclid, in 10 lib. and third definition after prop.
85. diftinguifties apotomes into firft, fecond, third,
fourth, fifth, and fixth ; and in the propofi:ions im-
mediately following, fhews the method of finding
them. The firft is when there are two numbers
fuch, that the greateft is a rational one, and the
difl^erence between their fquares is a fquare num-
ber. A fecond apotome is when the leaft number
is rational, and the fquare root of the difference of
the fquares of the two numbers has a ratio in
numbers to the greateft number.
A third apotome is when the two numbers are
both irrational, and the fquare root of the diffe-
rence of their fquares has a ratio in numbers to
the greateft number.
A fo.urtl?
A P P
'A ibuiih apotoTnc is when the grcatcfl nunibcr is
vationd, ami the fquaic root of tlie difference of
■the fquares of the two numbers, has not a ratio to
that.
A fifth apotoinc is when the leafl- nunibcr is ra-
t'ronal, and the fcjuare root of the difference of the
fquares of the twoi numbers, h:;s not a ratio iji
numbers to the grcateft number.
A fixth apotome is wiien both tlie numbers arc
irrational, and the fquarc root of the difference of
their fquares, has not a ratio in numbers to the
greatefc number.
'J "he dcdlrine of apotomes, as laid down by
Euclid in his tenth book, is a very curious fubjeft,
and worthy to be perufed and improved by all thofe
who would lay down geometrical elements, from
whence might be produced the poffiiiility or im-
poiubility of the quadratures of curve-lineal, figures,
and perhaps lineal folutions of Diophantub's Pro-
blems, and others of a fimilar kind ; though all
the ufe one would think Euclid made of this book
was only to fliew the nature of the five regular
bodies, which by Plato and his fedt were held in
great efteem.
Apotome , in the Theory of Mi'fu, by fomc wri-
ters, is the difference betv/ecn a greater and leffer
femi-tone, being exprefled by the ratio of 128
to 125.
APOZEM, in pharmacy, the fame with decoc-
tion. See Decoction.
APPANAGE. See the article Apakace.
APPARATOR. See Apparitor.
APPARATUS, a term ufed to denote a com-
plete fet of inftrunients, or other utenfils, belong-
ing to any artift or machine: thus wc fay
a furgeon'.s apparatus, a chemift's apparatus ;
the apparatus of the air-pump, microfcope,
APPARENT, in a general fenfe, is fomething
that is vifible to the eyes, or cbvious to the un-
dcrftanding.
ApPAr.EiVT Altitude. See the article Alti-
tude.
Apparent Conjuncli^n, in affronomy. See
Conjunction Apparent.
Apparent Diameter, in afironomy, is the angle
under which we fee any of the planets, as thus ;
J.et S rcprefent the planet Saturn with his ring,
(Plate XL /%. 2.) E, the eve of .an obfrrvcr on
the earth, from which draw E A, and EB; then
t'le planet Saturn appears under the angle A EB,
Vv'.iich angle is called the apparent diameter of
S:Uurn.
'1 here are various ways of rr.cafuring the appa-
rent diameters of the .planets, but the beff and
moil approved wav is by micrometers. See a de-
fcription of the different micrcm.etcrs under the
•.!!-ticle MicRoMiTEK, with the methoJ of uilng
i'-!em, &:c.
10 ■>
A P P
The diameter of the fun, or full moon, may be
very accurately mcafured by the altitude of the
upper and lower limb, taken with two quaJra;its
by two perfons at the fame imlant of time ; or by
one perfon, with a quadrant fixeJ in the plane of
the meridian, if he is experienced in obfcrvat!on,
has a good eye, and expert in handling an InRru-
mcilt ; for the fun v/ill not fenfibly vary his alti-
tude en the meridian in the time a good obfervtr
will take the altitude of both limbs ; confequent'y
the diAercn.ceof the altitudes is the dian-efer.
Likewife the horizontal diameter of the fun,
mocn, &c. may be accurately obferved by a tran-
fit inilrumcnt, and good regulator, by taking the
difference of the time of paffage over the meridian
of the firft and laft limbs, which difference is the
dianieter in time v/hen the fun is in the equator,
and may be turned very erfily into parts of a de-
gree or circle. But if the fun is in the fame paral-
Tel of the equator, the time mufl: be reduced to tii;
equator. For the diam.eter, &c. of each .planet,
fee under the nanie of each particular juanet.
App.'\RENT DiJIance, is that diftance which v/e
imagine any obje6i: to be feen afar off from us,
\\ hich mclUy differs very m.uch from the triie ; for
inftance, in viewing the heavenly bodies, they appa-
rently feem to be at equ:;! di (lances from us, though
it is well known they differ many thoufands ot
miles. Likewife, v;hen we view remote objccls on
the earth, which {land feparate from other objecls,
we find that the apparent difference of their ap-
parent diilance from us feldom bears any pro-
portion to the true, it being fometimes more and
fom.etimes lefs.
Apparent Horizon. See Horizon.
Apparent Figure, is that figure, or fliape,
which any objeft appears under when viewed at a
diftance, which is found generally very different
from the true figure. Thus, a ftraight line at a
diftance may appear a point ; the arch of a circle,
a ftraight line ; a folid, a furface ; a furface, a
line ; a fquare, or oblong, a trapezium, or even
a triangle ; a circle, an ellipfe ; a fphere, a circle ;
and each will vary according to their different pofi-
tions, direcTtions,. or inclinations.
Apparent A'la^nitude of ati QljeH, is the mag-
nitude it appears to be of to the eye, and is mea-
fured by the optic angle it appears under. Thus,
Let aB, (Plate XI. /^. 3.) be an objeiSt viewed
direflly bv the eyt QR : from each extremity A and
B, draw 'the lines AN and B M interfecling each
other in" the cryftalline humour in I ; bifccl AB in
K, and draw IK: then is the angle A IK half
the optic angle ALB, which is the meafure of the
priparcnt m.agnitude, or length cf theobjeft AB.
'Divcrfe obje^s, AB, CD, EF, whofc real
magnitudes are very unequal, n.ay be fituatcd at
fuch diftanccs frcm the eye, as to have their ap-
parent rr.a!.''n!tuJes all equal. For if thev are fo
A a a lit Dated
A P P
f.tuatcJ, that the rays AN, BM, fhall touch the
cxtrciT!itic=-s of tach, they will all then appear un-
der the lame optic angle A IK, which is equal to
NIM, which determines the magnitude of the
image MN, in the bottom of the eye, the fame for
t'o.ern all ; and therefore they mull all appear of an
ecjual magnitude.
Obiedts fituated at different diflances, direct to
the eye, whofe apparent magnitudes are equal, are
to e.ich other as their diftances from the eye di-
reclly. Let the objeds be AB and CD ; then be-
caufe the right-angled triangles CIL and A I K
arefimilar, it will be as IK: IL::AK: CL;
but AK is half A B, CL half CD; therefore
it will be, as IK: IL:: AB: CD.
Objedts of equal magnitudes, Tituated diredly
before the eye at unequal diftances, will appear un-
equal. For let AB and GH be two objects di-
recllybefcre the eye, at different diftances, IK, and
IS ; draw the lines GP and HO crowing each
other in I ; then is the optic angle GIH manifeft-
ly greater than the angle A I B, and the image O P,
made by the former, greater then the image MN,
made by the latter : therefore the objeiSt GH is
apparently greater than the objeft AFl, though it
is but eljual to it.
Equal objects fituated diredly before the eye at
unequal diftances, have their apparent magnitudes
reciprocally proportional to their diftances. For
let AB, GH, be two equal objefts at unequal
diftances IK, IS, from the eye ; produce IG and
IH till they interfeiSt AB, each way, produced
in TandV. Then will TV be the apparent
magnitude of GH, at the diftance IK : fince the
triangles ISG and IKT are fimilar, we fhall have
IS: IK:: SG: KT; but SG is equal to AK;
therefore it will be I S : I K : : A K : K T.
From what has been faid, it appears that there
is no ftandard of the true magnitude of things.
All that we can be fenftble of is, the proportion of
map-nitude ; and yet, notwithftanding the fenfible
magnitude of things is ever mutable, and varies in
proportion to the diftance, we fcarcely ever judge
any thing to be fo great or fmall as it appears to be,,
cr'that there is fo great a difparity in the viftble
magnitude of two equal bodies at different diftances
from us.
Thus, for inftance, fuppofe tv.-o men of fix feet
fta,ture each, ftand directly before a perfon, one at
the diftance of one rod, and the other at the dif-
tance of an hundred. We Tnould, indeed, obferve a
dilFsrenc; in thsir apparent bignefs, but fhould hard-
ly think, one appeared an hundred times greater or
lefs than the other ; or that one appeared fix
feet high, the other not three-fourths of an inch.
But this happens from our prenotions, or judg-
ment that we have beforehand formed of things :
we know the proportions of magnitudes in general,
^.id are apt to retaiii-tlie ideas of things we know
A P P
to be true ; and to prefer them to others, which
are prefented by our fenfes, and exift there only,
and not in the true relations of things.
Apparent Motion. See Motion.
Apparent Plac/, in aftronomy, is that point
on the furface of a fphere, which is determined by
a line drawn from the eye to the center of the
planet, or other objefi in the heavens.
Apparent Place of any Gbje^, in optics, is that
place wherein it appears, when fcen through one or
more glaifes. See Leks.
Apparent Plaie of the Jmnge of an Ghje£i, in
catoptrics, is that place which the image of an
object appears to be in, when made by the rellectioii
of a fpeculum.
Apparent T^w. See Time.
APPARITION, in a general fcnfe, implies
fimply the appearance of any object.
Apparition, in aftronomy, is when the pla-
nets, ftars, or any other hea\en!y objedl: becomes
vifible, which before was below the horizon ; thus
the heliatical rifing is rather an apparition than a
riling.
Circle of pcrpctunl Apparition, in aftronomy,.
is a great circle of the fphere, whole plane is per- ■
pendicular to a line drawn from the center of the
fun to the earth ; the enlightened part of the
hcmifphere is bounded by this circle in the difte—
rent points of its orbit. But in geography it is a
fmall circle of the fphere, defcribed about the pole,
as a center, touching the fouthern pait of the
horizon infouth latitude, and the northern in north.
latitude. All ftars in this ciic'e never fet, but are
conftantly above the horizon ; thus the flar a, in
Lyraf,- rrakes this circle by its diurnal motion to
the latitude at Greenwich nearly.
APPARITOR, among the Romans, a general,
term to comprehend all attendants of judges and
magiftrates appointed to receive and ececute their
orders. Apparitor, with us, is a meflenger that
ferves the procefs of a fpiritual court, or a beadle
in an univerfitv, who carries the mace.
APPAUM£E, in heraldry,, denotes one liand'
extended with the full palm appearing, and the-
thumb and fingers at full length.
APPEAL, in law, the removal of a caufe from,
an inferior to a fuperior court or judge, when a
perfon thinks him.felf aggrieved by the fentence of
the inferior judge. Appeals lie from all the ordi-
nary courts of juftice to the houfe of lords. In
ecclefiaftical cafes, if an appeal is brouglit before a
bifhop, it may be removed to the archbiftiop ; if
before an archdeacon, to the court of arches ; and'
thence to the archbifhop ; and from the archbifliop's.
court to the king in chajiceiy.
Appeal, in common la\^-, is taken for the ac-
ciifation of a murderer by a perfon vv'ho had inte-
i-eft in the party killed, or of a felon by an accom-
plice. It is profecuted either by writ or by bill :.
bjr
A P P
by wi-it, when a writ is purchafed out of the chan-
cery by one pcrfon agaiiift anotJier, commanding
him to appeal fome tliird psrfon of felony, and to
find pledges for doing it eri'efSualJy ; by bill, when
the perfon himfelf gives in his accufation in writ-
ing, offering to undergo the burden of appealing
the perfon therein named.
APPEARANCE, iji a genera! fenfe, the exte-
rior furface of a thing, or that which immediately
llrikes the fenfes.
Appearance, in law, fignifies a defendant's
filing a common or fpecial bail, on any procefs iifued
out of a court of judicature. In actions by origi-
nal, appearances are entered with the hlazer of
the county ; and by bill, with the prothcno-
t;!ry.
Appearance, in aftronomy, is the fame with
phenomena and phafes, wliich are more commonly
niade ufe of. See Pheno.mexa and Phases.
Di'cil Appearance, in optics, is when we view
r.ny objciS by direCl rays, without .refradtion or
reikction.
Appearance, in perfpedtive, is the projeflion
of any figure on the peripe£ti\ e plane. See Per-
spective.
APPELLANT, in a general fenfe, one v.'ho
appeals. See the article Appeal.
APPELLANTS, ■ fignify in church hiflrory,
thofe of the Roman catholic clergy who appeal
from the bull Unigenitus, given by Clement the
Xlth. to a general council.
APPELLATIVE, in grammar, is a name that
is applicable to any genus, or fpecies, in contra-
diftinftion to proper names that belong to indivi-
duals : thus, the v/ords horfe, tree, afs, &c. are
appellatives ; Richard, Thomas, Henry, are pro-
per names.
APPELLEE, among lawyers, the perfon a-
gainft whom an appeal is brought. See the article
Appeal.
APPENDANT, inlaw, any thing that is in-
hcjitable belonging to fomiC more worthy inheri-
tance, as an ad\owfcn, common, or court, may
be appendant to a manor, land to an office, &c.
but land cannot be appendant to land, for both
arc corporeal inheritances, and one thing corporeal
cannot be appendant to another.
APPENDICULAR Fermifonmi, in anatomy,
a name by which fome call the ccecum. See the
article Coecum.
APPENDIX, in literature, a treatife added at
the end of a work, to render it more complete.
See the article Supplement.
Appendix, in anatomy, the fame with epiphy-
fis. See Epiphysis.
APPETITE, y//i/^///i-5, in a general fenfe, the
defu'e of enjoying ibme objedl, fuppofed to be con-
ducive to our happinefs. When this inclination
is gidded by reafon, and proportioned to the in-
A PP
trinfic value of the objecf, it is called rational ap-
petite ; as, on the other hand, it is denominated
fenfitive appetite, when we have oniy a blind pro-
penfity to a thing, without determinate ideas of the
good qualities for which v/e defire it.
Appetite, in medicine, a certain painful or
uneafy fcnfation, ahvays accompanied witli a defire
to eat or drink.
An exceffive appetite is called by phyficians bu-
limy, or fames canina ; a defeft or lofs of it, ano-
re.xy ; and that after things improper for food,
pica. See the articles Bulimy, Anorexv,
hz.
APPLE, a well known fruit of a roundiih
form, conhfting of a rind, or ficin, a pulp, or pa-
renchyma, branchery, or feed vefl'els, and a core.
The rind or fkin is only a dilatation of the out-
ward rind of the bark of the branch, which pro-
duces the fruit ; the pulp, although very tender
and line flavoured, is likevvife a dilatation or fuper-
bience of the inner part of the bark : this is dif-
coverable not only from the vifible continuation of
the bark from the one, through the ftalk to the
other, but alfo from the bladders which both are
compofcd of, and common to each, with this dif-
ference, that whereas in the bark the veficulse are
globular and fmall, in the pulp tliey are oblong,
and very large, but all uniformly ftretched out by
the arching of the velFels, from the core towards
the circumference of the fruit ; the branchery or
veffels are only ramifications of the woody part
of the branch, fent throughout all the parts of the
pulp, the greater braiiches being rnade to commu-
nicate with each other by inofculations of the lefs.
The main branches are commonly twenty, ten of
which are dillributed through the parenchyma,
moll: of v.'hich direct themfelves towards the ftool
of the flower ; the other ten, running in a more
direft line, meet at the Itool of the former, and
are there inofculated with them : to thcfe branches
are joined the coats of the kernels. Moft of thefe
branches were before extended beyoi-.d the fruitj
and inferted into the_ flov.-er for the proper growth
thereof; but as the fruit afterward grew larger,
and intercepted the aliment before fent to the flower,
which being flarved, and falling off, the fervice of
the faid branches become entirely appropriated to
the fruit, fifteen to the pulp, and five, to the feed.
The apple core is originally from the pith of tho
branch, the fap of which finding room to diffufc
itfeif in the parenchyma, quits the pith, and
hardens into the fubftance that it appears in.
Amcngif all tlie great variety of fruits growing
in England, there is none fo univerfal as the
apple, for be the land of a hot and dry, or wet and
cold nature, one or other of the forts (of which
there are many) will produce fruit, and v.'here the
land is good in it's kind, in very great quantities.
IT.e excellency of the liquor, called cyder, which
ATP
is extracted from this fruit, is a fuTicient encou-
ragement for its propagation, excluUve of its profit-
ji'ole ufes at table, in the kitchen, Sec. There- are
A-arious kinds of apples,- fome of which ripen in
the fuirimer months, and ha\'e their peculiar names
to difliiiguifh them by, as the Margaret apple, the
jiinneting, the codling, the fummer pearmain,' &c.
Other forts, which are eatable in winter, as the
[joklen pipin, nonpareil, winter pearmain, and
di'i'ers others," v.'hich are of ufe either for the table,
paftry, &c. ,Alfo feveral forts which are moft
preferred for tnaking cyder, t!ie chief of which are,
the red-ftrcak, Devonlhire vvlMing, the whitfour,
He^-cfordfhire under leaf, John apple, everlafting
hanger, gennct moyle, and feveral others.
Although the trees which produce this fruit are
fo very common in England, it is not a proof that
theapple-tree is a native of this ifland ; for accord-
ing to the obfervation . of Sir William Temple, it
appears that foon after the conquefi: of Africa,
Greece, Afia Minor, and Syria, by the Romans,
tlicre were brought into Italy divers forts of mala,
w-hich we call apples, and from thence fcnt into
other parts of Europe, and propagated as other
fruits ; the crab-apple, perhaps, .niav be excepted,
though not with any certainty.
All the different forts of-app!e« are propagated
bygra'fting, or inocul.ition, though the latter ope-
ration is feldom pra-£lifed. =The Itocks which they
are grafted on iriuft be of the fame kind, for if they
are grafted on the pear or quince llock (which, ac-
cording to the fyftem of Linn.xus, are of the fame
genera) they will not fucceed. There are three
iorts of flocks -ufed in the nurfery gardens, upon
which apples are grafted; one fort called free (locks,
v.-hich are raifed from the kernels of any kind of
apples, v,-hich without diftiniftion are called crabs j.
but thofe that are mod preferable is from the crab-
apple, of which verjuice is made, it being reckon-
ed more hardy, and confequently better enabled to
endure the rigour of very fevere winters : the (lock,
c.illed the Dutch creeper, is made ufe of in graft-
ing this" fruit, to check the luxuriancy of growth,
therefore dcftgncd for fuch trees that are intended to
be planted as dwarfs or efpaliers : the third fort is
called the paradife-ftock, which is a lov/ fhrub ; if
apples are grafted on this flock, they will produce
fruit the fecond or third year. It was formerly a
pi'adlice amongft gardeners to plant fm.all apple-
trees, grafted on paradife-ftock', in large flower
pots or tubs, whereby they produced fruit very
plentifully, being kept in fmall open heads or
<l*arfs, which were then efteemed great embel-
lifliments to the entrances of parterres, cabinets,
&c. but in the modern pravStice of gardening, is
now in difufe.
Ail the orchard apples gcncr-lly acjrce in the
common property of cooling and" afl'waging tliirfl:,
though they fomcvvhat dift'cr in degree ; as they are
7 "
'A P P
mere or lefs acid or auilere. Thofe arc tr.bfl whole-
fome which moft abound with this lall property,
becaufe it maintains the due teafity of the fibres,
and prevents their corrupting with the animal
juices. This fruit makes a very good part of our
food in fummer time, v/hen the heat evaporates fo
much of the animal moifture, as would be infup-
portable to the confticution, were it not frequently
refrcflied with the grateful fenfations which fuch
coolers produce. For a farther account of propa-
gating the ?apple, fee the articles Stock, and
Grafting.
Apple-Tree. . Sec Malus.
. .Aptles of^Love. See Lycopersicon.
. -APPLICATE, or ^.pplicate Ordinates, in
geometry, are parallel lines, as aa, b b, (PlateXI.
Jig. ^.) terminating in a curve, and bifefied by a
diameter, as AB; the half of thefe, asa^, 2.ni\bcl,
is properly the femi-ordinate, though commonly
called ordinate. See Curve, Hvp^reola, Pa-
rabola, Eljlipsis.
APPLICATION, in a general fcnfe, implies
the laying two things together, in order to difcovcr
theiragreement.
Application' of one Science to another, fiG;nifies
the ufe we make of applying the principles and
truths belonging to one fcience, to complete or
advance another.
Application of Algebra to Gccmctvy, implies the
folving geometrical problems by the affiltance of
algebra.
As the line, the furface, and the folid, objefls of
geometry are commenfurable magnitudes, it is very
natural to think that as algebra and analyfis were
Vtfholly employed in the calculation of magnitudes,
aitd difcovering unknown quantities from proper
data, they might be applied with very great advan-
tage to geometry. But however natural and eafy
this application may appear, Des Cartes was the
firft that c\er knew it, though algebra- had been
very greatly improved by feveral pertons, efpecially
Vieta.
Des Cartes firfl taught us to cxprefs the nature
of curves by equations, to refolve geometrical pro-
blems by thofe curves, and, in fliort, to dcmon-
ftrate theorems in geometry by the help of alge-
braical calculation, when it would be too labo-
rious to demonftratc them by the common methods.
See the articles Curs.vE and Coyif.iuSiion ij/" Eqita-
tioks.
Application of Geometry to Jigehra. — The ap-
plication of geometry to algebra is not fo common
as the application of algebra to geometry, but
fomctimes takes place : for as we reprefcnt oecme-
tricr.l lines by equations, fo we mny rcprefent nume-
rical quantities, exprefled by algebraical fymbois,
by geometrical lines ; and by this means feme-
times difcover a m.ore eafy method of dcnionftration
and folution.
An-Li-
A PP
Application of Geometry and Algehia to Me-
chaHiCi. — This is founded on the Aime principles as
"the application of algebra to geometry. It confifls
chiefly in reprefenting the curves which bodies de-
fcribe in their motion by ec,iiations, in determining
the equation between the fpaces which bodies ge-
nerate, (when a<5ted upon by any powers whatever)
and the time they take to pafs througli thcfc fpaces,
&c. We cannot indeed compare two things of a
different nature together, fuch as fpace and time ;
but we may compare the proportion of time with
the parts of fpace paflcd over. Time in its nature
flows uniformly, and mechanics imply the fame
uniformity.
Further, without knowipig time in itfelf, aad'
having any e.xacSt meafure of it, we cannot re-
prefent it more clearly, with refpeft to its parts,
than by the parts of an iniinite right line. Now
the proportion between the parts of fuch a body,
moved in whatever manner, may always be expref-
i'cd by an equation. Let us fuppofe a curve, the
r.bfcifi'ae of v.hich reprclent the portions of time
pafl: fin:e the beginning of the motion, the corref-
pondin:; ordinates denoting the fpaces pafTed
thrcugh during thefe portions of time. The equa-
tion of this curve will exprefs, not only the pro-
portion of the timx to the fpace, but, if we may
fpe- k fo, the proportion of the proportion that the
p;r s of time have to their unity, to that which the
psris of fpace palled through have to theirs ; for
the equation of a curve may be cor.fidered cither
^s expreJling the proportion of the ordinates to
the able fla, or as the equation between the pro-
poriion that the ordinates have to their unity,
and that which the correfponding abfciffa have to
theii s.
It is evident ihrn, that by the bare application
of geometry and calculation, we may account for
the general properties of motion, varied by any
law whatever, without the help of any other prin-
ciple. In the article Accelerated yl/»//'o«, may
be feen an example of geometry applied to mecha-
nifm ; the time of the defcent of a gravitating
body is there reprefented by the perpendicular of a
triangle, the velocity by the bafe, and the fpaces
pafTed through by the area of the parts of the
triangle.
Application of Geometry end Algebra to Phyfics.
This we owe to Sir Ifaac Newton, as we owe
the application of algebra to geometry to Des
Cartes, and it is founded on the fam.e principles.
The properties of bodies in gencai have between
each other certain proportions, which v,". may com-
pare with each other, more or lefs dillinguifliable ;
arvd thefe we can difcovcr by geometry or algebra.
On this are founded all the phyfico-mathematical
fcicnces. One fmgle obfervation or experiment
often derconftrates a whole fcience. As for ex-
r.mple : The bare knowledge of this, that the ?.jiglc
10
A P P
of incfdence is equal to the angle of reflexion,
which is known to be true, contains the whole
fcience of catoptrics. This principle ot the equa-
lity of angles being once admitted, catoptrics be-
comes a fcience purely geometrical, bccaufe it ib
reduced to compaiing angles with given lines of
pofition. The thing is the fame in many other
cafes. By the help of geometry and algebra, we
can in general determine the power of one clfe»it,
which depends on another better known. This
fcience, therefore, is almoft always neccllary to
compare and examine die fads experiments dif-
co\er to us. It muft be owned, however, that
every fubjecf of phyfics is not equally capable of
the application of geometry. Several experiments
admit of no calculation at all ; fuch are thofe of the
magnet, elecfricity, and many others ; in thefe
cafes we muft forbear applying to geometry.
Many, however, are apt to run into this fault, by
advancing hypothefes on experiments,- and pro-
ceeding to calculations according to thefe hypothe-
fes ; hut thefe calculations ought no farther to be
regarded, than as the hypothefes on which they
are fupportcd arc conformable to nature ; :md,
therefore, obfervations ouglit to confirm t'lerr,
which unfortunately fometimes does not happen.
Befides, fuppofing the hypothefes uue, they are not
always fufticient. If there be an eftld produced"
by a great number of circumftances owing to feveral
caules, which aSt all together, and we content
ouii'elves with confidering fome of thefe caufcs
only, which, being more fimple, can be calculated
mare eafify ; we may gain a partial effect of thefe
caufes ; but it will be very different from the totaL
effeiJt which would rcfult from uniting all the
caufes.
Application of a gemietrical Afcthod in Afeta-
fhyfici. — Geomet!7 has been fometimes abufed in
phyfics by applying the calculation of the proper-
ties of bodies to arbitrary hypothefes. A geome-
trical method has alfo been mifapplied in fciences,
which in their, own nature fubmit to no calcula-
tion, we mean the method only, not the fcience.
Several metaphylical writers, who have pubiifhed
certain truths, have yet, copying after the manner
of geometricians, ridiculoufly enough fv^elled their
paoe with the pompous words axiom, theorem,
corollary, &c.
The authors of thefe works certainly imagined
that thefe words, by fome fecret charm, compofed
the effence of a demonftration ; and that by writ-
ing at the end of a propofition, that it might be
demonflrated, they fliould make that dcmonlhable
which was not really fo. Geometry does not owe
its certainty to this method, but to the evidence
and fimplicity of its ohjeft : and though a treatiic
on geometry, when diverted of its ordinary terms,
m-jy he vTry good ; yet a ireatife on metaphyfics
mav be often verv bad, by the sileccaiion of fol-
B b b
lowing
A P P
A P P
lowing a geometrical method. We ought even to
diftrult this clafs of viriters : for the generality of
their pretenJed demonlliations are only founded up-
on an abiile of words.
Thofc who have confidered thefe things, know
how common and eafy the ahiife of words is,' eipe-
cially in metaphyfical fubjecls. It is in this parti-
cular the fchoolmen have excelled ; and it is pity
they made no better ufe of their fagacity.
Application of Mitaph^fia to Geomct<y. — Mc-
taphyfics are fometimes niilapplied in geometry, as
well as geometry in mctaphvfics proper to iti'elf,
which is certain and inconteilable ; becaufe the
geometrical propofitions which refultfrom it, aiibrd
an evidence which demands our afTent. But as ma-
thematical certainty arifcs from the llmplicity of its
©bjecSts, its metaphyfics too mull be extremely fnn-
ple and clear ; muft always be capable of being
reduced to perfect ideas, without any obicurity.
In fliort, how can the confequcnces of any thing
be certain and evident, if the principles are not lo ?
Yet fome authors have thought themfelves able to
introduce into geometry a kind of metaphyfics, of-
ten obfcure ; and, what is Hill vvorfe, have afTedled
to di-monftrate, mctaphyfically, truths which have
been already eilabliftied on other principles : this
furely was the way to render thole truths doubtful,
if they could pollibly be k^ The new geometry
has principally occafioned this -falfe method* By
confidering parts infinitely fmall as re.il quantities,
and admitting fome of thefe to be greater and fome
lefs, they have acknowledged an infinity of fma'.l
{sarticies of different claffes; and looked on them
as real fomethings, inftead of endeavouring to re-
duce thefe fuppolitions and calculations to fimple
ideas.
■Another abufe of metaphyfics In geometry con-
fifts in confining metaphyfics to geometrical demon-
ftrations. Admitting even the metaphyfical prin-
ciples we fet out upon to be certain and evident,
there are fcarce any geometrical theorems that can
lie accurately demonilrated by their help alone ;
they almofl: always require lines and calculations :
•this manner of demonflration is very material, be-
caufe it is in fhort the only fure and certain me-
thod ; fince with our pens, not metaphyfical rea-
fonings, we can make combinations and certain
calculations.
This latter kind of metaphyfics, which we have
been fpeaking of, is however ufeful to a-certain de-
gree, provided we do not confine ourfelves too
much : it makes us carefully examine the princi-
ples of difcoveries ; it furnilhes us with lights ; it
points out to us the road ; but we are not fure of
being right, if we may be allowed the expreflion,
without the flaff of calculation to point out the
proper obiefts which we before faw confufedly.
(Jne would think great geometricians ought al-
ways to be €xcellent metaphyficians ; at leaft in the
obje£ls of their fcience. This is not, however^ al-
ways the cafe ; fome geometricians are like people
who pofiefs a fenfe of feeing, contrary to that o(f
feeling ; this proves yet more ho'Af neceflary calcu-
lation is in geometrical truths. One may venture
to affirm, that the geometrician who is a bad meta-
phyfician in the objects he applies himfelf to, will
in others be intolerable : tiiough geometry, whofe
object is the menfuration of boJv and matter, may
in ibme cafes be applied to thought.
Application of cue Thing zo another^ is a term
made ufe of to denote the fervice the firfl is of to
underltand or bring the fecond to perfection. Thus
the application of the cycloid to pendulums fig-ni-
fies the ufe made of the cycloid to bring pendulums
to perfection.
APPOGIATURA, \n mufic, implies a fmall
note inferted by practical mufitians between two
others at fome difiance.
APPORTIONMENT, inlaw, the divifion of
a rent into parts, in the iiimc manner as the land
out of which it iiTues is divided,
APPOSITION, in grammar, is a name given
to a particular kind of conflrudtion, which is called
in Greek i~;.^ny\]iTif : it confifts in putting two,
or more lubihiiuives in the fame cafe, witliout any
copulative to join them. Thus in Virgil,
Formofum Pafhr Corydon ardihut Alexim,
Delicias Domini.
Apposition, among naturalifts, is the fame
v/ith juxta-pofition. See the article Juxta-Posii-
TION.
APPRAISING, the act of valuing or fetting a
price upon goods.
APPREHENSION, in logic, the firft or moil
fimple aft of the mind, whereby it perceives or is
confcious of fome idea. See the article Percep-
tion.
Apprehension, in law, implies the feizing a
criminal in order to bring him to juflice.
APPRENTICE, a young perfon hound by in-
denture to fome tradefinan, in order to be inflruCted
in his myftery or trade.
APPROACH, the acceding or advancing of
two objects towards each other.
APPROACHES, in fortification, are trenches
thrown up and carried on in a zigzag manner by
the befiegers, in order to get nearer the fortrels,
without being expofed to the fire of the enemy's
cannon ; thefe trenches are connected by parallels,
or lines of communication.
APPROACHING, in gardening ; fee the arti-
cle Grafting by Approach.
APPROPRIATION, the annexing a benefice
to the proper and perpetual ufe of a religious houfe,
bifhopric, college, he.
APPROVER, in law, implies a perfon, who,
having been concerned in committing a felony, ac-
cufes one or mgre of his accomplices.
AP-
APR
APPROXIMATION, in aritlimctic, .mJ al-
gebra, is the method of a;)proacliing nearer and
nearer to truth, without being able to gain it
exactly. There are fevcral methods of approxi-
mation laid down by Dr. Wallis, Halley, Ralp-
fon, Ward, Maclaurin, Simpfon, &c. which
aj'c ail nothing more than a f;ries continually con-
^■trgingor approaching nearer to the quantity fought,
according to the nature of the feries. See Se-
ries, &c.
APPUI, in the menage, implies the fenfe of the
action of the bridle in the horfeman's hand.
APPULSE, in aftronomy, is the approach of
a planet to the fun, or any fixt ftar, and is a ftcp
towards a tranfit, conjunction, occultatlon, eclipfe,
iic.
The appulfe of the mcon to fixt liars, fincc
their places ha\ e been accurately fettled by obferva-
tion, and the moon's theory correfled, by that
molt accurate aflronomer Dr. Bradley, whofe death
can never be too much regretted by the aitronomers
of this nation, is deemed one of the beft methods
for determining the longitude at fea. The compu-
tation at prefent is too prolix and difficult for failors,
nay, even for mofl of our learned and theoretical
aitronomers to put in practice ; and though they
may lay down rules, and call them fliort, yet they
have not hitherto been able to perfuade the prailtical
navigators that they really are fo. However, there
is now a fcheme before the learned and honourable
conmiiflioners of longitude, (given in by Mr.
George Witchell) for intirelv reducing this labori-
ous and difficult computation ; and we are appre-
henfive that this will he the lait improvement of
the kind, for this gentleman feldom puts any aflro-
nomical problem out of bis hands, without giving
it the finiftijng Itroke ; and if he docs fucceed, as
•a few months time v/ill determine, we mav reckon
the appulfe of the moon and fixt Itars (econd to
JV'Ir. Harrifon's time-keeper, with regard to finding
the longitude at fea.
APPURTENANCES, in common law, fignify
whatever things belong to another thing as princi-
pal : as hamlets, fiilieries, &c. to a manor ; feats
in a church to houfes, &c.
APRICOT, Annemoia Alalu!, in botany, a
.genus of fiuit-trecs, claiVcd by Linnaeus with
the prunusi or plum. Although the genera-
tive parts of the flowers agree according to hi^ fj-f-
tem of botany, yet as there is a very m.tterial differ-
ence not only in the plant and foliage, but alfo in
the tafte and form of the fruit, it may therefore be
necelTary in this work to mention them diltindtly.
Jt is laid, the apricot (cornmonly fo called) is a na-
tive of Epirus, or Epirc, a province of Greece,
and from thence called A-Ja'us Epirotka, from
whence the Englifh name apricot may be derived,
though, mor.c commonly called by the Romans
APR
Alalus Armeniaaif \vhich implies its being originally
brought from Armenia in Afia ; however, there
can he little doubt but that the Romans firlt intro-
duced it into Italy, and from thence to other Eu-
ropean countries. This tree, in England, grows
to a tolerable fize, producing roundifh acuminated
leaves fenated at their edges, and placed alternately
on free-grov< ing branches, though on the curfons,
or fpurs, they grow five or fix together in a bunch.
The flowets, which are rofaceous, (fee tlse article
Prunus for their generical chara£ters) appear early
ii5 the fpring before the leaves, and are fucceeded
by a well-known fleftiy fucculent fruit. In England
there are feven forts or varieties cultivated, which
are, i. The mafculine ap;icot, which is fooncft
ripe, and of a fmall roundilh form. 2. The orange-
apricot, v.'hich is the next that becomes ripe, ths
flavour of which is but indiiKerent. 3. The Algiers
apricot ripens next, which is oval-fhaped, com-
prellcd, and of a Itraw-colour ; this fruit is not
much efteemed. 4. The Roman apricot is next in
order of ripening, and larger than the Algiers. 5.
The Turkey apricot, which is larger than the others,
and of a globular form, ripens next, and is much bet-
ter flavoured than any of thofe ahovementioned. 6.
Hie Breda apricot, fuppofed to be a native of Africa,
is a large roundifh fruit, of a deep yellow when ripe,
and of an orange-colour; within fide the flefn is
foft, full cf rich juice, and higher flavoured thnii
any of the whcle tribe. 7. The Brufiels apricot
is the laftin ripening, it is red on the fide next ths
fun, and of a greenifh ye!L>w within fide when
ripe; the flefii is fiim and hii^h-flavoured, but-often
cracks before \x is ripe. — All the forts of apricots
are propagated by inoculation on plum-flocks,,
and trained in the nurferies either for planting
•againfl walls, or for ftandarJs ; the belt foil for
thefe, or any other fort of fruit, is frefii untried
earth, from a pafiure taken about ten inches deep
with the turf, which fhould be laid to rot and ir.c!-
low, at iealt twelve months before it is ufed. \^'lirn
the former foil of the border is taken away, th's
frejh eajdi fhould fupply its place, and if the bor-
ders are filled with it two months before the tree,;
are planted, the ground will be better fettled, r.iul
not fo liable to fink after the trees are planted. Th?
ground fliould be railed four or five inches abo\c
the level to allow for fettlinT : the borders bein*
thus prepared, make choice of fuch trees v/hich are
of one year's growth from the budding, and if the
foil is dry, the belt feafon to plant them is when
the leaves ai'e turned yellow, and ready to fall oft" in
autumn, when they v/ill have time to form fre/h
roots before winter, a.nd be better enabled to v.ith-
ftand the feverity of the weather., as alfo prepared
to fhoot more vigorous in the Ipring ; but do not
cut off any of the head at that time of plantinij;,
unlefs tber; be aiiy any ftrong fore-right fliuots
which
APR
■w'hiclr v<'ii! not bend to the v.tII, and muft there-
foie be cut :iway. If the foil is very moift, it is
bettLT to plant in the (pring, juil as tlie fap begins
to be in motion : the trees being ready prepared
for planting, by cutting the extremities of the roots
fniooth, and ail fmall decayed fibres off, mark out
the,d;ilances they are to be planted at, which, in a
good ftrong foil, (hould not be Icfs than fixteen or
fighteen feet ; make a hole where each tree is to
liijiu, place the item about four inches from the
wail, inclining the top thereto. After having fixed
the tree in the c'arth, nail the branches to the wall,
and pour a pail of water on the root, in order to fet-
tle the earth fnore compaftly about it ; then cover
tfie furface of the earth round the roots with dung'
to keep the frcft out. In this ilate they may re-
main till February, when, if the weather be good,
the branches Ihould be unnailed, and wiih a fliarp
kiufe cut down to about four or five eyes above the
place of inoculation. Coping the place of incifion
towards the wall. When the weather becomes hot
and dry, it will be necefiary to water them, obferv-
ing to keep fome mulch round the roots, which
will prevent their drying fo foon as if there were
none. As new branches are produced, obferve to
nail them to the wall horizontally, and difpl.ice
fuch faoots that grow in a fore-right dirccSlion : this
mull be repeated as often as neceflary, but by no
means (hould the branches be topped in fummer. —
In autumn, when the leaves are dropping off, it
will be neceflary to fliorten the branches in propor-
tion to their ftrength. A vigorous liranch may be
left eight or nine inches long, but a weak one not
iibove five or fix. By this means, no part of the
wall will be left uncovered with bearing-wood,
which muft be the cafe if the branches are left at
their full length at firft, which is praftifed by fome
gardeners : but the error muft be expofed, when it
ij fccn, that fev/ more buds than tv/o or three (hoot
from the branches, and thefe are for the mofl: part
pioduccd" from the extreme part of the lafi: year's
v/ood, fo that all the lower part of the {hoots be-
come naked, and this is the reafcn we fee fo many
trees which have their bearing-wood fituatcd only
at the extreme parts of the tree. The fecond fum-
mer obferve as in the firft, to difplace all fore-right
fhoots as they are produced, nailing in the others
clofe to the wall horizontally, and never {horten
iinv of the flioots in fummer, unlefs to furnifli
branches to fill vacant places on the wall. At Mi-
chaelmas, fhorten the flioots as before dirciSted.
The follov/ing year's management is much the fame
as the preceding ; obferving, that apricots produce
their fruit not only on free-growing branches, but
alfo on curfons, or fj-urs, which epj produced from
two years wood; thefe fpurs, therefore, fhould not
be di (placed.
Apricot trees planted againft a wall, of a weft
or caft afped, is heft, as the fouth afpect is rather
3
A PR
too hot for chctn. The weft afpedl is preferable, for
it generally happens, that, at the time of their be-
ing in bloom, the blighting eafterly winds prevail,
whrcli fretjutritly cut their blollbins oiFy and greasly
damages the tree.
The Brulfels and Breda apricots are moft com-
monly planted for ftandards, and produce fruit of
a much richer flavour than thole againft walls ; biu
the misfortune is, that, by blowing fo early, the
flowers r.re very apt to be deftroyed by the incle-
mesicy of the v/eathcr : therefore, inftead of train-
ing them with Items fix or faven feet high,, it vv'ouid
be better to have them about half that lieighth ; or
they may be pi. iced as dv/arfs in an efpalier, where,,
if propa."!y managed, th.?y Vvill produce good
fruit ; and the trees in efpalier may be more conve-
niently covered in the fpiing when the feafon prove*.
bad. For a farther accci'Jivt of the management of
thefe trees, fee the' article pRvniKC.
APRIL, in chronology,' t.he fourth month of the
year, containing thirty da.ys.
I'he word is formed from the Latin jipriin,.
which is derived from apcrio, to open, becaufe the
buds begin to open during this month.
A-PRIORI dcnw ftrciiion. SeeDfiMONSTR ation.
.APRON, in the marine, a platform or flooring
of plank, raifed at the entrance of a dock, a little
higiier than the bottom, againft which tlie gates are
ftiut. See die ajticle Docic.
Apron, in naval architedfure, a piece of curved
timber, fixed behind the lower part of the ftem
immediately above the fore-end of tlie keel ; it is.
commonly formed of two pieces, and is ufed to-
ftrengthen the fcarf or jundion of two parts of the
ftem. See Ship-Building, Keel, Stem.
Apron, in gunnery, a fquare plate of lead that
covers the touch-hole of a cannon, to keep the
charge dry. See Cannonv
APSIS, in aftronomy, is ufed as well for the
hiffheft part of the orbit of any planet, or the point
where the planet is at the greateft diftance from the
fun, as the lovveft part of that oibit, when the pla-
net is the neareft to the fun. The line of the ap-
fis, or apfides, is a line drawn from the perhelion
to the aphelion, as A P, (plate X. fig. i.)
Aspis, among ecclefiaflical writers, implies the
inner part of the ancient churches, anfwering to
what is at prefent called the ciioir.
Apsis is alfo ufed by fome writers for the bifiiop's
feat or throne.
APTHANES. See Aethanes.
APTO'iT, fignifies in grammar, a word that is
indeclinable, or has no variation of cafes.
It is derived from the Greek a, •njithcut, and
■t/Iqo-i!, a cnje.
APUS, in aftronomy, a conftellation of tlve
fouthcrn hemifphcre, placed between Triangulurii
Auftriale, and the Cham.elion near the i'nith pole j
by fome it is called the bird of Paradife, There
are
A Q^U
A Q^U
ate four ftars of ilie fixth, tlirce of the fifth, and
four of the fourth magnitude in this conftellation ;
but as we have never feen thefc ftars, we fliail not
give their places.
APYREXY, among phyficlans, implies the in-
termifiion of a fever.
The word is (Jreek, air-upsj/rt, compounded of
«, priv. and ^up, fire, or heat.
AQUA, water. See the article Water.
Aqua-FORTIS, a corrofive liquor diftilled from
nitre and vitriol, in the following manner.
Put vitriol into an earthen or iron pot; make a
fire imder it, and the vitriol will begin to melt and
fmoak ; increafe the fire gradually, and it will
thicken and afTume an afli-colour. Let it be Ifirred
with a twig before it becomes folid, till it be per-
feftly dry ; but let it be taken as yet boiling out of
the pot ; for if it grows cold therein, it will ftick fo
faft that you will hardly be able to get it out.
Pound to a fubtile powder three pounds weight of
this calcined vitriol, and mix them well with four
pounds of nitre well dried, and puh'erized very fine.
Put thefe together in a cucurbit, or retort, or an
iron pot, and place the whole in a furnace.
At firft, let the fire be made not much greater
tlian is neceflary to boil water. When the recipi-
ent grows warm, continue the fame degree of fire,
till all the phlegm is expelled, which you will know
from the diminution of the heat of the recipient :
increafe the fire gradually, till you fee a few yellow
vapours arife. Keep up the fame fire for an hour
or two, and make it fo ftrong as to warm the vef-
fels moderately. Continue this for fome hours,
and letting the veflels cool, pour the liquor, now
emitting reddifh fumes, out of the recipient into a
glafs vefiel, having a glafs ftopple : this liquor thus
prepared is your aqua-fortis.
You ftiould, for fecurity's fake, leave in the clo-
fure of the recipient and vefiel that contains the
matter to be diflilled, a hole, which maybe flopped
and opened with a v/ooden peg ; for if you hap-
pen to exceed the juft degree of fire, efpecially in
the beginning of the operation, the firft and more
fubtile fpirits, which are very clailic, come forth ;
the opening therefore of the hole may give them a
pafi"age, lelt the veflels fhould burft, which would
be very dangerous.
Aqua-marina, in natural hiftory, the name of
a precious flone of a colour compounded of green
and blue, nearly refembling that of fea-water, from
whence the name.
It feems \ery probable that the ancients knew it
under the name of the beryl-fi:one ; for Pliny ob-
fervcd that the mofi: beautiful beryls were thofe that
imitated the colour of f.-a-water ; he likewifc di-
llinguifhes feveral forts of beryls, which bear no re-
femblance with our aqua-marina ; as the chryfo-
beryls, which were of a golden colour. Whatever
the ancients called the aqua-marina, we are now to
10
cndta\'our to find out a furc means to diftinguifli
this precious (tone from all others. The colour
being a mixture of green and blue, we cannot con-
found it either with green or blue ftones, as the
emeralds and tiie faphires : fur if we fuppofe the
emeiakl of a pure green, without any tindlure of
blue, and the faphire blue as indigo, and free from
any tindhire of green, we may eafily difcover that
all ilones compounded of green and blue can nei-
ther be emeralds nor faphires. This mixture of an
emerald- colour with that of a faphire, that is, of
green and blue, defcribcs fo well the aqua-ma-
rina, that it fccms impoffible to be miftaken : not
but that there are fome of thefe ftoncs, where the
green is more predominant than the blue ; as well
as others, where the blue is more powerful than the
green. Thefe flones are very different from each
other, with rcfpcdl to their hardnefs. The oriental
are reckoned the hardeft, and bear the finell: polifh ;
and confequently are more beautiful, more fcarce,
and dearer than the occidental.
The mofI: beautiful aqua-marinas come from the
Eafl-Indics ; and it is faid that fome of them are
found on the borders of the Euphrates, and at the
foot of Mount Taurus. The occidental ones come
from Bohemia, Germany, Sicily, the Ille of Elba,
&c. And it has been affirmed that fome of them
have been found on the fea-fhore.
AquA-REGiA, a corrofive menftruum that has
the power of dillblving gold. It is made in the fol-
lowing manner :
Take one pound of common fait ; melt it in a
clean crucible or iron ladle ; pour it out into an
iron mortar, and when cold break it into fmall
pieces. Put thefe into a retort, and pour upon them
twice- their weight of good aqua-fortis. Place the
retort in a fand furnace : lute on a receiver, and
apply a gradual fire, till no more liquor drops from
the nofe of the retort. An aqua-regia may alfo be
made, by mixing one part of fpirit of fait with three
of aqua-fortis, or by dillblving the fame quantity of
fal ammoniac in it : but this fhould be done flowly,
and bydegrees, otherwife great quantities of oftenfive
fumes will arife.
This menftruum diflblves iron, copper, tin,
gold, mercury, regulus of antimony, hifmuth,
and 7,inc ; but not filvcr, unlefs it be deficient in
ftrength.
AQU/EDUCT, in architecture and hydraulics,
is a conduit of water, and fiGiiifies an artificial ca-
nal, either urider ground or ralfcd above it, ferving
to convev v/aier fjcm one place to another accord-
ing to their level, notwithfianding the unc\'ennefs
of the intermediate ground. Thus, the water is
carried by conduits, pipes, or aqua:du£ts, from the
New River head at Iflington toanvp^rt of the.city
of London that has the lame height or level with
the river's head. The Romans built feveral very
confiderablc ones in their city; and Julius Fronti-
C c c
nus.
A QJJ
A QJJ
nus, who had the direftion of them, tells us of nine
which difcharged themfclves through 1314 pipes of
an inch diameter : and Blafuis upon Livy obferres,
that thefe aqueducts brought into Rome above
500,000 hogflieads of water in thefpace of 24liours.
Aqujeduct, in anatomy, a term applied by ana-
tomifls to certain canals, on account of their form
or ufe : fuch are the aquieduft of Fallopium, a ca-
nal fituated between the apophyfes, llyloides, and
maftoidcs ; the aquasdudl of Nuck, in the felerotic
coat of the eye ; and the aquasducl of Sylvius, in
the brain, the pofterior furface of which is called
its anus.
AQUARIANS, a name given to a fe6l of Chri-
flrians, who appeared in the third century : they
were fo called becaufe they fubf!:ituted v/ater inftead
of wine when they adminiftered the facrament.
In the earliefl ages of Ciiriftianity, when the people
fo furioujly raged together againft the profelvtes to this
religion, its votaries were obliged to affemble by
night to celebrate their holy myfteries ; in which
cafe they made ufe of water inftead of wine, that
in the morning the fmell might not betray them.
Others mixed water with their wine ; becaufe
water reprefents the people, as wine does the blood
of ChrnT: : and when both are mixed together, then
Chrill and his people are united. This praftice was
confirmed by the council of Carthage : for which
two reafons are affigned ; firft, becaufe it is accord-
ing to the example of Chrifl ; and, fecondly, be-
caufe when our Saviour's fide was pierced with the
fpear, " ftraightway came there out blood and wa-
" ter." A better reafon than either of thefe might
be affigned for the ufe of water with wine in the eu-
charlft ; and that is, that people might not drink
inordinately, fo as to abuib themfelves, which they
v/ere wont to do, even in the apoftles times : for
St. Paul reproves them for it, and alks them, Whe-
ther they have not homes to drink in, that they
fhould fo abufe that holy feftival ?
AQUARIUS, in aflronomy, a conftellation,
which makes the eleventh fign of the zodiac ; re-
prefented by a man (Plate XII.) with a water-pot
on his arm inverted, and the water pouring down ;
■fignifying that when the fun enters this fign, which
is about the 20th of January, we may expedt much
rain. Poets tell us this Aquarius, when on earth,
v/as the beautiful youth Ganymede, fon of Tros
and Callirhoe, whom an eagle fent by Jupiter
fnatched off" mount Ida as he was hunting, and car-
ried him into heaven, \yhere Jupiter made him his
cup-bearer, and on whom he attends at all banquets
with flowing cups of nedar. Others notwithifand-
ing think it to be Deucalion, the fon of Prome-
theus, whom the gods tranflated to heaven, in re-
membrance of that mighty deluge which happened
in his time, whereby mankind was al.mofi: intirely
f\vept from the earth. The following is a catalogue
of ftars in this conftellatiori, fettled to 1770.
V-
^
'c
Name.
s
I
6
2
4
3
5
4
6
5
6
6
5
7
6
8
-
9
6
iO
6
II
6
12
6
13
5
14
6
15
6
16
6
17
6
iB
6
19
6
20
6
21
6
22
3
23
6
24
6
25
6
26
6
27
6
28
6
29
6
30
6
31
5
32
6
33
4
34
3
35
5
36
6
37
6
38
6
39
6
40
8
41
6
42
7
43
4
44
6
45
6
46
6
47
6
48
3
49
5
50
6
51
6
52
5
53
6
54
6
Right
Afcenfion
306
308
308
309
309
310
310
311
3"
3' I
311
312
314
315
316
317
317
317
318
318
317
319
321
321
321
322
323
326
327
327
327
328
328
328
328
329
329
329
329
330
329
330
331
331
331
332
332
332
332
332
332
333
333
333
45.45
48-iii
45-54
40.20
50.48
3.28
58.13
40.48
58.10
57-
56.
5029
15.41
51-
23.29
7.17
30.19
45-50
4.19
4.5c
10.52
51-30
22.25
49. 8
51-
29.16
45-52
12. 4
19-55
42.12
51. II
6-53
29.57
29.27
57-27
10.45
25..
27.
52-34
9.21
14.42
59- 7
10.17
10.17
31-34
1. 17
5.21
26.35
.30-54
53-30
53-55
22.57
22.58
39-43
Di fiance
fromNor.
Pole.
90.20.47
100.19.231
95-53-42
96.34.52
96.23.54
99.49.54
100.36.12
103.58.29
104.27.16
96.24. 14
95.38. 8
96.45,25
102.17.49
100.12.
95-34- ,39
95.34.28
1 00. 1 9. 30
103-53-3
101.45. 16
94.24.56
94-34-34
96.34.18
98.51. 7
91. 7. II
88.49-53
89.48.26
88.25.14
90.32.
108. 7.
97.40.48
93.15.24
99- 3-46
104.58.33
91.25.42
109.41. 8
99.21.56
101. 59.3c
102.44. 1
105.22.22
103' 4-54
112.15.56
104. 1. 19
99. I. c
96-34-35
104.28.55
98.58.13
1 '3-47-45
92. 32. 21
116. 57. 29
104.43.29
96. 2.44
89.46.56
107.56.19
102.25.23
Var.in
Var.in
Right
Dedi-
Afcen.
nation.
46.10
12.50
49- 5
12.53
48.15
12.54
.48.15
12.61
48-15
12.72
48.52
12.87
48.52
12.99
44.4c
13.20
50.IC
13-42
48.15
13-5'
48. IC
13.63
48.15
•3-75
49.18
13-94
48.3c
14.2c
47.40
H-31
47.40
14.45
48.40
14-5;
49-33
14.69
48.35
14-80
46.58
14.95
46.58
15. II
47.42
'5-31
48.15
15.41
4742
15-53
47-42
15-59
46.42
15.62
46.10
15-73
46.30
15.89
49-40
16.C1
4743
16.43
46.48
16.96
46.27
17.C0
49.
17.07
46.27
17.07
49-53
17.18
47-45
17.21
47-32
17.21
48.29
17.27
49.05
17-30
49.18
17.41
49-55
17-45
4837
17-54
47-43
17-54
47-38
17-59
48.29
17.61
47-4^
17.69
■1-9-55
17-71
46.36
17.76
49.58
'7-79
48.35
17.85
46.58
17.88
46.10
17.91
49.10
17.92
48. 9
17-94
Aqv
09
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
1
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
ICO
lOI
ro2j
IC3!
104'
105
106
107
108
55
4
5b
fa
57
5
58
6
59
5
6b
6
61
6
62
4
03
5
64
6
65
6
66
6
67
6
68
6
Right
Afcenfion
aci
da
ad
i""ad
2 ■'•'ad
Sheat
Fomalht
1'"^ ad
2''^ ad
3'" ad
i"'^ ad
4" ad
Borl.ad
Auft.ad
i""^ ad
2'^^ ad
'ad
I™ ad
2"^^ ad
3"^ ad
4'^ ad
i™=ad
i™ad
2''' ad
2'" ad
3''^ad
4" ad
5" ad
C 334- 14-45
334.21.44
334- 34-55
334-44 14
335-3I-I3
335-35- 'o
335-44-38
335-52. 1
336-27.37
336-35-16
337-36-49
337-40.13
337-40-19
338-40.20
Ti338-5i-i.
I339.18.17
T 1339-20.59
339-33-41
340. 9.10
340-12.25
340-21.35
340.36.26
340-37-58
34c.38.46
341-13-25
341.32. I
342.13-14
342-31-37
343- '7-2'
343-19-57
3-'t3-28.23
343.28.29
343.45-20
344- 9-40
344.16.15
345-36. 6
345-57-26
Diflance
fromNor.
Pole.
Var.iiii Vai-.in
Right
A[rcn.
91. 1 1.2446.22
101.48.2 149. C
101.50.51 48. O
102. 7.3647.40;
III. 12. 40 49-3
92.48.34
108.51.26
Decli-
ration
AQV
91.17.42
95.24.26
101.16. 6
101.20.57
no. 442
98.12.25
110.51. 18
105.15.47
101.49.2548. 4|
104.48. 148. 4
95.34. 846.5c
98.48. 047-15
45.aj
49.12
46.23
46.57
47-45
47-43
49- 5
46.5c
49. 8
48. 2
18.04
18.06
18.09
.18.15
i lb. 2?
18.25
18.25
18.28
18.39
1S.41
18.46
18.50
18.61
18.68
1
102.53.13
103.26.36
107. 2
107.32. O
98.28.40
io. 5
346.13-5
346.29.
346.43-59
346.37-11
346.51.58
347-21-32
347-35-53
348.21.52
349.46.12
120.:
96.-
98.20. 4
97.50.58
98.55.4-8
98. 58.28
99.10.24
"5- 2.33
99-57-43
112.28.42
113-45-32
97.17. 4
ICO. 20. 1
99.58.30
100.23. 4J47.
100.51. 52I47.
101.55. 946-50
96.22.41 46.52
106.22.23147.40
111. 24. 1447. 40
112.57.41 47-49
112.41.13
47-15
47-42
48.15
47-42
46.5
50.06
46.48
46.5c
46.5c
47-
47-
47-
49-
47-
48.2
49
46.5c
„ /5
1S.76
18.7
6.46.57
47-43
350.10.57112.14. 9 47-43
351.50.32105.33. 746.50
352.17.31 109.20.5347.40
352.18.41 1C9. 25.58 47.40
352.34.48 105.51.4046.48
352.57. 7 109.36.3846.50
353-23-30110- 0.4240.50
354..15.16 110.14.41 46.48 19.98
i8.Sa
18.85
18.87
18.90
18-95
18.96
18.97
18.99
19. 10
19.17
19.20
9.20
9.20
19.23
19-25
19.29
19-34
19.41
19.44
19.47
19.49
19.51
19.51
19.52
19.54
19.59
19.65
IQ.7
9.70
10.75
19.79
'9-79
19.81
19.87
19.89
19.94
AQUATIC, in natural liiftory, is an appsJIa-
tion given to fuch things as live or grow in the
water.
AQUEDUCT, the fame with aquxdua;. See
AnU.ffiDUCT.
AQUEOUS, fomcihing abounding with water,
or that partalces of its nature.
The word is formed irom the Latin, aquofus,
which is derived from aqua, water.
Aqueous Humour, in anato.xiy, called alfo the
.albugiiieous humour, is the utmofi: of the three hu-
mours of the eye, and fills up both its cama;ra. In
this the uvea fluctuates as it were, and moves at li-
berty : this humour alfo, when loft, will be repaired
by nature.
AQUIFOLIUM, or Agrifolium. See Ilex.
AQUILA, the eagle, in natural hiftory. See the
article Eagle.
Aquila, in aftronomy, a conftellation of the
northern hemifphere, reprefented by an eagle. The
poetical reafon of the eagle having a place in the
hea\'ens is this ; Jupiter transforming himfeif into
the form of an eagle, took Ganymede (whom he
greatly loved) into heaven ; and therefore, becaufc
by means of the eagle he executed his purpofc,
placed the figure among the conllellations in remem-
brance of the aftion. Others fay, that Jupiter was
brought up in a cave in Crete by doves, who fed
him with ambrofia ; and an eagle with nedlar,
which he drew from a rock, and carried in his bill :
for this he was iionoured with celellial dignitv.
Others fay, that in the wars of the giants the eao-le
brought thunder to Jupiter, with which he quelled
them, and is therefore called Jove's armour-
bearer. The following are the ftars in this conftella-
tion, together with Antinous, according to the order
of the Britiih Catalogue, fettled to the year i 7-^0.
O
I
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9'
10
1 1
12
13
14
15
16
17
Name.
§
4
5
5
5
6
Right
Afcenfion
Diftance
ifromNb.
Pole.
275
277
277,
278,
Var.in
Right
Afcen.
Var.in
Decli-
nation
/
278.
279.
279.
k
281.
281.
282.
1
282.
c
282.
z
282.
h'
282.
^
283.
C!
283.:
.31.1998.23.4449.02 1.56
-17- i99-i5-38|49--22|2.03
•36.3298.30- 849.2212.0
.10.3388.10.3246.002. 5
.32.2691.12.22 47.90 3.01
•37-37195-59-3' 47-90 3-26
•37-38i93-31-3446.82i3.30
■40-59'93-35-ii 46-82 3-38
, 2. o'96. 8.4548.503.39
,56.2376.24.3641.49340
0.58:76.41.1941.49 3.42
12.4696. 3.4848.503.44
10.47:75.14.4241.01 4.23
34-5094- i-43 49-90j4-2-
64.58^94.22.1949.904.49
23.40I95.10.36 47.92 4.64
28.55 76.28.0041.4914.85
A Q^U
A R A
Name.
i8
19
70.
2 1
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
3'
32
33
3+
35
3&
37
3«
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
>4
55
5^
57 6
5B;6
^ ad
2''* ad
5
6
6
6
6
6
4
4
6
4
6
6
5
6
6
6
6
6
3
5
6
2.1
5
4
6
Right
Afcenfion
283.54.42
284.17.52
284.54.39
Di fiance
FromNo.
Pole.
Var.in
Rijht
Afcen.
285. 23. M-
286. 8.46
286.34.52
2B6.38.II
286.38.39
286.55.25
287. 3.26
287. 6. 9
288.10. o
288.13.23
288.23.11
288.33-26
288.54-50
289.1 1-52
289.12.58
289.31.27
290.28.1
290.34-40
290.58. 46
291. 0.15 _ ,
29V. 4.i9l9i-4B-i8
95. 9.59
79.17.05
84.17.12
" '9-43
S8- 5-35
85.34.27
'09.21. 23
90. 5.10
78.49.31
95.51.22
91.19.46
78. 3.22
87.21.25
87.19.41
78.34.12
90. 6.44
94-13-17
93-45-4'
86.31.22
93-I6-33
101. 4.13
83. 7. o
97-32-5I
93.27.41
Var.in
Decli-
n.'.iin
,
291. 9.43
291.26.37
291.49-33
292. 5-21
292.44.20
292.48.46
293.20.40
92. 0.23
85. 8.14
91. 10. 16
78.21
78-44-33
77-I5-30
2g3.29.36i82-57-48
293-34-38 79-55-56
Lucida
59
■60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
7i
294.20.28
^1294.20.29
294.38.4
294.51.50
295. 4.32
295.16. 7
295.24.15
295-35-58
T
■95
j8.2i
101.21.48
8.46. 8
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Aquila Marina, the fea-eagle, the name of a
fifli ot the pr.ftinacha kind, with a head refembling
in fome nieafure that of a toad.
AQUILEGIA, Columbine, in botany, a genus of
polyandrious plants, the fiowers of which are pen-
dulous and dcftituteof an empalcment, but confift
of five plain lanceolated petals expanded. Within the
flower are five nediariums ranged alternately with
the petals, each of the horns widening upward, the
opening being oblique to the fide as it afccnds, and
is annexed to the receptacle, with th; lower part
lengthening gradually into a long tube hanging by
an obtufe apex : the filaments are numerous, topped
with oblong ere£l antherae. It hath five ova) ger-
men, fupporting five awl-fliaped ftyles, which are
longer than the {lamina, and crowned with fingle
upright ftigma : each germen afterwards becomes a
membraneous capfule, which is upright and cylin-
drical, containing many o\'al fiiining feeds. The
columbine makes an agreeable appearance in gar-
dens, producing flowers of various colours, which
blow in May or June : they are propagated either
by fowing the feeds or parting the roots, the proper
feafon for which is in autumn. The officinal fort
is the fimple or wild columbine : the leaves, flowers,
or feeds may be ufed. It moderately warms, dries,
and of^ens ; whence it obtains a place in prefcrip-
tions againft: the jaundice, and fuch-like ill habits,
arifing from obflrudlions. It was formerly much
efleemed for throwing out the fmall-pox and
meafles : a water was diililled from it, and a conferve
made of its flowers ; but in the prefent medical prac-
tice it is much difufed.
AQUILICIA, or Aquiliciana, in antiquity,
facrifices performed by the ancient Romans, in
times of exceiTive drought, to obtain rain from the
gods.
AQJJOSE, the fame with aqueous. See
Aqueous.
ARA, or Altar, in ailronomv, a con-
flellation of the fouthern hemifphere, contain-
ing eight liars. The poets gave the following
account of the altar's being placed in heaven
as a conilellation. When the giants, called
the Titans, were at war with Jupiter, and ufed
their utmoft efforts to pull him out of heaven, the
gods thought it neceffary to meet together, to con-
sult what was beft to be done to keep thofe Titans
out of heaven. Their conclufion was, that they
fnould all join together to fight their enemies ; and
to ratify this their league, they caufed the Cyclops
to make them an altar. About this altar all the
gods affembled, and fwore, that with one confent
they would withfland their enemies. Afterwards
having got the vidory, it pleafed them to place the
altar in heaven, as a memorial of their league, and
a token of the great benefits that arife from unani-
mity and concord. The flars in this conftellation
not
A R A
AR A
HOt being vifible to us, vvc ftiall omit giving their I
places.
ARABESQUE, or Arabesk, fomething done
after the manner of the Arabians.
ARABIAN, fomething that relates to Arabia, or
the Arabs.
Arajman, or Arabic Tongue, is abranch or dia-
lect of the Hebrew.
Father An2;elo de St. Jofeph fpeaks much of the
beauty and copiouinefs of the Ar.xbic : he allures us
it has no lefs than a thoufand names for a fword, five
hundred for a lion, two hundred for a fcrp;nt, and
cip;hty for honey.
Arabian Figures or Charaiiirs, the numeral
futures commonly ufed in arithmetical compu-
tations.
The origin of thefc charaiters has been a fubjeitt
of difpute in the republic of letters. The learned
arc generally of opinion that the Arabic figures were
iirft tautrht us by the Saracens, who borrowed them
from the Indians. Scaliger was fo fatisfied of their
noveltv, that he immediately pronounced a filver
medallion he was confulted about modern, upon his
feeing of the numeral figures 234, 235, on it. The
common opinion is, that Planudes, who lived to-
v/ards the clofe cf the thirteenth ceuturv, was the
firft Chriftian who made ufe of them. Eather Ma-
billon even allures us, in his work de Re Diploma-
tica, that he has not found them any where earlier
than the fourteenth.
Yet Dr. Wallis infifts on their being of a much
older ftaiiding ; ami concludes they mult have been
nfed in England at leaft as long ago as the time of
Hermannus Contraclus,. who, lived about the year
1050 ; if not in ordinary affairs, yet at leaf!: in ma-
thematical ones, and particularly aftronomical ta-
bles. I'id ll'all. Algeb.
The fame author gives us an inftance of their
antiquity in England, from a mantle-tree of a
chimney in the parfonage-houfe of Helendon in
Northamptonftiire, wherein is the following infcrip-
tion in baflb relievo, M°. 133, being the date of the
year 1133. Philof. Tranfail. N". 255.
Mr. Lufi'kin furnifhes a yet earlier inftance of
their ufe, in the window of a houfe, part of v/hich
is a Roman wall, near the market-place in Col-
chefter ; where between two carved lions Hands an
efcutcheon containing the figures lOgo. Philof.
Tranfaa. N". 255.
Mr. Huet is even of opinion, that thefe cha-
racters were not boi'rowed from the Arabs, but from
the Greeks ; and that ihey were originally no
other than the Greek letters, which we all know
that people made ufe of to exprefs their inimbers
by.
Arabian Phil-.pphy, the ftate of philofophy
among the ancient Arabians.
Authors of great antiquity inform us, that tlie
ancient Arabians applied th<.mfclves veiy much to
10
philofophy, and diftinguiflicd ihemfelvcs by a pecu--
liar and fuperior fagacity ; but all they fay on this
head feems very uncertain. Indeed, after Iflamim,
learning and the fludy of philofophy were greatly
efleemed among this people; but this has no place
in hiilory till we come to the jihilofophy of the mid-
dle age ; and con.'equently proves nothing with re-
gard to the philofophy of the ancient inhabitants of
Arabia Felix.
Some men of letters have aflerted, that the an-
cient Arabs applied themfclves tophilofophic.1l fpecu-
lations ; and to maintain their opinion, raife ima-
ginary fyftems, which they attribute to them, and
draw in the religion of the Sabaeans to their aid,
which they pretend to have been the ofl'spring of
philofophy. But all they advance in fiivour of this
o,;inion is founded on affertions and conjectures :
and what are thofe where p.-oof and teftimony are
wanting ? They are even forced to acknowledge
that the Greeks were of another opinion, looking
on them as a moft barbarous and ignorant people,
without the leaft tindture of learning. If credit
may be given to Abulfaragius, the Arabian writers
themfelves confefs, that before liTamim they were
funk in thedeepeft ignorance.,
Thefe reafons, however, do not feem ftrong
enough to thofe on the other fide of the queftion to
induce them to rctraiSt their opinion of the philo-
fophy they attribute to the ancient Arabs. The
contempt the Greeks exprefs for this nation, fay
they, proves only th.e pride of the Greeks,, not the
barbarifm of the Arabians. But what authority can
they produce,, or what writers can they quote, iti
favour of their opinion concerning the philofophy
of- the ancient Arabians ? 7'hey agree with Abulfa-
ragius that there are none : this opinion, therefore,
ftands on' a very weak foundation.
Jofeph Peter Ludcvvig has fignalized himfelf moft
in this difpute, and feems to have had the honour of
the ancient Arabians very much at heart. He fets
out in this manner : " Pythagoras (fays he) as
" Porphyry relates, in hts travels to improve his
" learning, did the Arabians the honour of a vifit;
" ftaid fome time among them, and learned of
" their philofophers divination by the chirping and
" flight of birds; an art in which they excelled.
" Mofes himfelf, inftrufted in all the learning of
" the Egyptians, chofe Arabia, for a retreat in his
" exile, preferable to other countries. Can one
" imagine the great legillator of the Hebrews would
" have chofe this retreat if the people had been
" barbarous, ftupid, and ignorant r Befides, their
" origin leaves no room to doubt of the impro\e-
" m.ent of their mind : they boaft of their lineage
" from Abraham, whom no one can deny to have
" been a great philofophcr. By what llrange ac-
" cident is that fpark of philofophic fpirit extin-
" guifaed, which they inherited from their common
" father Abraham ? But what yet appears a
D d d . " Itronsiir
A R A
" ftronger argument is this, that t'-e facred writ-
" ings, to give a more exalted idea of Solomon's
" wifdom, place it in oppolition to the wiidom of
" the wife men of the Eiift, which is certainly
" Arabia. From Arabia alio came the queen ot
" Shcba to admire the wiidom of the pluiofcpher
" inveftcd with a diadem ; this has been the con-
" llant opinion of all men of erudition. It is
" eafy to prove that the Magi, who came out of
" the Eaft to worfhip our Saviour, were Arabians.
" In fhort, Abulfaragius is obliged to agree, that
" before the time of lllamim, to whom the revival
" of learning; in that country is owing, they were
" perfedl mafters of their own language, good
" poets, excellent orators, and able allronoiiiers. Is
" not this enough to give thc.m a right to the title of
" philofophersr"
No, it may be replied, the Arabians might have
polifhed their language, have fucceeded in compo-
fition, h.ive beeirflcitful in the folution of riddles,
and in.erpretation of dreams ; n:iy, though it be
admitted they had fome knowledge of the courfes
of the. ftars, it will not follow they were philofo-
phers ; for all thofe arts, if they merit the ivj.me,
tend more to increafe and encourage fuperftition,
than to difcover truth, or diveft the foul of the
paflions which enflave it. As to what concerns Py-
thagoras, nothing is more uncertain than v/hether
he travelled into the Eaft or no : but admitting he
did, what are-we to conclude, but that he learned
from the Arabians all thofe fuperilitioUs and extra-
Tjgsnt notion-s he was fo extremely fond of ? It is
needlefs to quote Mofes here; if this great man
went into that country, and fettL'd there, by mar-
rying one of Jethro's daughters, it certainly was
not with a defi jn of ftudying and encouraging them
in their foolifli curiofity in philofophicai iyftems.
Providence permitted this retreat of Mofcs among
the Arabians, to carry among them the knowledge
of the true God, and his religion. The philofo-
phy of Abraham, from whom they boafl tlitir de-
fcent, by no means proves their having cultivated
this fcience. Abraham miglit have been their pri-
mogenitor, and a great philo'.bphcr ; but their phi-
lofophy Is no neceflary confequencc of this. It
they loft the thread of thofe n-.oll valuable truths
they had learned from Ab; aham ; if their religion
degenerated into grofs idolatry; why might not
their philolophy, admitting Abraham to have taught
it them, have been loft alfo in courfe of time ?
•Eefides, it is not certain that thefe people defcended
from Abraham. This is a traditionary tale, that
feeins to have taken birth with Mahometanifm.
The Arabians, like the Mahometans, to give the
fanftion of authority to their errors, have pretended
-to deduce their origin from the father of the faith-
ful. Another thing that overturns Ludewig's hy-
pothefis is, that Ab'raham's philofophy is a mere
device of the Jews, v.ho would fain perfuade us
A R A
that the origin of all arts and fciences is to be found
am-ong them. What they fay in fupport of the
queen of Sheba's coming to vifit Solomon on the
fame of his wifdom, or of the wile men who came
out of the Eaft to Jerufalcm, will prove nothing
more tlian has bee.n advanced before-. Let it be
grantc<i that this queeji v/as born in Arabia, is it
proved fhe was of the i'cci of the Sabians ? No one
will pretend to deny her to have been the moil ex-
pert and fagacious woman of her time, and that I'he
frequently puzzled all the kings of the Eait with
her v/ii'e queftions ; becaufe the facred writings have
gi\cn this account of her. But what has this to do
with the philofophy of the Arabians ? We ac-
knowledge very freely that the Magi who came out
of the Eaft v>'erc nrabians ; that they were not
without fome knowledge of the courfes of the
ftars : we do not abfolutcly exclude the Arabians
from this fcience, and adn-it they fpoke their native
language well ; fucceeded in fome works of in-
vention, as oratory, poetry, &c. but we are not to
infer from hence that they were phiiofophers, and
had applied themfelves induftrioufly to the cultivation
of th.s part of literature.
A fecond argument in favour of the philofophy
of the ancient Arabians, and which is urged as a
very forcible argument too, is the hiftory of Sabi-
anifm, which neceflarily implies philofophicai know-
ledge, fuppohng all to be true which is faid about
it. We cannot conclude any thing from thence
in favour of this opinion : for Sabianifm is in it-
ielf a mixture of fhanieful idolatry and ridiculous
fuperftition ; much more likely to fubvert and ex-
tinguifti reafon, than propagate true philofophy ;
belides, it is not agreed in what age this feci firft
appeared. Men of the greateft eminence for learn-
ing, who have laboured to give light to this paf-
fage in hiftory, as Hottinger, Hvde, Pocock, and
efpecially the leaj-ned Spencer, confefs th.it there i:j
no mention made of this I'cA, either by the (ireeks
or Romans.
We mutt take care not to confound thefe Sabians
of Ar.ibia with thofe mentioned in the annalsof the
[ ancient caftern church, v.'hich were half Jews half
Chriftians ; and boaftcd of being the difciples of
St. John the Baptift ; great numbers of whom, ,
even to this day, inhabit the city of Baflbra, ne;ir
the banks of the Tigris, and the neighbourhood
of the Perfian fta. I'he famous Mofes Maimo-
nides has extrafted a large account of tiris feet
from the Arabic writers, and by examining their
extrava2;ant and fuperftitious ceremonies with at-
tention, has very ingeiiiouflv juftified the laws of
Mofes in general ; which, at firft might give of-
fence to delicacy, if the wifdom of thefe laws was
not fhewn by their oppofition to the laws of the
Sabians. A ftronger barrier could not be put be-
tween the Jews and Arabians, who were their
neighbours.
The
A R A
The Arabian philofophy v/r.s entirely S.ibian,
nnd included the fyftem and ccrcmonirs of that
k-i\ of idolutors. This was wh.u Mahomet la-
boured fo ftrcnuoufly to abolilh ; unJ he is even faid
by I'ome to ha\ e carried his oppofition fo far as to
piohibit the very ftiidy of philofophy. But liis
followers by degrees got over that reiiraint ; the love
of learning increrifed, and the philofophy of Arif-
totle was cllablifhed among tliem, during the me-
morable caliphate of Al-Mamon. Avicenna flou-
rifhed in ilie ele\'enth century, Mnd Averrhoes an
hundred years after him ; fo that the honour of
tranflating the Greek philofophy into Arabic, can-
nst belong to them, notvvithflanding what has been
f.iid on that fubjedl ; though they were doubtkfs
the chief propagators of it tinough the countries of
Europe-,
'J'h^ir method of philofophizing was faulty ; they
followed Arillotle implicitly, and rim into all the
iirangc fuperftitions of affrology. They founded
fchools and academies, became fond of fubtihies
and disputation, and foon divided into dilterent
Iccts.
As they chofe Ariuotle for their maftc-r, fo they
•chiefly applied themfclves to that part of philofo-
phy called logic ; and thus became proficients in
the knowledge of words, rather than of things :
whence they have been called the talking philofo-
^shers, and matters of the wil'dom of words. Their
philofr- hy was obfcured by quaint -arbitrary terms
■iind noLions, and on thefe, inftead of evident prin-
ciples, their demonftrntions were founded.
Ar.'\bian Pofiry, in the moft ancient times, Was
no other than rhimi-fig ; for it was dei'fitute both
of meafurc and cadence^ Bat about the clofe of
the eighth century, and during the caliphate of Al-
Rachid, it became art art, and was regulated hy
laws of profodv. It however ftill makes no dil-
timSlion between long and fhort fyllables, the whole
depending on rhime, a certain number of letters,
and the obfervation of certain cenl'ui:*-, foimeJ by
carefully dirtingiiiibing the moveable from tlic qui-
efcent confonants. A fyllable to which a quiefcent
letter is added at the end, becomes long by pofition ;
and, on the contrary, that fyllable (hort where it Ij
wanting.
Renaudot tells us, that the Arabian compofitions
in veri'e are ftill wild and irregular, being neither
epic, dramatic, nor lyric, in ihorr, not reducible
to any particular kind. Their hymns to the deity,
and their tales, are in the fam.e ilyle. Theit com-
parifons, in which they abound, are taken, with
very little choice, from tents, camels, hunting,
and the ancient manners of the Arabs.
Ar.\BI.\N Pbyfic, and Phyjicicns, fucceeded the
Grecian, and handed down the art to us, with
confiderable improvements, chiefiy in the pharma-
ceutical and chemical parts.
ARABICI, in ccclcfiafcical hiHory, the name of
A R A
a {cc\. of heretics that appeared in Arabia during
the reign of the emperor Severus, about the year
207, Their herefy confdted in holding that the
foul both dies and r'f^s again with the body. Ori-
gen confuted them fo fully, that they ingenuoufly
acknowledged their error.
Gum Arabic. See Gum j^rahic.
ARABISM, an idiom or manner of fpeaking
peculiar to the Arabs, or Arabic language.
ARABLE Land, in hufbandry, that which is
fit for tillage, or has a£>ually been plowed.
The word is derived from the Latin, arcitruni., a
plow.
ARAC, or Arrac, a fpirituous liquor imported
from the Eaft-Indies.
It is extracted from a vegetable juice called toddy,
which flows by incifion from the cocoa-nut tree.
This juice, after being fermented, is diflilled in
the common manner, and the produce is the arac.
ARACHNOIDES, in anatomy, is an appella-
tion given to feyeral diflerent membranes, as th3
tunic of the cryftalline humour of the eye, the ex-
ternal lamina of the pia mater, and one of the
membranes of the fpinal marrow.
The word is Greek, and compounded of dp^p^rH,
a fpidcr, or fpidcr's-web, and 5;/^^, refemblance ;
the finenefs of thefe membranes being fuppofed to
refcmble that of the fpider's web.
AR.^OMETER, or Waterpoise, an inftru-
incnt for meafuring the v/eight of liquors ; which
is ufually made of a thin gIaf^ ball, with a long ta-
pering neck, hermetically fcaled at the end, after
£s much mercury has beep, put in as will keep it
fwimming in an upright polfure. The neck is di-
vided into fcveral parts to fliew the ditTercnt dcnfi-
ties of the diflerent liquors into which it is put to
Avim ; for the lighter the fluid the deepei- the glafs
ball will fmk; and vice verfa. See Hydrome-^
TER.
AR.'EOPAGUS. Sc>e Areopagus.
.AR./f';OSTYLE, in architearure, a term ufrd
by fonie architects to fu'riifv the srreattf): intcrVa^
that can be wiade bstwcen two columns, wivich
confifts of eight mcduUs or four diameter?. S-'e
JMoDUtE.
ARj^OTICS, in medicine, remedies whxh
ratify the humours, and render them prop?f for
being c.irricd off hy perfpira'.ion through the port.~s
of the fl<in.
The word is formed from the Greek, «p«/«T//-^',
which is derived from a^s-iof-, to rarify.
ARAIGNEE, in the military art, fignities the
branch, return, or gallcrv of a mine. See thj ar-
ticle Mine.
ARANEA TuN'icA) or Aran'eosa, in a!ia-
tomy ; fee the article ArachkoidF-S.
Aranea Concha, tli3 fpider-lhell, in natural
hiftory, a name given to feveial fpccies of the mu-
rex. Sec JMurex.
ARI3A-
A R B
AREALET, in antiquity, a kind of vveapon,^
generally called at prei'ent a crofs-bow. See the
article Cross-bo\v.
The antients had alfo lar^e machines of _ the
fame kind for throwing feveial arrows at a time.
Thefe were generally called baliftar. . See Ba-
LISTA.
ARBITER, in the civil law, implies a judge
nominated by the magiftrate, or chofen volimtarily
\'y the two contending parties, in order to decide
their differences according to law.
The civilians make a difference between arbiter
and arbitrator, though both found their power ou
t)u; compromife of The parties ; the former being
obliged to judge according to the ciiilomsof the.
hiwf whereas the latter is at liberty to ufe his own
d.fcrction, and accommodate the difference in the
rranner that appears to him mofl juft and equit-
able.
/ARBITRARY, whatever is left to the choice
or determination. of men, or not fixed by any poh-
tivc law or injunftion. Thus arbitrary fints are
mulcts impofed at the pleafure of the court or
judge.
Arbitrary Ptnver. See Despotism.
ARBITRATION, Arbitrage, or Arbi-
trament, a power given by two or more con-
tending parties to fome perfon or perfons to dett.-
niine tbje difpute between them.
ARBITRATOR, a private extraordinary judge,
chofen by the mutual confcnt of both parties, to
determine controverfies between them.
ARBOR, the Latin appellation for aiiy tree ui
general.
Arbor Diana^ Sec DianjE yiihor.
Arbor I'ita. See Thuya.
Arbor, in mechanics, the chief or principal
part of a machine, or that pait which fuflains the
reft ; thus the axis, or fpir.dlc, on which the ma.-
chine turns is called the arbor, as the aibor of a
-vind-mill, the arbor of a water-wheel, of a gin,
&c.
ARBORESCENT, a term applied to all fuch
things as refen>ble trees ; thus we read of arborcf-
cent'flirubs, arborefcent animals, &c. of which
lad kind is that threat natural curiofity the ftar-hfli.
ARBORIST^ a perfon fkilled in the nature and
management ot trees.
ARBOUR, in gardening, a fhady pjace to fit
in, formed of lattice-work, and entirely covered,
except the entrance, with clipped trees, as elms,
limes, hornbeam, ^c. or with twining plants, as
ieffamines, honeyfucklcs, &c. Arbours now are
not fo much in efteem as formerly, they being un-
liealthful to lit in, except in very hot and dry wea-
ther, and likewife expenfive to keep in repair, the
wood-work fooii rotting by being continually in
the ihade, and excluded from the free air. 'i'hofe
rhat delight in arbours may make them without lat-
ARC
ticc-wofk, by planting elms, &c. of about nine
or ten feet high, at the diftance of three feet in the
Lne on each hde, and faftening their, tops together
fa as to form an arch, but as they are apt to get
bare at their bottoms, it may be neceffary to plant
between cachk a ihorter tree,, filling the interitices
with honey-fuckles, jeffamine3,,&;c. which will make
the v/hole quite fui!, and by being properly kept
clipped, it will appear \ery handfome.
hRBUTUS, tkc firawberry-trce, in botany, a
genus of ever-green trees, producing oblong leaves,
f.-.wed at the edges, the flower is moiiopetalous and
ovatcd, divided into five fegments at the brim, whicn
are reflexed j it hath ten iliort filaments joined tc>
the bottom to the corolla,, topped with bifid an-
tlierse. At the bottom of the fiower is. placed a glo-
bular germcn fupporting a cylindrical ftyle, crown- '
ed v/ich a thick blunt ftigma : the gcrmeu afterwarda
turns to a roundifh berry very lilce a itrawberry,
from whciice the Englifli name is taken, but divid-
ed into five cells, m v/liich are contained many
finall feeds.
There are five fpecies in this genus: i. The
common arbutus. 2. Arbatus with plain leaves,
called by fome adrachne. 3. Arbutus, called the
bilberry of Arcadia, with alaternus leaves. 4..
Arbutus, called the bilberry, with oblong whitifli
leaves. 5. Arbutus, called uva urfi, or bear-
berries. With two or three \'arieties of the firft
fort.
The fruit of the common arbutus being ripe at
the latter part of the year, the feeds (hould be
wafhcd from the pulp, and prefervcd in dry fand
till the mont:\ of Alarch, v.'hen tliey fhould be
fovvn in pots, and plunged in old tan, on a mo-
derate hot-bed,, which will be ferviceable to pro-
mote vegctat'on. The feeds will foon come up,
when they muil be kept frequently v/atered during
the fummer : in autunin, the young plants may be
placed fingly in fmall pets, and plunged in old
tanners bark, under glailes during the winter, and
fhould be proteiSed from the frofis by proper cover-
int:. The fucceedin^ vvinter thev Iriould be har-
dened to the weather, more than in the preceding,
by covering them only with matts in fevere wea-
ther, fo that they may the following vvinter be fo
much inured to the climate, as to bear planting
in the fiuubberv, where they are defigned to re-.
main, which (hould be iii the (pring following.
Thefe plants may be alio propagated by cuttings,
or layers ; but the beft are thofe raifed from
feeds.
ARC, or Arch. See the article Arch.
Fhe word is formed from the Latin, arcus, how.
ARCANUM, a fecret, generally ufed to imply a
remedy, whofe compofition is concealed, in order to
increalc its value.
ARCA Cordis, in anatomy, the fame with pe-.
rlcardium. See Pericardium.
ARCA-
ARC
ARCADIANS, the name of a focicty of men
of letters, who formed thcmfclvcs ir.to a body at
Rome, in the year 1690, witli a defign to preicrve
learning, and carry Italian poetry to perfefiion.
They took the name of Arcadians, partly from
the rules of their focicty, and partly from every nevv
member's aflliming, on his admiilion, the name of
forhc fheplierd of ancient Arcadia. Once in four
years they eledt a prefident, under the title of guar-
dian, appointino; him twelve fellows, who decide
all afFairs of the focicty. The famous Chriitina,
queen of Sweden, was their firft patronefs. They
reckon by Olympiads, and celebrate their feftivals of
wit every fourth year.
ARCBOUTANT, in building, an arched but-
trefs. See Buttress.
ARCH, in geometry, any part of a curved line
i.,icrceptcd between two points.
Arch of a Circle is any part of its circum-
fercnee.
Ciradar Arches are of three kinds, viz. femi-
circular arches, fkene arches, and arches of the third
and fourth point.
Saiitchcular Arches are fuch as have their
centers in the middle of a line, joiiiing the two
feet together.
Skene Arches are fegments of circles, contain-
ing fometimes more than go°. and fometimes lefs.
Arches of the third and foiath point, or Gothic
Arches, are fuch as confift of two arches of a
circle, meeting in an angle at the vertex of the
arch, being drawn from the divifion of a chord into
three or four parts at pleafure.
Cateaarim Arch. See Catenarian.
Diurnal Arck, in aftronomy, is that curve or
part of a circle defcribed by a ftar, planet, ccc. from
its rifing and fetting.
Elliptical Arches are fcmi-ellipfes, ufually de-
fcribed by workmen on three centers.
Equal Arches are fuch as contain the fame num-
ber of degrees of a circle, fwept v/ith the fame
radius.
Mural Arck. See Murai, Arch.
Notlurnnl A.RCH is that part of a circle defcribed
by a ilaror planet from its letting to rifing.
Arch of Direflicn, or Progrrlfo-ir, is the arch of
the zodiac which a planet appears to 'move over
when in confequentia, or according to the order of
the figns.
Arch of rdrogradaiion, is an arch of the zodiac
defcribed by a planet when in its retrograde motion.
Or its motion contrary to the figns!
Arch, in architecture, a concave building with
a mould bent in fcrm cf a curve, ercficd to fup-
port fome ftru<?cure.
Trt uviphal hKcn, a {lately gate of a femlcircular
form, adorned with fculpture, infcriptions; &c.
cre(?Lcd in honour of thofe who had deferved a
Jiiumpb.
A R C
Arci! of Fifion, is an arch of a vertical circlCj
intercepted bctv/ccn the center of the fun, after it.-i
fett!)ig, and the horizon, when a ftar before was
hid in its rays, and again begins to appear;
Strait Arches arc thofe ufed over doors ^nd
windows^ having plain flrait edges both above &nd
below, parallel to each other, but both the end*
and joints pointing to a center.
Theory of arches. See the article Bridci-.
ARCH^EUS. See Archeus.
ARCHANGELj in fcripture, fignifies a divine
and fpiritual being, who is fent by the Almighty on
extraordinary occafions to declare his will, or exe-
cute his commands. He is the fecond in the third
hierarchy. See Angels, Hierarchv.
The word is compounded of the Greek ctyyi^of,
a m.cfienger, and tf,o;^of, chief.
ARCHBISHOP, a prelate who has feveral fuf-
fragan bifhops under him. The namewas not known
in the firft ages of the church, but vvas invented
by the Greeks, from whom it paffed into the wef-
tern churches. In the infancy rtf Chriftianity,
they made ufe only of the word bifhop, and when
they would dillinguifli one who had other bifhops
under him, thev called him the firft bifliop. Some
are of opinion, that the patriarchs of Akxan'diia
gave themfelves firft of all the name of archbifhopj
when other biiliops v/cre created in Egypt, where
there had form.erly been no more than the patriarch,
the only bifnop.
The jurifdicftion of an archbifhop ccnfifted ori-
ginally in ordaining, or ratifying the ordinatioiis of
all other bifliops ; and once a year lie v/as to fum-
mon them all to a fynod, in v.'hich he prefided, to
enquire into their conduit, and cenfure them with
fufpenfion, or deprivation ; as alfo to hear and de-
termine caufes between contending bifhops.
The firft eftablifhmcnt of archhifliops in Eng-
land, if v/e may credit Bede, one of die moft an-
tient writers of the Englifli nation, was, in the
time of Lucius, faid to be the firft Chriftian king
in England, who, after the converfion of the peo-
ple, erected three archbifliopricks, in London^
York, and LnndafF; The dignity of archbifliop
continued in the fee of London. 180 years ; when
it was tranflp.ted to Canterburj'j where it has-rs-
mained ever r.r.ce. York is a metropolitan fee to
this day. The archbifJiop of Canterbury is" ftilcd,
" Primate and Metropolitan of all England ■,"
and the archbiliiop of York, " Primate and Me-
" tropolitan cf England." • '
ARCHRUTLERj one of the great officers of
the German empire, who prefects the cup to the
crDpercr on folerrrn occafions. This olrice beloiigs
to the kinV of Bohemia.
ARCHCI-IAMBERLAIN, an officer of the
empire, nearly the fame with the great chamberlain
of England. The eledlor of Brandenburgh v/as
nnpo'nced archchaml-«rlain, by th.e rojden bull.
E e e ' " ARCH-
ARC
ARCHCHANTOR, the pici'idcm of the dran-
tors of a cathedral or collegiate church,
AJICHDEACON, the name of an ecclefiafti-
ca! dignitfiry, whofe bufinefs it is in the pariflies
fubjedl' to his jurifdidlion, to enuuire into the re-
pair pf churches, reform abufes, fufpend, excoai^
jnunicate, &c.
In England there arc fixty aixhdeacons.
AECK-DUKE, a title given to dukes of greater
authority and power than other dukes.
ARCHE, among phyficians, implies the begin-
ning or fiift period of a difcaic.
'i'he word is Greek, apX,Hj and fignifics be-
ginning.
ARCHED Legs, in horfemanfhip, v/hen the
kn;es of a horfe are bended in the form of an arch.
This is reckoned a very great fault, and is often
occafioned bv hard travelling.
ARCHER, in the ancient military art, im-
plied a pcrfon yfho fought with a bow and ar-
rows.
ARCHES, or Caurt of Arches, the fupreme
court belonging to the archbifliop of Canterbury, to
v/hich appeals lie from all the inferior courts within
his province.
ARCHETYPE, the firft or original model of
^ work, which is copied after to make another like
it.
The word is compounded of the Greek, apx,"?
beginning, and gt/c-®^, a type.
'T'his term is ufed by minters, to fignify the ftan-
uard v.'eight by which the others are adjuftcd.
ARCHEUS, among chemifts, implies the pre-
dominating principle of things, whereby their pe-
culiar qualities are fixed and determined. Others,
however, mean by this term a certain univerfal fpi-
ritdlftui'ed through the whole creation, and which
is the a£live cavife of all the phenomena in nature.
They even attribute ideas to the archeus, and thence
call them archeal ideas.
ARCHIATOR, the chief or principal phyfi-
cian of a prince, who retains feveral of the fa-
culty.
The word is Greek, sip^^'/^.Tp©^, and compounded
pfdpX)', chief, and /arp'S*^, a phyfician.
ARCHIL, Jrchllla, in botany, a whitifli mofs
growing upon rocks in the Canary and Cape Verd
Ifiands, and which yields a rich purple tindiure, fu-
gitive indeed, but extremely beautiful.
This weed is imported to us as it is gathered :
thofe who prepare it for the ufe of the dyer, grind
it bctv/ixt ftones, fo as to thoroughly bruife, but
not reduce it into powder, and then nioifteu it oc-
cafionally with a ftrong fpirit of urine, or urine it-
(felf mixed with quick-lime : in a few days it ac-
quires a purplifli red, and at length a blue colour :
in the firft ftate it is called archil, in the latter lac-
jnus, or litmofe.
The dyers rarely employ this drug by itfclf, on
A R' C
account of itr. dearnefs and the perifliablenefs of its
beauty. The chief ufe they make of it is, for
giving a bloom to other colours, as pinks, &c. This
is effeiled by paffing the dyed cloth or filk through
hot water lightly impregnated with the archil. The
bloom thus communicated, foon decays upon ex-
pofure to the air. Mr. Hellot informs us, that by
the addition of a little folution of tin this drug
gives a durable dye : that its colour is at the famii
time changed towards a fcarlet ; and that it is the
more permanent, in proportion as it recedes the morai
from its natural colour.
Prepared archil very readily gives out its colour
to water, to volatile Ipirits, and to fpirit of wine :
it is the fubftance principally made uie of for co-
louring the fpirits of thermometers. As expofure
to the air deftroys its colour upon cloth, the exclu-
fion of the air produces a like effect in thefe her-
metically fealed tubes ; the fpirits of large thermo-
meters becoming, in the com.pafs of a few years,
colourlefs. M. I'Abbe Nollet obferves (in the
French Memoirs for the year 1742) that the co-
lourlefs fpirit, upon breaking the tube, foon refumes
its colour, and this for a number of times fuccef-
fively i that a watery tincture of archil, included
in the tubes of thermometers, loft its colour in three
days ; and that in an open deep vefiel it became co-
lourlefs at the bottom, whilft the upper part retained
its colour.
A folution of archil in water, applied on cold-
marble, -ftains it of a beautiful violet or purplifli-
blue colour, far more durable th.in the colour which
it communicates to other bodies.
Air. du Foy fays he has feen pieces of marble
ftained with it, which in two years had fuffered in-
fenfible change. It finks deep into the marble, fome-
times above an inch ; and at the fame time fprcads
upon the furface, unle's the edges be bounded by
wax, or other like fubilances. It feems to make
the marble fomewhat more brittle.
Linnasus informs us, in the Swedifh Tranfaflions
for the year 1742, that the true archil mofs is to be
found on the weftern coafts of England; and fufpedls
that there are feveral other more common moftes
froiTi which valuable colours might be extradled.
A quantity of fea-mofs having rotted in heaps upon
the fhore, he obferved the liquor in the heaps to
look like blood ; the fea-v/ater, the fun, and the
putrefaction, having brought out the colour. Mr.
Kalm, in an appendix to Liimasus's paper in the
year 1 745, mentions two forts of mofies actually
employed in fome parts of Svv'eden for dying woolen
red : one is the Lichenoides coraUiformc a<>icibin ccc-
cineis of Ray's Synopiis ; the other the /lichenoides
tnrtareum farinac^um, Jcutei'arum nmhone fujco, of
Diilenius. This laft is a white fubftance, like meal
clotted together, found on the fides and tops of
hills. It is fliaved off from the rocks after rain,
purified from the ftony matters inteimixed among it
^by
ARC
by wjfliiiig with water, then dried in the fun,
ground ii; mills, and agnin v/a&ed and dried : it is
then put into a velTel with urine, and fet by for a
month. A little of thjy tinfture, added to boiling-
water, makes the dying liquor. In the fume Tranl-
adtions for the year j 754, there is an ftccount of ano-
ther mofs, which, prepared with urine, gives a beau-
tiful and durable red or violet dye to wool and filk.
This is the Lkben foliaceus, uwtiJicattis, fuhttis la cu-
iiojiis, Ltnti.f.or. Succ. It grows upon rocks, and is
readily diftinguiflied from others of that clafs, by its
looking as if burnt or parched ; confifting of leaves
as thin as paper, con\ex ;i!l over on the upper fide,
v/ith correipondiiig cavities underneath, adhering
nrmly to the llones by a little root under the leaves,
and coming afunder, when dry, as loon as toach-
ed. It is gathered after rain, as it then holds beft
together, and parts eafieft from the {lone.
in France, a cruftaceous mofs, growing upon
rocks in Au\'ergne, is prepared with lime and urine,
and employed by the dyers as a fuccedaneum to the
Canary archil, to which it is laid to be very little
inferior : it is called orfeille d'Auvergne, or perelle.
Mr. Hellot relates, that he has met with feveral
other modes, which, on being prepared in the fame
manner, acquire the fame colour. The moll ex-
peditious way, he fays, of trying whether any mofs
will yield an archil or net, is, to moiften a little of
it with a mixture of equal parts of fpirit of fal
ammoniac and llrong lime-v/ater, and add a fmall
portion of crude fai ammoniac ; the glafs is then
to be tied over with a piece of bladder, and fet by
for three or four days. If the mofs is of the prcj-
per kind, the little liquor v/hich runs from it upon
inclining the vciiel, will appear of a deep crimfon
colour ; and this afterwards evaporating, the plant
itfelf acquires the fame colour. Lewis's Notes on
Neumann'' s Chemi/lry.
ARCHILOCHiAN, a name given to a fpecics
of verle invented by Archilochus, a poet of Paros,
one of the ifies of Cyclades. This poet was pro-
mifed by Lycambus that he ftiould have his daugh-
ter in marriage, but was deceived by him ; which
fo irritated the bard, that he wrote fome fevere
iambics againft him, which touched him fo fenfibly,
js to make him hang himfelf. Horace alludes to
ihij, when he fays,
ArchUochum propria rahits armavit lamlo.
Iambics, according to Qin'ntilian, were inver.ted
by him, Archlkchus prhiius inler eos^ qui lamho fcrtp-
fere ; fumvia hi eo vis, elegantes fane, Vibrantcj'que fen-
tcniia ; plurimum fangulnis ct nervorum. " Archi-
lochus was one of the firft who wrote Iambics ; he
has amazing power ; his thoughts are elegant and
itriking ; and he is pofTefled of the greatclt jfrength
and vigour." There is another fpecies of verfe
called after him, which confills of feven fert,
whereof the four firft are generally daftyls, thoueh
ARC
fometimes fpondees, and the three laft trochees :
fuch is this of Horace,
Jam Cytl^erea chcros due it Venus, imrmncnte lur.it.
ARCHIMANDRITE, was anciently the name
given to a fuperior of a convent, and anfwers to
what is now called a regular abbot. The word
mandrite is Syriac, and fignifies a reclufe or monk.
ARCHIPELAGO, in geography, a part of the
fea, containing, or interrupted by, many little
iflands ; but is molt commonly applied to that paj't
between Greece and Afia.
ARCHISYNAGOGUS, the chief of the fyna-
goguc ; the title of an ofiicer among the jews,
who prefuled in their fynagogues and ailemblies.
The number of thefe officers was not fixed, nor
the fame in all places ; there being feventyin fome,
and in others only one. They are fometimes called
princes of the fynagogue, and had a power of
excommunicating fuch as deferved that puniui-
ment.
ARCHITECT, a perfon well (killed in archi-
te£ture, who delineates, or draws plans of edi-
fices, conducts the work, and directs the artifi-
cers employed therein.
ARCHITECTONIC, fomething endowed with
the power and f}-:ill of building, or calculated to
ailift the architee'l: .
ARCHITECTURE, the art of erefting edi-
fices or buildings, whether for habitation or de-
fence.
Mankind has varied their abodes from time to
time, according to local conveniencies, and accord-
ing to the dilierent genius and character of every
people and nation. The finl method of building
lioufes that we have any idea of fince the deluge, is
that of the children of Noah In Gorduena, or Cur-
diftan, where the ark reued. The appendices of
rocks, caves, and hollow places dug under the
ground, vveie the firll- retreats of their families,
as focn as they encreafed in number in that moun-
tainous land ; thefe were the places they Iheltcred
themfelves in from rains and fliarp winds, but not
from damps and obfcurity. The barrennefs of
thofe regions foon drove them over the river Ti-
gris, into t!ie plains of Mefupotamia. Here the
want of ftone, or any other hard matter fit for
making them flielters, taught tliem the art of
brick-making, and hence the art of mafonry^
For mortar they made ufe of vifcous bitumen,
which they mixed or thickened with reeds, or
llraw cut fmall. The woods which were eafily
found almoft in every place, they foon learned was.
the moft pliant, as well as durable matter, for
making roofs and linings, as well as pieces for fup-
port. Strangers to fkill and experience, thev at
firft coritented themfelves with huts, or green ar-
bours, void of fymmctry or proportion ; but as wood
took whatever form they pleafed to give it, the
tools.
ARC
'toolr, which they gradually invented, taughfthcffl
'liy degrees to turn it into hurdles, poles, beams,
joifts, boards, latlis, and pieces of all fliapes and
inarjiiitudes : therefore, we may reckon the pli-
antuefs of the wood, and the fkill of the hurdler
and carpenter, to be the firft caufes to which we
are indebted for this manner of building, which
was moil univerfal in the beginning, and which
has rendered the earth truly habitable.
The Egyptians, after having minutely examined
tl:e two lides of the Nile, fixed their abodes
in the plains which it moft fertilized, and brought
thither by help of navigation, ilone, marble, and
other matter for building-, v/hich they found in
great plenty at the farther end of Africa. Hence
thofe magnificent buildings in form of terrafles ;
and thofe lofty monuments, which are found
iuperior to inundations, and not to be dellroyed by
all the efforts of water.
The elegance that fhlnes throughout the writ-
injTs of the Greeks is likewife found in their ar-
rhitefture, and in all their inventions. We had
from them the firft operations of geometry, the
corrccintfs of drawing the fe\'eral orders of archi-
tecture, the beautiful proportions in every thing,
and the pjrinciples of all the liberal arts.
- , The Romans, lefs civilized, at firf!: built their
houfes with wood, earth, a;;d flubble : neverthe-
lefs, a fpirit of noblenefs appears in their primitive
iimpllcity ; for they never Ipared any thing' to per- •
feet the edifices for common utility.
The inconvcniencics and decay of wooden build-
ings brought mafonry more and more into requeft,
both for public and private ufe ; fociety was a
double gainer by it ; the ftruftures becoming at
once more elegant and more commodious : at the
fame time timber, fo necefiary in navigation, and
in fo many other purpofes, was confiderably
ipared. It has, hov;ever, frill a principal fhare
i:i the conftruclion of mclr buildings ; it lometimes
fupplies the whole carcafe, or what is commonly
called the frame, which is afterwards filled up with
flight mafonry ; it likewife is ufed in the divifion
•of llaii--cafes ; and is indifpenfabiy necefTary to tie
in the walls, r.ud to prefcive the v.'hcle by the {hel-
ter of the roof.
In the time of Tarquin the Eider, the Romans
channelled their whole to\7n, and inwardly tra-
vcrfcd it by many large canals of mafonry, vHiich
like fo many branches of one trunk, ttrminated
in a common conduit, that was arched and accclh-
1-le to their fcavcngers, that the foul water of all
their houfes, at any tiire, might be difcharged into
the Tiber. But the g.reatei!: emulation of tiie
Rcm.an wealthy citizens was to bring whole-
fome water into Rome, for the fcrvice of tb.e
people ; to erecL very fpacious buildings, where
ilicir youth might firengthen their conllitu-
t!on by bodily excrcife ; to build large pcrlicc;,
6
A Pv G
adorned with flatucs, wliere the people miight at
any time find flicker, when they v/ere ' to make
any purchafes, or to ftudy the monuments and
hiitory cf their own country.
Viilalpandis afferts, that Solomon was the firitb
that reduced archite6lure to any tolerable order ;
and that the Tyrians employed by that prince
in building the Temple learned the art from
him,, and carried it afterward into their own coun-
try : and to what pitch of magnificence and
grandeur the Tyrians carried it before it reached
the Greeks, may be learned from Ifaiah xxiii. 8.
Yet, according to the common account, architec-
ture fhould be almofl wholly of Grecian original :
three of the regular orders, or methods of build-
ings, being denominated from them, viz. Corin-
thian, Doric, and Ionic, and fcarce a fingle mem.-
bcr, or moulding, but what comes to us with a
Greek name, 'ihe Romans were ignorant of any
other order befides the Tufcan, till they received
them from the Greeks ; nor did they appear till then
to have any other idea of the grandeur and beauty of
edifices, but what arofe from their magnitude and
llrength. Various have been the ebbings and flow-
ings of architecture fince the time cf Auguftus,
when it was reckoned in its glory. Apollodorus,
by the encouragement of the emperor Trajan,
raifed the famous and much admired Trajan's
column, which fubfifts to this time, as an ex-
ample to fliew to what perfection architec-
ture was arrived at that time. However, it now
began to dwindle ; nor was'Alexander Severus, who
took great delight in this art, able to fupport it ; for
it fell with the weftern empire, and v/as not re-
trieved for the fpace of twelve centuries.
In the fifth century, all the beautiful monu-
ments of antiquity were deftroyed by the Vifi-
goths ; and architecture from that time became
coarfe and artlefs, till the time of Charlemagne,
who ufed his utm.oft endeavours to reilore it ; as
h'kewife did the French with fome fuccefs, by the
encouragemient cf Hugh Capet, and his fon Ro-
bert, who continued to profecute his defign.
In the thirteenth and fourtsentli centun/, thi
beauty of architedture confifted wholly in a mul-
titude of ornaments, -and great delicacy, thougli
frequently all their folicitudc and care was with--
out conduftor taile.
During thetv.'o laft centm'ies the modern architcils
havp ufed their utmoft efforts to reinftare the pri-
mitive fimplicity and beauty of ancient architec-
ture ; fo that all our grand and public edifices are
built after the manner of the antique, and
fome of them not far inferior to thofc celebrated
ftrudtures.
Archite£lure is commonly divided in three parts,
viz. civil, military-, and naval.
C/w/V Architecture is the art of contriving
and executin'T comm.odious buildings for the ufe of
locietv.
ARC
fociety, and the convcnien -j of ci\il life. In this
p:irt our chief regard {hould attjr.J to convenicncy,
itreiigtli, beauty, decorum, a.i 1 ii;conomy. The
convenicncy is the matter principally to be confi-
dered in the plan of a building, fo to order the
parts thereof, that they may anfv/er the iiuention
of the work, and not embarrafs one another.
The ftrength depends on the choice and goodncfs
of the materials, and upon the folidity of the
foundation, the fquaring, levelling, and plumb-
ing of the walls, &:c. and a due attention of the
bearings of e\ery part. The beauty, in an exact
order or fymmetry, which faould be obferved in
every part, fo that one member does not exceed its
proportion in regard to another member, and that
when compleat, they ihould altogether exhibit an
agreeable foim and appearance. Decorum teaches
the architect to have a regard to defign, cuftum,
and nature : and cccono.iiy, to confider the ex-
pence, in order to regulate the form and manner
of the defign.
Vitruvius, among all the ancients, is the only
«ntire author on archite<?iure : he compofed ten
books on that fubjeiit, which he dedicated to
Auguftus, in whofe time he lived. Befides him,
Baptifta, Alberti, Palladio, Scam.ozzi, Blondel,
Goldman, Perrault, \'/alton, Sturmius, and Wol-
fius, are celebrated for writing on architecture.
MUhury Architecture inftruets us in the
method of fortifying cities, camps, fea-ports, &c.
See Fortification.
Naval Architecture is the art of fabricating
the hull or lov/er frame of a fhip ; diftinft from
the fuperftrudture that comprehends her machinery
and fLirniture for failing; which lail, we fliall
explain under the articles, Mast, Sails, and Rig-
ging.
To whom tlie world is indebted for the inven-
tion of fliips is, like all other things of equal an-
tiquity, uncertain : if we liften to the fables of
the poets, we fhall be extremely divided in our
opinion amongft the variety of competitors. Pro-
metheus, Neptune, Janus, Atlas, Hercules, Ja-
fon, Danaus, Erythraeus, &c. appear v/ith fuffi-
cient autirority to claim our aflent : but Minerva,
the aufpicious parent of arts and fciences, feems to
have a fupcrior title, and to her, probably with
more propriety, ic has been attributed by fame.
But fomc who reject thefe fabulous traditions,
and pretend to greater certaitity in their ailcgations,
afcribc it to the inhabitants of foine places that
border on the fea, and feem appropriated by natm:e
for harbouring fliips, fuch as the Phoenicians,
Aegincnfians, &c. This diu'erence of opinions
appears naturally to have arifen, on obferving the
various places where navigation was firit practifed,
or from the dif+erent conitruction and equipage of
fnips ; fome of which having bccji built by tlie
II
ARC
above-mentioned perfons, have entitled them to the
v.'hole mventicn.
A very fmall portion of art or contrivance was
feen in the firlt ihins ; they were neither ftrong
nor durable, but confilled only of a few planks
laid together, without beauty or ornament, and
jull fo compacted as to keep out the water. In
fome places they were only the hulks or ftocks of
trees hollowed, and then confilled only 'of one
piece of timber ; nor was vVv>od alone applied to
this ufe, but anv other buovant material?, as the
Egyptian reed papyrus, or leather, of which the
primitive fnips were frequently compofed ; the
bottom and fides being extended on a frame of thin
battons or fcantlifi'TS, of flexible wood, or be'iiit
with v/ickers, fuch as v/e have frequently beheld
amonglt the American favages ourfelves. In this
manner they were often navigated upon the rivers
of Ethiopia, Egvpt, and Sabaean .Arabia, even in
later times. But in the lirlt of them, we find no
mention of any thing but leather or hides fewed
together. In a vcfTel of this kind, Dardanus fe-
cined his retreat to the country afterv/ar<ls called
Troas, when he was compelled by a terrible de-
luge, to forfake his former habitation of Samo-
thrace. According to Virgil, Charon's infernal
boat was of the fame compohtion.
But as -the other arts extended their influence,
naval archiieCture likev.'ife began to emerge fronj
the gloom of ignorance and barbarifm ; and as the
fhips of thofe ages v/ere increafed in bulk, and
better proportioned for commerce, the appearance
of thofe floating citadels of unufual form, full of
living men, flying with feemingly expanded wings,
over the furface of the iintravellcd ocean, ftriick
the ignorant people with terror and aftonifanient :
and hence, as we are told by Ariftophanes, arofe
the fable of Perfcus flying to the Gorgons, v.ho
was aclually carried thither in a fliip ! Hence, in
all probabiiity, the famous (lory of Triptolemus
riding on a v/inged dragon is deduced, only be-
caufe he failed from Athens, in the time of a great
dearth, to a more plentiful country, to fupply tire
neceflities of his people. The h^Linn of the nying
horfe Pegafus may be joined with thefe, who,, as
feveral mythologifts report, was nothing but a'lhip
with fails, and thence faid to be the offspring of
Neptune, the fovcreign of the fea : nor does.tliere
appear any other foundation for the {lories of
griffons, or of fhips trar.sformed into birds a'nd
fifhes, which we fo oft n meet with in the antijnt
poets." So acceptable to the firit ages of the world
were inventions of this nature, that v/hoevcr made
any improvements in n;ivigation, or ni/a! a chiiec-
ture, building nev/ fnips better fitted for^ ftrength
or fv,'ift;icfs than thofe ufed before, or rendered tlie
old moie commodious by additional contrivances,
ov difcoveicd countries unknov.-n to former travel-
F f f Icrs,
ARC
ier«;, were thought worthy of the greateft honours^
and uftcn aiTociatcd inio the number of their deiheJ
lierocs ; hence we have in aftronomy the figns of
»r;c£ and Taurus, v/hich were no other than two
fnips, the former tranfported Phryxus from Greece
to Colchof, and the latter Europa from Phoenicia
to Crete. Argo, Pegafus, and Perfeus's whale,
were likewife new fliips of a different fort from the
former, which, being greatly admired by the bar-
barous and uninftrudteJ people of thofe times, were
tranflated amoiigfl the fh'.rs, iu commemoration of
their inventors, and nietamorpliofed into con-
itellations by t'ae poets of their own. and of fuc-
ceeding ages
Originally all fliips, for whatever life defigned,
appear to have been of the fame form ; but the
various purpofcs of navigation foon occaftoned a
tonliderable difference, in their fize, conftruiStion,
and equipage,, at which time they became chiefly
characterized as veflels of war, burthen, or paf-
fage.
Tiie fliips of wjr of the ancients were diilin-
gulfhed from otlier kinds of veflels, by various
turrets and acceffions of building, fome to defend
their own foldiers, and others to annoy the enemy -y
and from one another, in Uiter ages, by feveral
degrees or ranks of oars, the mofl ufual number
of which was four or five, which appear not to
have been arranged, as fome imagine, on the fame
leiel in different parts of the fliip ; nor yet, as
others have fuppofed,. direftly above one another's
heads ; but their feats being placed one behind
-another, afcended gradually like ftairs. Ptolemy
]'hilopater, urged by a va'm-glorious defire of ex-
ceeding all the world befides in naval architedture,
is faid to have farther enlarged the number of banks
to forty, and the {hip being otherwife in equal
proportion, this raifed her to fuch an enormous
bulk, that fhe appeared at a diftance like a floating
mountain or ifiand, ai.d, upon a nearer view, like
a prodigious caftle on the ocean : (he contained
four thoufand rowers, four hundred failors em-
ployed in other ferviccs, and near three thoufand
foldiers. But this, and all fuch monftrous fabrics,
feivcd only for fhcw and ollentation, being render-
ed by theit vaft bulk unwcildy and unfit for fer-
vice. Athenaeus informs us, the common names
they were known by, were Cyclades, or Aetna,
i. e. iflands, or mountains, to which they feemed
nearly equal in higtiefs ; confifting, as fome report,
of as many materials as would have compofed fifty
triremes, or (hips of three banks. Thus much we
thought necefiary to fay concerning the naval ar-
chitedture of the antients ; for the feveral orna-
ments, furniture, and inftruments of war, fee
SchefFer, or Potter's Antiq. b. ii. c. 14, 15, 16,
K'c. To this we fhall add, a general fketch of
the art, as it has been iniproved by the mo-
ARC
derns, and appears at this day. See Naviga-
tion, Ship.
Naval architecture then may be comprehended
in three principal articles. i. To give the fhip
fuch a figure, or outward form, as may be nioit
fuitable to the fervice for which fhe is intended.
2. To find the exa£t fliapc of all the pieces of
timber necefiary to compofe fuch a fabric. 31 To
make convenient apartments for the artillery, am-
munition, provifions, and cargo, together with-
fuitable accommodations for the officers and
men.
In order to give the bottom a proper figure, all
the qualities neceffary tc> make her anfwer ths
fervice for- which flie is dcfiijncd fhould be confi-
dered. A fhip for the merchant's fervice fhould
flow her cargo well ; and be fo fafliioncd as to
go well, carry a good fill, fteer eafily, and lie in
a high fea, without flraining.
Some eminent geometricians have endeavoured,
to difcover the form of a folid that will anfwer all.-
thefe purpofcs befl, or meet with the leail refifl-
ffance in dividing the fluid through which it is to
pafs ; but have not been able to reduce their theory
to praftice, on account of the various fituations
in which a fliip is obliged to lie when under fail.
The artificers thus defpairing to eftablifh this point
by mathematical rules, have applied thcnifelves enr
tirely to experience and obfervation, which may
greatly fupply the deficiency of art ; but though
they may difcover that a fhip has" bad qualities, it
may be difficult* to determine v.-here they lie, or
whether they are in the hull or rigging ; but if
their' obfervations be aided by mathematical prin-
ciples, it will certainly conduce very much to at-
tain the defired end. See Evolution,. Trim,
Sailing.
But as many fliips have been built, which fecm
to anfwer every purpofe for which they v>'ere calcu--
lated, fome builders have fludied chiefly to copy
thofe which are approved by the feamen ; and this
method they very improperly regard as the prin-
cipal rule to be obferved in building. Now as the
bodies of fliips are very difi'erent, there are of courfe
variety of different models adopted as flandards.
But admitting a poffibility to difcover fuch a body
as fiiould give entire fatisfadtion, and have every
good quality requifite for the fervice propofed, )ct
this could, by no means, be eftabliftied as a ftan-
dard for fliips of a different fize to be copied from,
fince although we may have a firft rate of 100
guns,, which has been found by experience to he
a very good fiiip in every refpeft ; yet, we fhould
be much deceived to build a 20 gun-fhip, in which
all the parts bore a fimilar proportion to one another,
which they have in the firft rate.
It has (jeen remarked above, that a fiiip of war
muft carry her lowcft tier of cannon high enough
above
AR C
above the water, otherwife a great flilp which can-
not open her lower battery, when failing with a
frefli fitic wind, may be taken by a fmall one that
can make ufe of her cannon.
A fliip fhould be du!y poifcd, fo as not to dive
or pitch heavily, but go fniooth and eafy through
the water, rifnig to the waves when they run high,
and the iTiip has reduced her fail to the florm ;
otherwife they will break aboard and ftrain the
decks, or carry away tiic boats ; the mails are like-
wife in great danger from the fame caufe.
A fhip fnould fail well when large and before the
wind, but cliiefly clofe hauled, or with a fide wind,
and her failj fliarp trimmed, and then not fall off to
the leeward.
Now the great difficulty confifts in uniting fo
many different qualities in one fhip, which feems
to be nearly impoflihle ; the whole art therefore
is to form the body in fuch a manner, that none of
thefe qualities fiiall be entirely dcftroyed, and in
giving the preference to that which is chiefly re-
quired in the particular fervice for which the veffel
is built ; but as it would protrai^t the article to a
very extraordinary length, to illuflrate this point in
every circumibnce, we {hall iinly obferve, that it
is poflible fo to unite them all in one veffel,, that
each of them may be eafily difccrned. 'W^hen it
happens otherwife, the fault muff lie in the builder,
who has not applied himfclf to fludy the funda-
mental rules and principles of his art For a more
circumllantial account, we refer the reader to
Du Hamel's Elem. Nav. Architedl. to Bouguer's
Traite iu Navire ;, and the Ejiglift reader, to Mur-
ray's Treatife on Ship-building and Navigation.
But, if we except fome antient artificers pof-
fe&^ii of a natural genius, and a few of the mo-
derns who liave been inffrudled in the principles of
geometry, and have laboured hard to make a pro-
grefs in ftip-building, we may venture to affert
that the greatcfl: number fatisfy themfelves with
copying fhips tliat are efleemed good failors ; and a
tciiiicious imitation of thefe fcrvile mechanical me-
thods, which are too common, have, to the great
reproach of the art, produced all thefe pretended
rules of proportion ; for the various models they
have hitherto ufed prove beyond difpute that they
have not yet found a proper flandard : the only
reufon why they have tried fo many different me
thods, is becaufe thay could jiot find the belt ; yet
every builder confines thefe mechanical rules of
dcfcribing the midfhip-framc, and forming the reft
ot the timbers, to his own fancy,, and concealing it
fi om the inferior artificers, who may be poffeffed of
a genius and tafte greatly fuperior to his own ; but
we would inform thefe gentlemen that this is ever re-
garded by the polite world as a certain charac-
teriftic of a narrow and vulgar education, a for-
did, and illiberal difpofition, , and a perverle and
crooked tafte !
ARC
Who ever heard, that a great arthitcil ejidea-
voured to conceal the proportions of the different
orders of architciSlure ? Do we not fee every where
fyftems of that noble art publifhed, plans, eleva-
tions, and (I'ftions, prefented to the general obfer-
vation of mankind for their approbation or cen-
fure ? But poffibly, v/e are afraid that publication of
fhip-building may be dangerous in a political light,
by making our enemies mafters of the fecret. This
can never be the cafe, fince we know that our
feventy-gun fhips and frigates, generally efteemed
the moft ofeful fliips in the navy, have been all the
late war entirely copied from the models of the
French, who have never ftudied to conceal them.
But although the methods of defcribing the mid-
fhip-frame, and forming the reft of the timbers,
be known to moft of our younger artificers, yet
we have but few good mafter-builders ; this re-
quires a greater portion of genius, than the mere
mechanical methods. They fhould, at leaft, have
a fufficient acquaintance with mathematics, phy-
fics, mechanics, and the nature of folids and
fluids, to be able to difcover what figure would
procure fome good quality, ivithout hazarding the
putting a bad one in its place. . We ftiall give fome
account of the principal pieces that compofe a fhip,
and illuftrate the affair by a plate, referred to from
the article Ship-Building.
Cj&wfi'?/!'// Architecture, is that which con-
fifts of projections painted either inclaroor ofcuro,
or in colours imitating marble.
Architecture, in perfpeftive, is a. building,
wherein the members are of different diameters or
modules, and diminifh in proportion to- their dif-
tance, in order to make the edifice or ftrufture,
appear longer to the eye than it really is.
ARCHITRAVE, in architedure, is that part
of the order of columns lying immediately upon,
the capital. It has its name from reprefenting the'
principal beam or portrait in any building ; it is'
likewife called the reafon-piece, or mafter-beam,_
in timber building ; but in chimnies it is called the
mantle-piece; and over the jambs of doors, and
the lintels of windows, hyperthyron.
ARCHIVAULT, in architecture, the inner,
center of an arch, or a ligature adorned with
moulding, running over the fronts of the arch
ftone, and bearing upon the inipofts. It has only
one face in the Tufcan order, two in the Doric
and Ionic crowned, and in the Corinthian and
Compofite, the f.ime moulding with the archi-
trave.
ARCHIVE, or Archives, an apartment in-
which records, charters, and other papers of a
ftate orcommunicv are depofited.
The word is formed Irom the Latin, cma,. a
cheft.
ARCHMARSHAL, the. grand marflial of the
empire; adignitvbtlongingtotheelcftor of Saxony. .
arci-jon,
ARC
ARE
"ARCHON, in antiquity, the chief magi (Irate
of Athens, after the abolifhing of monarchical
government. It was alio an appellation given to
Teveral cfiiccrs, Loth civil and religious, under the
Greek emperors.
The word is Greek, cif/^ov, and literally fignities
a governor or commander.
■^ARCHONTICS, the name of a kct of here-
tics, who v/ere a branch of the Valcntinians.
They attributed the creation of the world to diffe-
rent angds ; neglefted baptifni, and all the myfte-
ries of faith ; feid that women were the work of
the devil ; and denied the refurredion of the
bodv.
ARCHPRIOR, a name by which the mafler
of the order of the knights-templars was fome-
times called.
ARCHTREASURER, the grand trcafurcr of
the German empire ; a dignity belonging to the
duke of Brunfv/ic, king of Great Britain. It is
alfo claimed by the eleilor palatine.
ARCTIC, or Artic, in aftronomy, an epi-
thet applied to the north pole ; likewife to a lefler
circle, parallel to the equator, at 23!- diftance from
the north pole. See Sphere, Pole, Circle,
&c:
ARCTIUM, burdock, in botany, a genus of
plants which produces large heart-fhaped leaves
growing on foot ftaiks, that arife -from the roots,
which are large, biennial, and run perpendicular
in the ground ; the flower is compofed of many
uniform tubulated florets, containing five {hort
filaments with cylindrical antheras ; the germen is
oblong, with a hairy top fupporting a flender ftyle,
snd becomes a fingle pyramidical angular feed,
crowned with down. Thefe plants grow wild in
many parts of England ; the leaves are ufcd by
fome for burns and inflammatory tumors ; the feeds
are efl:eemed extremely diuretic, and are reckoned
effectual in carrying off by thofe difcharges, what
is very much the occafion of arthritic pains, when
it is once depofited upon the joints. The burdock
is called lappa by Toiirnefort and others, alfo by
fom.e bardana ; but Linnreus has altered it to arc-
tium, fo called originally by Diofcorides.
ARCTOPHILAX, in aftronomy, the name of
a conftellation, otherwife called Bootes. S.ee
Bootes.
ARCTOTIS, in botany, a genus of plants
with radiated flowers, formerly called anemono-
fpermos.
ARCTURUS, in aftronomy, the name of a
fixed ftar, of the firft magnitude, in the fl<irts of
the conftellation Bootes : for its declination, right
afcenfion, &c. See the conftellation Bootes.
ARCTUS, in aftronomy, the Greek name of
urfa major and minor, northern confteliations.
ARCUATION, in gardening, is the a6l of
propagating trees, fhrubs, &c. by layijig down in the
earth, and faftening with pegs, the; branches of a
ftcol or mother plant, in order to their flriking
root, and thereby becoming plants themfelves. la
fome forts it is ncceffary to cut a notch in the joint
about half-way through, to facilitate their rooting ;
but others, whcfe parts are more inclinable to
raiting, does not require it. If the main branches
are fo ftubborn as not eaiily to bend, it may be
proper to cut them half-way through, with a flit
upwards, which v.'iil make them more pliable.
Some forts require to be layed two years, before
they get root, which by trying one or two may
be known ; they all fhould have the earth drawn
in a little ridge about the extremity of the layers,
.in order to retain the moifture when watered in dry
weather.
ARCUTIO, the name of a machine confift-
ing of a board covered v/ith hoops, and ufed by
the nurfes of Florence, to prevent the child from
being overlaid. Every nurfe is obliged to lay
her child in an arcutio, under painof excommuni-
cation.
ARDASSES, in commerce, the coarfeft of all
the filks brought from Perlia.
ARDEA, the heron, in natural hiftory, a genus
of long-beaked birds ; dift:inguiflied from all others
by having the middle toe of each foot ferrated, or
jagged, with a feries of fcales on its outer fide.
ARDENT, fomething hot, or as it were
bi'.rning.
The word is formed from the Latin, arden:,
which is derived from ardeo, to burn.
Ardent F^ver, a violent burnina; fever. See
tever.
Ardent Spirits, thofe dlftiiled from fermented
vegetables; fo called becaufc tlicy cafilv take fire
and burn.
ARDERS, among hufcandmen, implies the
fallowings or plowings of grounds. See Fallow-
ing.
ARDO Ventriculi, the cardialgia, or heart-
burn. Sec Cardialgia.
AREA, in a general fcnfe, implies any plain"
furface whereon we walk, i'Cc.
The word is Latin, and properl)- rij;nifies a
threfliing-floor.
Area, in geometry, fignifies the fuperficial
content of any figure whatl'oever. To find the
area or content of any ligure, lee for each under
its refpeftive name.
Area, in aftronomy, is dcicribed bv the radius
ve6lor, or line joining the fun and planet in its
orbit, at diftercnt periods of its revolution; and
thefe areas are always proportionable to the time
in which they are defcribed ; thus (Plate X."
fig. I.) the area of the triangle A « S : area of the
triangle «S P : : the line of the planet's defcribing
the arch A « of its orbit, to the time of defcribing
the arch « P of its orbit.
Area,
Ib:jii'£JM:.
• ^cit//nj _4rg;umeut
il^/^h/.'^Traa-nn'/if- ar
y-/'^. z.f , t^/Jai/ fh vv
tTJlodqf •Stu^*.
A R G
A RG
Area, among phyficians, the fame with alope-
cia. See Alopecia.
ARECA, in botany, a fpecics of the palm-
tree growing in the Eafl-Indies, producing male
and female tripctalous flowers, with egg-fhappcd
feeds. It is accounted by the natives of thofe
parts, as a ftomachic and preferver of the
gums.
ARENA, fand, in natural hiflory. See Sand.
Arena, in antiquity, the place where tbc gla-
diators. Sic. fought ; fo called from its being al-
ways covered with fand to conceal the blood fpilt
in the combat from the view of the people.
ARENATION, a kind of dry bath, where
the patient fits with his bare feet on hot fand.
ARENARIA, in botany, a genus of decandri-
ous plants, v/hofc flowers are compofed of a pen-
taphyllous cmpalemcnt, with five o\-ated petals,
and ten awl-fliaped filaments, topped with roundifh
antherse ; the germen is egg-fhapped, fupporting
three ftyles ; the capfula-, which is unilocular and
ovated, contains feveral reniform feeds.
AREOLA, among anatomifls, the coloured
circle furrounding the nipple of the breaft.
AREOPAGUS, or Areopagus, in antiqui-
ty, a fovereign court at Athens, fo famous for the
juftice and impartial itv of its decrees, that the gods
themfelves are faid to have fubmitted their difputes
to its determination.
ARGEA, or Argei, in antiquity, thirty hu-
man figures made of rufhes, and thrown annually
by the priefts or veltals into the Tiber, on the day
of the ides of May.
ARGEMONE, the prickly poppy, in botany,
a plant which is common in molt parts of the
Weft-Indies ; the flower it produces is polyandri-
ous, containing five roundifh petals, which fpread
open ; the c;i.pfu!e is quintangular and egg-fliapped,
and filled with a number of fmall feeds. It is
called by tlie SpziV^rds, Jjio i/il inferno, or devil's
ARGENT, in heraldry, the v/nite colour in
the coats of gentlemen, knights, and baronets ;
the v/hite in the arms of -fovereign princes being
called luna ; and that in the arms of the nobility,
pearL
This is expreiTed, in engraving, by the parts be-
int; left plain, without any ftroke from the graver.
ARGENTARIA Creta, in natural hiftory,
an earth, perfectly white and pure, found in Prul-
fia, and greatly eileenjed for cleaning plate.
ARGENTINA, in natural hiftory, the name
of a filh found in feveral parts of the Mediterra-
nean. It refembles a pike, and has an oblong
round body without fcales. It is of a grcenifh aih-
colour above the lateral lines, but below them of a
bright fhining filver colour, efpecially over the
covers of the gills. The fnout is oblong ; the
mouth of a moderate fize, without teeth in the
II
jaws, though there are fix or eight crooked ones
near the end of the tongue. The eyes are large,
with a filver-coloured iris ; and the brain may be
feen through the fkull. About the middle of the
back is a fin, fupported by ten rays. The tail is
forked ; but the principal mark that diftinguiflies it
from all other filh, is the air bladder, v.-hich is co-
nical at both ends, and outwardly looks as if cover-
ed with poliflied fiiining leaf filver. This is made
ufe of to counterfeit pearls. It is often brought to
the fifh-markets at Rome.
Argentina, filver-weed or wild tanfy, in bo-
tanv. See Potentilla.
ARGENTUM, filver, in natural hiltory. See
SlL\'ER.
ARGETENAR, in aftronomy, a ftar of the
fourth magnitude, on the curve of the river Eri-
danus. See Eridanus.
ARGILLA, clay. See Clay.
ARGO, in antiquity, a lliip or veflel celebrated
among the poets, as being that wherein the Argo-
nauts made their expedition.
A.RGO Ncjvis, or the fhip, in aftronomy. See
Navis.
ARGOL, red tartar. See Tartar.
ARGONAUTS, in antiquity, a company of
illuftrious Greeks, who embarked with Jafon, ia
the fhip Argo, on an expedition to Colchis, in or-
der to acquire the golden fleece.
ARGUMENT is defined by Cicero to be
ralio prohabiils, et idonca ad facicHdam fide?n : " A
" probable and apt reafon to gain belief." It is
more accurately defined by the logicians, who call
it a mean, or middle, which by its connexion
with the tv/o extremes, conneds the extremes with
each other. In other words, it is an inference
drav.-n from premifes, the truth of v/hich is indif-
putable, or at leaft highly probable.
Arguments are diftinguiilied, in relation to the
fource from which they are drawn, into arguments
tr.ken from reafon, and arguments taken from au-
thority; in relation to their form, they are diftin-
guifhed both by rhetoricians and logicians into ;
fyllogifms, enthymenes, indu£lions, or forites, and
dilemmas. See Syllogism, Enthymeme, In-
duction, &c.
An argument in form is a fyllogifm, framed ac-
cording to the rules of logic, to which this kind
of argumentation is nearly allied. All rhetori--
cians fince Ariftotie fay, that the enthymeme is
the argument in rhetoric ; becaufc it is the form of
reafoning moft familiar to orators. Rhetoric, ac-
cording to their definition, being nothing but t!ie
art of rinding in every fiibjedt arguments proper;
to pcrfucde, they diftinguifli them into two kinds,
in relation to the fources from which they are fur-
nifhed ; viz. intrinccal, or artificial arguments, and
extrinfccai, or natural ones. Intrinfecal, or artificial
arguments, called by the Greeks, z\f]iX^'^i '^'^'^ ''Y ^'^^
G g^ g Latinsa,;
A R G
A RI
«Lati ns, Inj'ita, are thofc which depend on the ahil i ty Oi
the orator, which he either draws from himfelf, or
from his audience, or from the fiibjecl: on whicli
he is treating. Tlie orator fometinies perfiiades
from the weight of his own perfon or manners,
v/hen his difcourfe ftrikes his audience with a lively
idea of his virtue and probity; becauie we volun-
taiily give credit to the v/ords of fuch a man,
efpecially in points that are doubtful and problema-
tical : it was for thii rcafon, that Cato regarded
probity as the great bafis of all eloquence : Grator
■vlr bonus, dictn.ii pcritus. The arguments that
are drawn from the part of -the audience, have for
•their object fome paffion or other, that miy lead
and bials the judgment either to this or that fide.
It is by this, that the orator is enabled to exercife
anabfolute empire o\-cr thofe that hear him, and
determine their judgement juft as ho pleafes. But
to d.o it cifeftually is a great and difficult art, as it
Tei]uires a thorough and deep knowledge .of man-
ners and pafllons, and a perfeft acquaintance with
all the various fprings of .the human mind.
The arguments that are drawn from., the fubjecTt
itfelf, conlift in laying it open to the bottom, and
confidering its nature, circumllances, efl'efts, con-
Tequences, conformity, or dilagiL-ement with otliers,
w*CC.
Extrinfecal or natural arguments are thofe
v/hich do not depend at all upon the orator, but
are found as it were ready made to his hands ;
fuch, for inftance, are arrefts, judgements, laws,
written demonftrations, public rcgdfers, depofi-
tions of witnefl'es, &c. which fupply him with
authorities, from which he draws his confe-
quences.
Argument, in aftronomy, is a known arch,
.by the help of which we find others thr.t are
unknown.
Thus if the plane of the planet's orbit he fup-
pofed infinitely extended to the heavens, the orbit
then refped'tively to the fun S, (Plate XIII. fig. i.)
will be a great ciicle, as N /> D h, of the celcflial
fphere, inclined to the ccleilial ecliptic N/Dc;
the interftflions or nodes of thefe two circles will
he. in N and D ; and if the point h, anfwering to
the beginning of arics, be marked on the orbit
N/iD^, the arc D^ is then called the longitude
of the afcending node : from the point p, draw
pi perpendicular to the ecliptic, then is the arc pi
the pljnet's latitude, and D^ the argument of the
planet's latitude, which is the planet's diftance
from the afcending node.
Argument alfo implies the abridgement or
heads of a book, chapter, poem, &:c.
ARGUMENTATION, the aft of arguing ;
and the manner of framing argum.ents.
ARGUS, in natural hiftory, the name of an
uncommon ferpent found in (juinca ; and fo called
from its being covered with fpots irom the head to
4
the tali, refenibling eyes. On the back there is a
double row of them, which are the largeft, and
the ground colour of the fcales is a bright chefnut,
except on the back between the eyes, where it is of
a dark brown.
Argus is alio the name of a very curious fliell,
about three inches long, two in diameter, and
fomewhat lefs in height. The mouth is wide, and
the lips are continued at each extremity in the form
of a broad fhort beak, each v/ay. The general
colour is yellowifh, c!ily there are three brown
bands of a confiderab'c breadth running over it ;
and the whole furface is adorned with a multitude
of rouiid fpots, like eyes, from whence it has
its name. It is brought from Africa and the Eall
Indies.
ARIA Tbeopbrajli. See Crataegus.
ARJANS, in ecclefiaflical liiiWy, a fefl: of he-
retics, who follo^vcd the opinions of Arius, a
prefhyter of Alexandria, in the time of the patri-
arch Alexander. He broached his herefy in the
beginning of the fourth century.
ARIANIS?.'!, the doftrines of Arius and his
followers. It is a remark not unworthy obferva-
tion, that the greatelt number of thofe who have
difientcd from the received opinions of the church,
have done it through the difappointments they
have met with in the earlier part of life, and have
afterwards been cor.f.med in their errors, by that
violent ipirit of oppofition which is fure to perfe-
cute tneni. Vve Ciall be convinced of the truth of
this, if we attend a little to the cotulu6t of Arius,
when he firfl publifntd his tenets to the world.
He was a found fcholar, and a fubtlc difputant ; as
apt in logic, as ac'complifhed in the belles lettres.
Under the appearance of extraordinary virtue and
piety, he had tho art of concealing his vanity and
ambition. From being a deacon, he was raifed by
Achillas, bifliop of Alexandria, to the priefthood.
At the death of this prelate .^ which happened in
the year 312, Arius expedled to have been eleded
into his room ; and was chagrined and difiippointeJ
at Alexander's being chofen. He was determined
to be re\'cnged onhis.rival; and accordingly, not
only preached againft him, but publifhed vi book,
written exprefsly againll Alexander, wherein he
maintained, " That The Word was not equal
" to the Father, and that it had not exifled from
" all eternity ; but had been created out of no-
" thina:, and of courfe v.'as to be ranked amcneft
" the num.ber of created beings." This was the
firft fource and origin of that doctrine, which was
called afterwards Arianifm ; and it arofe, as we
have already feen, from chagrin and difappoint-
ment. Alexander proceeded againft his antagonift
with all the rancour and zeal of a furious bigc'. ;
what he wanted in argument he made up in rail-
ing, and at laft advanced fo far as to excommuni-
ca:e and anathematize him. It muft be owned,
indeed.
I
A III
indeed, that he did ihis very canontca'.ly, if not
charitably ; for he called together near ;in hundred
biihops, amongft whom Arius boldly profefi'ed and
dcfejided his doi5lrines. Immediately all the thun-
der of the church was launched againft the poor
culprit and his followers; he was called unani-
mouliy the Man of Sin, and was very pimjly con-
figned over to eternal perdition. It was cxp£('ted
by all the orthodox, that this powerful argument,
which -was fo full of reafon and religion, would
have filenccd Arius : but it had a direfl contrary
efre(S, for like the oak mentioned by Horace,
. . . ■. ._ . . .hilJo
Di.f.xit opes aunnnnique fcrro ;
he gained ftrength and fpirits, by beinr^ hacked
and hev/ed with the fword of perfecuticn. His
doctrines fpread like wild-fire throughout Egypt,
Lybia, and Palcftine ; converts came over to him
daily, and that very oppofition ivtts for his health,
ivhich was tntendtd to him an occajion of falling.
Things now began to wear a very ferious afpect ;
when Conftantine tlie Great convened the General
Council of Nice, in the year 325. Before this
c-uguft alTimbly Arius prefented himfelf ; but to
very little purpofe for cither party, as he was de-
termined to defend his tenets, and the biflrops
who were met together would not liften to him,
but while he was fpeaking thruft their fingers into
their ears. A fecond anathema was thundered out
againft him, and he was condemned to banifh-
ment ; where he continued three years, and was
then recalled. He prefented at his return a con-
feflion of his faith to Conftantine, which was
drawn up in fuch a very artful manner, that it
comprized both the Catholic doftrine, and that of
his ov/n fe£t. Arius afterwards went to Alexan-
dria, of which fee Athanafius was then bifhop,
but could not continue there, as the people refufed
to communicate along with him. He died of a
fainting fit, at Conftantinople, in the year 336 :
his death has been regarded by fome as a judge-
ment, becaufe Alexander had often prayed to God
to take him out of the world, or to hinder his
herefy from fpreading. His being remo'.ed out of
the world did not feem to anfwer any great end,
and therefore we will fuppofe it to be natural ; for
he left hi) doctrines behind him, which from that
day to this, have had a confiderable ntunber of
folloVvers".
The particular tenets v/hlch were held by Arius
iire, That The Word, or the Son, did not exift
from all eternity, but was created in time ; that he
is inferior to the Father, and of a different effence ;
that Chrift had nothing of human nature but
jnerely the fiefti, in which was The Word, that
operated in him, as the foul in us ; that the Holy
Ghoft wav of the order of created beings. Thefe
tenets made a very confiderable progrefs in the
AR I
Eaflern churches, and were .idvanccd in the Weft
by the followers of Servctus, who in the year
1 53 1, publiftied a treatifc againft the lEyftcry of
the Trinity. See Sj-rvetists.
They were adopted likewife with very little dif-
ference' by Fauftus Socinus, a gentleman of Sien-
na, about the year 1548, from whom fprang the
fed of the Socinians. See Socinians.
Thefe doctrines are all of them confronted in
the creed that is called Aihanafinn ; not from its
having been compofcd by Athanafius, for it is of
later ^dr.te ; but becaufe it contains thefe tenets
which v/ere fuppofed to be held by Athanaliur,
who was a warm ftickler againft Arius. See
Athanastan".
ARIDED, in aftonomy, a fixed ftar of the
fecond magnitude, in the fv/an's tail. See the con-
ftellation CvcNUS.
ARIDAS, a kind of taftety ir.anufadfurcd in
the Eaft Indies from a fnining thread drawn
from certain plants; and hence they are ftiled
aridas, or herbs.
ARIES, in aftronomy, a conftellation in the
heavens reprefented by a ram, and which is tiie
firft fis;n of the zodiac. The fun enters this fign
the twenty-firft of March, at a time when the
fields and hills are more numeroufly overfpread vv'ith
flocks than at any other feafon, by the new increafe
of lambs ; therefore it is natural to think, that the
ancient aftronomers obferving the fun to enter this
fign at fo profitable a time, thought fit to fignalize
it by the principal of the flock, aries, or the ram.
The fabulous ftories of the poets concerning
aries, are as follow : Athamas, king of Thebes, had
by his wife Nephele, a fon named Phrixus, and a
daiighternamed Helle. Pie afterwards married again
Ino, who fell defperately in love with her fon-in-
law Phrixus ; but finding herfelf flighted by him,
fire perfuadcd Athamas that the dearth which then
happened, could not be remedied but by facrificing
Phrixus and Helle : but Nephele gave them a
golden ram, which fne had received of Mercur)-.
On this ram they fled through the air from Thebes,
and in their fiiglit Helle fell off into the fea, wiiich
from thence was called Hellefpontus ; but Phrixus
arrived at Colchis, wdiere he was kindly received
by Ela the king, who facrificed the ram to Jupiter,
and hung up the goldeji fleece in the grove of
Mars. 'I'here it was kept by bulls with brazen
feet breathing fire, and alfo by a great dragon.
The ram was afterwards taken up into heaven for
his fervices, and m.ade a conftellation.
Others will have this ram to be that which led
Bacchus to a fpring of water, when he had like to
have periihed through thirft in the defirt of Lybia.
Novidius will have this to be the ram which .■\bra-
ham offered up inftead of his fon Ifaac.
For the places of the ftars in this conftellation,
fee the following Catalogue. " .- —
See alfo Plate XR'.
A R I
A R I
u
S. 1
O .
5. Name.
Right
Afcenfion
Diftance
fromNor.
Pole.
Var.in
Right
Afcen.
Var.in
Decli-
nation.
° .. ^.
°„ ' ''
^y
/^
I
6
6
21.42.34
68.55.3c
48. 7
18.50
2
22.22. 8
70. 3-44
48. 7
18.49
3
5
23.22.22
73.49.21
48. 7
18.42
4
3
23.47.2c
74.15.25
48. 7
18.40
5 '
^
>
25.14.17
71.5c.31
49.
18. 2
6
3
3
25.29.4c
70.1g.29
49-25
18.IC
7
25-36-57
67.36.40
48-75
18.
8 <
S
/
26.12.24
73.18.51
48. 8
18. C
9 -
K
26.17.25
67.32.
49-48
18.5c
10 •
27-30-47
65.14.17
50. 5
18.4c
II t
28.17.49
65.27.27
50. 5
18. I
12 i
K
28.17.57
68.30.16
49-40
17. 8
13 ;
' LuciJiT
j<
2^-33-54
67.38. 5
50. 6
17-60
15 ^
16 i
28.55.47
65.12.25
50.
17.50
29-J9-35
71-30.
49- 2
'7-45
29.23. 8
65.12. 3
50.
17.40
17 ^
H
29.50. I
70.56. 7
49-40
^7-32
18 /
29.56. 4
71.12.56
49-40
17.21
19 ^
29.57.49
75-5I-59
48-70
17.12
20 «
30-30.10
65.20.53
50. 6
17- 6
21 7
30.30.19
66. 5. 8
50. 6
17-03
22 6
i"^ad
9
31.20. 2
71-23- 9
4940
17 02
23 7
2'^^ ad
6
31.26.58
71.25-21
49-4C
17 00
24 ^
V
i'
^
33- 7-i8
80.26.12
48.
16. 8
25 7
33-38-30
80.52.47
48.
16.71
26 7
34-17-J8
71-13-32
48.
16.64
27 7
34-22.54
73-22.28
48.
16.56
28 6
34.30.40
71-11.55
48.
16.48
29 7
34-55-44
76. 2 58
48. c
'6-34
3^ 7
35-47- 1
66.24.21
50. 6
16.28
31 ^
36- i.u
78.33.18
48. 5
16.20
32 ^
>
36.17.24
69- 5-43
50. 4
16.14.
33 5
36.39. 9
64.59. «
50. 9
16.10
34.
H-
37- 2.35
7'- 1.25
51. 4
16.05
35 4
37-18.37
63-19-27
51. 4
16.02
36 I
37.43-47
73.16.11
49-40
<6.
37 ^
37-48.52
75-43- '2
4940
'5 94
3S 7
37-57-I9
78-34-49
48.70
15.85
39 i
38-2.'..+5
61.45.43
51. 8
15-73
4C fc
38.46.42
7244.10
50. 2
15-67
41 -
39- 6.50
63.42.24
52. 4
15. 6
^^
T
39- 8-37
73-3213
50. 2
'5-53
43 ^
s-
39-33- 9
75 55 40
50. 2
15-50
44 '
i-^^ad
F
40.21.43
73 15-20
5-2
^543
45 7
T- ad
P
40-34-37
723935
50 2
15-30
46 7
3'" ad
p
40.51.52
72.54.28
50. 2
15- 2
■47 7
41. 4-43
70 18.43
50. 6
15.25
48 5
s
41. 31- 7
69.35.29
51. I
15- 1
49 7
41.57.10
64.30. 48
51- 4
15
50 7
42. 0.1 1
73.58.19
50. 5
14. 9
51 7
42. 3.18
04.20.48
51. 8
14.81
52 6
42.5c.47
65.42-20
51- 7
14-73
53 7
43-28.52
73- 4-
50. 6
14-65
54 7
43-40-49
72. 9. 7
50. 6
14-50
1-
4
^
Name.
S
55
7
5b
7
57
4
58
5
59
/
60
7
61
7
i">>ad
62
6
63
6
2'=^ ad
64
6
65
7
6&
7
Right
Afcenfion
I Diftance
j from No.
iPole.
43
44'
44'
45
46,
46
46,
46,
47
47'
47'
48,
48. 2 j6i.
29.22 163.
37- 5!7i-
25.16 69.
24-43 :63-
33- 16, 65.
50.40 69
57-24 63-
22.53170.
31.56166.
38.10170.
36.17168.
51-44
41.48
9-37
49-39
48.13
13.16
44-51
16.46
6.44
8.36
4-41
2-33
Var.in
Right
Afcen.
Var.in
Decli-
nation
4OJ14.42
,4014.36
9 14.31
. 4'l4 II
• 7!'4- c
• 7 13- 9
. 6113-82
• 613-74
, 5,1366
4113.60
, 613.51
■ 5113-45
Aries, the battering ram. See B.a.ttering
Ram.
ARISARIUM, in botany. See Arum.
ARISH, a Perfian long' meafure, containing
about 3197 Engliih feet.
ARISTA, am.ong botanifts, a long needle-like
beard, which flands out from the hufic of a grain
of corn, gr.ifs, &:c. It is alfo called awn.
ARISTOCRACY, a form of government where
the fupreme power is lodged in the principal perfons
of the Hate, either on account of their nobility, their
cap.icity, or their probity.
The word is Greek, and compounded of ap/r?'-',
principal, and xf«TS«, to command.
ARISTOLOCHIA, Birthtvort, in botany, a ge-
nus of gvnandrious plants ; the flower confifls cT
an irregular fingle petal without any filanricnts, but
contains fix anthers, which join the under p;iit ot
the ftigma ; the fruit is a large hexangular capfiile
of fix cells, containing a number of depreffed feeds:
there are two forts of birthwort, whofe roots
are imported for m.edicinal ufes from France,
Spain, and Italy 5 one fort with long roots, and the
other with rouiidiiii roots, in fhape and colour like
the common cyclamen roots. The former is of a
fubacrid aromatic tafte, and both forts by all ac->-
co'.mtcd a great clcanfer of the womb, both as a
provoker of the meiiftrual difcharges, and a for-
warder of delivery : it is faid to be fo powerful as to
caufe abortion, if given to a woman with child ;
and many of the old vvrifers on phyfic have aflert-
ed, that if a pregnant v/oman Hepped over one of
thsfe roots, it would certainly caufe a mifcarriage,
and the roots, properly applied, would haften de-
livery. — To birthwort are afcribed fome alexiphar-
mic qualities, and it is reckoned detergent externally,
and funpurative ; for v/hich reafon it hath been uf;d
in ftyptic plalters. — One of the fpecies of arifto-
lochia is called the Virginia fnake-root. See the
article Snake-Root.
ARISTOTELIAN, in a general fenfe, fijniflcs
any thing that belongs to AriHotle.
A R I
Akistoteliak Phihfiphy, the philofophy of Arif-
tptle, called alio the peripatetic philofophy, from a
cullom which Ariitotle had to philofophize while he
was wiJking. KotwithltanJing Plato was Arirto-
tle's mafter, the peripatetic philofophy was fet up in
oppolition to the academic, of which Plato was the
inventor. Ariftotle was chagrined at Zenocr.Ues
fucceeding Spcufippus as head of the academic feet ;
and thro' a fpirit of emulation compofcd his fvlltm
of laws and politics, to deftroy the credit of what
PJato had hctore written upon that fubjedt.
If we confider the bufy life of Ariftotle, who was
tutor to Alexander the Great, and befides the time
which he fpent in travelling, was engaged in
cndlefs difputes in the Lyceum ; we fhall be
aftonifhcd hov/ he could find leifurc to com-
pofe the hundredth part of thofe books he is faiJ to
have done, amounting to above four thoufand, of
■which few more than twenty are at prefent extant.
The truth is, he was a man of an univerfal and com-
prehcnfire geiiiuj, with an infatiable thirft for
knowledge, that roufed his induflry, and made him
read over all the books of the ancients. At the
head of thofe works which he has left us, are his
treatife of Rhetoric and Poetry, which were com-
pofed in all probability to form the tafte of that il-
luftrious prince whofe education had been com-
mitted to his care. They are full of excellent remarks
and wife inftrudlions in thefe two branches of fci-
ence, and are undoubtedly mafter-pieces : no man
has penetrated farther into the human heart than -he
has done ; nor laid more open thofe fecret and in-
vifible fprings that move it. Whatever has been
written fince on thefe two fubjedls has been bor-
rowed from him ; and one may venture to affirm
that thefe two works do more honour to his memory,
than all the others put together. His Morals are
dry and barren, and prefent us with nothing but ge-
neral views and metaphyfical propofitions ; which
are more adapted to fet off the wit and burden the
memory, than touch the heart and redi.fy the will.
Such is in general the fpirit that prevails in the
ethics of this .philofopher : we fhall prefent the
reader with a few of his precepts, and the turn that
he gives them :
Firlt, He fays, that the happinefs of man does
;not Gonfill either in pleafures, or riches, or honours,
■ or power, or nobility, or in fpeculations of philo-
fophy; but in — what? — why the ENTEAEXEIA ;
a word of fo dark and doubtful a fignification
that Hermolaus Barbarus is faid to have confulted
the devil about it ; after which, in his Paraphrafc on
Themiftius, whether from the devil or himfclf we
will not pretend to fay, he renders it hy perfeJii-
hcibia, which is not a whit the clearer. We i.na-
gine that Ariftotle meant habitudes .of the foul,
which render it more or lefs perfect.
Secondly, " Virtue is full of charms and attrac-
tioRS." This he had from his mafter Plato 3 but be
1 1
A R 1
improves upon it, and fays, that " a life where th^
virtues are linked together one with another, muft
needs be perfectly happy."
Ttiirdly, Tho' Virtue is fufficient of herfelf,
yet it cannot bo denied, that {he finds a powerful
fupport in riches, honours, noblcnefs of blood,
beauty, and ftrength of body ; all which con-
tribute to make hjr take a loftier flight, and, of
courfe, advance the happinefs of mankind.
Fourthly, All virtue is placed in the middle, bc-
tK-een the two extremes of excefs and defeft : thus,
courage is the mean between fear and rafhnels ;
magnificence, betwixt luxury and fordidnefs, &c.
from which one mav conclude, that the number of
vices is double that of the virtues, becaufe every
virtue has a vice on each fide of it.
'Ihis is fufficient for a fpecimen cf Ariftotle's
Ethics, in which he has not facceeded fo well as
in his Logic. He has there laid open the principal
fources of the art of reafoning ; he has pierced into
the inexhauftible fund of human thoughts ; he has
diltinguifned ideas ; has (hewn their connexion
with each other, and purfued them thro' all their
deviations and feeming contrariedes, till at lalt he
has brought them to a fixed and determined point.
Yet his method, fo much approved by philofoph^rs
formerly, is not without defect ; fonietlmes he is
too dift'ufe and prolix, which difcourages one fromi
going on with him : his book of Categories, and
that of Interpretation may be contracted to a few
pages ; the idea is often loft in a crowd cf words ;
at other times he is obfcure and embarrafled ; we are
obliged to divine, and can guefs only at his mean-
ing. We fhall give no fpecimen here of his Logic,
as we fhall be obliged, in the courfe of this work,
to explain it under the different words that he has
made ufe of to diftinguifti his fvllogifms, &c.
Let us now a little confider hisPhyfics, or natural
philofophy ; in which we fli ill generally follow the
celebrated Lewis Vifis, as he has difpofed it in a
very methodical manner. He begins with his eight
books of natural principles, which feem rather a
compilation of difrerent memoirs, than a work
formed upon any one regular plan. Thefe books
treat in general of body extended, which is the objefi
ofphyfics; and in particular, of the principles, and
every thing that has a connexion with them ; as mo-
tion, fpace, time, Sec. Nothing can be more con-
fufed than this part of his work : the definitions
render thofe things which they were intended to
explain, lefs intelligible than they were before.
Ariftotle begins with blaming the philofophers
who preceded him, fome for admitting too many
principles, others for admitting only one. With
regard to himfelf, he has eftablifhcd three, viz.
A'Jatt^r, Form, and Privation. Matter, according
to him, is the general fubject on which nature ope-
rates ; it has exifted from eternity, arid is itfelf
eternal ; it is the parent of all things that lon^
H h h foi-
A R I
for motion, and tJeHre that form fl'.ould unite
ihcm to it. It is difF.cult to fay what Ariftotk un-
derirood by this firil matter, which he defines,
" that which has neither quality nor quantity, nor
any mode or accident by which its eflence may be
determined." It feems to have been with him a
mere abftraft idea, or imaginary being tliat had no
real exiftence of its own, tho' he affirms that it was
the firll principle of exiftence in every thing be-
fidcs.
Havingeftablifhed thefe three principles, he pafles
on to explain the caufes, which he treats of diftinft-
ly enough, but almoll without mentioning the firfl:
caufe, which is God : and this has given occafion
to fome to accufe Ariftotle of atheifm, as if he was
ignorant of, or did not believe in the exiftence of a
Deity. But this appears to be a mifiake ; for he
afierts that there is one efFeitive principle, or
plenaiy caufe, by and through which every thing
exiils ; that it informs the whole univerfe, and ren-
ders thofe beings in which it refides capable of mo-
tion or reft in themfclves. He calls indeed this firft
great caufe Nature ; but he could mean nothing by
this term but the Deitv, or that one Supreme, in
and thro' whom we live and move, and have our
bcitig.
He then proceeds to treat of motion and reft ;
finite and infinite; of the vacuum and atoms; of
ipace and time ; in all which he makes no confu-
iion ; one propofition leads naturally to another,
and tho' he proceeds always with the greateft rapi-
dity, yet ft'ill the connedtion is preferved in the
ftrongeft and plaineft manner imaginable.
After having explained what he means by Matter
and Form, he begins to treat of the third principle,
which he calls Privation. He contradicts the pre-
vailing opinions that nothing abfolutely perifhed,
but fomething was again produced from it ; that
all the changes which happen in bodies, were
only another arrangement, or different diftribution
of the parts of matter which compofe thefe fame
bodies ; and that increafe and diminution, divifion
and reunion, feparation and mixture, would ac-
count for all the changes that happen in the uni-
verfe. He rejedls thefe notions, and eftablifhes the
doctrine of generation and corruption, afErming
that new beings are continually produced out of
the womb of Nature, which perifli in their turns ;
and that from this privation, other beings again
exift. This part of Ariftotle's fyllem is very per-
plexed and chimerical, and has led the fchoolmen
into monftrous abfurdities, who have multiplied a
number of nonfenfical terms, fuch -is forma fubjian-
tialis, modilitas, &c. which raife no ideas, except
thofe of wrangling and difputation.
Ariftotle does not content himfelf with laying
down a general fyftem of natural philofophy, but
defcends to particulars, and treats of wind, rain,
hail, dew, See, befides which he has given us a hif-
AR I
tory of animals, which has been highly approved
by Mr. Buffon, who himfelf has treated largely on
this fubjeft.
It is no wonder, if we confider every thinff, that
there fhould be manv falfe and abfurd opinions
maintained by this univcrfal philofopher. He aiVerts
that the univerfe is not equally under the immedi-
ate government of God, but that the celeftial bo-
dies only are worthy of his care and attention : as
to all fublunary things, he thinks them below his
notice, and, to ule the words of Prior, imagines
the Deity
Has fairly left us, human elves.
To cut and fhufHe for ourfelves.
To ftand or walk, to rife or tumble,.
As matter and as motion jumble.
Diogenes Laertius tells us, that it was the opinion
of Ariftotle, that the heavenly bodies only were go-
verned by the Deity, and that the earth and all its
inhabitants were regulated and influenced bv a kind
of fympathy with them. He faw that all fublu-
nary things were fubjeft to changes and vicifTitudes,
to difafters and evils ; which made him conclude
that they could not polRbly be under the imme-
diate care and providence of an all-wife and gra-
cious Being. Ariftotle denied the immortality of
the foul, which he looked upon as a particle of the
Divinity, which was lent to man on his firft ap-
pearance upon this theatre, and was to be refumed
again into the Divinity, when he made his exit.
The falfe notions which he had framed to himfelf
of motion, led him to believe that the world was
eternal : Motion, fays he muft have been eternal,
confequently the world, wherein it exifts, mult
have been fo too.
Before we conclude this article, it may not be
amifs to prefent our readers with an ingenious pa-
rallel, drawn by father Rapin, between Ariftotle
and Plato. The qualifications of the .mind were
extraordinary in both one and the other; they had
each of them an elevated genius, capable of the
higheft and nobleft contemplations. The wit of
Plato was more elegant and poliflied, and that of
Ariftotle more grand and profound. Plato's ima-
gination was lively, copious, fruitful in invention,
in ideas, in expreffion, in fi.gures ; he could give a
thoufand different turns, and place the fame fubjeit
in a thoufand different lights, all ftriking and
agreeable : but ftill this was often nothing but
imagination. Ariftotle is harfh and dry, but
what he fays carries with it the force of rea-
fon : his didtion, tho' pure, has in it I know not
what of aufterity ; and his natural or affedted
obfcurities difguft and fatigue thft reader. In
Plato there is a delicacy of thought and expref-
fion not to be found in Arilfetle, who is natural,
fimple and even, but at the fame time clofe and
nervous. The ftile of Plato is fublime and eJevat-
6 edj
ARI
ed, but loofe and difFufe ; he fays alwnys more than
he fhould ; Ariftotlc docs not fay enough, but
leaves to the reader to fupply what is wanting :
the one furprizes and dazzles with his fublimity
and brightncfs, the other improves and initrudts
by his judgment and foliditv. Plato feems to have
fludied chiefly how he (hould fpeak, Ariilotle how
he fhould think ; the latter has given us ftrength
and fubftance, and the former grace and colour.
Aristotelian JVheel, rota Arijhtelica. See
Rota.
ARITHMETIC is the art or fcicnce of com-
putation, hath for its fubjcift number, and teaches
us to give proper anfwers to fuch who demand how
many ?
Nimwer muft have been made ufc of ever fmce
our firft parents had occafion to communicate their
ideas to one another, of Jo rnany or fo much ; and
as to the origin of arithmetic, tho' hiftorv neither
fixes the time nor author, yet in all probability it
took its rife with the introduction of commerce,
and is therefore of Tyrian invention.
Jofephus tells us, the art was carried by Abraham
into Egypt ; from thence it hath been fuppoied to
be tranfmitted to the Greeks, who handed it with
great improvements to the Romans, and from
them it came to us ; and as learning advanced in
Europe, fo likewife did the knowledge of the fci-
tnce of arithmetic, which gradually received great
improvem.ents, and is far fuperior to the ancient,
which chiefly confilted in the various divifion of
numbers, as appears from a treatife writ by Nicho-
niachus in the third century, and one of Boe-
thius, which are ftill extant. But what rendered
their operations abftrufe and tedious, was their im-
perfection in notation ; for not having any character
to fupply the place of our cypher, (which were re-
ceived from the Arabians) their feries only extended
to nine, while the prefent method changes the va-
lue of numbers in a decuple progreffion. — Modern
arithmetic is divided into different kinds, viz. theo-
retical, practical, inftrumental, numerous, fpecious,
logarithmetical, decimal, dignasmical, tetraftical,
duodecimal, fexagefimal, &c.
T'/)ti7'-^//W Arithmetic is the knowledge of the
properties and proportions that numbers bear to
each other confidered abllraiStedly, with the rea-
fons and demonftrations of the feveral rules in com-
mon arithmetic. The feventh, eighth, and ninth
books of Euclid's Elements, where he has delivered
the doiStrine of proportion, and that of prime num-
bers, is the oldcft extant of this kind ; however,
fmce Euclid we have had many treatifes on theo-
retical arithmetic by different authors, as Barlaam
the monk, Frater Lucaf. de Burgo, &c.
Prat^/iY?/ A-RiTHMETic is that which fhews the
method of working by numbers, fo as may be moft
ufeful and expeditious for bufniefs. The firft entire
treatife we have of this kind was given by Nicholas
ARI
Tartaglia, a Venetian, in theyear 1556, confifling o»
two books : thcfirftcontainedtiieapplication o(/Lith-
met'ic to civil ufes, the latter the grounds of algebra.
Stifclius gave fomc few particulars concerning the
application of irrationals in 1544, which are no
where elfe to be found. However, flnce their
time, almoft an infinite number of authors have
appeared to the publick, viz. Metius, Ramus, Cla-
vius, Buckley, Diggs, Record, Cocker, Wingate,
Leybourn, Ward, Malcolm, Wefton, Weft, Gor-
don, Penning, Dilworth, Fifher, &c.
Injiruwer.Uil Avt-lTUMETlC is that v.'hich is per-
formed with great eafe and expedition by means of
fcales, rules, fectors, Napier's bones, Sec. for the me-
thod of performing which, fee under each particu-
lar article. Scale, Rule, &c.
Numeroui Arithmetic is that which gives t'.ie
calculus of numbers ^or indeterminate quantities,
and is performed by the common numeral, or Ara-
bic characters.
Specious Arithmetic. See Algebra.
Logarithmetical Arithmetic is that v/hich is-
performed by tables of logarithms ; which are arti-
ficial numbers in arithmetical progreffion, which
being fitted thereto exprefs the ratios of natural
numbers in geometrical progrefTion. See Loga-
rithms.
Deciinal ARITHMETIC is a very compendious
method of performing many calculations in prac-
tical arithmetic, efpecially in intereft, annuities, &c.
See Decimal Fractions.
Dyadic, or Bynary Arithmetic is that wherein
only two figures, viz. unity, or i, and o, are ufed.
See Binary.
TitraSiyc ARITHMETIC is that only wherein
I, 2, 3, and o, are ufed.
Duodecimal Arithmetic. See DuodecimalFRAC-
TIONS.
Sexagefimal Arithmetic. See Sexagefimal Frac-
tions.
Political Arithmetic is the application of arith-
metic to political fubjedls. See Political Arith-
metic.
Arithmetic of Infinites is the method of
fumming up a feries of numbers conilfting of inh-
nite terms. See Series.
Arithmetic cf Irrationals and Surds, ^c. See
Surds, &c.
Univcrfal ARITHMETIC, a name given by Sir
liaac Newton to algebra, or the calculation of
quantities in general. Nor did that great man,
whofe elevated genius and profound penetration feeni
to have traced all the fciences to their true metaphy-
fical principles, give it this title without fufiicient
reafon.
Common arithmetic has two kinds of principles ;
the firft are general rules, independent of the cha-
ra(5lers made ufe of to exprefs numbers ; the fecond
are rules which depend upon thefe charaClers, and
axe
ARI
•are properly called rules of arithmetic. The for-
mer contain only the general properties of propor-
tions, and take place iini\erfally, be thefe propor-
tions ftated how they will.
Hence it follows, that by noting numbers by ge-
neral expreffions, tho* they do not denote one num-
ber more than another, wc may form certain rules re-
lative to operations, which may be performed by num-
bers foexpreflcd. Thefe rules fhew therefultof one
or more operations performed by numbers cxprcficd
in a general manner, and in the inoft fimple method ;
and this refult is propirly nothing more than an
arithmetical operation, exprefled in charaSers, which
will vaiy according to the different arithmetical va-
lues we affign the quantities fubflituted for num-
bers.
In order to Tet this idea of algebra in a clearer
light, it may not be amifs to mention, in a curfory
manner, the four common rules of arithmetic. Ad-
dition confifts in the adding any numbers propofed
into one total, without anv other operation. If,
for example, it were required to add tv/o diffimilar
tjuantities together, as a and i, we fet them down
ilmply ^ -(- />, the refult of which is nothing more
than an indication, that if a reprefents a certain
number, and b another, thefe numbers mufl be add-
ed together. The exprcilion a-\-b is therefore no-
thing more than an indication of an arithmetical
addition, the fum of which will be different, ac-
cording to the different arithmetical values allign-
ed to a and b. Suppofe it were required to add
5 fl to 3 tf, we may write 504- 3 ff ; but it is plain
that this maybe expreffed \\\ a more fimple manner ;
A'iz. 8 a ; and confequently the arithmetical opera-
tion fnould be exprefled in that manner.
Hence it follows, that addition in algebra ex-
prefies the fum or aggregate of feveral numbers, ge-
nerally in the rnoft fimple manner, and faves the
urithrretician as much labour as poflible.
In fubtraftion, the thing is the fame ; for if it
be required to fubtradt b from <?, we writer — b; be-
caufe it is impoffible to exprefs this operation in a
more fimple manner : but fhould it be required to
fubtract 3 a from 5 (7, it would be improper to write
5 a — 3(7; becaufe, if a had any numerical value, it
would occafion the trouble of feveral anthmetical
operations; but fimply 2^, which is more con-
venient in calculation.
The fame thing is true in multiplication and di-
vifio.n. If we would multiply «-l-i, by t-|- ^, we might
v/rite indifferently (?-{-/! Xc-f//, or ac-\rbc-\- ad-';- htl;
though the hrfl method feems the more proper, be-
caufe it requires fewer arithmetical operations : in
the former there are only two additions and one
multiplication ncceffary ; in the latter, three addi-
tions and four multiplications. But if it fhould be
required to multiply 5^ by 3^7, we fhould write [5^7,
and not 5(7X3<2; becaufe the firft has only two
arithmetical operations, and tlve fecond three. In
A R I
the fame m.inner, to multiply a-^h by ^ — i, we
fhould write aa — bh; becaufe this refult would be
more commodious than aa-\-ah — ab — bb, and at
the fame time furniflies a ufeful theorem, namely,
that the produif refulting from the fum of two
numbers, multiplied by tlie difference of the fame
numbers, is equal to the difference of their fquares.
In divifion, inftead of writing — — , we fhould
fet down fimply 4a; but to exprefs the divifion
of ab by c d, we muff write — ; becaufe a more
fimple expreffion cannot be found.
Hence it is evident that Sir Ifaac Newton was in
the right to call algebra univerfal arithmetic ; be-
becaufe it exhibits all the general and common
rules of every kind of arithmetic, in a more clear,
concife, and fimple method.
But it may be afked, v/hy we fhould have re-
courfe to perplexity ? In all arithmetical queiticns
the numbers are expreffed; of what uie therefore
can it be to give them a literal expreffioii?
Theanfwer is very eafy : There are queftions far
more complicated ; and in the folution of thefe we
are obliged to form combinations, of which the
number or numbers fought mufl: form a part. We
muil therefore be poffeffed of an art, whereby we
may reprefent thefe combinations without knowing
the number fought ; and confequently exprefs thefe
numbers by characters not numerical : becaufe it
would be very improper and inconvenient to exprefs
an unknown number by a numerical charafter,
which we had no reafon to expert would be its real
value.
ARITHMETICAL, fomething belonging to,
or performed by arithmetic.
Arithmetical Complement of a Logarithm, is
what any logarithm wants of 10,0000000, as
7,520335 is the arithmetical complement of
2,4789665, where each figure is fubftrafted from
g, except the laff which is fubflracted from 10.
iMean. -J rMEAN.
Progrejf.on. l c „ j PROGRESSION.
Propoitioil. \ S PjiOPORTION.
Ratio. J \ Ratio.
ARITHMOMANCY, a fpecies of divination
performed by numbers.
The word is Greek, apidiJLiiJ.!tvTiiA, and com-
pounded of a,p/-5f/.S^', number, and y.AVTiia., divi-
nation.
ARK, Arc, or Arch. Seethe article Arch.
Ark of Noah was a kind of floating veffel,
built by the command of God, for the prelervation
of the feveral fpecies of animals, at the general de-
luge. It isderived from the Latin word Area., which
fignifies a cheft or coffer.
As hiilorians and commentators differ widely in
their opinions concerning this furpriz'ng ve.Tel, we
fhal! lav before our readers what appears to us moft
worlhj
ARK
ARK
worthy of their attention, in relation to the fol-
lowing particulars, viz. the time that it took in
building, the materials of which it confided, its
form, capacity, and refting-place after the Flood.
It is generally agreed that Noah began to build
the arlc in the year of the world 1557 ; but it is
not fo clear at what particular period it was finifa-
ed. Some ha\e conjectured that he was an hun-
dred and twenty years about it : they are led to
this opinion by the following pafTage in Genefis,
where God fays, " My fpirit Ihall not always ftrive
with man ; his days fhall be an hundred and twenty
years." Others imagine that it was completed in
feventy-eight years ; fome have affigned a much
fhorter period, namely, {(;vcn or eight years ; the
Mahometans fay that he had only two )-ears al-
lowed him for this work. But all this is only con-
jefture, and it feems to be impoHible to fix the
cxaiSl time that it took in building ; thus much,
however, maybe col le(ffed from the facred writings,
that it was built fome time in the fifth and fixth
hundredth year of Noah ; for God, when he com-
manded him to build the ark, told him that lie and
his wife, and his fons, and his fons wives fhould
enter into the ark. Now Noah's three fons, Shem,
Ham, and Japheth, were not born till after Noah
was five hundred years old, and it is clear that the
deluge happened in the fix hundredth year of Noah ;
from which it neceflarily follows, that the ark mult
have been conflructed ibme time between the fifth
and fix hundredth year of Noah.
As to the materials, the fcripture tells us that it
was made of gopher tvood, v.'hich is tranflated by the
?)t^t.\i?Lgint fqiiare pieces of xvood. Some commenta-
tors are of opinion that it was cedar, others box,
others pine, and others cyprcfs. It is tranflated by
Jerom in one place ligna Ltv'ignia, or iv:od that is
planed, and in another ligna bituminata, or ivood that
is pitched. Some have maintained that the Hebrew
word "iDj, gopher, fignifies any kind of pitchy refi-
nous wood, which is not improbable, as the word
niDJ, gophrit, literally means bitumen, fulphur, or
iiny other inflammable fubfcance. Our learned
.commentator Mr. Fuller has obferved, that the
wood wliereof the ark was built, was nothing elfe
but that which the Greeks called KuTdp/js-i/^, or
the Cyprefs tree ; for taking av.-ay the termination,
cupar and gopher differ very little in found. Bo-
chart has confirmed this obfcrvatioiH and (lieun
that no place abounds fo much with this kind of
wood, as the country about Babylon ; near which
place Noah is generally fuppofed to have conftruiled
his ark. Pelletier prefers cedar, on account of its
incorruptibility, and the great plenty of it in Afia ;
whence Herodotus and Theophraftus relate, that
the kings of Egypt and Syria built whole fleets
of it, inilead of pine; and the common tradition
throughout the Eaft imports, that thearkis prefer-
vcd entire to this day on Mount Ararat.
II
There have not been lefs various opinions about
the particular form of the ark, than about the par-
ticular kind of wood of which it was conilrudted.
God commanded Noah to make it three hundred
cubits in length, fifty cubits in breadth, and thirty
cubits in height. Now the exacl dimenfions of
it might be known to a tittle, if it was only once
agreed what the particular meafure of this cubit
was. But the misfortune of it is, that fcarcc two
people are of the fame opinion as to this point, and
therefore it is not to be wondered at if they differ
widely in every other. Origen thinks that this cu-
bit was of the fame dimenfions with fix common
cubits ; but the ark in this cafe muft have been
monftroufly too large, as it would have taken
up near the fpaceofa mile. Others have imagined
that it was a geometrical cubit, and contained fix
feet : but the mod probable opinion is, that it was
the common Egyptian cubit,' which was made ufe
of by the Jews from the time of their departure
out of Egypt, till the Babylonifli captivity. This
cubit was pretty near a foot and a half, or twenty-
inches and a half of our meafure. According to
this computation, the length of the ark muft have
"been 5 1 2 feet 6 inches ; its breadth 85 feet 5 inches ;
and its height 51 feet 3 inches : its whole capacity
conquently would have been pretty nearly 229822
feet 4 inches. Such a building as this v/ould have
contained fufficient room for all the creatures that
were to enter into it ; as we fhall clearly conceive,
if we confider that the number is not fo great, as
might at firft have been imagined. We are not
acquainted with above a hundred and thirty fpacies
of quadrupedes ; nor do we know of a greater num-
ber of birds ; and with regard to reptiles not above
thirty fpecies. Bifliop Wilkins has endeavoured
to {hew that not above Icventy-two of the quadru-
pede kind needed a place in the ark.
There are various conjedf ures about the particu-
lar manner in which the ark v/as laid out. Noah
was commanded by God to make it with lower,
fecond, and third dories. The lower dory was
mod probably dedined for the beads, the middle
for the food, and all the upper for the birds, wiih
Noah and his family. Each dory was divided
into different apartments, dalls, &c. Drexelius
makes three hundred apartments ; father Fournicr
three hundred and thirty-three : the anonymous au-
thor of the Quedions on Genefis four hundred ;
Butes, Temporarius, AriasMontanus,Hodas, Wil-
kins, Lamy, and others, fuppofe as many different
partitions, as there were different forts of animals,
Pelletier makes only feventy-two, namely, thirty-
fix for the birds, and as many for the beads : his
reafon is, that if we fuppofe a greater number, as
three hundred thirty-three, or four hundred ; each
of the eight perfons in the ark mudhave had thirtj'-
feven, forty-one, or fifty dalls to attend and cleanfe
daily, which he thinks in-.poffible. But there does
I i i i;ot
A R K
A R M
not feem to be much in tliis : for to dimini-fli the
number of ftalls, without diminifliing the number
of the animals, woalu 1j'_; inJ"ignilic<;nt ; it being,
perhaps, more difficult to take care of three hun-
dred anini.-ils in feventy-three Ihdls, than in three
hundred.
Some perfons have computed that all the animals
contained in the ark could not be equal to five
hundred horfcs ; na)^, they have reduced the whole to
the dimenfions of fifty-fix pair of oxen. Father
Lamy enlarges it to fixty-four pair, or an hundred
end twenty-eight oxen : fo that fuppofing one ox
equal to. tv\'o horfes, if the ark had room for two
hundred fifty-fix horfes, there mull have been room
for alj the animals. Eut the fame author demon-
ilrates that one floor would fuflice for five hun-
dred horfes, allowing nine fquare feet to an
horfc.
IJilnop Wilkins computes all the carnivorous
animals equivalent, as to the bulk of their bodies
and their food, to twenty-feven wolves ; and all
the reft to two hundred and eighty beeves. 'For
the former he allows 1825 fheep, and for the lat-
ter 109500 cubits of hay ; all which would be
eafily contained in the two firfl: ftories, and a deal
of room to fpare. — As to the third ftory, no body
doubts of its being fufficient for the fowls, with
Noah, his fons, and daughters. The learned bi-
Ihop remarks, that the moft expert mathematician,
even at this day, could not have iiihgned the pro-
portions of a veffel better accommodated to the
purpofe, than was this of Noah's ; and concludes
in the following words ; " The capacity of the
" ark, which has been made an obje£tio:i againft
" fcripture, ought to be cfteemed a confirmation
" of its divine authority ; fince, in thofe ruder
" ages, men being lefs verfed in arts of philofo-
''' phy, were mure obnoxious to vulgar prejudices
".than now: fo that, had it been an human in-
"" v.ention, it would have been contrived according
" to thofe wild apprehenfions which arife from a
'' confufed and general idea of things ; as much
" too big as it has been reprefcnted too little."
According to the facred hiftorian, the ark refted
in the feventh month, on the feventeenth day of the
month, upon the mountains of Ararat. Tliis is a
famous mountain in Armenia, fituated twelve leagues
e.ift of Erivan, in 3 vaft plain, having no other
mountain near it on any fide. It is called by
many of the Eaftern nations Ar dag, or Parmark-
dagh, becaufe it ftands upright by itfelf, like a
finger when held up. It is fo high as to be feen at
the diliance of ten days journey, according to the
flages of the caravans. The city of Tauris is fitu-*
ated near this mountain. Tavcrnier fays that there
nrcmany monafterics upon Mount Ararat 5 and that
the Armenians call it Mere SoulFar, becaufe the
ark ftopt here. It is as it were taken off from the
©ther mountains of Armenia, which make a long
chain, and from the middle to the top of it is co-
vered witli fiiow for three or four months in the
year. Notwithftanding all this, there are fome au-
thors of opinion that tne ark refted on a mountain
near Apamca i.n Pf.rygia.
Ar.k of the Covenant, in fcripture, denotes a fmall
chcft or cofter, three feet nine inches in length,
two feet three inches in breadth, and the fame in
height ; in which were contained the golden pot
that had manna, and Aaron's rod, together with
the tables of the covenant, as well the broken ones
(according to the rabbins) as the whole. This
cofter v/as made of ftiittim wood, and was covered
with the mercy-feat, which was of folid gold ; at the
two ends whereof v/cre two chcrubims, looking to-
wards each other with expanded wings, v/hich em-
bracing the whole circumference of the mercy-feat,
met on each fide in the middle. Here it was that
the Ib.ecchinah, or divine prefence refted, both in the
tabernacle and in the temple, and was vifibly kca
in the appearance of a cloud over it : and from
hence the divine oracles were delivered in an audi-
ble voice, as often as God was cbnfulted in behalf
of his people. Hence it is that God is faid in fcrip-
ture to dwell betv/een the cherubims on the mercy-
feat becaufe there was the feat or the throne of
the appearance of his glory among them. And
for this reafon the high-prieft appeared before the
mercy-feat once every year, on the great day of
expiation, at which time he was to make his near-
eft approach to the divine prefence, to mediate
and make atonement for the fins of the people.
APvM, Biachium, a part of the human body, ter-
minating at one end in the fhoulder, and at theother
in the hand.
Anatomifts divide the arm into two parts, calling
only that part the arm included betv/een the
flioulder and the elbow ; the reft they term the fore-
arm. The arm in this acceptation hiis only one
large bone called the os humeri, or the fhoulder-
bone. The other part confifts of two bones, term--
ed the radius, and the cubitus, or ulna.
Tiie OS humeri has five forts of motions, which
are efilfciled by five pairs of mufcles ; upwards by the
deltoides, fuprafpinatus, and coraco-brachialis ;
downwards by the rotundus major, and latilfimus
dorfi ; forw.ards by the pedloralis : and backwards
by the infrafpinatus.
The mufcle of -the fore-aj-m are the biceps, bra-
chia-us internus, gemellus, brachijeus externus, an-
coneus, pronator, radii teres ct quadratus, fupifpi-
nator longus et brevis. Its motiojis are confined to
two kinds, that of rotation, and that of flexion and
cxtenfion.
Arm, among fportfmen, is applied to a horfe,
when by prefling down his head, he endeavours to
defend iiimfelf againft the bitj to prevent his being
checked by it.
Arm,
A p. M
ARM
■ Arm, in geography, implies a branch of the fca
running lonie diltance into the land.
Arm of a Magnet is a fmall piece of flsel in the
iron inclofure, in which the load-ftone is placed.
Sec Magnet.
ARMADILLO, in natural hiflory, the nams
of ."n animal refembliiig a hedge-hog, andalmoll:
of the fame fize. Hib head, body, and tail, are co-
vered with a fliield of a boiiy lubftance, and very
curioufly contrived with moft beautiful fcales. Nera'
the hind part of the head are two joints, that he
may move his head ; and on the back feven divi-
sions, or fnields, with a yellow flcin between each.
The feet a;c alfo covered with a thinner fnield. The
lower parts of his body aj^e without this covering,
but are bcfct with hairs near an inch long, which
proceed from prominent pores. There are alfo a
iew hairs on the fkin, which ioins to feveral fnclls
of the fiiield, like the former ; as alfo near the
mouth and eyes.
The head is like a hog, with afliarp fnout : it has
little eyes lunk deep in the heaJi and a pointed nar-
row toiigue. The ears are naked, brown, and fhort;
the teeth are of a middle fize, and eighteen in each
jaw. Thefeet refemble hands, with five fingers, and
roundifli nails. He roots up the ground with his
fnout, like a hog ; and is tinctured all over v/ith a
reddifh colour. The tail at the root is near foiu'
inches thick ; but grows lefs gradually to the end,
which terminates in a point. He lives upon melons,
potatoes, and other roots ; and will eat flefii when lie
can get it. He generally lies hicTin the ground, and
fomctimes v.-ill frequent water and watery places,
where he feeds upon worrns, fmall fifh, and water
infeifts. Sometimes he will cat ants, apples, and the
berries of certain trees.
Armed Sh'ip, in the marine, a veflel taken into
the fervice of the government, and equipped by
them in the time of war, being furniflicd with ar-
tillery, ammunition, and martial inftrunients :
they are commanded by an officer who has the
rank of mafter and commander in the navy, and
are upon the fame eftablifhment with floops of war,
having a lieutenant, mafter, purfer, furgeon, &c.
ARMENICA, apricot, in botany. S.ee A-
PRICOT.
ARMENIANS, in ecclefiaftical hiflory, a feet
or diviiion among the eaftern Chriftians, fo called
from Armenia, the country which they originally
inhabited. There are two forts of Armenians, the
one catholic and fubjedt to the pope, having a
patriarch in Perfia, and another in Poland : the
other are fetftaries, and are generally accufed of be-
ing Monophyfites, i. e. of admitting only one na-
ture in Chriff. They likewife have two patriarchs,
one in the convent of Etchmiazin, near Erivan, a
city of Armenia, fubjedt to the king of Perfia ;
and, the other at Cis, in Cilicia, fubjefl to the
Grand Signior,
The Armenians agree with the Greeks, except
in this, that they mix no water v/ith their wine in
the eucharifl:, and ufc unleavened bread after the
manner of the Latins. They abftain in the mofl
rigid manner from eating blood, and thi.'igs
ftrangled, and are greatly adJidted to fading ;
infomuch that, to hear them talk, one would con-
clude their religion con.Gfted in nothing elfe.
ARMILLA-MejVIBrosa, in anatomy, is that
circular ligament which comprehends all the ten-
dons belono-ins to the whole hand within a circle,
in the region of the carpus.
ARMiLLARY, in a general fenfe, implies
fomcthing compofed of rings or circles.
The word is Latin, armiHaris, and derived from
wrndui, a bracelet
A.1MILLARY sphere, an artificial fphcrc com-
pofed of a number of circles of the mundane .
Ipliere, put together in their natural order, to eafe
and aflift the imagination, in. conceiving the con-
ftitution of the heavens, and the motions of the .
ceieftial bodies. See Plate IV. fig. 6.
The armillary fphere revolves upon its axis with--
in a filvercd horizon, v.'hich is divided into degrees,
and moveable every way upon a brafs fupporter.
The other parts are the equinoitial, zodiac, me--
ridian, the two tropics, and the two polar
circles.
ARMINIANS, in ecclefiaftical hiftory, fomc-
times called Remonstrants, are a religious feet'
or party, who took their name from Arminius, their
leader and advocate. They firft of all iprang up
in Holland, by a feparat'ion from the Calvinifts ;
whofe catechifms and formulas of faith tiiey re-
ic<Si:ed and ridiculed. They hold eleilion and prc-
deftination ; regard the doftrine of the Trinity as
not efiential to falvation ; maintain that there is no
precept in Scripture, which commands the wor-
ihip of the Hoiy Ghoft ; and affirm that Jeius
Chrift is not equal to God the Father.
• ARMISTICE, in military aitairs, a temporary
truce, or ceftation of arms for a very fliort fpace of
time.
The word is Latin, einniJiiUum, .and com-
pounded of nrma, arms, andy/a, to ftand, or ftop.
ARMOSIN, a kind of filk ftuft", manufaflured,
in the Eaft-lndies, at Lyons in France, and at
Lucca in Italy.
ARMONIAC, or Ammoniac. See Sal Am-
vioniaatm.
ARMORIAL, fomeihing relating to arms, or.
coats of arms.
ARMORY, a magazine of arms, or a place
where military habiliments are depofited, that they.
may be ready for ufe.
Armory alfo implies a branch of the fcience of
heraldry, confifting in the knowledge of coats of
arms, with regard to the blazonry and various in-
tendments.
ARMOUR,
AR Q^
ARMOUR, all fuch habiliments as ferve to de-
fend the body from wounds, efpecially thofe given
by darts, fvvords, lances, &ic.
ARMOURER, a perfon who makes or deals in
arms or armour.
ARMS, Arma, in a general fenfe, all kinds of
weapons, whether oft'enilve or defenfive.
Arms, in a legal fenfe, extend to any thing a
p;rfon wears for his own defence, or takes in his
liand, and ufes in anger, to Itrike or throw at
ajiother.
Arms, or Armories, in heraldry, fignify marks
of honour borne upon fhields, banners, and coats,
in order to diftinguifh kingdoms, ftates, families,
and perfons.
Charged Arms are fuch as retain their an-
tient integrity, with the addition of fome new
honourable bearing.
Canting or Vocal Arms, thofe in which there
are fome figures alluding to the name of the
family.
Full or Intire Arms, fuch as retain their pri-
mitive purity, without any alterations or abate-
ments.
Fiilfe Arms, fuch as are not conformable to the
rules of heraldry.
Arms, in falconry, imply the legs of a hawk
from the thigh to the foot.
ARMY, a large number of foldiers, confiding
of horfc and foot, completely armed, and provid-
ed with artillery, ammunition, &c. under the
command of one general, with proper officers un-
der him.
An army is compofed of fquadrons and battalions,
and is ulually divided into three corps, and formed
into three lines. 'Ihe firft: is called the van-
guard, the fecond the main body, and the third the
rear-G;uard.
ARNOLDISTS, in ecdefiaflrical hiftory, a fed
of feparatifts, fo called Irom tlieir leader, Arnold of
Brcfie, a great declaimer againft the wealth and
vices of the clergy. He is alfo charged with
preaching againft baptifni and the eucharilh
AROMATiC, an epithet applied to iuch plants
and other bodies as yield a fine fragrant fmell, and
have a warm fpicy talte.
APvOPH, a term frequently ufed by Paracelfus
for lithontriptic medicines.
AROURA, a Grecian long meafure, containing
fifty feet. It was alfo frequently uled for a fcuare
meafure of half the plethron. The Egyptian aroura
was the fquare of a hundred cubits.
ARPENT, a term fometimes ufed to denote an
acre.
ARQUEBUSS. See Harqueeuss.
Arquebuss a croc, in military affairs, a fire-
arm ftill found in moft old caflles, pretty much
refembling the barrel of a mufkct, and fuftamed by
an iron h'lvd which is faitened to its barrel, and
A RR
fupported by a foot called a chevalet, or three-legged
horfe. This piece was formerly much ufed to
mount on battlements, and at loop-holes ; but
is now almoft entirely neglected, being ufed no
where but in old forts and caftles where it is found.
The barrel of an arquebufe a croc, is larger than
that of a mufquet, but much lefs than a cannon's ;
they are charged in the fame manner as a cannon,
and like them, fired with a match ; the range of
this piece is greater than that of a mufket.
ARRACHEE, in heraldry, a term applied to
the reprefcntation of plants torn up by the roots.
ARRAC. SeeARAC.
ARRAY, in law, implies the ranking or fetting
forth a jury or inqueft of men impannelled on fome
caufe.
battle Array, the order or difpofition of an
army drawn up with a view to engage the
enemy.
ARREARS, the remainder of a fum due, or
money remaining in the hands of an accountant.
It likev/ife fignifies the money due for rent, wages,
&:c. or what remains unpaid of penfions, taxes, &c.
ARRENATION, in the foreil laws, implies
the licenfing the owner of lands in a foreft, to in-
clofe them with a low hedge and a fmall ditch, in
confideration of a yearly rent.
ARREST, the apprehending and feizing a per-
fon, in order to oblige him to be obedient to the
law ; which in all cafes, except treafon, felony,
or breach of the peace, muft be done by virtue of
a precept out of fome court. See W rit.
Arrest of ''judgment, the affigning juft reafon
why judgment fliould not pafs, as want of notice
of the trial, a material defect in the pleading, when
the record differs from the deed impleaded, when
perfons are mif-named, where more is given by the
verdifl than is laid in the declaration, &c. This
may be done either in criminal or civil cafes.
ARRESTS, in farriery, mangy tumours be-
tween the ham and the paftern of a horfe's hind
legs. See Rat-Tails.
ARRHEPHORIA, a feftival among the Athe-
nians, in honour of Minerva. The minifters who
affifted at it were boys and girls, between (even and
twelve years of age.
The word is Greek, and compounded of ^ppiiToi',
myfiery, and osp.;', to carry.
This feaib was alfo called Herfiphori, from Herfe,
the daughter of Cecrops, on whofe account it was
inftituted.
ARRIERE, the hinder or pofierior part of any
thing. See Rear.
ARPv-ONDEE, in henildry, implies a crofs,
the arms of which are compoied of fections of a
circle.
ARROW, a miiTive weapon, fharp-pointed and
barbed, defigned to be (hot from a bow. See
Bow.
Arrow,
A R S
ART
Arrow, among furveyors, implies a fmall ftick
generally (hod with iron, to ilick into the ground,
at the end of the chain.
ARSCHIN, in commerce, a long meafure ufed
in China to meafure iluils. Four arfchins make
three Englifh yards.
ARSLNIC, a poifonous mineral fubitancc, fre-
quently found mixed with other matters.
'Ihe chemifts have formed various conjectures
about the nature of this ilnguiar concrete ; but
have not been able to determine what it really is,
or to what clals of bodies it belongs. They have
called it fulphureous, uncluous, mercurial, a mine-
jai juice, &c. without foundation. Boerhaave,
in his Elementa Chemiw, ranks it under the h;;ad
of lulphurs, and fays it approaches nearer to the
iiature of fuluhur than of anv other known mixt
body : it wants, hov.'cver, the peculiar qualities
l>y which fulphur is difriiiguifheJ. Stahl, with
greater probability fuppofes ictobe of a faline nature,
in fome of its ftaics, it apparently pofleffes proper-
ties attributed ro fairs alone ; but in other ftates, it
is as obviouily metallic.
White arfenic, or arfenic ftriflly fo called, is a
moderately heax'v, compadl, hard, brittle con-
crete ; of a cryftalline or vitreous appearance, gra-
dually changing, from expofure to the air, to a
milky hue like that of porcelain, and at length to
die opake whitenefs of white enamieL The larger
mafies prefervc their tranfparency longer than the
fmall ; m a dry longer than in a moift air.
In the lire, it neither burns, nor perfedfly melts ;
but totally and readily exhales in thick fum.es, of a
ftrong fetid fraell refembling that of garlic. The
fumes, caught in proper vcfTcls, condenfe, either
into cryllalline niafTes again, or into a white pow-
der, according as the receiver is lefs or more re-
moved from the heat.
Mixed with inflammable matters, and expofed
to the fire in a retort or other like vefiel, it allumes
a metallic appearance. In this ftate, it greatly re-
f;mblcs regulus of antimony ; being, like that
lemimetal, of a bright fparkling whitifii colour,
a plated or leafy texture, and very brittle : but its
whitenefs foon changes in the air to a dark blackifli
bue. It liiU continues volatile, as in its unme-
taliic form : it burns and calcines in the iire, and
fublimes into v/hitc arfenic, as at iirft.
Arfenic reduced into Hne powder, and boiled in
fifteen tim»es its weight of water, totally difiblves.
If the folution be evaporated a iittle, the ari'enic
Ihcots, on cooling, into crv'ftals, which frequent-
ly have a yellowiih tinge. The entire cryilals are
not taken up again by boiling water ; but when
I'.nely pulverized, they difiolve as at hrft. The
loiuticn has a naufeous tafle, but not a faline
fharpnefs.
Arfenic diffolves both in acid and in alkaline
liquors, but makes no efFervefctncc with cither :
12
in fixed alkaline lixivia it diflblves very plentifully ;
in acids, more fparingly. Arfenic in its femime-
tallic form, called regulus, is eafier of folution
than the white arfenic or calx.
Arfenic is employed for fundry mechanic ufes ;
by the dyers, as an ingredient in the compofitions
of fcarlet and other fine reds ; by the girdlers and
pinmakers, for whitening their brafs or copper ;
by the goldfmiths, for enamelling ; by the glafs-
makcrs, for promoting the fufion of the frits, and
the clearnefs and tranfparency of the gJafs ; by the
porcelane-makers, in white glazings ; by the pre-
parers of compound metals, for communicating
a filvcr whitenefs to copper ; by the aflayers, it is
ufed, in the fonn of glafs, for promoting the fco-
rification of refra£Lory ores, which participate of
tin and antimony, and which will not work off,
but run into lumps in the cupel. A certain artifl
at Berlin prepares a beautiful metal, like the fineft
ftecl, by melting call iron v/ith arfenic and glafs,
and adding a little tin during the fuiion : the beauty
of the metal depends in a great meafure upon the
proportions. In Vienna, a metal is made for orna-
mental ufes, refembling the fineft fdver, from iron,
tin, and arfenic ; perhaps with the addition of a
little copptT. Arfenic is ufed alio in folders, or
for uniting iron with tin, in fome places in the
making of tinned iron plates.
Arfenic is a mod violent poifon to all animals ;
unlefs the wolf fhould be an exception, who is
faid, probably without fufficient foundation, to be
only purged by it. The utmoft caution is there-
fore necellary, in all operations upon arfenic, to
avoid its fumes r it is on account of the danger at-
tending fuch operations that this mineral has hither-
to been fo little examined by the chemifts. The
deftroying of rats, or other domeftic anim.als, by
means of arfenic, is full of danger ; the operation
of the poifon being fuch, that great part of it is
difcharged, and the animal induced to drink :
hence foods, liquors, and the provender of cattle,
have too often rccei\ cd a poifonous taint. If we
cannot catch thofc animals, we may neverthslefs
be cleared from them by much fafer means than
the ufe of arfenic : frefli night-fhade is their enemy.
If the juice of the leaves or berries of that plant,
or the diftilled water of the frefh herb, be made
into pellets with meal, the rats, without tafting
the pellets, will forfake the places where they are
laid.
ARSIS and Thesis, iii mufic, is a term applied
to compofitions, in which one part rifes and the
other falls
ARS?vIART, in botany, the name of feveral
fpecies of perficaria. See Persicaria.
ART, Jrs, a fyftem of rules ferving to facili-
tate the performance of certain actions ; in vv'iiich
fenfe it {lands oppofed to fcicnce, or a fyftem of
i fpeculative principles.
' K k k Arts
ART
Arts are commonly divided into liberal and me-
chanical ; the former comprehending poetry, puint-
ing, fciilpture, architedture, &c. and the latter,
the whole body of mechanical trades, as carpentry,
mafonry, turnery, &c.
Art and Part, in the law of Scotland, is ap-
plied to an accomplice.
ARTEDIA, in botany, a genus of pentcndri-
ous plants, with hairy leaves much refembling thofe
of the carrot ; the flower (calks are terminated with
large umbels of white flowers, compofed of five
unequal petals ; thefe are fucceeded by roundifli
comprefTed fruit, each having two feeds, which are
oblong-, and their borders icaly.
ARTEMISIA, mugwort, in botany, a genus
of plants producing a flower, compofed of her-
maphrodite and female fiofcules, the difk or middle
com.pofing the hermaphrodite, which are funnel -
ihapped and cut in five paits at the brim, contain-
ing five capillary filaments ; on the border are
ranged the female fiofcules, which have a germen
at their bottoms, fupporting a fingle ftyle ; they
both afterwards produce each a fmgle naked feed.
The common mugwort is perennial, and grows
wild in fields and v/afte grounds, and flowers in
June ; the flalks of it are firm, and of a purplifh
colour; the leaves are deeply divided, of a dark
green colour above, but hoary underneath, and
much like common wormwood ; and the flowers
{land ere<5t in fpikes on the tops of the branches :
to this genus Linnaeus has added the fouthern-
wood and wormwood.
The common mugwort is faid to be opening
and dif'cufTive, and has been chiefly recommended
for promoting the uterine evacuations, and abating
hyfteric fpal'ms, for which purpofe infufions of it
have been drank as tea : aniongfl: midwives and
nurfes it is held in the greateft efteem, as it is
much ufed in complaints peculiar to the female
fex, both in inward and outward applications.
The moxa, fo famous in the eafl:ern coimtries
for curing the gout, by burning the part afte^iLed,
is the down which is on the under part of the
leaves of a fpecies of the artemifia, and is by fome
fuppofed to be the ylzecuinpathi of Hernandez.
Arterial, in anatomy, any thing belong-
ing to, or that performs the office of, an artery.
Arterial Vein, in anatomy, a name given to
the pulmonary artery.
ARTERIOTOP/IY, the opening an artery in
order to procure ar. evacuation of blood.
The word is Greek, apxHpioT^/n/i, and com-
pounded of ctpTJipia, an artery, and Tffj.m, to
cut.
ARTERY, in anatomy, a conical tube or canal,
which conveys the blood from the heart to all parts
of the body.
An artery is compofed of three membranes or
coats i the outermoft of which appears to be a
A .R T
web of fin; blood vefTels and nerves, for convey- ■
ing nouriilimcnt to the interior mem.branes. The
next is compofed of circular or fpiral fibres, of
which there are more or fewer, according to the
magnitude of the artery. Thefe fibres, being very
elaltic, contract themfelves with fome force, when
the power ceafes by which they have been extended.
The third and innermoft membrane is of a denfe
contexture, yet fine and tranfparent. It ferves to
keep the blood within its channels, v/hich other-
wife would, upon the dilatation of the artery, fe-
parate the fpiral fibres from one another. The
pulfe of the arteries confifts of two reciprocal mo-
tions, like the pulfe of the heart, being a fyflole
and a diaftole, keeping oppofite times ; the fyflole of
the one anfvvtring to the diailole of the other.
The arteries of the human body are, flri£lly
fpeaking, only two, namely, the aorta, and the
pulmonary artery ; all the other arteries, though
diftinguilhed by proper names, being only branches
of thefe two.
The ai'cending aorta, which arifes immediately
from the left ventricle of the heart, prefently after
gives two arteries, called coronary ones, to the
heart itfelf. A little above this it is divided into
three ai'cending branches, from which are formed
the two carotids, and the two fubclavians ; and
from thefe lafl proceed the mufcularis colli, the
external li:apulary artery, the fuperior intercoftals,
the mediaflinal artery, the fuperior diaphragmatic
artery, the mammary artery, and the axillary
arteries : all which are fiibdivided into leller
branches.
From the defcending trunk of the aorta, pro-
ceed in the follovv'ing order, the bronchial artery,
the inferior intercoftals, the arteries of the cefopha-
gus, the interior diaphragmatics, the ccsliac, fupe-
rior mefenteric, the renal or emiilgcnt arteries, the
facta, and two iliacs. Thefe are the main branches
fent out from the defcending aorta, each of which
is again fubdivided into many lefTer branches.
But Plate XV. which is taken from Drake's
Anatomy, will give a much better idea of the
arteries of the human body, than is pofTible to be
conveyed by words.
1. The aorta cut from its origin at the left
ventricle of the heart. Fig. 3. of the fame plate,
reprefents part of the trunk of the aorta turned
iniide out; a, a, the internal, or nervous coat;
Z', l>, the mufcular coat ; c, the external, or vatcru-
lar coat.
A. The three femi-lunar valves of the aorta, as
they appear when they hinder the blood fiom
coming back into the left ventricle of the heart, in
its diailole.
2, 2. The trunk of the coronary arteries arifing
from the aorta.
3. Ligamentum artcriolum.
4, 4. The fubclavian arteries.
5, 5. The
JIatsxv
'. ^tny//t/ xVrtcry-.
ART
5, 1;. The two carotid arteries.
6, 6. The tv.'o vertebral arteries, which arife
from the fubclavicula, and pni's through all tlie
tranfverfe procefies of the vertebra; of the iiecic.
7, 7. The arteries which convey' blood to the
lower part of the face, tongue, adjacent mufclcs
aiid glands.
8, 8. Tlie trunks of the temporal arteries fpring-
incr from the carotids, and givino- branches to the
parotid glands.
9, g. Brandies of the temporal arteries, con-
ve)ing blood to the neighbouring mufcles, the hairy
Icalp, and forehead.
JO, 10. The trunks which fend blood to the
foramina narium,! particularly to the glands of its
mucous membrane.
11, II. The occipital arteries, whofe trunks
pafs clofe by the mammiform procefs.
12, 12. Mufclcs which carry blood to the fauces,
s;argareon, and mufcles of thofe parts.
B, B. Small portions of the bafis of the ftull,
perforated by the artery of the dura mater, part
of which is rcprefented as hanging to the ar-
teries.
13, 13. The contortions of the carotid arteries,
before they pafs the bafis of the fkull to the
brain.
14, 14. Thofe parts of the carotid arteries,
where they pafs by each fide of the fella turcica,
where feveral fmall branches arife from them, and
help to compofe the rete mirabile.
C, The glandula pituitaria, taken out of the
fella turcica, lying between the two contorted
trunks of the carotid arteries, marked 14, 14.
D, D. The arteria; ophthalmicx, which fpring
from the carotids before they enter the pia
mater.
15, The contortions of the vertebral arteries,
as they pafs the tranfverfe procefTes of the firll ver-
tebrje of the neck, towards the os occipitis.
16, The two trunks of the vertebral arteries
that lie on the medulla oblongata.
17, The communicant branches between the
carotid and cervical artery.
18, 18. The ramifications of the arteries within
the fkull, the larger trunks of which lie betvv'ecn
the lobes of the brain, and its fulci.
E, E. The arteries of the cerebellum.
19, 19. The arteries of the larynx, thyroid
glands, and adjacent mufcles and parts ai ifing from
the fubclavian arteries.
20, 20. Others arifing near the former, v^fhich
convey blood to the mufclcs of the neck and
fcapula.
21,21. The mammari:?, which arife from the
fubclavian arteries, and defcend on the cartilages of
the true ribs internally, on each fide the os peiitoris
or flernum. Some branches of thefe pafs through
the petftoral as well as intercoftul mufcles, and give
ART
blood to the brcafts, where they meet fome branchc?
of the intercoihil arteries.
22, 22. The arteries of the mufcles of the os
humeri, and fome of thofe of the fcapula.
23, 23. Thofe parts of the large trunks of the
arteries of the arm, which are liable to be wound-
ed in opening the vena bafilica, or innermoft of
the three veins in the bending of the cubit.
25, 25. A communicant branch of an artery
arifing from tb.e trunk of the artery of the arm,
above its flexure at the cubit, which is inofculateJ
with the arteries belov.' the cubit.
26, 26. The external artery of the cubit, which
makes the pulfe near the carpus.
27, 27. Arterits of tlie hands and fingers.
28, 28. The defcending trunk of the arteria
magna.
29. The bronchial artery, fpringing from oneof
the intercoftal arteries: it fometlmes arifes imme-
diately from the defcending trunk of the aorta ;
and at other times from the fuperior intercoftal ar-
tery which fprings from the fubclavian.
30. A fmall artery, fp'inging from the fore
parts of the aorta defcendens, and pafling to the
gula.
31. 31. The intercoftal arteries on each fide the-
arteria magna defcendens.
32. The trunk of the arteria csliaca, whence
fpring,
33. 33. The hepatic arteries, and
34. The arteria cyftica, or the gall-bladder.
35. A.rteria coronaria ventriculi inferior.
36. The pylorica.
37. The epipleica dextra, finiftra, and media,
fpringing from the coronaria.
38. The ramifications of the coronary arterv,
which embrace the bottom of the ftomach.
39. Coronaria ventriculi fuperior.
40. 40. The phrenic arteries, or the two arte-
ries of the di.aphragm ; that on tb.e left fide arifing
from the trunk of the arteria magna ; the rylit.
fpringing from the ca?liaca.
41. 'I'he tnmk of the fplenic artery, arifing
from the caeli.ica, contorted.
42. Two fmall arteries going to the upper part
of the duodenum and pancreas ; the reft of the
arteries of the pancreas fpring from the fplenic ar-
tery in its pafTage to the fpleen.
43. The trunk of the arteria mefenterica fupe-
rior turned tov/ards the right fide.
44. The branches of the fuperior mefenteric
artery freed from the fmal! guts. Here the various
anailomofcs the branches of this artery make in the
mefcntery, before thev arrive at the inteftines, may
be obferved.
45. The inferior mefenteric artery arifing from
the arteria magna.
46. Remarkable anaftomofcs of the mefenteric
artery, with the fuperior.
3 47=47- T'^e
ART
ART
47, 47. The branches of the inferior inefenteric
-;irtei)', as they pafs to the ir.teRinuui colon.
48. Thole of the rectum.
49. The emulgent arteries of the kiJnevs.
50. The verttDral arteries of die loins.
51,51. The fpermatic arteries, which dcfcend
rp the teftes, and are io fmall as to cfcape beiiig
filled with wax.
52. Arteria facta.
53. Arteria; iliaci.
54,54. Rami iliaci cxteriii.
55, 55. Iliaci interni.
56,50. The two umbilical arteries cut oiF; that
on ihc right ilde is drawn as in the foetus, and the
leit expreiled as in an adult.
57, 57. The epigaftric arteries, which afcend
under the right mufcles of the abdomen, and are
inoi'cidated with the mainmariae.
■ 58^58. Branches of the external i!i.ic artejies,
pahing between the two oblique mufcies of the
abdomen ,
59, 59. Branches of the internal iliac arteries,
which convey the blood to tlie extenfores and obtu-
ratores mufcles of the thighs.
60, 60. The trunks of the arteries which pafs to
the penis.
61.61. The arteries of the bladder.
62.62. The internal arteries of the pudendum,
which, with thofe here exprtffed with the penis,
iriake the hyposjaftric arteries in women.
63. The pei'.is extended with wax, and dried.
64. The glans penis.
65. The upper part of the dorfum penis, cut
from the body of the penis, and raifed, to fhew
the corpora cavernofa penis.
66. Corpora cavernofa penis, freed from the ofTa
pubis, and tied after inflation.
67. The two arteries of the penis, as they ap-
pear injeiited with wax.
68. '["he caplula and feptum of the corpora ca-
vernofa penis.
69. The crural arteries.
70. 70. The arteries which pafs to the mufcles of
the thighs and tibiae.
71. That part of the crural artery that pafTes
the ham.
72. The three large trunks of the arteries of
the legs.
■ 73. The arteries of the foot, with their com-
municating branch, from their fuperior to their
inferior trunk, as well, as their communications
at the extremity of each toe, like thofe of the
fingers.
Rough Artery, or afpera arteria. See Aspe-
R.-\ Arterta.
ARTHANITA, fowbread, in botany, a low
plant, without any other ftalk than the fiendcr pe-
dicles of the leaves and flowers : the leaves are
pretty large, round, of a green colour, above
with white fpecks, and purplifli underneath ; the
flowers purphfli, monopetalous, deeply divided in-
to five L'gments, followed by round leed vellels :
the roots large, fomewhat globular, with feveral
fibres, -blackilli on the outlide, and white Vv'lthin.
It is perennial, a native of the fouthern parts of
Europe, and cultivated in fjme of our gardens.
ARTPjRITIS, in medicine, a difeafe well
known by the appellation of the gout. See the
article Gout.
The wo:d is Greek, and derived from sipSpo^,
a joint; becaufe the chief feat of that diftemper is-
in the johits.
ARTKR0DI.'\, in an.ftomy, a fpecies of ar-
ticulation, v/hereln the fiat head of one bone is re-
ceived ijito a Ihallow focket in the other. The
humerus and fcapula are joined by this fpecies of
articulation.
The word is Greek,, and compoimded of ttpSf »;•,
a joint, and J'iX^uvi, to receive.
AR']'H?vODliJM, in natural hlftory, a genus
of imperrect cryllals, always found in complex
maifts, and formiiig lon^ fingle pyramids, with
very f lort and fl^nder columns. See Crystal.
ARl iCHOKE, cyjiara, in botany, a well
known plant,, of which there are two forts culti-
vated in gardens ; one knov/n by the name of the
globe artichoke, and die other called the French
iutichoke. 'I'he globe artichoke produces large^
round heads, with broad brown fcalts turning in-
ward : the eatable part at the bottom of the tcalcs.
is \>ery thick, and better flavoured than the other
fort, which produces taller ftalks, with lefs heads,
and conically fhapid ; the fcales are narrower, and
have lefs flefh at their bottoms ; on which account
the French fort is pretty much excluded from the
Englifli gardens, the other being confiderably pre-
ferable.
The artichoke delights in a deep rich and moid
foil, well prepared with rotten dung, and mixed to-
the depth of tiiree feet at leafi: ; for the deeper the
mould is, the lefs watering they will require ii\:
fummer, and produce larger and better flavoured
heads. The manner of propagating this plant, is
from the fiios or fuckers (diough they may be
raifed from feed) wiiich arife from the old roots in
February or March, or as foon as the hard frofts
are over, which if planted in a proper foil will
produce good fruit in the autumn following. Thefe
fuckers ihould be carefully taken off with roots ta-
them, particularly where a frefh plantation is in-
tended ; and as they are pretty deep in the ground,
the earth fhould be removed from around the mother
plant, to take them off the more eafily, leaving
two or three of the ftraighteft, cleareff, and mofl:
promifing plants, which are produced from the
under part of the flock, for a crop, obferving
in flipping off llie other fuckers, to be care-
ful not to injure thofe which are defigned to re-
main.
ART
main. When this operation is done, the caith fliould
be dr.iwn to the plants which .iT^ left, and well
clofed to them, cutting oft" the extremity of the
leaves which hang down ; after which, the ground
between them fhould be dug, and a crop of Ipinage
inav be fov/n, which v/ill be taken off before the
artichokes cover the ground. Toward the latter
end of April, or beginning of May, when the
plants begin to {hew their fiuit, all the young
ihoots produced from the root fince tlie lafl: drcillng
ihould be difplaccd, fo as to leave only the princi-
pal plants which are intended for fruiting, which
will by that means bear the better, and likewife to
take ofF all the fuckers that are produced from the
fides of the ftalk, leaving only the principal head,
which will caufe the fruit to be confiderably larger.
When the artichokes are fit to be ufed, they fliould
be cut, and the ilalks broke ofF clofe to the furface
of the ground, in order that the (locks may make
frefh flioots before the end of October, which is
the feafon for earthing them up, although it may
be deferred till any time in December, provided
the feafon proves mild.
The method of earthing artichokes, (or landing
them, ns by fomc called) confifls in cutting off all
the young fhoots quite dole to the ground, then
digging a trench between each row, and covering
the roots with the earth thrown up in form of a
ridge, over the line of the artichokes : this will
fecure them from the frofts that are common, and
is by far much better than covering them with long
dung, which is a bad pravftice, becaufe the dung
laying near the roots is very apt to rot them, be-
fides harbouring of vermin, which may deftroy the
roots ; though it would not he amifs in very i'evere
frofts, to putffraw, peas-haulm^ &c. on the ridges,
which will keep fome part of the extremity of the
weather from them, without damaging the roots ;
but this covering need not be ufed till there is no
avoiding it, and fo foon as the weather becomes
mild, it fnould be taken, off^ for it will be a differ-
vice to the plants, if it lies too long on them.
After the plants are earthed up with tlie afore-men-
tioncd precautions, they will not want any farther
care till February or March, when they will have
grov;n through the ridge of earth, and mufl be
managed as before-direfted.
Though the flocks of artichokes will laft fcvcral
years in a good rich foil, yet as they are great im-
poverifners of the ground, their fruit will dwindle
fo as to render it nccefiary to have a frefh, planta-
tion every fourth or fifth year, or rather every
year, on account of having their fruit in autumn ;
ior this purpofe, the ground being prepared and
provifion made of a fuff.cient number of fuckers,
make choice of thofe which are clear, found, and
not woody, having fome fibres to their bottom ;
with a knife cut off the knotted part which joined
to the ftalk. If it cuts crifp and tender, it is a fign
12
ART
of the fucker's being good ; but if tough and
ilring)-, it is to be rejected. Havingpioperly linglcd
out thole which are fitting for the purpofe, cut the
laige outfide leaves o!t" pretty low, in fuch a man-
ner tiiat the middle lea\es may rife above them ;
the plant being thus prepared, the bcft method of
planting is in rows as ftrait as poflible, which muft.
be done by ranging a line acrofs the ground, fetting
tliem at about two feet afunder in each row ; and-
if more rows are wanted than one, thefe fhould be
at the diil^ance of five feet, and the plants let in
quincunx order : the depth they fliould be planted
to be about four inches, and the earth well clofed
about the roots ; and if the feafon proves dry, they
fhould be often watered till they have taken good
root : If the feafon proves favourable for them,
ajid particularly on a moift rich foil, thefe planti.
V//11 produce the largcft and beft artichokes fome
time in Auguft and Sejitember, after tlie old ftocks.
have ceafcd bearing ; fo that the feafon is confider-
ably lengthened for producing this fruit, by making
a new plantation every year.
The kitcheivgardsners near London, who en-
deavour to make the moft of every inch of their;
high-rated land, generally plant their rows of ar-
tichokes nine or ten feet afunder, and befides fow-
ing between, them radiflies-or fpinage, they plant
two rows of cauliflowers, at the diftance of two
feet and a half afunder in rows, and four feet from
row to row, fo that full five feet are allowed for the
artichokes. In May when the crop of radiflies or.
fpinage is off, they fow along the middle of the
fpace between the two rows of cauliflowers, a line
of cucumbers for pickling, at the diftance of three
feet ; and between the cauliflowers and artichokes,
they plant for winter-ufe a row of cabbages, or
favoys, which have room enough to grow after
the cauliflowers and artichokes are taken off: thus
the ground is fully cropped during the whole feafon.
A moift rich foil always )'ield the largeft and beft
artichokes, but if it be very moift, the roots will
]:ot live through the winter : fuch ground fliould
therefore be allotted for frefli plantations, made
every fpring, to fupply the table in autumn, after
the old ftocks have done bearing ; but for early
fruit, the plants fliould be in a drier fituation ;
they fliould lie alfo in an open place, that is free
from the drip of trees, for they would draw the
plants up weak, and thereby render the fruit fmall
and trifling. If the artichoke ftocks flioot forth
but v/eakly in the fpring, as they will do if they
have been hurt by froft, or too much wet, it is belt
to uncover them with a fpade, loofening and break-
ing the mould around them, or rather to dig the
whole ground, if it be not planted with any thing
clfe, and then to earth or raifc a fmall hill about
each ftock, which will greatly help them : in about
three weeks or a month after, the flips will be fit to
take off.
L 11 The
ART
The bottoms of artichokes are good for many
■culinary ufes. The way to preferve them all the
winter is to feparate them from the leaves or fcales,
parboil them, and hang them up in a dry place,
ihimg on packthread, with a clean piece of paper
between every bottom, to prevent their touching
one another ; they are likewife faid to be very good
pickled. The artichoke fuckers, which 2:row on
the fidfs of the {talk, arc alfo ufed in feveral inten-
tions in cookery.
Artichokes are accounted a diuretic, and good
againft the jaundice ; but they are more efleemed
as a food than a medicine. For the generical cha-
raifters of the artichoke, fee the article Cynara.
Artichoke ofjcmfalem. See Helianthus.
ARTICLE, a fmall part of a book, writing,
account, treaty, or the like.
Article, in anatomy, implies the juufture of
two bones defigned for motion.
Article, in arithmetic, denotes any number
that can be divided into ten equal parts, as lO, 20,
30, &c.
Article, in grammar, fignifies a particle which
is made ufe of in moft: languages to exprefs the cafe,
gender, and circumflance of nouns.
In thofe languages whofe termination does not
\'ary, or, to fpeak more accurately, whofe nouns
have no particular declenfion, articles are abiolutely
neceflary to determine their cafes, or fhew what re-
lation they fland in, with regard to the verb. Thus
the Italians have their ;7, /j, la ; the Germans their
tier, das, dat ; the French their A-, la, Ics, by which
they mark the circumftances of their nouns.
In Englifh we have two articles, a, and the ; the
former of which is an Indcjin'ne article, becaufe ap-
plied to nouns in their more general fignification ;
and the latter definite, or demonftrative, becaufe it
fixes the fenfe of the word it is put before to one
individual thing. Thus, if we trandate the follow-
ing words, which Satan made ufe of to ourSaviour,
iV/' /;/ es filius Dei, " If thou art a fon of God," we
degrade Chrift into the order of angels, who are
called in Scripture the fons of God ; whereas if it
is rendered " If thou art the Son of God," it is then
•m.tking him the Mefiiah, or the only begotten of
the Father.
The Latins make ufe of no article ; but inflead
of it, when they would mark anything particu-
larly, they employ the pronouns is, hie, ille, ijle, —
thus, B^Aium erat ei, fmatiis non fuijfet hom-i ille, " It
'^ were well for thee, or that man, if he had not
■" been born :" thus too, in Virgil, Hisc ilia Cba-
ryhdis, " This is i'/;^' Chary bd is." The Greeks have
their 5, which is conftantly prefixed to a word
when they intend to mark it as particular, or em-
phatic : thus, in the firft chapter of St. John, ^>
cp/^ii -Av u hoycf, ;[| h'jyo; nv Tpof Toi' Stsi', KJ fl'of
tiv hoyoi ; which ought to be tranflatcd thus," In
" tlic beginning was the Word, and ih( Word
6
ART
" was with God (i. e. with the only one trutf
" God) and the word was a God, or as a God :"
it fliould not be tranflated God, for then there ought
to have been the article 0, to have diftinguifhed and
made it emphatic. And here I cannot help re-
marking how blind has been the zeal of fome well-
meaning people, who have fixed upon this one
text in Scripture, preferably to all others, to con-
fute the followers of Arianifm, when this, per-
haps of all others, is one under which they can
belt flielter themfelves.
It is not agreed by grammarians under what
clafs of words the article fliould be reckoned ;
fome make it a diftintSt part of fpeech, others will
have it to be pronoun, and others again a noun
adjective. This docs not feem to be a very in-
terefting point, and fo we fliall beg leave to drop it,
juft as we found it, without determining any thing
of the matter.
Article ofDeaih, or ticidus mortis, the lafl: pangs,
or agony of a dying perfon.
Article of Faith, a point of religious dodtrine,
allowed and received by fome church or religious
fe6t, as having been revealed from heaven.
Articles of the Clergy, certain ftatutes relating
to ecclefiallical perfonsand caufes, madein thereigns
of Edward the Second and Third.
Articles of Rebgion, the thirty-nine heads of
the proteftant faith, drawn up by the bifhops Cran-
mer and P.idley, and publifhed by regal authority
in the reign of Edward the Sixth.
ARTICULARIS Morbus, the difeafe of the
joints, generally called the gout. See Gout.
ARTICULATE Sounds, fuch founds as exprefs
the letters, fyilables, or words of any alphabet or
language ; Inch as are formed by the human
voice.
ARTICULATED, fomething furnifhed with,
or confiding of joints.
ARTICULATED phnts, are fuch as are di-
flinguifhcd from fpace to fpace, by knots or joints
along their flems.
ARTICULATION, in anatomy, implies the
juncture of two bones intended tor motion.
Articulation is of two kinds, diarthrofis and fy-
narthrofis, the former being that v/hich admits of
a ma nifefl motion, and the latter that which allows
only of an obfcure motion. See Diarthrosis
and Synarthrosis.
Diarthrofis is fubdivided into enarthrofis, arthrc-
dia, and ginglymus. See each under its proper
article. A^nd fynarthrofis is fubdivided into fvm-
phyfis, lyntenofis, futura, harinonia, fyfiarcofis,
fycondrofis, and fynneurofis. See the articles Sym-
physis, &c.
ARTIFICER, a perfon whofe employment it is
to manufacture any kind of commodity, as iron,
brafs, wood, wool, linen, tic. fuch as fmiths,
braziersj carpenters, weavers, fpinners, &c.
ARTIFICIAL
ART
ARTIFICIAL, foniething made, fadiioncd, or
produced by art, in contnidiftinftion to the produc-
tions of nature.
ART
Artifi-
cial
I Earthquakes, j
' Eye. \
Fire.
Fireworks.
Flying. _
Fountain.
Globe.
Horizon.
Lines.
Numbers.
Rdinboiv.
(_ Fortex.
fDAY.
Earthquakes.
Eye.
Fire.
i'^ireworks.
Flying.
Fountain.
Globe.
Horizon.
Lines.
Numbers.
Rainbow.
_^VoRTEX.
ARTILLERY, the general name for all forts
of large fire-arms, or the engines ufed in war fince
the invention of gun-powder, as cannon, mortars,
bombs, petards, mufquets, carabines, &c. See Can-
non, MoRTAR, &c.
The firfl pieces of artillery were of a very clumfy
inconvenient fhapc, being ufually framed of (everal
pieces of iron fitted together lengthwife, and then
hooped with iron-rings ; and as they were ufed
for throwing ftones of a prodigious weight, in imi-
tation of the antient machines, to which they fuc-
ceeded, they were of an enormous bore. But the
difficulty of conducing and managing thefe pieces,
and the difcovery, that iron bullets of much lefs
weight, impelled by better powder, were more effi-
cacious, foon introduced the prefent matter and fa-
bric of cannon.
The term Artillery is alfo applied to the an-
cient inftruments of war, as the catapulta, batter-
jng-ram, &c.
Train of Artillery, a certain number of pie-
■ces of ordnance, mounted on carriages, with all their
furniture, and every thing neceffary for marching ;
it is divided into brigades ; each brigade generally
confifts of eight or ten pieces of cannon, with all
the machinery belonging to them, and officers to
conduft them. When the artillery marches with
the army, the militaiy-cheft is placed at the head
of the train.
There are alfo a number of pioneers, proportion-
ed to the repairs the roads are fuppofed to require,
who march after the firfl: battalion of tlie royal ar-
tillery, and are under the direction of a fkilful offi-
•ccr, in capacity of their commander.
The heavieft brigade, or that v/hich is compofed
of the heavieft cannon, marches in the' center; fo
tliat, if there are fix light brigades, three march be-
hind and three before this heavy brigade, which
is fometimes called the park-brigade.
All the brigades, except the park-brigade, change
places, and are alternately at the head and in the
rear, that the fatigue of each poft may be equally
divided.
The provincial commiffaries march at the heads
of their brigades, and fee that the officers appoint-
ed to conduct: them preferve the order of the m.irch,
and do not quit their poft till the brigade arrives
at the place intended, called the park,
ARTILLERY-Par/-, is the place appointed by the
general of the army to lodge the train of artillery ;
the ammunition is difpofed in the fame order as the
battalions of the royal artillery, appointed for its de-
fence and fervice.
The figure of the park of artillery i.s that of a
parallelogram, if the fituation of the ground does not
make another form necefl'ary.
Some commandants place the pieces of the firft
line firft, and next to thefe the waggons containing
the ammunition intended for the fervice of thefe
pieces ; and afterwards arrange the pieces of the fe-
cond line in the fame manner, forming the firft
line with one half of the artillery, and the fecond
with the other. Thefe gentlemen are of opinion
that the park may be divided in this order with lefs
confufion than any other method : others think
that by placing all the cannon in the firft rank, and
the proper ammunition behind each brigade, the
park is raifed ; i. e. the artillery renews its march
with as much eafe and better eft'edt.
The pieces of cannon and carts ought always to
be two paces diftant from each other, the brigades
five paces, and the lines forty paces : when there
are pontoons in the train, they form the laft rank,
and are forty paces behind the preceding.
The park-guard confifts of fifty men, draughted
from the battalions of the royal artillery, who are
ported over-againft the park, at the diftance of forty
or fifty paces from the front : from thefe alio the cen-
tinels' of the park are draughted, two of which arc
pofted at each rank, f\vordinhand,v/ithout fire-arms.
The battalions of the royal artillery are placed at
the right and left of the park, and the carriage-
horfes" about three hundred paces dift.mt, in a com-
modious place on the right or left, where they
may be out of danger.
When the army is encamped in form in a field,
or open place, the artillery is placed over-againft
the center of the firft line, formed by the troops, at
the diftance of three or four hundred p;ices from the
front of this line, if the ground will permit; other-
wife, it is placed at the dillancc of two or three
hundred paces behind the center of the fecond
line.
About one hundred paces before the park, are
planted three advanced pieces of cannon, charged
and readv to be fired, v/hich are called al.irm-picces,
becaufe they arc ufed to call in on a fudden the
troops which are foraging, when there is a neceffity
for fo doing, and to give the alarm for the whole
army
A R U
A R U
army to put itfelf under arms ; or for any other
purpofe to which the general thinks proper to ap-
point them. A cannoneer is always ported near
thefc pieces v/ith a match ready lighted.
Artillery -Compciriy^ a band of infantry, con-
fifting of fix hundred men, making part ot the mi-
litia, or city-guard of London.
AR'riS'I\ a perfon fkilled in feme art.
ARTOTYRITES, in ecclefiaftical hiftory, a
fc6l who, in celebrating the holy facranient, made
ufe of cheefe as well as bread ; or, perhaps, bread
baked with cheefe : and hence came their name,
which is compounded of the Greek words ap^o;,
bread,- and ri'pof, cheefe.
They arc a branch of the ancient Montanids,
who firfl appeared in the fecond century, and in-
feded all Galatia. They admitted women into the
priefthood, and into the cpifcopacy ; and Epipha-
nius tells us that it was no uncommon thing to fee
a body of feven girls enter their church, drefled in
white, with each a torch in her hand, where, like
fo many Magdalens, they beat their brcafts, and be-
wailed the wrctchednefs of human nature, and the
miferies rnd iniquity of the world.
ARVAL Brothers, Jrvales frotra, in anti-
quity, a college of tweh-e priefls, inftituted by Ro-
mulus, who prefided over the ambervalia, or (acri-
iices, annually oiFercd to Bacchus and Ceres.
The word is Latin, and derived from arvuin, a
field ; becaufe they offered facrifices for the fertility
of the field.
Fulgentius has given us the following account of
their original : " The nurfe of Romulus, called
" Laurentia, had a cuftom of offering a facrifice
" annually to the gods for obtaining a plentiful
" crop ; and in thcfe religious exercifes fhe was
" accompanied with her twelve children. But one
" of them happening to die, Romulus, in complai-
" fancc to his nurfe, alTifled himfelf to complete
'' the original number, and gave them the title of
" the tv/elve arval brothers, which they kept ever
" after."
They held their afTemblies in the temple of Con-
cord, and wore on their heads a crown compofed
of the ears of corn, tied together with a white
ribbon. Some add, that they were entrufled with
the authority of determining the limits of lands and
inheritances.
ARUM, Vv^ake-robin, or cuckow-pint, in bol.any,
a genus of gnandrious plants, producing a (lower
with a large monophyllous oblong f'patha, or fheath,
jnclofing "a piftil, which is fhorier than the fpatha :
it is deftitute of petals, ftyle, and filaments, but
hath many four-cornered anthera, adhering to a
number of germcn, with double rows of hairs be-
tween them, which are afKxed to the pillil ; each
germen afterwards turns toaroundifh unilocular ber-
ry, containing feveral feeds of the fame fhape. There
jire a confiderable number of fpecies contained in
this genus, efpecially as Linnaeus has claflod the
arifarum and dracunculus of Tournefort, and the
colocafia of Boerhaave with the arum.
The common arum, which is a low perennial
plant, and grows wild under hedges, and bv the fides
of banks m many parts of England, fends forth
in March three or four fmooth leaves, which are
ipear-Jbaped and triangular ; thefe are iucceeded by
a naked ftalk, bearin^^: a purpliili piftil, inciofed in
• a long flieath, which is followed in July bv a bunch
of red berries. The root is regularly roundifli,
about an inch thick, brownlfh on the outfide, and
white within. There are two >'arieties of tliis fort ;
one with plain leaves, and the other hath leaves ful/
of black I'pots ; the roots of the Lift are fuppofed to-
be moll clficacious, and are therefore ordered by
the College of Phyficians. The arum roots are
mofi violently pungent and acrimonious ; infomuch,^
that the leaft touch of its juice on the tongue is
fcarce tolerable, and almoll cauftic, producing at
the fame time a confiderable thirfl. Thefe uneafy
feniations are fomewhat alleviated by milk, butter,
or oils : the other parts of the plant are likewife
acrid, though rather lefs fo than the roots. This
quality makes it recommended in all vifcidities, and
in phlegmatic, and fcorbutic cafes ; becaufe it pe-
netrates and rarefies tough concretions and infarct
tions of the glands and capillary veflels : it hath
been prefcribed in humoural affhmas and obflruc-
tions of the bronchia ; for, by the great force and
aiSlivity of its parts, it breaks through and wears
away thofe little floppages in the extremities and
cutaneous glands, which occafion itchings and
fcabs; it is therefore juffly ranked amongfi: the moft
powerful antifcorbutics. Some have affirmed a
dram of this root frefti powdered and taken in any
proper vehicle, to be a moft excellent remedy againfl
poifon, the plague, or any peftilentia! diforder. A
cataplafm of this root frefli bruifed and mixed with
cow-dung, is reckoned very efficacious in arthritic
pains, by applying it hot to the part affected. Such
a compofition cannot but do all that may be expect-
ed from the moll: penetrating fubftanccs. This root
lofes much of its acrimony, by being dried to be^
come pulverable : if kept for fome time it feems, oil
firft chewing, to be an infpiflated farinaceous fub-
ftance ; it Itill, however, retains a kind of latent
pungency, fo as, when chewed long in any confi-
derable quantity, to produce a fenfuion, as of a
flight excoriation of the tongue, Thefe roots are
generally gathered in the fpring, when the leaves
are in full vigour : by taking them up that time of
the year they foon lofe their pungency; but if they
arc taken in autumn, when their leaves are decayed,
they will retain their quality peihaps a year, or
more, at which time, when frefh, they yield on
expreffion a milky juice, about a fixth part of its
weight, which, on ftanding, depofited a white fe-
CLiLij and became clear j the clear liquor was in-
fipid
A R Y
fipid, the feciila was coufKlcrably pungent, but like
tlie root in fubftance, Icfcs its pungency on beijig
dried : the frefh and the moderately dried rootii
were digefted in water, in wine, in proof fpi-
rit, and reiStified (pirit, with and without heat ; the
liquors received no colour, and little or no talle in
diitillation ; neither fpirit nor water brought over
any fenllbic impregnation from the arum. The wa-
tery and fpirituous extracts alfo were nearly infipid ;
the root, neverthelefs, lofes in thcle operations al-
moft the whole of its pungency. By beating the
frefh roots with gummy refms, and making the mix-
ture into frills, its virtue might be better prefcrv-
ed than in the form of powder ; the proportions of
the gums in thefe compofitions may be very confi-
derable, two or three grains of the arum being a
fufhcient dole. It iikawife preferves its acrimony
uiiabatedforfcveral m.onths, if beaten with fugarinto
a conferve, its virtue Teeming to be retained as long
as its native aqueous humidity. Though fpirituous
liquors are incapable of diilblving or extracting
the active matter of the arum ; they feem never-
thelefs, when given along with the dried root, as
a vehicle to promote its aition. Juncker obferves,
that a drachm of the powder taken with a fpoon-
fui of brandy, procures a very copious fweat, even
in perfons little difpofed to that evacuation, while
the powder by itfelf has no fuch eftedl. Moft of
the other fpecies of arum being natives of the hot
countries, they therefore require a ftove in this cli-
mate.
Arum Mthhpuum. See Calla.
Arum Scavdens. See Dracontium.
ARUNDELIAN Marbles. See Marble.
ARUNDO. See Reed.
Arundo Sacchaiifi'ra. See Saccharu.m and
Sugar.
ARUSPICES, in antiquity, an order of priefts
among the Romans, that pretended to foretel future
events, by infpeiSling the intrails of beafts killed in
facrifices.
The word is Latin, and derived from afpicio, to
view.
The arufpices were confulted on occafion of all
portents and prodigies. Women were admitted
into this order.
ARYT/ENOIDES, in anatomy, the name of
the third and fourth cartilages of the larynx. See
Larynx.
The word is formed from the Greek, a^ivToLiva.,
an ewer, and ez/i^, refemblance, they being
thought to refemble an ewer in (hape.
ARYT^I-NOIDEUS, in anatomy, one of the
mufcles that clofes the larynx, having its head in-
ferted in one arytsenoid cartilage, and its tail in the
other ; ferving at once to draw them together, and
fhut the rima, or glottis.
ARYTHMUS, among phyficians, implies the
want of a juft modulation in the pulfe ; and i? op-
12
ASA
pofed to eurythmus, or a pulfe modulated .iccording
to nature.
The word is Greek, afi'iji'h^, and compounded
of a., priv. and pi;9u(^, meafurc.
AS in antiquity, a particular weight, among the
Romans, conlifting of twelve ounces, and was the
(ame with what they called libra, or a pound.
As was alfo the name of a Roman coin, which
was of different weights and different matter in dif-
ferent ages of the commonwealth.
Eufebius tells us, that, under Numa Pompilius,
the Roman money was either of wood, leather, or
fliells. In the time of Tullus Hoftilius it was of
brals, and called as, libra, libel/a, or pomh ; becaufc
adfually weighing a pound, or twelve ounces.
Four hundred and twenty years after, the firft Pu-
nic war having exhaulted the treafury, they reduced
the as to two ounces. In the fecond Punic war,
Hannibal prelling very hard upon them, they re-
duced the as to half its weight, viz. to o.-.c ounce.
And laftly, by the Papirian law, they took away
half an ounce more, and confequently reduced the
as to the diminutive weight of half an ounce : and
it is generally thought that it continued the fame
during the commonwealth, and even till the reign
of Vefpafian. The as therefore was of four diffe-
rent weights in the commonwealth. Its original
Hamp was that of a fheep, ox, or fow. But from
the time of the emperors, it had on one fide a Janus
with two faces, and on the reverfe, the roftrum, or
prow of a fhip.
As was alfo ufed to denote any integer or whole;
and hence the Englifh word ai-e.
ASA, or Aes.Jl, in the materia medica, an epi-
thet applied to two very different fubftances, called
afa-dulcis, and afa-fcetida.
AsA-DULcis is the fame with benzoin. See
the article Benzoin.
AsA-FoETiDA is a kind of gum, of a very offcn-
five fmell, produced by a plant common in fome
parts of Perfia.
The plant which produces it is one of the pen-
taiidria digynia of Liniiaus, and one of the her-
bas umbelliferaj femine foliaceo, feu ala foliacea
cin£lo of Ray. We had a multitude of various and
falfe accounts of it for a long time ; Garcias tel-
ling us it had leaves like the hazel ; and Bontius
making two plants of it, one like a willow, and the
other with a root like a turnip ; fome have given it
leaves like the fig-tree, fome like thofe of rice, and
others have made it a fhrub of the phyllera; kind._
Kaempfer is the author to whom we .owe the true
account of it. This is given in his Amoenitatcs
Exotica", where he defcribes it fully and accurately,,
under the name of umbellifera leviftico affinis foliis
inftar praeonia; ramofis, caule pleno maxirro, femi--
ne foliaceo nudo folitario branca; urfme five pafti-
nachae fimili radice afam foetidam fundente. The
Perfianscall both the plant and the juice hingefch i
' M m m . and
ASA
aftd the Indians, hiing ; but the more accurate ia
both countries call the plant hingefch, and the juice
or gum, hiing.
The root of this plant i3 perennial, and very
large. It is coveretl with a thick black rind, which
eafily comes off from the reft, when frefli. Within
it is perfeiily white, and full of white, milky, and
ftinking juice, which, when collefted and dried, is
what the Perfians call hiing, and the Europeans
*fa-foetida. The top of this root is furnifhed with
a large tuft of hairy or filamentous matter, like that
on the crown of the meum or fpignel. The leaves
aje very large, and like thofe of the piony.
■ The ftalk is as thick as a man's arm, and
grows to eight or nine feet high. It gradually
becomes taper toward the top, whence it is divid-
ed into a fmall number of branches. The leaves
rtand alternately on thefe ftalks, and that at no
great diftances from one another. The flowers are
fmall, and difpofed in umbels. The feeds are flat-
tlfh and ftriatcd, and of an oval figure ; they have
fomewhat of the afa-fostida fmcli, but much lefs
than might be expedled. It grows in Perfia, but
there only in two places, at leaft in thofe only in
any great plenty. Thefe are the mountains about
Heraat, and the province of Laar. In thefe places
it abounds with juice, and yields the gum in great
plenty ; when found elfewherc, it yields very little.
The leaves in thefe places are of a horrible offenfive
fmell, and no animal will touch them : but the peo-
ple of the town of Difguum affirm, that, in the
country beyond tliem, the plant lofes much of its
bad fmell, and that the goats feed very greedily on
the leaves, and grow fat upon the diet. Some have
pretended to diftinguilh two fpecies of this plant,
the one yielding a fmaller quantity of juice, and
that of a lefs fetid fmell ; the other yielding more
of it, and that more ftinking : but Kempfer, who
was upon the fpot, declares the plants to be the
fame, and all the dift'erence to be in the foil that
produces them. If what the Perfians of Difguum
fay he true, however, it very well accounts for
the difference of the Cyrenaic and Peri'ian kinds of
filphium; for the plant in the firft of thefe places,
might be as mild as beyond Difguum, or even
more fo.
It is very Angular in this plant, that it feldom
flowers, fometimes not till its twentieth, thirtieth,
or even fortieth year. During all this time the root
is increafing in fize, and, confequently, it fometimes
grows to an enormous bulk: roots of it have been feen
of the thickntfj of a man's thigh, and of a yard and a
h.-ilf in length : thofe of the thicknefs ofone's arm are
frequent. VVhenit fends forth a ftalk, and has ripen-
ed its feed, it periflies. The ancients made a diftinc-
t<x\ in their iilphium, as it was produced from the
ftalk, or from the root of the plant ; but, at this time,
all that we h<;ve isobtained from the root. They ne-
ver mike incifions ia roots of lefs than four or five,
8
ASA
years ftanding ; and they always find, that, the older
and larger the root, the more plentifully thej uice flows.
The gum or juice, as it flows from the root, is
white, and perfectly refembles cream, and has no
vifcidity : on the contact of the air it dries and har-
dens, and becomes vifcous and coloured. The moft
ftrongly fcented afa-fcetida is always efteemed the
beft ; and Kaempfer obferves, that it is much
flronger, when frelh, than when kept and import-
ed into Europe ; that a drachm of it has more fcent
than an hundred weight of what our druggifts
keep.
The leaves of the plant appear in autumn, and
continue green the wliole winter ; in fpring they
wither. About the end of April, when their leaves,
are in their decaying ftate, the Perfians afcend the
mountains in iearch of the plants. They clear away
the earth about the root for fix or feven inches deep ;
they then twift off' the leaves, and the fibrous fub-
ftance at the top of the root. They next earth up
the root again to its top, which is now perfectly
bare; and this they cover with a bundle of weeds,
to keep off the lieat of the fun, which would other-
wife deftroy it. They lay a ftone over all this to
keep it firm, that the wind may not blow it off;
and in this condition they leave the root for a month
or fix weeks. At the end of this time, they take oft"
the covering, clear away the earth a little from the
crov\n of the root, and, v/ith a fharp knife, cut it
tranfverfely oft", tarking off about an inch, or a little
more, of the top. They then cover this wounded
root with the weeds again, makmg them ftand
hollow from the wounded part, and thus leave theni
for two days ; at the end of which time they return,
and find the top of the root, where they had cut it
off, covered with exfudated juice, or afa-foetida :
this they colle(Sl, and put up in proper veffcis ; an4,
clearing away the earth a little lower, they cut oft"
another flice from the top of the root, but this not
thicker than a crown-piece, and cover it up agaia
for another gathering. As thty take a large com-
pafs of ground for their fearch, they are 'teptin con-
ftant employment ; the roots of the firft day's cut-
ling being ready for their taking the gum from, by
that time they have cut the more diftant ones, which
they are regularly to return to afterwards. After
they have gone through this fecond operation with
all the roots, and collected the fecond quantity of
gum from them, they cover them up for eight or
ten days ; and, after having fpread their gum in the
fun to harden it, they carry it home. Four or five
men generally go out in a company, on tliefe expe-
ditions ; and it is a common thing for them to
bring home 501b. weight of it from this firft gather-
ing ; this, however, is efteemed but an inferior kind-
of al'a-foetida ; after the roots have rema-ined cover-
ed for eight or ten days, they vifit them ai;ain, take
cff the covering of the weeds, and coUedf the gum .
They tlieu cut off another llicc of the root, and af-
ter
ASA
AS C
ter that another, and then a third ; this is done at
the diftance of two days between each operation, and
the earth is every time cleared away to a proper depth,
and the whole procefs managed as before.
After the third colleclion in this fecond expedi-
tion, they cover up the roots again, and return
home with their flores, leaving them covered for
three days. After this, they return to their work,
and cut them again three feveral times at the fame
diftances of time ; and, after the third colleiflion of
this laft expedition, they leave them to perifh ; for
they never recover this terrible operation. Kamp,
Amosn. Exct.
Afa-foetida is compofed of a gummy and refinous
fubftance, the Hrft in the largeft quantity. Its fmell
and tafte rel'ide iii the refui ; which is readily difl'ol-
ved and extraiSed by pure fpirir, and the greater
part with the gummy matter by water. It is by
much the ftrongell of the deobilruent warm fetid
gums ; and is given not only againll hyfterical
complaints, flatulent cholics, and obftrudlions of
the breaft, but in moft nervous diforders, in which
it frequently ails as an antilpafmodic, and an
anodyne : in fome cafes mufk, and in others opium,
are ufefully joined with it. Hoffman recommends
it as one of the moft powerful anthelmintics hi-
therto known.. It is moil commodioufly taken in
the form of pills, from a few grains to a fcruple,
or half a drachm.. It lofes both its fmell and
ftrength with age; a circumftance necelTary to be
attended to in proportioning the dofcs neceffary to
be given in order to procure the intended effect.
ASAPPES, or Azapes, an order of foldiers in
the Turkifh army, whom they always expofe to the
firft fhock of the enemy
The • word is derived from faph, a word in the
Xurkifh language fignifying rank, f.le, or order.
>^SaRUM, afarabacca, in botany, a low plant
without ftalks : the leaves are fliff, roundifh, v/ith
two little ears at the bottom, fomewhat refembling
a kidney, of a dark fhining green colour, fome-
what hairy, fet on pedicles three or four inches
long : the flowers, which rife among the leaves on
Ihorter pedicles, confift of purplifn Ua.Tina, ftand
ing in a darker-coloured cup, and are each follow-
ed by a capfule, containing fix feeds. It is peren-
nial and ever-green, a r\ative of the fouthem parts
ef Europe and the warmer climates, and raifed
here in gardens. The dried roots have been gene-
jrally brought from the Levant ; thofe of our own
growth being fuppofed of weaker via tue.
The roots and leaves of afariim have a mode-
rately ffrong, not very unpleafant fmell, fome-
thing refembling that of valerian r r nard ; nnd a
naufcous bitterifh acrid tafte. The roots given in
fabftance, in dofes of a fcruple or more, prove
ftvongly emetic and cathartic. The leaves have
the fair>e efie^Sl, but their dofc or degree of fhength
has not been precifely determined ; fo«nc f:<^ they
arc of more adtivity than the roots.
Its principal ufc among us is as an errhinc. The
root is one of the ftrongeft of the vegetable fub-
ftances commonly employed in this intention :'
a grain or two foufted up the nofe, procure a large
evacuation of mucus, both from the mouth and
nortrils, without provoking fneezing, like the whito-
hclkbore root, or difcovering any remarkable irri-
tation. Geoffroy relates, that after fnuffing up a
dofe of this errhine, he has obferved the falutary
difchargc to continue for three days fucceflivcly,
and that he has known a paralyfis of the mouth
and tongue cured by one dofe. He recommends
this medicine in ftubborn diforders of the head,
proceeding from vifcid matters, in palfies, and in
ibporific diftempers. During its operation the
patient muft carefully a\'oid the cold, which is apt
to produce puftules, inflammations, and fwellings
of the face, and fometimes more alarming fymp--
toms. This herb is the principal ingredient in
the cephalic, or fternutatory powders of the (hops :
fome take equal parts of dried afarum, and mar-
joram leaves ; others equal parts of the dried leaves
of afarum, marjoram, and marum fyriacuin, and
dried lavender flowers. The empyrical herb i'nuffs
have likewife the leaves of afarum for their bafis ;
but often mixed with ingredients of a more dange-
rous nature.
ASBESTINE, Ibme incombuftible body, or
that partakes of the nature and properties of af-
beftos.
ASBESTOS, falamanders wool, in natural
hiftory, the fame with amianthus. See the article
Amianthus.
The word is Greek, and compounded of «,
priv. and TSiivvx>;ji, to extinguifli.
ASCARIDES, in medicine, a fpecies of worms,
very flendcr, found in tlie inteftinum redlum, chiefly
of children, and frequently voided with the fceccs.
They often adhere to the fundament, and are fome-
times even pendent from it.
The word is Greek, and derived from atirx-otp/^f,
to leap ; becaufe of their continual motion, which
caufcs an intolerable itching.
ASCENDANT, or Ascending iw, in ge-
nealogy, is undcrftood of anceftors, or fuch rela-
tior.s as are nearer the root of the family.
' Ascendant, in aftrology, that degree of the
equinoctial which is riling above the horizon in the
Eaft, at the time of the birth of any perfon ; and
by fome aftrologers is called the angle of the firft
houfe.
Ascendant, in aftronomy, is a term ufed for
fuch ftars as are rifing above xhi horizon in any
parallel of (ieclination,
ASCENDENS ObUquu!, in anatcray. Sec
Obliqvjus.
ASCEND^
A S C
ASCENDING Latitude of a planet, is when
the latitude of the planet moves towards the No:th
pole.-
Ascending 'NcrL', is that point of the planet's
orbit, which interfcdts the ecliptic in the projeftion,
when the planet is moving towards the North.
See Node.
Ascending Si^ns, in aftrology, are thofe which
arc arifmg from the nadir, or loweft part of the
heavens to the zenith.
Ascending VeJJeh, in anatomy, thofe which
carry the blood upwards, as the aorta afcendens,
and vena cava afcendens.
ASCENSION, in a general fenfc, implies a
moving upwards.
Ascension, in aftronomy, is the rifing of any
celeltial object above the horizon.
iJ'^A/ Ascension, in aftronony, is an arch of
the cquinoilial contained between the vernal equi-
nox and the meridian, paffing through the center of
the fun, planet, or ftar.
The rule for finding the fun's right-afcenfion,
having his longitude and greateft declination
given, is this :
As radius.
Is to the cofnie of the greateft declination.
So is the tangent of the fun's longitude.
To the tangent of right afcenfion required.
The rule for finding the right-afcenfion of a ftar,
having the longitude and latitude given. Say,
As radius.
Is to the fine of longitude.
So is the tangent of latitude.
To the tangent of an arc, which call a.
Then, if the longitude be in a northern fign,
with north latitude, or in a fouthern fign, with
fouth latitude, fubtradl the firft arc a from tlie
obliquity of the ecliptic, for a fecond arc b. Then
As the fine of the firft arc a.
Is to the fine of the fecond arc b.
So is the tangent of longitude.
To the tangent of right-afcenfion required.
But when the ftar's longitude and latitude are of
different denominations, take the funi of the firft
found arc a, and the obliquity of the ecliptic, for
the fecond arc b. Alfo note, when the difference
is taken, that if the obliquity of the ecliptic be
greater than the firft arc a, the right afcenfion will
be on the contrary fide of the equinoftial point
that the longitude is reckoned from.
The mean right afcenfion of any ftar may be
readily found in the catalogue of its refpedtive con-
ftellation, by adding or fubduiting the annual
Fariation in right afcenfion from the right afcen-
A S C
fion there fouiid, according as the time required is
before or after the year 1770 : and if you would
have the apparent right afcenfion, apply the equa-
tion of aberration to the mean right afcenfion,
and you have the apparent.
E X A M P L E.
Suppofe the apparent right afcenfion of * Aqui-
la be required, November the 29th, 1764.
Mean right acenfion from catalogue
of Aquila, for the beginning of the ,
year 1770 rr 328 29 27
Annual variation 46",27, therefore, in
5 years and 32 days, it amounts to=: o 3 56
Which fubtradted from the right afcen — —
fion for 1770, leaves the mean right
afcenfion for the year 1764., on No-
vember the 29th =: 328 25 31
Then in the table of aberration under
Aquila, and againft Nov. 26, you
find 13", I; and proportioning for
the 3 days, you have 1 3^,9 O O 13,9
Which having the negative fign pre ■
fixed, muft be fubtratSted from the
mean right afcenfion, and you have
the apparent right afcenfion =328 25 19,1
To find the apparent right afcenfion of a planet,
by obferving with a good regulator the time of the
tranfit of a ftar and the planet over the meri-
dian.
Rule.
Find the apparent right afcenfion of the ftar, as
direfted before ; then fubtradt the time of the paf-
fage of the firft from that of the laft, and turn
the difference in time into degrees, minutes, and
feconds of a circle ; then if the planet pafled the
meridian firft, fubtrafl the diff^srence in time turned
into degrees, from the ftar's apparcntright afcenfion,
and the remainder is the planet's right afcenfion
required ; but if the planet palTed the meridian the
lali, then the fum is the right afcenfion re-
quired.
Example.
November the 29th, 1764, at the Royal Obfer-
vatory at Greenwich, a. Aquila pafied the meridian
(by a regulator adjufted to fiderial time) at
ig*" 38' 48'', and the moon pafled the fame day,
by the fame regulator, at 22'' 14' 8"; therefore the
difference in time is 2"^ 35' 20", which turned into
degrees, equals 40° 50' o". The apparent right
afcenfion of a. Aquila at the time of its paflage, is
found (as above) to be 328° 25' ic)",ii therefore
adding 40° 50' o", the difference of the times ot
their tranfits, (becaufe the moon pafled laft) we
have 369° 15' 19'',! ; which becaufe it exceeds
360°, the whole circle, we niuft fubtraft 360, and
the
A SC
the remainder is 9" 15' 19",!, the apparent right
alccnlioii of the moon required.
To find the right aCcenfion of the fun, planets,
•ftars, &c. mechanically on the globe, armillary
•fphere, &c. fee Globe, &c.
Oblique Ascension, is an arch of the equinoc-
tial, ccmprehendcJ between the vernal equinox,
or point arics, and that point of the equinoiSlial
line which rifes with the planet or ftar.
When the latitude of the place and declination
of the object are of the fame name, that is, both
north, or both fouth, then the difference between
the right afcenfion and the afccnfional difference
will be the oblique afcenfion : but when of con-
trary names, their fum will be the oblique afcen-
fion required. Note, That if the fum exceeds
360°, theexcefs above is the oblique afcenfion ; and
when the afcenfional difference is greater than the
light afcenfion, add 360° to the right afcenfion, and
then fubtraiil the afcenfional difference therefrom,
tmd the remainder is the oblique afcenfion re-
quired.
Ascensional Difference^ in aftronomy, is the
difference between the ri?ht and oblique afcenfion,
which is found thus ; Having the latitude of the
place, and the declination of the planet or ftar,
given.
Say, As the cotangent of latitude.
Is to radius.
So is the tangent of declination.
To the fine of the afcenfional difference.
The afcenfional difference thus found by trigono-
metry, is always equal the time the fun rifes before
or after 6 o'clock ; thtrefore, if it be turned into
time, and added to 6 hours when it rifes before
6 o'clock, or fubtracled when after 6 o'clock, we
fliall have the length of the femi-folar dav. Note,
That if trie flar or planet have no declination,
they can have no afccnfional difference, becaufe
when the lun or liar are in the equinoctial, their
oblique afcenfion and right afcenfion are tlie
fame.
ASCENT, in a general fenfe, implies the mo-
tion ot a body upwards.
Ascent of Fluids, is particularly underftood of
their rifing above their own level, which is caufed
either by attraction, preffure, elafticity of die air,
the force of piftons in pumps, &c. There are
various experiments for proving the afcent of fluids
by attraction ; thus, if a tube be filled with fand,
or fiited afnes, well preffed together, and one end
of it be placed in a veffel of water, the water will
be attracted by the fand, or afhes, an J rife to a
great height above that in the veffel. Or if any
part of a piece of cap-paper, fp-..i.K,e, bread, fugar,
linen, or feveral other fubltances, be wetted, the
water will afcend or defceiid, and therefore propa-
gate itfelf to the other parts by the power of at-
12
AS C
traction. This is lilcewife the caufc of the afcent
of fpirit of wine, oil, melted tallow, or any other
unctuous body into the wick of a candle. Nor is it
unreafonable to think, that this is alfo the caufe of
the afcent of fap in trees, and of the various fe-
cretions of fluids through the glands of animals,
and of feveral other effects in nature. See At-
traction, Cat'illary TtiBE, Fluid, &c.
AsCEST cf Vapours. It cannot be denied, but
that the air is at all times more or lefs full of humid
particles, as appears by their falling in an cxhaufl:-
ing receiver, producing the halo. It is no lefs
certain, that more moiiture will be taken up and
imbibed by air in motion, than air at reft ; as is
evident from the drying of linen and other things
that are wet, much fooner when there is a gale of
v/ind, tha.i in calm weather. Befidcs, Dr. Hal-
ley's Experiments related in the Philofophical
Tranfaitions, put this itiatter paft all doubt.
This gentleman, in order to account for the cir-
culation of vapours, caufed an experiment to be
accurately made bv the operator to the Royal So-
ciety at Grefliam College, whereby the quantity
of water raifed and carried off in vapour from the
furface of ftagnate v/ater, in a place as free from
fun and wind as might be, was determined to be
exactly eight inches deep or perpendicular in a
vear. This fell very much fhort of the quantity of
rain found by the French academics to fall in a
year at Paris, viz. full nineteen inches perpendi-
cular : and ihorter ftii! of the obfervations of Mr.
Townley ; who, at the foot of the Lancafliire
hills, lying in the neighbourhood of the Irifih fea,
found there fell in a year above forty inches of
water perpendicular. So remarkable a difterence
makes it evident, that t'ne fun and winds are the
principal caufes of the evaporation of fluids ; the
one to raife the vapour, and the other to carry it
off and difperfe it.
The do£tor, in the fame courfc of obfervations,
takes notice of the vapours feeming at fometimcs to
adhere or hang about the furface of the fluids
whence they rife, cloathing them as it v/ere with a.
fleece of vapourifh air ; at which times the evapo-
ration appeared to be very little, by the fmall quan-
tity of water then loft in twenty-four hoars : and
as this was obferved to happen commonly when-
there was very little v.'ind ftirring, had thcfe experi-
ments been made in a place fully expofed to wind
and fun, t'ne expence of rifing vapour would have
been found to compenfate at leaft the ordinary re-
turn of rain for a fupply, as later experiments have
fufliciently evinced.
And here it may be obferved, that in ftilj wea-
ther, when this F.eece of vapourifh air happens to
be lodged in greater quantities near the furface of
the water, both it and all cbjedls thereon ieem to
be confi-erably raifed, and even to lie in a level
above the land. This can proceed only from the
N n n r.efractioa
A S C
* efracxion or bending of the rays of light, coming
uc of a medium of one degree of denfity into
nc of another ; as may be exemplified at any time
by pouring a quantity of fair water into a bafon,
which will then fliew a piece of money, lying at
the bottom, to an obferver, from whom it was be-
Ibre fcreened by the brims of the veflel : by this
experiment it will, to appearance, be raifed about
one third of the water's depth.
In iliU and fultry v/eather, when the fun-beams
(cem to adt with a great, a general, and an equal
force, on both the land and'water, the rii'e of va-
pours is then obfcrved to be more dull and languid.
When they gleam as it were from behind, or
through a cloud, and there i:; fomething of motion
in the air, or a wind abroad, they rile in greater
plenty. And in verv hot climates, as Dr. Halley
informs us, they mount in fuch abundance, that in
St. Helena, lying in latitude fixteen degrees fouth.
Ills glaffes for obfervation were very often and very
foon covered with water. And even in hot wea-
ther, in our own climate, the dews, which are no
other than vapour condenfed, are found fufficiently
copious. Morning and e\'ening, in that feafon of
the year when the fun is not far above the horizon,
tlie rifing of mills from rivers, pools, and moift
places, is frequently very vifible, and is generally
the forerunner of a fultry day. As the fun gains a
greater height, the continued rife of the vapour
is indeed not fo apparent ; but as the caufe of their
rife, viz. the heat, increafes, there is no room to
fufpeft, but that the effed is ifill proportionable
to it.
It has been matter of difpute among naturalifls,
how the waters which form the clouds, and which
defcending, often deluge over vaft tradls of land,
come to be exhaled from the earth and fufpended
in a fluid fo much lighter than water, as is the air.
Some have imagined, that particles of fire, fepa-
rated from the fun-beams, adhering to thofe of
water, make together little mafies of matter lighter
than air, -and which therefore rife therein till they
come to fuch a part of the atmofphere as is fpecifi-
cally, or bulk for bulk of the fame weight with
themfelvcs ; there forming a thin cloud. And
they fuppofe that rain is produced by the feparation
of thofe particles of fire, on occafions, from them -,
whereupon they coalefce, and then defcend accord-
ing to their own gravity, in drops of rain or
dews.
This hypothcfis, as Dr. Defaguliers juftly ob-
fcrves in the Philofophical Tranfa«£tions, is not
without objeftions. As firft, fire has never yet
been proved to be a diftinct element, or a particu-
lar fubftance ; and the change of weight of bodies
in chemical preparations heretofore prelumed to rife
from the adhefion of particles of fire, is proved by
Dr. Hales, in his Vegetable Statics, to proceed
from the adhefion of particles of air, which he has
6
A S C
there fliewed to be abforbed by fome bodies in good
quantities, while it has been generated as fait by
others ; and that it may even be abforbed and
generated fucceffively by the fame body imder diffe-
rent circumftances. Secondly, Should the above-
mentioned fuppofition be allowed, the fiery particles
joined with the watery muft: be of fome confidera-
ble bignefs, and a perfon pafling through a cloud,
in afcending a hill; muft be fenfible of an extraor-
dinary degree of warmth, which does not happen ;
for the v.apour is there found to be really colder
than rain itfelf falling at the foot of the hill.
Befides, the manner in v/hich thefe particles of
fire might be feparated from thofe of the water, is
to be conceived from no phaenomena yet obferved :
this theory therefore feems to be without foun-
dation.
The fccond opinion concerning the rife and
fufpenfion of vapours is, that though water be fpe-
cifically many times heavier than air, yet if the
furface of it be increafed by greatly diminifhing
the bulk of its particles, it cannot eafily fall ;
fince the weight of each particle is known to
diminifli in proportion to the cube of its diameter;
whereas the furface to which the air refifts, dc-
creales only as its fquare : and this is fufficiently
e\'ident from the floating of duft, motes, and
other light bodies, for a time therein, according as
they are more or lefs minute.
This, however, will not explain the matter be-
fore us to fatisfaction ; becaufe, though the in-
creafe of furface, the weight continuing the fame,
may in great meafure hinder or retard the defcent
of very fmall bodies in the air, on account of its
refiftance to a furface, fo much in proportion larg-
er than their bulk, as aforefaid, it will for the fame
reafon alfo impede their afcent therein. And 'tis
known that the rifing of duft, &c. in the air, is
owing always to fome outward force or motion ap-
ply'd ; whereas vapours continue to rife as well in
calm as windy weather, though not in an equal de-
gree ; neither do they always fall to the ground, or
fubfide therein, when the wind ceafcs.
The third and moft received opinion concerning
this matter is, that by the aftion of the fun on the
furface of the water, the aqueous particles become
formed into fpherules or bubbles, filled with an
aura, a much finer air,, or one highly rarefied,
which thus becoming fpecifically lighter than com-
mon air, muft therefore rile therein by hvdroftatick
laws, till fuch time as they meet with fiich an air
as is bulk for bulk of their own weight.
This feems indeed to be the more probable fup-
pofition of the three ; but to fupport it the follow-
ing queries muft be anfwercd. How comes the au-
ra, or fubtle air within the bubbles to be at all fpe-
cifically lighter than that without them ; fince the
fun's rays muft be admitted to heat the one equally
with the other, and to beat with equal ftrength
on
A S C
on every pnit of the furface ? Was it pofTible, that a
rarer could be thus feparated from the ambient fluid,
Wliat fliould hinder the cold air, which they needs
muft meet with in their afcent, from reducing thefe
bubbles by contrafting their contents ; jull as bub-
bles of foaped water commonly arc, notwithlland-
ing their tenacity is mucii greater than that of com-
.mon water, when blown up by warm air from the
lungs ? And again. Was it reafonable to admit the
reft of the fuppofition, a confiderable difficulty will
yet remain, viz. If clouds were thus conftituted of
ihells of water filled with air, in its own nature e-
laftic, why fhould they not always expand, when
the circumjacent air is rarefied ; and why not be
condenfed, when the weight of the atmofphere is
there increafed ? This mull be the natural confe-
quence of this hypothefis, and the clouds would
link and rife in the atmofphere on every alteration
of weight therein, without affording us any rain
at all.
The doctor then plaufibly propofes another,
■whereby he endeavours to account for the rife and
fufpenfion of the vapours in the atmofphere, from
the elafticity and repellency obferved in the fteam of
boiling liquors, capable of extruding either air or
water from any veilel ; and fuppofes the repellency
of the particles of vapour to be alvvavs in propor-
tion to their degree of heat. Hence he calculates
the force of the vapours raifed, taking with Sir Ifaac
Newton, the heat of boiling water at 34 (when the
thermometer will fhew our heat in the fummer to
be 5, in winter 2, and in fpring and autumn 3 of
thofe parts) and computes the height to which they
accordingly muft rife, comparing their elafticity
with that of the air ; on which heat has a much
lefs efFedt ; fmce that degree of heat which will
expand water fourteen thoufand times in boiling,
will rarefy air only two thirds. He next confiders
the effects the cold found near and above the earth
niuft have in condenfing thofe vapours, and form-
ing the clouds ; and thinks that the diftance they
are obferved to float at from the earth, in the vari-
ous feafons of the year, correfponds with this
theory.
But neither does this feem to be abfolutely free
from objed:ions. For in diftillations, the liquor
boiling in the flill, over a brifli fire, raifes a great
quantity of fteam into the head, which endeavours
to make its way immediately down the fpiral pipe
or worm, ufually fet in a tub of water, which,
being cold when the ftill begins to v/ork, con-
deiiles the rifing vapour very fait. As the water next
the worm comes to be heated by the continued ri-
fmg of the burning iteam, it condenles it indeed
fomething flower ; but yet when this water is be-
come fo hot, that a man can fcarce beaj- his hand
in it, it will neverthelefs continuetocondenfe them
into a grofler fluid apace.
Now as the mitigation of the heat of vapour, I
A S C
and the lowering it from that of boiliiig water is
generally attended with this efiedt, and as very lit-
tle vapour is railed in the Itill before the liquor ac-
tually boils ; it may be prefumed, that the repel-
lency of the particles of fteam, under the degree of
a boiling heat, can be but inconfiderabie in pro-
moting the rife of vapours to any great height in
the atmofphere, or of producing the thing pro-
pofed.
Befides, fteam of any heat whatever, if it be not
fomc how confined, and caught as it were by fome
object near at hand, but being let into the air loofe,
like that rifing from a feething-pot, or flaking lime,
as far as we can trace it, that is, fo long as it con-
tinues vifible, does not by its inotion ftiew any great
difpoiltion or tendency towards rifing fteadily, brifi:-
ly, or the fliorteft way, into fuch part of the atmo-
fphere as may be of equal gravity therewith : but
it rather feems vaguely to fly hither and thither, till
it can be abforbed and received by the air, thereby
warmed in the fame manner as the breath from the
lungs and other humid ^'apours are.
It might be alfo fufpccted, that the repellency
which ftiould give the particles of water their firlt
rife into the denfer and circumambient air, would
increafe in air more rare, in their afcent, and de-
feat, and by their undue feparatlon prevent their
being ever condenfed in rain. Befides, as the pref-
fure of the denfer air near the earth is not able to
reduce them into fo clofe a contact as to form drops
of water there, it is not likely that in a rarer me-
dium this fhould be done with more fuccefs.
For want therefore of a more perfexS theory of
this part of our meteorology, we muft at prefent,
in good meafure, content ourfelves with obferved
facts. And it being; evident, that rare and warm
air, together v/ith what humid particles it Ihall at
any time imbibe (and which from the conftant
heat of the fun mult neceflarily conftantly be done,
and that in very great plenty) will emerge and
fwim in air that's denfe and cold, to fuch a part of
the atmofphere as is of equal fpecific gravity there-
with : and that whenever, for want of the fuper-
incumbent prefTure, a part of its denfity fhall be loft,
it will let the watery particles fall, and they being
collected and aflembled in good quantity, will at
length perhaps fonn a floatino; cloud, and become
vifible, merely by the refleiltion of the rays of light,
which, falling by various angles thereon, exhibits
various colourings, and a multiplicity of forms, to
the eye of an obferver : or if its denfity ftiall con-
tinue to be ftill more diminifhed, it may be again
refolved into its original water, and become an im-
mediate ihower of rain.
The fun fhining with equal firength on the fur-
face both of the land and water, will doubtlefs
affeiSl them differently : becaufe a great part of his
rays are reflected from the folid earth by the fame
angle in which they fall thereon, whereby the air
will
A S C
will alvays be more rarefied over tliis, than over
the water, which abforbs moft of them, and re-
flecls but few: of confequence then the light air
vyiil mount, and continue to rife over the land, and
the denfe and vaporous air from fea will croud after
it, to make good the deficiency ; as in the cafe of
the land and fea-breezes ; and hence abundant mat-
ter will probably there be colleiSted tov/ards the for-
mation of a cloud. See Cloud.
ASCETICS, a name given to thofe who exer-
cife an extraordinary degree of piety or virtue :
fuch v/ere the Efieni and Pharifees amongft the
Jews, and the Stoics among the Heathens In the
primitive times of chriftianity, it was applied to
thof- who lived a life of more rigid and a\iftere
faniftity, continually excrcifing themfelves in tlie
difficult and painful graces of felf-denial and mor-
tification, foregoing fociety, and wearing out their
days in folitude and devotion. It was afterwards
in a great meafure laid afide, being feldom applied
to any, except monks and hermits.
ASCII, in geography, are they who inhabit the
torrid zone ; becaiife twice every year they have
no fliadow, which is, when the fun's declina-
tion is equal and fimilar to the latitude of the
place.
The word is compounded of the Greek, a, priv.
and ffKia., a fliadow.
ASCITES, in medicine, the fame with dropfy.
See Dropsy.
ASCLEPIA, in antiquity, a feftival of .TJcula-
pius, the god of phyfic ; and obferved particularly
at Epidaurus.
ASCLEPIAD, in ancient Greek and Latin po-
etry, was the name of a particular kind of verfe,
which confirted of four feet, compofed of a fpon-
dee, a choriambus, and two da(?cyls ; or, which is
the fame thing, of a fpondee, a dactyl, a long fyl-
lable, and then two more dadtyls ; as for in-
Itance,
Terrarum dominos evch'it ad dios.
HOR.
ASCLEPIAS, fwallow-wort, in botany, a ge-
nus of pentandrious plants; the flower is monope-
talous, reflexed, and divided into five parts. In the
center is fituated fiveneiSlariums, encompafling the
generative parts ; thefe have horns which turn to-
ward the {lamina. It hath five filaments, which
are fcarce vifible, topped v/ith the fame number of
antherae; thefe are fituated between the neftariums.
It hath two oval acuminated germen fupporting two
ilyles hardly difcoverable, crowned with little ftig-
mas; the germ.en aftervvfards becomes two large ob-
long acuminated pods, opening with two valves in
one cell, which is filled witli a number of imbri-
cated feeds crowned with down. There are vari-
ous fpecies of afclepias ; the officinal fort, called al-
fo hirundinaria and vincetoxicum, grov/s naturally
in the fouth of France, Spain, and Italy, and is
ASH
accounted a great counter-poifon. The root of this
plunt is compofed of many frrong fibres, which are
connedted at the top (hke thofe of afparagus), from
which arife many ftalks in number proportional to
the fize of the roots ; thefe grow near two feet
high, and are very flender at the top. The leaves are
oval, ending in a point, and placed oppofite by pairs.
The flov/ers are white, growing in umbels near the
top of the flalk, from which are fent out fmalier
umbels : the flowers appear in June, and the feeds,
ripen in Septem.ber. Its roots and feeds are moft. in
ufe, and recqm.mended for their drying and warm-
ing qualities, which rank them among the alexi-
pharmics aiid cephalics ; and formerly an extra£t
and a difLiJlcd v/ater was made from this plant, but
in the prefent medical practice it is much in difufe..
To this genus Linnseus has added feveral fpecies o€,
the apocyorum of Tournefort.
■ ASCLEPIODOTi^ANS, in ecclefiaftical hif-.
tory, a feet of heretics that appeared in the time of
the emperor Heliogabalus, and fo called from their
leader Afclepiodotus, the firft who taught that Jefus.
Chrift was a mere man.
ASCORDRUTiE, in ecclefiaftical hiftory, a
fecSof Chriftians in the fecond century, who placed
all religion in knowledge, and under pretence of
inward and fpiritual v/orfliip, rejeiSled every exter-
nal and corporeal fymbol.
ASCOLIA, in antiquity, a fcftival celebrated;
by thd Athenian hufbandmen in honour of Bac-
chus, to whom they facrificed a he-goat, becaufe
that animal deftroys the vines.
The word is Greek, and derived from ajy.^, a
bottle ; it being cullomary at this feftival to form
the victim's fkin into a kind of bottle, which was
filled with oil and wine, and fell to the fhare of
him vv'ho firft fixed himfelf upon it with one foot.
ASCUS, in natural hiftory, the pouch, or bag
of the opolTum. See Opossum
ASEL3ES, a name given by fome to the miili--
pedes. Sec Millipedes.
ASH, fia.xinus, in botany, a genus of polyga-
mious trees, of which there are fix fpecies. The
common afh grows to a tree of a confiderable fize^
The leaves of this fort are pinnated, and generally
contain four or five pair of lobes or folioles, which,
are placed oppofite in pairs, ovated, acuminated^
and flightly ferrated at their edges, and are termi-
nated by an odd one, of a dark green colour on the-
upper fide and paler underneath. It hath herma-
phrodite and female apetalous flov/ers, which grow
at remote diftances on the fame tree, and fometimes.
on different trees. The hermaphrodite flowers con-
tain two ere£t filaments, topped with upright ob-
long quadrifulcar anthers. In the center is placed
an ovated compreflTed germen, fi'pporting an up-
right cylindrical lt)-le, crowned with a bifid ftigma :
the oviary afterwards becomes a feed veflel, con-
taining a membranaceous lanceolated feed, fiiaped
like
ASH
like a bird's tongue ; the female flowers arc like the
male, except wanting the ftaraina. This tree is a
very free grower, and is propagated by fowing the
keys (commonly fo called), that are ripe rihout the
latter end of CJctober or November, at v/hich time
they fliould be gathered from the ilraightcfl: and moft
thriving trees, rejeiSHng tliofc that grow on fmall or
decaying trees ; having prepared a bed of frelh
earth, which fliould be well dug and cleanfed from
noxious weeds and roots ; a fmall bed will be fufH-
cicnt to raife a great qur.ntity of trees ; the feeds
jhould be fov/n tolerably thick, and covered about
half an inch with earth. Thefe feeds many times
lay in the ground a year before they come up, ef-
pecially if they are r.ot fown till the fpring ; in
this cafe the bed Ihould remain undifturbed, keep-
ing it clean from weeds. When the plants come
up, if tb.e v/eather proves dry, watering them now
and then will greatly promote their growth, ob-
ferving not to let any weeds grow amongfl: them ;
if they make good progrcfs in the feed-bed, they
will be fit to tranff^lant in the nurlery the fuccecd-
ing autur.m, at which time there fliould bo a piece
of ground well prepared "to receive them. When
che leaves begin to fall off, it is the proper time for
their removal, v/hich fhould be done carefully with
a fpade, and not drav/n up (as fome injudicioufly
have praiStifed) to the grear detriment of the plants.
When they are taken up, fhorten the downright or
tap-roots, and plant them about three feet row
f''om row, and about a foot dift:ancc in the row,
well clofuig the earth to their roots. In this nur-
fcry they ihould remain two or three years, obferv-
ing to trim up the fidc-branches in winter, and dig
the ground between the rows, after which time
you may remove them v.'here thev are to remain for
good. Where there are plenty of afh trees, a fup-
plv of felf-fov/n plants may be had, elpeciaily in
hedges, v/hcre they are protected from cattle by
bufhes, Sic. In fuch phices the plants will cornc up
and thrive ; but they fhould not he fuffered to grow
in hedge-rows, as the afh robs every plant of its
nourifliment that is within reach of its roots ; nor
fliOuld afh trees be permitted near paflures, for if
nnv of the cows eat of the leaves or flioots, all the
butter which is made of their milk will be rank
and of little value. This tree v/illgrow upon al-
piofV any foil ; but the better the foil is, th€ more
the tree v/ill incrcafe in bulk. If t-liey are defigned
for a particular plantation, their proper diftance
may be about eight feet each way, and planted in
ijuincunx order ; and after they have been planted
a year or two, every other tree may be cut down,
referving the moft likely plants. Thofe which arc
cut down fhould be left fix or eight inches above
ground, when they will make feveral ffrong and vi-
ijorous flioots, which in a fev/ years will be ufeful
for making coopers hoops, and di\'ers other purpo-
fes : the other trees which are left arc defigned for
J-2
ASP
timber, the mimber of which may be lefl'encd as
the trees advance in magnitude, obferving to re-
ferve the moft promifmg for timber of the largeft
fize. If a wood of thefe trees are properly manag-
ed, it will turn out greatly to the owner's advantage y
for by tlie underwood, which will be fit to cut
e\'ery fcvcn or eight years for the ufcs above-men-
tioned, and the itock preferved for timber, it cer-
tainly would be well worth while, where the land
Is not too dear, to make a plantation of afh trees.
The timber of this tree is excellent for various ufes,
as for oars, ploughs, axle-trees, harrows, blocks
for pullics, coach-making, wheels, and divers o-
iher purpofes. 'l"he bcft Icafon for felling the aili
is in December or January, for if it is done either
too loon in autumn, or too late in the fpring, the
timber will be fubjeifl to be infcfled with v.'orms
and other infedts ; but for lopping the pollards the
fpring is to be preferred. The other fpecies of afh
may be propagated by inoculating them on the com-
mon fort, upon which they will all take very well,
and become hardier than upon their own flock; but
thofe budded trees never grow fo large ;'.s thofe raifed
from feeds, nor v/il! the flock and bud keep pace-
in their growth, fo that there will be a conlidera-
ble difFerence in the fize of the ftem, and above the
place of inoculation ; but as few of the foreign-
kinds have yet arrived at an age to produce feeds in
England, the nurfcry-gardeners have been obliged
to propagate them by budding, unlefs they can pro-
cure a fufficient quantity of feeds from the countries
they are natives of. The feeds of the common afli
are accounted good in the jaundice, pleurify, and
the flone, but in the prefcnt medical praftice are
much difufed.
ASHES, finn-es, the earthv particles of wood,
coal, and ether combuftible fubftances, remaining
after they are confumed by fire. Thefe, if produced
from a vegetable," are of a whitifli colour, and con-
tain- a confiderable quantity of fixt fait, blended
with the terrene particles, and when boiled with-
fair water yield a lixivium of an acrim.onious alka-
line tafte. Afhes of all kinds contain a very rich
fertile f;dt,, and are the beft manure of any for cold
wet landi : they are alfo of confiderable ufe in-
making lixiviums or lyes for the purpofes of medi-
cine, bleaching, and for fiigar-works, and are dif-
tinguifhed by various names-, as- po:-aj1>fs, pcari-
(ijh^!, he. which fee.
ASIATIC, fomething peculiar- to Afia.
Asiatic .%/«•. See STyL£.
ASIDE, in the drama, fomething faid by an-
aftor, v.'hich fome, cr even all the other aftors pre-
fent, are fuppofed not to hear ; a circumftance juft-
ly condemned as being uimatural and improbable.
ASINUS, in natural hiflory, the afs. Sec
Ass.
ASP, in natural hiftory, a fpecies of ferpents of-
ten mentioned bv the ancients, but without any
O o o accurate
ASP
accurate Jclcrlption of it. Some fay it is of the
fizc of a common fnake, but the back, broader ; and
the neck fwells greatly v/hsn the creature is angry.
Some aflert that their teeth grow exceeding long,
and {land out of their mouths like thofe of the
boar ; but this feems to be fabulous. However, it
may be true, that two of the longefl are hollow,
and that they are thofe which contain the venom.
They are generally covered with thin pellicles,
which Aide down when the ferpent bites, 'i'hc fl-;in
is laid to be covered with fcales, which are redder
than thofe of any other ferpent •, but others affirm
they are of very dilrerent colours. Some iay they
are two cubits long, others four, and others again
five ; Petir Kolben affirms he has (ecn them ieveral
ells in length : fo that, in fhort, nothing certain can
be known of the afp. It is undoubtedly a native
of Africa : and it w.;3 by the bite of one of thefe
lerpents that Cleopatra is i'ai.! to li.;ve ended her
days.
Seba gives the name of afp to fevcral ferpents,
the firft of which is faid to be found in Egvpt, and
is Ipotted with black. The (l-:in is of a reddiPa
afli-colour, marked with black fpots; whereas thofe
on the back nearly relemblo eyes. The head is of
a dark brown, furrounded with a white colour ;
and the fcaics of the belly are v/hite, adorned with
a reddifh border. He has alfo an American afp,
which nearly refembles this in every refpect.
The Java afp is of a fea-green, with a fharp
mouth, and a long head covered v/ith fcaics on the
fore-parts. The other fcaics are alfo of a fea-
green colour, with white edges, except under the
belly, where they are of a light green, and feparat-
cd from the reft by two white ftreaks running like
furrows along the fides.
'l"he Surinam afp is of a bright green colour,
with blackifh fpots ; but the belly is of an aili-
coloured red, and the head is of a deep green ; the
eves are lively, and the tail is terminated with
Iharp points. Brooke's Natural Hijlory.
ASPALATHUM. See Lignum Rhodium.
ASPALAThuS, African broom, in botany, a
genus of plants bearing papilionaceous flowers, with
obtufe moon-f?:aped wings, containing ten ftamina,
with a fin'jle ftyle ; the oviary becomes an oblong
pod, coritaining one or tv.-o reniform feeds. There
arc three fpecies in this genus, which are all natives
of the country about the Cape of Good-Hope.
ASPARAGUS, in botany, a genus of farmcn-
taceous plants, whofe flovi'cr is rofaceous, coin-
pofed of fix petals, which fpread open, and are
rcflexed at the top, and containing fix filiform fila-
ments topped with roundifh anther.-e : from the
center of the flower arifeth the pillil, which after-
wards becomes a foft, round, red berry, of three
tells, in each of which arc lodged one or two
iccds.
There arc fcvcral fpecies of afp.^ragus, but the
A SP
fort which is beft known is the common afparagus,
of which great quantities are railed to fupply the
London markets, for at leafl: half the year. The
garden-afparagus is propagated by fowing its feeds •,,
in the choice of which there fhould be care takeit
previoufly to mark the buds of an old bed, the
largett and flraighteit to be refcrved -, which buds,,
when they have branched, may be faftened to
ftakes to preferve them from being broken dov/n.
Molt of thefe buds will produce in autumn great
quantities of red berries, which fhould remain on
the branches till the ftalk begins to decav ; then
ftrip off the berries into a tub, where they may lie
in a heap to fweatfor about three weeks or a month,
by which means the outv/ard hufks v/ill be rotten y
then fill the tub with water, and brcr.kall the hufks-'
by fqueezing them between your hands : thefe hufks.
will l\vim upon the water, but the feed will full: to-
tb.e bottom ; fo that, by pouring the water off
gently, the hufks will be carried along with it, and,
by putting in frclh water two or three times, and
frirring it up, the feed will be entirely clean; thert
fpread the feed on a matt, and ex-pofi:;g it to the
lun and air until it \i jierfectly drv, it thtn may be
put by, and refervcd till the time of fowing, which
is in February, when a bed of good rich earth muft
be jweparcd, whereon the feed may be fov/n, but
not too thick ; after which tread the feed into the
ground, and rake it fmooth o\er. The fucceeding
iummer the bed rr.ufl be conftantly kept clear from
weeds ; and towards the latter end of October, the
haulm fliould be taken olF, and a little rotten dung
fhould be fpread over the bed to preferve the young
buds from being damaged by frolls, &c.
The roots in the following fpring will be fit
to be planted vi'here they are to remain. A pro-
per piece of ground mult therefore be prepared, by
well trenching it, and burying a large quantity of
rotten dung, taking out all large flones, &c. which
being handfomely levelled, will be fit to receive
the plants. The time for planting thefe roots de-
pends on the moiflure or drynefs of the foil, fo as
to make a month's difference. If very dry, plant in
the beginning of March ; but if wet land, it is bet-
ter to defer the planting till April ; about which
time the plants are beginning to flinot. The feafon
being come, the roots fliould be taken up carefully
with a three-pronged foik, commonly called an af-
paragus-fork, fhaking them out of the earth, and
feparating them from each other, cbferving to lay
their heads even for the more convenient planting
them, which niufl be done in the following man-
ner : The plot of ground being levelled, begin at
one fide thereof, ranging a line very tight acrcfs
the piece, which will be a diredf icn to cut a flraight
trench about fix inches deep, in which the roots
are to be placed, fpeading them with the fingers,
and fetting the buds upright, fo as to be about
two inches bclov/ ihc furfacc of the ground, and
twelve
ASP
twelve inches afuiider ; then fill up the trench anJ
/'moot'i the furface ; tlien remove the line a foot
farther back, and make a trench in like manner,
laying the plants therein as before-diieiSted, and
continuing the fame diftancc from row to row till
the whole is finifhed, obferving between every four
rows to leave the diftancc of. three feet for an alley
to go between the beds to cut the afparagus, earth-
ing them up, &c.
The plot being finifhed and levelled, a fmrJl
crop of onions is generally ibwn on it, which hurts
but little the afparagus. Another method is fov/-
ing the feeds where the plants are to Ihuid for good,
which is, inftead of planting die roots, as before
diredlcd, to make holes at a foot diflance and drjp
two fteds in each ; thcfe holes fhould not be
above half an inch deep; then co\er the feeds, and
fo continue on fiom rov/ to row at the (amc dif-
tance as in planting the roots, if it is defigncd to
fland for the natural feafon of cutting ; but if it is
to be taken up for hot-beds, there may be fix rov/s
planted in each bed, and the diltance in the rows
need not be more than nine inches. "^J'his fhould
be performed in February, becaufe the feeds lie loiig
in the ground. As the roots of afparagus aKvays
-fend forth many long fibres which run deep in the
ground, fo when the feeds are fown where they are
to remain, thefe roots will not be broken or injur-
ed as thofe muft which are tranfplanted ; therefore
they will {hoot deeper into the ground, and make
much greater prog re fs, and the fibres v/ill fhoot OLit
on every lide, which will caufe the crown of the
root to be in the center ; whereas, in tranfplanting,
the roots are made flat againlt the fide of the trench.
When the afparagus is come up, the onions fhould
be hoed : but this method muft be done in dry
weather, that the weeds may die as fall: as they
are cut up. This work mufl: be repeated about
three times, which, if well done, and the feafyn
not too wet, will keep the ground clear from weeds
until the onions are fit to be pulled up, which is
commonly in Augult. When the onions are drawn
olF, the groimd mull be cleared, except the afpa-
ragus haulm, which fliould remain till it deca\'S.
This haulm fhould be cut off v/ith a knife, leav-
ing the Hems two or three inches above ground,
which will be a ruidc to diibinguiili tlie beds
from the alleys : then with a hoe clear oft the v/ceds
info the alleys, v/hich dig up, burying the weeds
in the bottom, and throw the earth on the beds,
fo that the beds may be about five inches above the
level of the alleys. In this manner it may remain
till fpring, when the beds muft be hoe-d over to
dcftroy the young weeds. In the following autumn
dig up the alley again, as was before directed,
earthing the beds rather thicker. The third ipring
after planting, fonic of the afparagus may be cut
for ufc ; therefore, when the buds are preparing to
flioot above ground, the beds (hould be Itirred up
A SP
with a fork made purik>fi.I>-, obferving not to g<>
too deep, lell the head of the root is wounded ;
then rake the bed fmooth, which will deflroy the
young weeds. When the bads appear alxjut three
or four i.nches above groiiiid, they may tlicn be cut
tor ufe : but it fhould be done fparingly, only
taking the large buds, and fufi'eringthc iVnail toiuii
up, which is abfoluteiy neceflary for the future wel-
fare of the roots.
The manner of drefling afparagus beds is every
year the fame, viz. Keeping them fK;m weeds,,
digging the alleys in October or November, and
forking the beds in the fpring, &c. only oblcrve
every other yc;ir to lay a little rotten dung all over
the beds, and buryiiig fome in the alleys, alfo, ac
the time of digging them up ; this will preferve the
ground in good heart to maintain the roots with vi-
gour : and bv this management a plot of good af-
paragus may be continued for ten or tvveae years
in cutting, and will produce good buds. The al-
leys being propofcd three feet, which is -wider thaa
is commonly pra£lifed, a crop of beans m.ay be
raifed in each v/ithout prejudicing the roots of the
afparagus ; and by the beds they will be protected
from the cutting v/inds in the fpring.
Afparagus, by being planted about fix weeks on a
hot-bed (well prepared) before it is wanted, v.'il!
produce very good crops; and by having a fuc-
ceflion of thefe beds, afparagus may be raifed for
the table all the winter. The buds of this plant
are extremely diuretic, which is difcoverable by
the fmcll of the urine ; but the roots are yet more
fo, becaufe tliey have more of the fait from whence
they derive that quality, than any part which grows
above ground ; to which it cannot rife in fuch
plenty, as the root itfelf receives it from the earth :
and this may pafs for a reafon why moft roots are
more endued v/ith this property than their plants.
This is defervedly reckoned one of the five open-
ing roots, and is good in all compofitions intended
to cleanfe the vifcera ; efpecially where obftruclions
threaten the jaundice or dropfy. There arc feverai
forts of afparagus, tv/o of which are wild. One is
diftinguiflied by C. Bauhine, fyl-jiftrh tenaijjimo
folio^ which grows about Alontpcllier in France,
differing little from the garden fort ; the other,
petvcca et corruda folia ocutls^ growing in fome parts
of Italy ; the tops of which are eaten as ours here,
having alfo afcribed to them the fame virtues.
ASPECT, among gardeners, fignifies the fame
with expofure. See the article E.xposure.
The word is formed from the Latin, afpc£ius^
which is derived from a[phio, to view.
Aspect, in afrronomy, fign.ifies the fituatioii
that each planet or ftar bears to another, and is u-
fually di\ided into five by aftronomers in alma-
nacks, h~. The firft is called Sextile, and marked
thus if:, fignifying that the planets or ftars arc 6o
degrees diltant from each other. The fecond is
called
ASP
ASP
called Qiiartile, or qu;ulial.c, marked thus D, fig-
nifying that they are cjo degrees diftaiu from one
another ; thus we fay, the moon is in her quadra-
ture when fnc is go degrees from the fun. The
third is called the Trine, marked thus A, denot-
ing the diflance of 120 degrees, or the third part
of a circle. The fourth is called the Oppofition, .
i\nd marked thus g , {hewing the objects to be 180
degrees diftaiu. The fifth, which is thcConiunc-
tion, marked thus (5 , denotes that the two objcds
iu-e in the fame degree.
Aflrologers divide the afpefts, with regard to
their influence, into benign, malign, and indiffe-
rent. 'I'he Qiiartile afpeit they fuppofe of an im-
jierfeift enmity, fignifying, that the perfons influ-
enced thereby may have jars at feme times, but
fuch as may be reconciled again. The Trine and
Sextile are accounted afpecfs of perfect love and
friendfhip, and the Oppofition of psrfeifl hatred ;
but the afpeft of Conjunftion denotes either good
or bad, according as the planets are friends or ene-
mies. Befides thele feme make many more, fuch
as the partile, dexter, finilfer, octile, quincunx,
quintile, biquintile, &c. but thefe are only ufed
'.imong aftrologers, who in this age are little re-
^^^arded.
ASPEN-TREE, in botany, the poplar with
trembling leaves. See Poplar.
ASPER, in grammar, an accent peculiar to the
Greek language, marked thus ( ' ) and importing
that the letters over which it is placed, ought to be
firoiigly afpiratcd, or pronounced as if an b was
joined with them.
AsPER, or AspRE, in commerce, a Tarkilh
coin, three of which make a modine, and worth
fomething more than our halfpenny.
ASPERA Jrtt'ii.i, trachea, or wind-pipe, in
::natomy, a large canal, partly cartilaginous, and
partly membranous, fituated anteriorly in the lov/er
part of the neck, whence it runs down into the
thorax, between the two pleur:e, through the up-
jier fpace left between the duplicature of the medi-
iifiinum, behind the tiiyrnus.
Having reached as low as the curv.iture of tlie
aorta, it divides into two l.Ueral prati, ojie toward
the right hand, the other tov/ard th: left, which
enter the lungs, and are diftributed through their
Uibftance. Thefe two branches are called bron-
chia, and th?t on. the right fide is fliorter tK?-ii that
uf the left ; whereas the right pulmonary artery
is the laiigefi.
':;The trachea, is made up of fegments of circles
or cartilaginous Koons, dUpofed in fuch a manner,
as to form a canal open on the back part, the car-
ulages not going quite round ; but this opeiu'ng is
filled by a foft glandular membrane, which com-
jleres the circumference of the canal.
Each circle is about the twelfth part of an inch
iij- breadth, and about a quarter of that fpace m
4
thicknefs. Their extremities are round ; and tlicy
are fituated horizontally above each other, finall in-
terftices being left between them, and the lower
edge of the fuptrior fegments being turned tov/ard
the upper edge of thofe next below them.
They are all connefted by a very {Irong elailic
membranous ligament fixed to their edges. The
firft three fegments have been found united into one,
bent alternately in two different places, according
to its breadth. Sometimes two are continuous in
the fame manner.
The canal of the afpera arteria is lined on the
infide by a particular membrane, which appears to
be partly flelhy or mufcular, and partly ligamentary,
perlbrated by an infinite number of fmall holes,
inore or lefs imperceptible, through which a muci-
laginous fluid continually palTes, to defend the
inner furface of the trachea aaainfi: the acrimonv
of the air which we breathe.
This fluid comes from fmall glandular bodies
difperfed through the fubftance of the membrane,
but efpecially from glands fomething larger than
the former, which lie on the outer or pofterior fur-
face of that flrong membrane bv which the circum-
ference of the can.il is compleated. The fame
flructure is obfervable in the ramifications of the
trachea, from the greateft to the fmalleft. IVin-
Jliius Anatsmv.
ASPERIf'OLIATE, or Asperifolious, a-
mong botanifls, fuch plants as are rough leaved,
l>aving their leaves placed alternately on their italks,
and a monopetalous flower divided into fi\'e parts.
The buglol's, borage, &c. are of this clafs.
The word is formed from the Latin, rjpcr, rough,
and folium, a leaf.
ASPERITY, the inequality of the furface of'
any body, which hinders the hand from paffirg
over it freely.
According to the teftimony of blind perfons, we
have reafon to believe that every colour hath its-
particular decree of afperity.
ASPERULA, woodrooftc, in botany, a genus-
of plants, the flower of v/hich confilts of one-
;)?tal, divided into four fegments at the limb; Its
Iruit ii^coinpofed of two roundifh, dry berries, ad—
herinz tD:)-eth.ar, in eac!) of which, is a fiiri-le feed-
of the furic round iilifliape.
The leaves and roots of this pl.int are eReemed-
aperient and diuretic, and confcquently prefcribed
in the jaundice, and obftruifions of the vifcera.
ASPriAl,ITES, a term applied by fome anato-
■mifts to the fifth vctebra of the loins. See the ar-.
tide Vertebra.
ASFH.'iLTUM, BUu7nen Jndiaaar, or Jews-
pitch, in natural hiilory, a lolid, light, bitumi-
nous fubftance, found floating on the furface of the
Dead-fea, and dug out of the earth in feveral parts
of Egypt.
It is of a black colour on the oatfide, and adeep-
fbining^
ASP
fhinitig black within ; of very little taftc, and
fcarcely any fmell, unlcfs heated, when it emits a
ftiong pi'chy one. It is not foluble either in
vinous ipirits or oils, and melts but imperfectly,
and v/ith difficulty, leaving, on being biu'nt, a
large quantity of afhes.
Abundance of virtues are attributed to this
bicumen ; but has for many years been difregarded
in this country. The watchmakers ule a compo-
fition of afphaitum, fine lamp-black, and oil of
fpike, or turpentine, for drav/ing ths black figures
on dial plates : and the engravers ufe a compofition,
in which afphaitum is an ingredient, as a ground
for their copper-plates, v/hcn they etch with aqua-
fortis.
ASPHODELUS, afphodel or king's-fpear, in
botany, a genus of hcxandrious plants, whofe
flower is liliaceous and monopetalous, divided into
fix fegments, and contains a globofe trilocular
flefhv capfule, filled with triangular feeds.
There are feveral fpecies of the afphodel. The
common yellow fort, which is direfted for ufe in
medicine, hath roots compofed of many thick
flefhy fibres, and are joined into a head at the top,
from whence arife flrong round fingle Italks, near
three feet high, which are furniflied their whole
length with long triangular leaves, which are
hollow, and of a fea-green colour ; the upper part
of the Ihilk is adorned half-way with yellow ftar-
fhaped flowers, which be^in towards the bottom,
and are followed by others above, fo that on the
fame fpikc there is often a fucceffion of flowers
for a month ; it flowers in June, and the feeds are
ripe in autumn.
It makes a pretty ornament in fiower-gardens, and
is eafily increaled by parting the roots in autumn.
In medicine it is but little ufed.
ASPHURELAT./^, in natural hiilory, femi-
metallic foflils, which are fufible by fire, but not
malleable in the pureft ftate. There are five bodies
belonging to this clafs of foflils, each of which
makes a diftinft genus ; namely, antimony, bif-
niuth, cobalt, zinc, and mercury, or quickfilver.
See each under its proper article.
ASPIRATE, in grammar, is a particular note,
or mark, made ufe of by the Grecians, which im-
ports that the letter over which it is placed, fiiould
be pronounced as if an h was prefixed to it : as
thus, 'iiptisf.
ASPIRATION, the maimer of pronouncing a
word which is afpirated.
ASPIS, or As?, in natural hiilory ; fee Asp.
ASPLENIUM, fpleenvv-ort, in botany, a fmall
builiy plant of the fern kind, and grows wild upon
old moifl: fiiady walls, in divers parts of England.
It confifts of capillary blackifli roots, and long
narrow leaves, cut alternately down to the mid-
rib, into a number of oblong obtufe narrow fcc-
»3
ASS
tions, with broad bafes ; it is dcftitute of ftalk or
flower; but the fructification is arranged in
clu.lers, and difpofcd in ftraight lines under the
diflc of the leaf.
The leaves of fpleenwort have an herbaceous,
mucilaginous, roughilh tafte, and no confiderable
fmell : they ftand recommended as a pectoral
fimilar to maidenhair, to which they have been
frequently joined in infufions and apozems. for-
merly it palled for a detergent, and w.xs reckoned a
great fcowerer of the fpleen ; from whence it is
luppofed to come by the name of fpleenwort ; and
from obfervations made, it appears to gently carry
off fand, gravel, and cleanfe the kidneys, al'aying
pains in the urinary pafiages. The way to ufe the
leaves, is to drink infufions of them in theinorn-
ning as tea, with the addition of fuch other medi-
cines as particular cafes require.
ASPOLATHUS, in botany, the fame with
acacia. See Acacia.
ASPRE, or AsPER. See Asper.
ASS, Jjinus, in natural hiftory, a well-known
animal, whofe internal parts and (kcleton exactlv
refemble thofe of the horfe ; but they may be rea-
dily diftinguifhed from each other by the firlt
glance of the eye ; for the head is larger in propor-
tion to the body ; the ears much longer, and the
forehead and temples furniflied with longer hair ;
the eyes are not fo prominent, the lower eye-lid
more flat, and the upper-lip more pointed and pen-
dent. Befides, the withers are not fo high, the
back-bone generally llands more out, and tiie but-
tocks are higher than the withers ; add to this, that
the tail is without long hair, from the root to
about three quarters of its length, though it is fur-
niflied with it at the extremity ; the rhane likcwife
is fnorter.
The large head, the forehead and temples
loaded v/ith hair, the eyes funk into tlie head, and
at a great diilance from each other, with the muz-
zle prominent towards the end, give an air of
ftupidity to an afs, that never appears in an horfe ;.
nor is the fliape, when taken all together, by far
fo beautiful as that of this noble animal ; his paces,
likewife are quite different, and he is much more
flow and fluggifh. Notwithftanding all this, the
afs v/ould be of great value, if horfes were not fo
common ; and if he was taken as much care ot',.
he would, in all probability, turn out to a much
greater advantage tiian he does at prefent. But wc
muft not forget that an afs is not without fome
good qualities ; for he feems to know his maftcr,
and can diftinguifh him from all other men, tho'
he lias been ever fo ill-treated ; he alfo knows the
roads he has been ;iccuftcmed to, and can find them
without a guide. He has good eyes, a fine fmell,
and an excellent ear. He walks, trots, and gal-
lops like a horfe ; but his pace in all other refpedls
P p p is
ASS
is much (lower, and he is fooner tired. The ?Si
brays in a very difagreeable manner ; the flie-afs
has a more ftirill and piercing cry.
Of all animals that are covered with hair, the
afs is leaft fubjedl to vermin ; which may perhaps
proceed from the hardnefs and drynefs of his fkin ;
and for the fame reafon, he is lels fcnfible of the
ftrok.es of a whip, and the ftinging of flics, than a
horfe. The teeth fall out, and grow at the fame
age, iind in the fame manner as in a horfe, and he
has the fame marks in his mouth. Afles generally
breed in May and June, and in the tenth month
the milk appears in the dugs of the female ; but
fhe does not foal till the twelfth month; feven
days after which, fhe is ready for the male a2;ain.
She always brings forth one at a time; at leaft
there are fcv/ inftances to the contrary.
The afs, like the horfe, is three or four years in
growing, and will live till twenty-five or thirty.
They fleep much lefs than a horfe, and never lie
down for that purpofe, unlefs they are very much
tired. In general, they have much better health
than a horle, and are fubje£i to fewer difeafes.
Travellers inform us, that there are two forts of
afles in Periui, one of which is ufed for burdens,
they being flow and heavy ; and the other, kept
like horfcs, for the faddle ; for they have fmooth
hair, carry their heads well, and are much quicker
iji their motion ; but when they ride them, they
fit nearer their buttocks than when on a horfe.
They are dreffed like horfes, and are taught to
amble like them ; but they generally flit their nof-
trils to give them more room for breathing. Dr.
Rufl'cl likewifc tells us, they have tv/o forts in
Syria, one of which is like our.";, an'd the other
very large, with remarkable long ears ; but they
are both put to the fame ufe, that of carrying
burdens.
The onager, or wild-afs, has been, by fome
authors, confounded with the zebra, but very im-
properly, the latter being a diftinft fpecies ; for
the onager is not ftreaked like the zebra, nor is
his fnape fo beautiful. Some have alfo been of
opinion, that the wild afs is not a diftinct animal
from the common afs ; but all judicious travellers
that have taken notice of them, affirm the con-
trary. They are faid to be very fwift ; and when
tlicv fee a man, will make a bound, and imme-
diately fly av/ay : fo that the only method of taking
them, is by traps and gins. They have much the
forr.e ftiape as common affes, hut are of a brighter
colour, and a white lift runs from the head to tlic
tail. Of the hide of thefe afits, and particularly
of that part next the rump, they make that excel-
lent leather v^'hich we call lliagrcen, and which is
put to i'o many curious ufcs. ,
Asses A:Iiii, the milLcf the animal defcribed in
the preceding article; and greatly efteenjed in
ccnrimptioiis, ^-c.
7
A SS
ASSA DuLCis, and Foetida. See Asa.
ASSARON, or Omer, a meafure of capacity,
in ufe among the Hebrews, containing five pints.
ASSART, J£eriutn, in law, an ofiencc com-
mitted in a forcft, by pulling up the trees by the
roots.
This is a greater trefpafs than wafte ; though a
perfon may iue out a licence to alFart ground in a
foreli ; that is, to render it arable : and hence fome
diftritts are called aUarted lands ; and formerly the
owners paid affart rents to the crov/n for them.
ASSASSIN, a perfon who kills another fecretly,
or by r.ttackino- his enemy unprepared. It is alfo
applied to a perlbn who, for the fake of fome ftipu-
lated reward, undertakes to murder a perfon to
whom he is a ftranger, in order to revenge the
quarrel of another.
ASSAULT, in hw, a violent injury offered to
a man's perfon, being of a higher nature than bat-
tery ; for it may be committed by offering a blow,
or pronouncing a terrifying fpeech.
Thus, in cafe a perfon threatens to beat another,
or lies in wait to do it, if the other is hindered in
his bufmefs, and receives lofs, it will be an aflliult
for which an action may be brought, and damages
recovered.
Not only ftriking, but thrufting, pufhing, throw-
ing llones, or even drink in the lace of any per-
fon, are deemed affaults. But in all thefe cal'es, a
man may plead in his juftification the defence of
his perfon or goods, father, mother, wife, mailer,
&c.
Assault, in the military art, implies a furious
effort made to carry a fortified poit, camp, or for-
trefs, wherein the affailants do not fcreen them-
fclves behind any works : v/hile the afl'ault lafts,
the batteries ceafe firing for fear of killing their
own men.
ASSAY, in metallurgy, the trial of the good-
nefs and purity of metals and metallic lub-
ftances.
Assay Oven, or DoclmajVical Ftirnacf, a furnace
ufed in alTaying metals.
It is conftruiSted in the following manner: i.
I\[ake with iron plates, a hollow quadrangular
prifm, H, H, (Plate XII. fir. 2.) eleven inches
broad, and nine inches high, ending at the top in
a hollow quadrangular pyramid i, (even inches
high, and terminating in an aperture fevcn inches
fquare. But this prifm muft be clofed at the bot-
tom with an iron plate A, v/hich ferves as a bafis.
2. Near the bottcm make a door A, three inches
high, and five inches broad, leading to the afh-
hole. 3. Above this, and about fix inches from
the bafc, make another door C, forming the feg-
ment of a circle, four inches broad at its baiis,
and three inclies and a half high in the middle.
4. Faften three iron plates H, K, K, on the fore
part
ASS
part cf the furnace ; let the lowermofl oi thcfe
platcf, whicli is eleven inches long, and half an
inch broad, be faftencd v/ith rivets to the bottom
and fore part of the furnace, in fuch a manner,
that there may be a groove fo wide, between the
upper edge of the faid plate, and the fide of the
furnace, that the flidcrs B, B, of the lower door,
may be moved eafily backwards and forwards there-
in, by means of the handles O, O : thefe Aiders
muft be made of a thicker iron plate than the other
parts of the furnace. The fecoiid iron plate muft
be alfo faftened v/ith ii\et3 in the fpace between tlie
two doors, and dired^ly parallel to the former, in fuch
a manner, tliat both the upper and lower edge of it
may form a hollow groove with the fide of the fur-
nace. The lower of thefe grooves ferves to receive
the upper edges of the Aiders B,B, that fliut the
lower door: the upper groove is to receive the inferior
edges cf the Aiders D,D, belonging to the door C.
The third plate, which is like the firft, muft be
nvctcd clofe above the upper door, in fuch a man-
ner, that its lower fide may form a groo\e v/ith
the ilde of the furnace. 5. Make two Aiders D, D,
to Aide ill the above grooves, by nieans of the
handles O, O. In thefe Aiders muft be two holes
near the top ; the one, marked E, muft be about
one fifth of an inch broad, and one inch and a half
long ; the other, marked F, a circular aperture
one inch high, and tv/o inches broad. 5. Let
live round holes one inch in diameter be bored in
the furnace, two in the fore part marked G, G, and
two in the back part, all at the height of five inches
from the bottom, and each of them three inches
and a half from the neareft fide of the furnace :
and a fifth hole K, at the height of one inch above
the top of the upper doer C. 7. Let the infide of
the furnace be furniftied with iron hooks, about
three inches from each other, and projefting about
half an inch, in order to faften the lute, with
which the infide of the furnace muft be covered.
9. Let a moveable hollow quadrangular pyramid
M, three inches high, be fitted to the upper aper-
ture L, of the furnace ; feven inches broad at the
bafe, and terminating at top in a circular tube N,
three inches in diameter, two inches high, and the
upper diameter fomewhat lefs than the bottom,
l^his prominent tube ferves to fupport a funnel or
fiue, fitted to it, and compofed of iron plates, two
feet high. This funnel is only neceAary when a
very ftiong fire is required. The pyramidical cover
M, muft have two handles P,P, faftened -to it, in
order to put it on, or take it ofi", as the operation
may require. And to hinder this cover from being
eafily thrown down, let an iron plate be riveted to
theriglit and loft fides of the upper r.art of the fur-
nace, and turn down towards the infide, fo as to
form a grove, into which the lateral edges of the
cover may enter, and Aide forwards and backwards
at pleafure. A fquare ledge of thick iron plate
ASS
muft be faftened to the top of the upper ledge of
the lower door A, in order to fupport the grate
and lute. The grate muft be compofed of fniall
iron bars, half an inch thick, three fourths of an
inch diftant from each other, and placed edgeways
on the ledge. The lute muft be about three quar-
ters of an inch thick, and compofed of Windfor
loam, or French clay, moiftened with ox blood
diluted with water. In order to perform an opera-
tion in this oven, two iron bars an inch thick,
and of a proper length, muft be thruft through the
four holes G, G, above defcribed, in order to fup-
port the muffle introduced through the upper aper-
ture of the furnace.
ASSAYING, the art of difcovering how much
pure metal is contained in any ore ; or the propor-
tion of the feveral ingredients in any mixed metal.
For the methods of afTaying the feveral ir.etals,
&c. fee the articles Gold, Silver, Lead, Cop-
per, &c.
Assaying of weights and meafures, implies the
examining the feveral v.eights and meafures by the
clerk of the market.
ASSAY-MASTER, an ofKcer appointed by cer-
tain corporations, to make juft aflays of all gold
and filver brought to him for that purpofe, and
make a true report thereof.
ASSEMBLY, in military affairs, implies the
fecond beating of the drum before a march, on
which the foldiers ftrike their tents, roll them up,
and fiand to arms.
ASSENT, Jj/en/iis, in a general fenfe, implies
an agreement to fomething propofed or afHrjned by
another.
Royal AssEKT, the approbation given by the
king to a bill in parliament, after v/hich it be-
comes a law.
ASSIENTO, in commerce, a contraci between
the king of Spain and fome other power for tran-
fporting negroes into the Spanifti dominioni in
America.
The word is Spanifli, and ngnifies a farm.
ASSIGN, in common law, a perfon to whom
a thing is afli^ned or made over.
ASSIGNEE, in law, a perfon appointed by
another to do an acl, tranfavSl fome bunr.efs, or
enjoy a particular thing.
AAlgnees may be appointed either by deed or by
law : by deed, where the leflee of a farm afligns
the fame to another ; by law, where the law makes
an aflighee without any appointment of the perfon
intitled ; as an executor is allignee in law to the
teftator, and an adminiftrator to an inteftatc. But
when there is an aAignee by deed, the afTignee in
law is not allowed.
ASSIGNING, in a general fenfe, implies the
making over the right of one perfon to another.
In a particular fenfe, it fignifies the pointing out
of fomething, as an error, falfe judgment, nr
ASS
ASS
vafte : tut in thefe cafes it muft be' fhewn wherein
the error is committed, where and how the judg-
ment is unjuft, and where the wafte is com-
mitted.
ASSIGNMENT, in law, the transferring the
interefl one has in a leafe, or other thing, to ano-
ther peri'on.
ASSISE, in old law books, is defined to be an
afiembly of knights and other fubilantial men, to-
gether with the jullice, in a certain place, and at
a certain time : but the word in its prefent accepta-
tion, implies a court, place, or time, when and
where the writs and proceffes, whether civil or cri-
minal, are decided by judge and jury.
In this fenfe, affife is either general or fpecial ;
general, when judges go their refpeiSlive circuits,
with commifllon to take all affife : fpecial, when a
commlflion is granted to particular perfons for tak-
ing an affife upon one or two difteifins only.
"By magna charta, juftices fhall be fent through
e\ery county, once a year, who, with the knights
of the feveral fliires, fliall take affife of novel dif-
feifin. With regard to the general affife, all the
counties of England are divided into fix circuits,
and two judges are affigned by the king's commif-
fion to every circuit, who now hold the affifes
twice a year, in every county except Middlefex
and the counties palatine. Thefe judges have five
feveral commiffions. i. Of oyer and terminer,
by which they are empowered to try treafons, felo-
nies, &c. 2. Of goal-delivery, which empowers
them to try every prifoner in goal, be his offence
wliat it will. 3. Of aff.fe, which gives them au-
thority to do right upon writs, brought by perfons
wrongfully thrufl out of their lands and pofieffions.
4. Of nifi prius, by which civil caufes come to an
iilue in the courts at Weftminfter, are tried in the
vacation by a jury of twelve men, in the county
where the caufe of adion arifes. 5. A commiffion
of the peace in every county of the cu'cuit : and all
juilices of the peace and fheriffs are to attend
upon the judges, otherwifs they are liable to be
fined.
Assise is alfo ufed in feveral other fignifications ;
as I. For a jury, where affifes of novel diireifin are
tried, and the "pannels of affife (hall be arraigned.
2. For a writ iffued for the recovery of things im-
moveable, of which a perfon and his anceftors have
been diffeized. 3. For an ordinance or flatute :
thus the affife of the foreft is a fratute concerning
orders to be obferved in the king's foreit. 4. For
a quantity of wheat, bread, &c. prefcribed by the
flatute.
Assise of Novel Dijpiftn, is a writ that lies
where a tenant in fee fimple, fee tail, or for term
of life, is put out and diffeized of his lands, tene-
ments, rents, common of paltures, common way,
^SISE of Mori (rAncefor is a writ which lies
where a perfon's father, mother, brother, &c.
died, feized of lands and tenements in fe?, and
after either of their deaths a ftranger abated.
Assise of Utrum lieth for an ecclefiaftic againft
a layman, or a layman againft an ecclefiaftic, for
lands or tenements doubtful whether they be lay-fee
or free-alms.
ASSIZE. See Assise.
ASSOCIATION, the acl of aflbciating, or
conftituting a fociety, or partnerlhip, in order to
carry on fome fchenie or affair with more advantage.
The word is Latin, affociatio, and com.pounded
of nd, to, and Jocio, to join.
AssociATioM of Ideas, is where two or more
ideas conftantly and immediately follow one ano-
ther, fo that the one fhall almoli infallibly produce
the other, whether there be any natural relation be-
tween tliem or not.
When there is a real affinity or connexion be-
tween ideas, it is the excellence of the mind to be
able to coUeft, compare, and range them in order
in its enquiries : but, on the contrary, where there
is none, nor any caufe to be affigned for their ac-
companying each other, but what is owing to mere
accident or habit, the affociation is unnatural, be-
comes a great imperteflion, and is too often a
principal fource of error or wrong deductions in
reafoning.
Association, in law, is a writ or patent fent
by the king, either of his own motion, or at the
fuit of the plaintiff, to the judges of affife, to
have others afibciated with them to take the affife.
Upon this patent of affociation, the king fends his
■ writ to the jullices of affife, cc.mmanding them to
admit thofe that are fo fent. ■
ASSONANCE,- in poetry and rhetoric, is a
term made ufe of to exprefs a fimilarity of found
in the final words of any particular phrafes, or
verfes, without their being exactly in rhime ; thus,
for inftance, in the following lines of Spencer,
And thou, Menalcas, fraught with treachery,
Shouldft well be known for fuch thy villainy.
There is a jingle but no rhime; which is regarded
in Englifli as a very great fault, v.'hether it happens
in verfe or profe. It was efteemed by the Romans
as an elegance, and accordingly we meet with it
very frequently in Cicero. It is ftill in ufe among
the Spaniards, where a refemblancc of found lerves
in (lead of a proper and natural rhime : thus, ligera,
ciihhrta, t/errff, inefa, are employed to anfwer each
other as ajfouant rhimes, in regard they have each
an e in the penultima, and an a in the laft fyllabie.
ASSUMPSIT, in law, a voluntary or verbal
promife, whereby a perfon undertakes to perform
fome agreement, or pay'a certain fum to another.
Thus, where a man fells goods to another, the
law makes the affumpfit ; and promifcs he fhall pay
for them.
AS SUMP-
AST
AST
ASSUMPTION, -a fcilival in the Romifh
church, ccltbratcil in honour of the miraculous
.ifcenAon of the Virgin Mary, body and foul, into
heaver,.
The word is Latin, ajjumpuc, and compounded
of ad, to, and/tfffi7, to take.
Assumption, in logic, is the minor or fccoiid
proportion in a catcgciical fyllogifm.
Arsup/iPTiON is alfo fometimcs ufcd to imply a
coiifcquence drawn from the propofiticns which
compofe an argument.
ASSUMPTIVE y/;v;w, in heraldry, arc fuch as
a perfon has a right to ailume in confequcnce of
fome noble and gallant sclion.
ASSURANCE, or Insurance. See Insu-
rance.
ASSURRITANI, in ecclenaflical hidcry, a
feet of heretics, v/ho fprang up in Africa, during
thi reign of Conftantius, and were a branch of
thcDonatilb. See Donatjst.
/\STAROTH, or Ashtaroth, in antiquity,
a goddefs of the Sidonians.
The word is Syriac, and fignifles fheen, efpe-
cially when their udders are turgid with milk.
From the fecundity of thofe animals, which in
Svria continue to breed a long time, they formed
the notion of a deity, whom they called Altajoth,
or Allarte. Sec Astarte.
ASTARTE, the fingular of Aftaroth, a god-
defs of the Sidonians, and called, in Scripture, the
Ql^ieen of Heaven.
This deity is faid to have confecrated the city of
Tyre by d«pofiting in it a fallen ftar : and hence,
pel haps, came the notion of a liar, or globe of
light, which at certain times darted from Mount
Libanus, near her temple at Aphac, and plunged
jtfelf into the river Adonis.
JMr. Fourmont, who has endeavoured to trace
inoft of the pagan divinities mentioned in Scrip-
ture, fuppofes the Sidonian Aftarte or Afiarotli,
to be the fame with tlie Rachel of the Bible ; be-
caufe the formsr in the Syriac language iinplies
fhecp, and the latter has the fame figniScation in
the Htbrev/.
ASTA'i'i, in ecckfiadical hiilory, a feifb cf
■heretics in the ninth century, the followers of one
Sergius, v.'ho renewed the errors of the Mr.ni-
chc -s.
'I'he word is Greek, tf.ra'/s.'j ^''J compounded of
!?,, priv. and tf;;y.i, to (land firm ; beeaufe they were
: j:iVirkable for their in.conllancy.
ASTER, ilarwort, in botany, a genus of plants
producing a radiated flower, the difk of which is
<.<;mpofed of fcveral funntl-ihaped hermaphrodite
f.ofculcs, which fprcad open at tlie top in five parts,
and contiiin five capillary filaments, topped with
cylindrical antherae, with an oblong germen fup-
porting a filiform ftyle. The rays or border compofe
the female {lofculcs, which are lanceolated and in-
13
d,e-nted in three parts at the extremity, and are tlur
fame as the hermaphrodite in other icfpcd^s, except
wanting the ilamina ; the receptacle is plain and
naked, and the feeds are of an oblong figure, oval
at top, and winged with down.
There are various fpccies of aflcrs, feme of
which arc perennial, and others which arc annual ;
but the mcfl beautiful and grcatcll in eflccm is the
China after, ccmmcnly called the queen Margaret,
of which there arc three forts ; one with purple
fiowers, another with pink-coloured f.owcrs, and
the third with white Rowers : of ;ach of lliefe forts,
there is a variety producing double fcwcrs, v.hich
are moll eftecnicd. Thefe plants are raifed on
fiight hot- beds in the fpring, in order to fciward
their growth, fo as to produce flov/ers early cnougli
in autumn, that their feeds may be ripened. The
common perennial forts are increafed by parting
their roots in autumn, fome of which are very
troublefome to be eradicated, if fuffcrcd to run
much, and aie commonly called Michaelmas
daizics.
A.STERIA, in natural hiflory, a beautiful pel-
lucid gem of variable colours, v/hen viewed in dif-
ferent lights. It is generally knov^■n among iewel-
lers by the name of cat's-eye. See Cat's-Eye.
AsTERiA is alfo the name cf an extraneous
foilil, called in Englilh the flar-llone. See Star-
Stone.
ASTERISK, a mark or charafler in the form
of a fmall liar (*) placed over any word or fen-
tcnee, to render it more confpicuous, or refer the
reader to the margin, or elfewhere, for a quotation,
explanation, or the like.
The word is a diminutive of the Greek, itri-p,
a liar.
ASTERISCUS. See Buphthalmum.
ASTEPvISM, in allronomy, the fame with con-
fiellation. Sec Constellation.
ASTERN, in the marine, any diilance behind
a fhip, or in diredl oppofition to that point of the
compafs which is a-head, and to which her ilcni
points ; as when north is a-head, fouth is a-llern.
See A-kead.
A-STKMA, in medicine, a painful, difficult,
and laborious refpiration, occafioncd by an intoler-
able flraitnefs of the praecordia, which, by im-
peding the free circulation of the blood through the
lunfs, endancers a fuftbcaiion.
'l"hc v/ord is Greek, oij.J//.^, and derived from
aa, to breathe.
There are feveral forts of allhmas : one difficul-
ty of breathing proceeds from corpulency, and
a \ cry full habit of bodv ; and is moll apparent
after violent motion ; but this is a flight diforder,
and free from all danger. The next is the pitui-
. tous cllhma, attended with a moill cough, and tlie
bringing up pituitcus m.atter ; it attacks the.patitnt
at all hours, and in all pofiticns of the body j'^nd
Q_q q is
AST
is owing to a plenty of a vifcid mucus fluffing the
veficuls of the lungs, and hindering the free in-
grefs and egrefs of the air through them. Another
is owing to the convulfive contraction of the parts
defigned for refpiration, and proceeds from various
caufes, both within and without the thorax ;
and this is called the dry, flatulent, or convulfive
aflhma.
The longer this difeafe continues, the more
fharp and violent all the fymptoms become. The
patient's body grows more coftive, and the urine is
thin and watery ; mofl; commonly the feet fwell,
then the hands, face, and back ; there is a numb-
nefs of the arms ; the countenance is wan and
livid, or of a leaden colour : then comes on a little
fever, which grows worfe in the evening ; the
■whole body is cacheiflic, with anoedcmatous fwell-
ing of the feet ; there is a dropfy of the breaft,
or an afcites, or anafarca ; at leall there is a paify
on one fide, or of the arm ; or inftead thereof, a
palfy of the eyelids. This dileafe is lilcevvife called
by lome, a fuffocating afthma ; by others the ner-
vous afthma.
When the difeafe is recent, and is owing only
to the fpafmodic contradlion of the prnecordia, there
are hopes of a cure ; cfpecially if the matter
of the gout, ulcers, and exanthemata, are fent
back to their proper feats. When the menfes or
haemorrhoids, which were flopped, return, it yields
relief, and if the difeafe was not too far advanced,
perfeiSi: health. If it is inveterate, or ill-managed,
it brings on a dropfy of the bread, obftru£lions
of the lower belly, cedematous iwellings of the
feet, a cachexy, and an univerCal dropfy. In
general, all convulfive afthmas portend a fudden
exit, or fuffocation, efpecially if there is a polypus
of the heart ; if it continues long, then the patient
will die of the dropfy ; in which cafe it will be
foon fatal : when there is a flow fever, an unequal
intermitting puKe, a palfy of the arms, a con-
tinual palpitation of the lieart, little urine, a fvn-
cope or fwooning, then death is at hand. Some
are carried off by an inflammation of the lungs,
and the more grievous the difeafe the more languid
the pulfe. The afthma, in old perfons, continues
till death : that which is caufed by a diflocation of
the Nertebn-E cannot be cured till thev are reduced.
The more \iolcnt the acceflion, the longer it lafts,
and the oftener it returns with a greater danger of
fulFocation.
In the paroxyfm, bccaufe the body is generally
bound, and the wind and humours are carried up-
v/ards, the fpeedieft afliftance is from emollient and
carminative clyfters.
If there is occafion, it may be repeated two or
three times : afterwards ufe friiflions of the feet,
which have an incredible -efficacy ; alfo let them be
put into warm v.'ater ; for the feet are almoft always
rofd. When thcie is a violent fpafm about the
AST
praecordia, hot fomentations are neceflary, or blad-
ders filled with hot milk, and applied to the part
affeiSed ; likewife nervous liniments are very ufe-
ful, rubbed in with a warm hand.
Out of the fit, if it proceeds from too great a
congeftion of blood about the breaft, or from a
polypus of the heart, bleeding in the foot will be
proper, as alfo fcarifications ; in a fuppreffion of the
hemorrhoids, leeches fhbuld be applied to the
anus ; as alfo gentle laxatives to cleanfe the prima;
\\x : likewife bodily motion, flender diet, and foft
drink. If there are hypochondriacal or flatulent
fymptoms, then gentle laxatives will be the more
neceflary, together with clyfters. When the men-
fes or hemorrhoids are fupprclled, then nothing is
better than the Bath waters, both for bathing and
drinking ; or the waters of Selters taken warm and
mixed with milk.
When the afthma proceeds from the driving
back fome impure matter from the (kin, or from
the drying up of ulcers, and the humour is tranf-
lated to the nervous parts of the breaft, then gentle
diaphoretics will be neceflary to fend it back to the
fuperncies ot the bodv.
ASTRj^A, in mythology, the goddefs of Juf-
tice. She was the daughter of Jupiter and The-
mis, and came down from heaven in the golden
age ; but when the manners of men became cor-
rupt, fhe left the earth and returned to hea^•en.
AsTRjEA, in aftronomy, the fame with Virgo.
See Virgo.
ASTRAGAL, in architefture, a fmall round
mouldinjr in form of a rin;i, fervins as an orna-
ment at the top and bottom of columns. Some-
times the aftragal is put to feparate the fafcife of
the architrave ; in which ca'e it is ornamented
with beads and berries, chaplet-wife. It is like-
wife ufed above and below the lifts, adjoining im-
mediately to the dye, or fquare of the pedeftal.
See Column'.
Astragal, in gunncrv, a round moulding,
encompafling the cannon about fix inches from its
mouth.
ASTRAGALUS, wild liquorice, or milk-vetch,
in botany, a genus of plants producing papiliona-
ceous flowers, which contain ten filaments, nine
of which are joined together, and one ftandsilngle,
and topped with roundifh anther.t : the germen is
tapering, and becomes an oblong bilocular pud,
containing a row of reniform feeds. It is faid to
be diuretic, and to incrcale tlie milk of nurfes.
ASTRAL, in aftronomy, is fomething belong-
ing to, or conne6led with the ftars ; as aftral year
is the fame as fyderial year.
ASTRINGENTS, among phyficians, fuch
medicines as are of an aftriniicnt or bindinp-
quality.
The word is formed from the Latin, od, to, and
Jir'mgo, to bind.
HofFmai^
AST
AST
Hoffman rery judicioudy obfcrvcs, that aftriii-
gents are very proper to rellore a tone and elafticity
to the animal tibrcs, when debilitated by difeafes,
intemperance, or accident : but they are very fcl-
dom proper v/ithout a previous attenuation of the
juices, and a courfe of deobltruent medicines;
becaule obftruJlions arc more firmly riveted, and
the vifcid juices circulated with more difficulty,
when the diameters of the velTels arc conftriiited by
aftringents.
ASTRORITES, the ftar-ftone, in natural
hiflory ; fee the article Star-Stone.
ASTROLABE, among the antients, was the
fame with what we now call an armillary fphere.
It was alfo the name of a ftcreographic projection
of the fphere, either on the plane of the meridian,
equator, or any great circle, which arc commonly
called planil'pheres.
The 5f(7 Astrolabe is an inftrument formerly
ufed for taking the fun's altitude at fea ; but fince
the invention of Hadlcy's Qiiadrant, they are rare
to be met with, that inllrument being fo much
fuperior. The fea aftrolabe confifts of a brafs
circle, about or.e foot in diameter, and fix or feven
lines in thiclcnefs, that it might be pretty weighty :
there was fometimcs a weight of fix or feven pounds
fufpcnded at the point C, (Plate XI. /^. 5.) fo
that when the aftrolabe was hung by the ring A,
which was moveable, the inftrument would turn
any way, and keep a perpendicular utuation, not-
withftanding the motion of the (hip. The limb of
this inftrument is ufually divided into four times
90°, and fometimes into halves, or quarters of de-
grees. It is abfolutely necefTary that the right
line D,G,B, which reprefents the horizon, be
perfectly level, fo that the beginning of the divifions
of the limb of the inftrument may be graduated
therefrom. Now to examine this, obfcrve fome
diftant objecfl through the flits or fights FE, and
faftened near the ends of the index, freely turning
about the center G ; place your eye to one of the
laid fights, as F, and look at a diftant objedt
through the other fight E ; then turning the aftro-
labe about, letting the index remain at reft, look
tor the diftant objeiil:, placing your eye at E ; and
if you find it through the other fight F, without
moving the index, you are certain the fiducial line
of the index is right, or truly horizontal. But if
at the fecoad time of obfervation, the index muft
be raifed, or lowered, before the objeft becomes
vifible through the two fights ; then the middle
point between tb.c two pofitions will fhew the true
horizontal line pafiing through the center of the
inltrument, which muft be verified by repeated ob-
fervations, before the divifions of the limb are be-
gim to be graduated.
I he method of making obfervations with this
inftrument, is, to hold the aftrolabe fufpended by
the ring, and turn its fide toward the fun ; then
move the index or label till the fun's rays /hintr
through both the fights on the index, and you
have the fun's altitude pointed out on the limb by
the extreme points of the index, comprehended
between the horizontal radius G D, and the fun's
rays F G E *, becaufc the inftrument in this fitu-
ation reprefents a vertical circle.
The aftrolabe by fome is now accounted the befl:
inftrument for obferving the fun's altitude when
near the zenith; but we apprehend it is only by
fuch who have not been ufed to make obfervations
with accuracy ; nor can we find by experience
where the difficulty lays, fo much talked of by
navigators, in obferving the fun's altitude when in
the zenith, with a Hadley's Qiiadrant ; but rather
look upon it as the moft accurate of any, being
almoft inftantaneous ; though the reafon, we ap-
prehend, from what we have feen, arifes from their
obferving about once in a minute, and the fun
changing its azimuth fo very inftantaneoufly, that
they have loft it when they look again, and io from
their own neglect arifes the difficulty.
ASTROLOGICAL, fomething belonging to
aftrology.
ASTROLOGY, in the modern acceptation,
implies the pretended art of foretelling future
events, by obferving the different afpects and fitu-
ations of the heavens, and from thence to judge
of the eft'efts and influences of the ftars and planets
on. human actions.
The word aftrology is formed from the Greek
rtfiip.
ftj
and
hoy
1^, a difcourfe ; whence in
the literal fenfe, it fignifies the doftrine or fcience
of the ftars, and was form.erly the fame with what
we now call aftronomy. The reafon of this
change of the word aftrology to aftronomy, was
becaufc of the abfurdities that were gradually in-
troduced into that fcience, by fuch whofe natural
inclination led them to impofe on the weak and
credulous part of mankind ; which they found
could not be done more effectually and plaufibly,
than by pretending to foretel future events from
their great knowledge of the heavens. There-
fore thofe whofe only defire was to feek
after truth, thought proper to diftinguifh them-
felves by the name of aftronomers, from thofe
jugglers of mankind; not being willing to be en-
couragers and partakers with them in the leaft
ftiadow or appearance.
In the prefent age, aftrologers, or conjurors,
have by our legiflature been obliged to keep their
knowlege to themfeives, not daring publicly to ex-
pofe it to fale ; by which means it is become con-
temptible for any to declare their belief therein :
however, from our own knowledge we are forry to
declare, that the number is incredible who fecretly
apply at difi'erent places to be made acquainted
with their future fortune* The motives are chiefly
a defire of matrirnon^ revenge, grandeur, and
fometimej
AST
A ST
Ibmctimcs covetoufnefs. The greateil number con-
fifls chiefly of thole whofe motive is matrimony ; nor
need we wonder, when we confider hov/ flrongly
the inc]in;itions of youth ai'e directed that way by
nature, and how hard it is on the f:'.ir fex that
they are obliged to fulfil the old proverb, which
we apprehend moit of our readers are acquainted
with. It is very furprizing that many of thofs
are very fenfible and difcerning in every other par-
tlcula.!", and yet fufrer themfelvcs ia this article to
be impofed upon vvith very little or 'no trouble,
and even become flrong advccates for their de-
ceivers, where they are not afhamed to own their
connexions or enquiries.
Allrology is commonly divided into two branches,
natural and judicial.
The former being the produftion of natural
effects, as the changes of weather, winds, hurri-
canes, ftonns, earthquakes, fioods, thunder, rain,
(kc. this art properly belongs, to phyfiology, or
patural philoft'phy, and is only to be gathered
from accurate and continual obfervation of the dif-
ferent phoenonienas in nature.
The latter is that which pretends to foretel
raoral events, or fuch as have a freedom of the
will. This art is fom.etimes called divining ; it
treats of the revolution of the years of tlic world,
of nativities, of horary quei^ions, good or bad
hours, diftribution of houfes, kc. all ridiculous
and fl:upid.
ASTRONOMICAL, fomcthing belonging to
aftronomy ; thus we fay, agronomical calendar,
characters, column, horizon, hours, month, ob-
fervation, place, quadrant, ring-dial, feXor, tables,
tclefcopes, time, year, &c. Sea each under its
refpe<5tive article. Calendar, Character, &c.
ASTRONOMY, that faience which treats of
the hcavenlv bodies, teaching us to obferve and
difcover their true motions, magnitudes, diftances,
eclipfcs, oppofitions, conjunctions, mutual afpefts,
ice.
Aftronomv, among all the fclcnces ftudiei by
man, may be eltcemeJ the moll excellent and moit
fublime ; lor there is no other knowledge, ac-
quired by the light of nature, which teachts us
truer or jufter notions of the Supreme Being than
aftronomy. Nothing fupplies us v/ith more forci-
ble and con\incing arguments of the being of a
God, than'our contemplation on the celePcial bodies,
and obfcr\ing their motions. By aftrciA-ohiy we
ilifcover the wonderful harmony of nature, where-
with the frame and ftrudture of all created beings
are linked and knit together, to confntutc the great
machine of the univerfe. No fcience rai'iiles the
^nind of man fooner into an admiration and adora-
tion of his r-.laker ; for who can contemplate on fo
many immenfe bodies, endovv'ed with keavcaly
light, fo bc.-iutiful to the eye and amufuig to the
mindj or who ca:i confider their mutual intcr-
courfes, regular motions, determined circulation;,
their revolutions and periods, all fettled by a divine
law with fuch admirable harmony, but muft cry
out with David, The heavens declare ih.' gLry of Gody
ami the firmament ficiceth his hamiy-'work \ or with
Cicero, who v/as only guided by the light of rca-
fon, " Nothing is more evident, nothing more
" plain, when we look up to the heavens and con-
" template the bodies there, than that there is a
" Deity of incft excellent wifdom who governs
" thcni." It is by this fcience that the very
faculties of man are enlarged with the grandeur
of the ideas it conveys, his mind exalted above
the low contra',T.cJ prejudices of the; groveling vul-
gar, and his underilanding clearly convinced of
the exiftence, wifJnm, power, goodnefs, om.ni-
fclence, omniprefence, omnipotence, and fuperin-
tendency rf the Supreme Being, over, and in ail
his works !
Tile grcateft heroes in various .iges, as well a ;
kings and emperors, have taken pleafure to itudy
and improve this fcience : the Chaldean wifcnien
and philofophers. v/ere always reverenced by their
antient king's, who thought it abfurd tlsat any
fhould govern the world, who knew not what the
world was. There is no fcience in which there
are fev/er diiTiculties to be explained, objections to
be anfwcred, or fcruplcs to be removed, than there
are in allronomy, or perhaps, that has attained to
greater perfection than it has at this prefeut time.
The certainty and evidence of its dcmonitratlons is
not inferior to geometry ; its ufefulnefs is mani-
fold'; and the fcope of its fubject fo large, that it
comprehends noth.ing lefs than the whole uni-
verfe.
aftronomy is not only ufeful and pleafmg, as it
improves the mi.nd, and by its delightful fpecula-
tions encreafes the force and penetration of the
underftanding, but it is likev/ife a confiderable help
to the perfeiiting of other arts and fciences. In
how great darkncfs would the geographers and the
chronologifts wander, were they not affifted v/ith
light from aftronomy ? To it v/c are indtbted for
OL'.r knov.'ledge of the figure snd magnitude of the
earth, and the method of finding or determining
the lituationa rjid diftances of places. We learn
from it the true meafure cf the year, and can give
an account of actions according to the true order
of the times in which they happened.' It is from
aftronomy we are certain, that the darknefs at the
crucifixion of cur Saviour, was not any eclipfe of
the luminaries, but the difp'cafiirc of the Almighty,
which he pleafed to fignify by a fupernatural caule,
and as a naracle to 'convince all deiltical altrono-
mers, as well as others, of the divinity of his be-
loved Son. Hence it is evident how ufeful aftro-
nomy is to human affairs ; for without it we could
have no geography nor chronology, and confe-
quently, no certain account of hlltory.
4 But
AST
But among all the arts there is none that has re-
ceived greater improvements from aflronomy, than
navigation has done. For by our knowledge in it,
we can carry our (hips through the vart: ocean in a
right courfe, though there is no traiSt to be feen,
and vifit the utmult regions of the earth. Hence
arife the advantages of trade and commerce ; fo that
whatever things other countriv .ifFord, thatarecither
precious or delightful, we receive and enjoy without
the inconveuiencies of intemperate heats or colds, to
which thofe countries are liable. It is owing to our
Ikill in jiavagation, that our Eritifh monarchs have
obtained the fovereignty of the Teas : fo that there
is no r.aticn at what diftance foever, but what are
kept from doing iniuries to our countrymen, by
the terrors of a Britifh fleet.
By aftronomv, in its prefcnt perfccftion, we are
enabled to foretel, for many s.'zes to come, the
eclipfcs both of the fun and moon, very minutely ;
their quantities and durations, the conjimctior.s,
oppofitions, and mutual afpecEts of the planets,
i'.nd what will be the diflanccs of all the liars from
the pole at any time, their places ahd motions
having been exactly fctiled from confrant ob-
fervation ; though at the fame time the fcicnce of
geography, or a defcription of our own habitation,
is fo imperfect, that we have an exadt determina-
tion of the longitudes and latitudes of but a very
few places : however, we do not doubt but the
honourable commiflioners of the board of longi-
tude will fhortly take this into confideration, and
fend out a perfon properly qualified, with good
inftruments, to apply the noble fcience of aftro-
nomy as much as pofllble, where it is fo very bene-
ficial to mankind ; for being able to determine the
longitude of the ftiip will be of little fervice,
if we are unacquainted with the longitude of the
port bound for.
No philofophcr has c\cr yet difcovered the
figures of the final! particles of matter, or the
texture, intervals, form, and compofition of the
parts of the mod common plant. Nor has any
phyfician yet found out the reafon of the virtues
and operations, by which their medicines affect
the human body. And even in all animated and
vegetable bodies, the fountain and firll: jjrinciple
of life and action is unfearchabie, and looks like a
myftery much beyond the reach of our underftand-
ing, which knowledge perhaps in this life is never
to be attained. But aftronomers in their proper
fcience meet with no fuch difficulties ; they con-
template not the natures, but the motions, of the
celeftial bodies, and they clearly account for the
phoenomena, or appearance, that arife from thence ;
they not only determine what fort of motion the
plajiets have, and in how large a compafs they cir-
cuJate, but they likewife fhew us the crooked tracts
in the immenfe regions of fpace, which the wan-
dering comets take ; they can give us the geon-.e-
13
AST
trical properties of their orbits, and the laws which
they obfervc in dcfcribing them. The aftronomers
are not ignorant where or v.'hen the planets arc
at their farthcfl; diftance from the iun, and parti-
cipate the leaft of his heat and light ; from whence
they return, and are conllantly quickened in their
motions by the fun, who drav/s them towards him-
felf, till they come to thofe parts of fpace where
thcv make their nearefl approach to him, enjoy
m.ofi of his heat and light, and aie actuated by the
greatcll force cf their ov,-n griivity.
By aftroncmy we have karn^d the vafi: diftance
of the earth from the fun ; and although its cir-
cumfe ence is found to be 25,020 miles, yet, if
viewed by a fpcdtator placed at the fun, v.-ould
fcarce be vifible, or ypptar no bigger tb.an a foint.
Hut what is this diCi nee w hen cc mi arcd with that
immenfe fpace betwixt us and the fixed ftars ? for
though ih3 earth, in its annual revolution, is
nearer to fome of the ftars at one time of the year
than at another, about 162 millions of mile.=, yet
their apparent magnitudes, fituaticns, and dif-
tantes from one another, fti'l rem.ain the fame :
nor has our moft ingenious aftronom.er. Dr. Brad-
ley, with the moft accurate initrum.ents, been at b
to difcovcr that the neareft ftars have any paralhi£t:c
angle, though obferved at fuch periods of the
eai-th's 01 bit, that the two ftations of obfervaticn
are no lefs diftant than i(i2 millions of miles from
each other; and often have we heard this great
man declare, that if their parallax had arKounted
to half a fecond, he did not doubt but he fiiould
ha\e difcovered it.
By the affiftance of telefcopes we difco\'cr an
innumicrable quantity of ftars, which are not per-
ceivable with the naked eye, and the better our
glafs, the more of thofe telcfcopical ftais become
vifible ; therefore, when v.c confider thefe things,
we may \'erv naturalUy conclude, that they arc r.ot
placed in one concave furfacc, but fcEttcred at im-
menfe diftanccs from one another, through un-
bounded fpace.
The fun, from cur pro:;imity with it, appears
very large, bright, and 'pLiidid, in comparifon of
the ftars ; but was an obfer\er placed at the fame
diil:ance from one as the other, no doubt but he
would find them put on the fame appearance in
every circumftance. When we confider the im.-
menfe diftance of the ftars from the fun, we m.uft
conclude that they ftiine with their own native and
unborrowed light ; for the rays of light pafting
through fuch an immenfe fpace nnift be fcattered
and dillipated before they arri\ e at fuch remote ob-
jects, nor could they be tranfinitted back to our
eves, fo as to render thefe ftars vilible by reflcc-
tion : much miore to (hine v.'ith that lultre and
brilliancy that m.any of them do, efpeclally Syvius,
which feem.s to vie in fplendor with fome of tlia
planet'-.
R r r It
AST
It is no ways probable that the Almighty, who
always a5ts with infinite vvifdom, and does nothing
in vam, faould create fo many glorious funs, fit for
,fo many important purpofes, and place them at
fuch (i.illances iVom one another, without proper
chjefiis near enough to be benefited by their influ-
ences. Whoever imagines they were created only
to give^ faint glimmering light to the inhabitants
of this globe, muft have a very fuperficial know-
ledge ot altroncmy, and a mean opinion of the Di-
vine Vv'ifdom ; fince, by an infinitely lefs exertion
of creative power, the Divinity could have given our
earth much more light by one fingle additional
moon.
Iijftead then of one fun and one world only in the
uniVerfe, as the unfkilfal in aftronomy nnagine, that
icience difcovers to us fuch an inconceivable num-
ber of funs, fyftems, and worlds, difperfed through
bouiidlefs I'pace, that if our fun, with all the planets,
moons, and comets belonging to it, were annihilated,
they would be no more miffed'out of the creation
than a grain of fand from the fea-fliore; the fpace
they pofiefs being comparatively fo fmall, that it
would fcarce be a fenfible blank in the univerfe; al-
though Saturn, the outermofl of our planets, re-
volves about the fun in an orbit of 4884 millions
of miles in circumference, and fomc of our comets
make excurfions upwards of ten thoufand millions
of r.iiles beyond Saturn's orbit; and "yet, at that
amazing diilance, tliey are incomparably nearer to
the fun than to any of the ftars, as is evident from
their keeping clear of the attradlive power of all the
ftars, and returning periodically by virtue of the
fun's attraction.
From what we know of our own fyftciTi, it may
be very reafonably concluded that all the reft are
with equal wifdorn contrived, fituated, and provided
vi'ith accommodations for rational inhabitants.
To an attentive confidefer, it will appear highly
probable, that the planets, together with their at-
tendants called fatellites or moons, are m.uch of the
fame nature with our earth, and deftined for the
l;ke purpofes : for they are folid opake globes, ca-
pable of fupporting animals and vegetables. Some
of them are bigger, fome lefs, and fome much about
the fize of our'"earth. They all circulate round the
fun, as the earth does, in a fhorter or longer time,
according to their refpeftive diftances from him ;
and have, where it v>rould not be inconvenient, re-
gular returns of fumn-.er and winter, fpring and ^-
tumn. They have warmer and colder climates, as
the various p'rodudions of our earth require ; and
in fuch as afford a poflibility of difcovering it, we
obferve a regular motion round their axes, like that
of our earth, caufing an alternate return of day and
night, which is neceffary for labour, reft, and vege-
tation, and that all parts of their furfaces may be
expofed to the rays of the fun.
Such of the planets as are fartheft from the fun;
AST
and therefore enjoy leaft of his light, have that defi-
ciency made up by feveral moons, which conftant-
ly accompany and revolve about them, as our moon
revolvesabout the earth. The remoteft planet has,
over and above, a bread ring encompafling it, which,
like a lucid zone in the heavens, reflects the fun's
light very copioufly on that planet: fo that if the
remoter planets have the fun's light fainter by day
than we, they have an addition made to it morning
and evening by one or more of their moons, and
a greater quantity of light in the night-time.
On the furface of the moon, becaufe it is nearer
us than any other of the celeftial bodies are, we dif-
cover a nearer refemblance of our earth : for, by the
affiftance of telefcopes, we obferve the moon to be
full of high mountains, large vallies, and deep cavi-
ties. Thefe fimilarities leave us no room to doubt
but that all the planets and moons in the fyftem are
defigned as commodious habitations for creatures
endowed with capacities of knowing and adorning,
their beneficent Creator.
Since the fixed ftars are prodigious fpheres of
fire, like our fun, and at inconceivable diftances
from one another, as well as from us, it is reafon-
able to conclude they are made for the fame pur-
pofes that the fun is ; each to beftow light, he.it, and
vegetation, on a certain number of inhabited plar
nets, kept by gravitation within the fphere of its
aiStivity.
What an auguft ! v/hat an amazing conception,,
if human imagination can conceive it, does this
give of the works of the Creator ! Thoufands of
dioufands of funs,, multiplied witliout end, and
ranged all around us, at immenfe diftances from
each other, attended by ten thoufand times ten thou-
fand worlds, all in rapid motion, yet calm, regular,
and harmonious, invariably keeping the paths pre-
icribed them ; and thefe worlds peopled with ni)'-
riads of intelligent beings, form.ed for endlels pro-
greffion in perfection and felicity !
If fo much power, wifdom, goodnefs, and mag-
nificence, is difplayed in the material creation,
which is the Icaft confiderable part of the univerfe,
how great, how wife, how good, muft he be, who
made and governs the whole !
It does not feem improbable, or to be in the leaft
doubtful, but that there was fome kind ofobferva-
tions of the celeftial bodies as foon as there were
men, when we conGder the beautiful appearance .
which the heavens coaftantly prefent ; which is both
fo glorious and ufcful, that men could not have eyes
to fee, and not fi_x. them attentively and confide-
ratcly thereon.
Among other appearances they could not eafily
negle£t obferving the fun change his place of
rifing and fetting ; likewife, at certain times of the
year, to approach nearer to the earth in his diurnal
arch, and at others to mount up to a height much
more remote from it j and that his apparent ap- .
proaching
AST
preaching nearer to the earth made winter, anJ iiis
removing: hig;her made fumnier.
Again,fo admirably various did the moon appear in
her I'everal fhapes and drefll-s of light, that (he muft
naturally engage the eyes of man to frequent fpe-
culations, efpecially when (he aflumed thole various
phafes or appearances at particular and certain
times, which, doubtlcfs, was the caufe that every
nation meafured their times and feafons by obferv-
ing her conftant and periodical circuits ; becaufe
thofe periods fucceeded ir.uch more frequent than
the vilible elevations and depreffions of the fun.
To thefe we may likewifc add that beautiful and
fpan^led view of the nicrhtly rtars, undergoing; like-
w.fe their variations, according to the variety of the
leafons, and more particularly of the planet Venus,
which they muft obfervc to rife fometimes before
the fun, and fometimes to fet after the fun —
'^I'herefore, from fuch confiderations, we may reafon-
ably conclude that celeitial obfervations are as
antient as man, tho' it might be fome time before
t ley enquired into the caufes of thefe celeitial
changes ; only accommodating what they firft ob-
ferved to the uf2s of their lives.
But, becaufe this is too general a method of ob-
fervation, we {hall look back into thofe times
w-herein men firft began to reduce their celeftial ob-
fervations into method, and founded the art and
fcience of aftronomy thereof.
Jofephus, the learned uitiquarian of the Jev/s,
afiirms, " That the fyns of Seth invented the fci-
" ence of the heavens before the flood, and en-
" graved tiiefanieon two pillars, the one of brick,
" and the other of ftone, io that it might be pre-
" ferved in one, if by any accident it ihould be
" deftroycd in the other." But as we find nothing
of this in fac:ed writ, or any other profane hiilory
to ftrengthen this affirmation of Jofephus, we can-
not therefore think it futiicient to dil'cufs the dark-
nets wherein the origin of aftronomy feems involved :
nor does the reafon this antiquarian gives feem
ftrong enough to evince that aitronomy was reduced
to a I'cience before the flood ; for he fuppofes the
duration of men's lives, in thofe days, was fuffii-
cicntly long to perfect the knowledge of altro-
nomy.
Again, the origin of aftronomy might be de-
duced from not long after the flood, if in facred
writ we could find the leaft word from whence
misht be argued the truth of what the fame author
writes ; namely, that the Egyptians were taught
agronomy by Abraham. It is probable enough
that Berofus and others, quoted bv Jofephus and
Eufebius, might have read I'ome fuch thing among
fome books of the old rabbins : but that the fame
fhould be learned from holy writ, is moft improba-
ble, there being no mention made of any fuch
thing. Indeed it is written that Abraham came
from Ur of the Chaldeaiis, but not that he
AST
learned, or received aftronomy from them,
or that he delivered it from them to the Egyp-
tians ; nor will the learned Doftor Saliannus
allow it to be even probable that he ftiould in-
ftrucb the Egyptians in this fcience, becaufe of
his fliort ftay among them. The moft ancient
monument of the fcience of the ftars that can
be tound in holy writ is what is faid concern-
ing Mofes, when he was admitted into the Egyp-
tian court ; namely, that he was " learned in all
" the wifdom of the Egyptians ;" and doubtlefs
the wifdom of the Egyptians was contained in the
mathematics, and aftronomy was always efteemed
the beft and moft fublime part of them.
If we look back into that part of time which
is called obfcure or fabulous, we poflibly may find
fomething relating to our inquiry wrapped up in
darkfome Ihrouds of fables.
The moft ancient of the heathen gods, we are
told by Diodorus Siculus, was Ccelus, fo called,
becaufe of his high devotion to, and delight in the
obl'ervation of the ftars. This eminent perfon being
the father of many fons, as Atlas, Saturnus, the
Titanes ; and among thofe efpecially, Hyperion,
and Japetus, from whence we may conjecture, that
they being induced by his example, were addicted
to the fame ftudy : for Ccelus, living near the
ocean in Mauritania, extended his kingdom over
all Africa, and likewifc into a confiderable part of
Europe, where it is well known, that his fon At-
las fucceeded him in the fame dominions, where
he gave his own name to the higheft mountain of
that country, becaufe he frequently made obferva-
tions of the motions of the heavens on the top
thereof. For the ancients in thofe days imagined
the concave arch of the heavens to be but at a
fmall diftance from the top of high mountains ;
and that the higher they afcended up thofe hills,
the more clear and diftiniSt they could obferve celef-
tial objefts. To this Diodorus Pliny and others
add, that Atlas was feigned to fupport heaven on
his ftioulders, becaufe he had framed a fphere or
globe, which ftrongly reprefentcd the whole hea-
venly machine. Clemens Alexandrinus remarks,
that Hercules, being both a prophet and philofc-
phcr, was reported to come and relieve Atlas, by
taking the vaft burthen of heaven on his own
flioulders ; which we apprehend means nothing
more than that he fucceeded him in the ftudy or
fcience of celeftial bodies. Hefperus, the (on of
Atlas, is reported to have been fnatched away by
fome fudden and violent difeale, while obfeiving
and fpeculating the ftars on the top of the faid
mountain ; from whence the common people, in
refpedc to his piety and juftice, gave his name to the
moft brilliant and beautiful ftar, which isalfo called
Vefpergo, being the evening-ftar while fcen in the
weft. As for his filters, called both Atlaiitiades
and Pleiades, their names were given to that com-
pany
A ST
pany of liars wiiich are viuble In the back, of Tau-
rus ; and of one of thofc was born the famous Mer-
curius, vviio is faid to have firft brought the fci-
ence of the ftars into Egypt ; whence, Marcilhis,
writing of the aftronomy of the Egyptians, fays of
Mercur)', Tu princeps, authorqiie Jiun CyUene, ranti,
&c. 1"he Etliiopians contend t'lat they received
ailronoiny from them ; for iirll Diodorus, and af-
terwards Lucian, has obferved the fame. Cicero
faith of Atlas and Prometheus " That neither had
" Atbs been believed to have fupported heaven on
" hisfhoulders, norProinetheustohavebeen chained
" on Caucnfus ; norCephci;,-;, with his wife, ion-in-
" law, and daughter, been flellified, had not their
" divine cognition of ct-jeilial bodies firft occafion-
" ed the perpetuation of their names in the dif-
" guife of fables." Saturn, another fon ofCoclus,
v/ho reigned in Italy, Sicily, and Crete, profecuted
his father's ftudies no lefs than the former ; and it is
very probable that he was the firfb that underflood
the motion and courfe of the planet Saturn, which
h the floweft of all in its celeftial circuits, be-
caufe he bears that name. Jupiter, his fon, ap-
plied his mind to the ftudy of the heavens, and for
that purpofe chofe the high mountain Olympus, to
make his obfer\'ations upon, which is the reafon that
he afterwards is called Olympus, and the name of
the mountain transferred into heaven ; and Jupiter,
becaufe of his jrreat underftandins: of the order and
laws, is (aid to have the dominion of heaven.
Diodorus faith that Hyperion, v/ho v/as one of
the progeny of Coelus likewife, demonftratcd the
courfes of the fun and moon, and therefore called
the fun Helios, after the name of his fon ; and the
moon Selene, after that of his daughter.
Japetus performed nothing worthy notice in his
father Ccelus's fpeculations ; but Prometheus whom
he. begat, who is feiened to have been chained on
the hill Caucafus, and to have his heart perpetually
torn by a hungry eagle or vulture, made great ad-
vances in the fcience of aftronomy. Servius thinks
the above fable means nothing jnore than that with
reftlefs care, and folicltude of mind, he conftantly
excruciated hinifelf with obferving the ftars, and
fludying their right afcenfions and declinations.
'I"he fame author likevv-ife infifts that Prometheus
was the firft that introduced aftronomy and aftro-
logy to the Syrians not far from Caucafus. With
regard to the fabulous flory of his having ftolen
fire from heaven, for the inanimation of man,
means nothing m.ore than that he infufed his hea-
venly knowledge of the flars, and of other celertial
notions, into the breafls of men, and inflamed their
•minds with a dcfire of ifudying that noble fcienee.
If we examine the fabulous hiftory of Phaeton, we
may fuppofe it hath this mythology ; that in his
life he had made a confiderable progrefs towards
difcovering the apparent motion and annual courfe (
of the fun, but, dying immaturely, left the theory
3
A S T
thereof imperfeJ?:. Likev/ife that of Bellero-
phon, who is fuppofed to have been carried up
into heaven by a flying horfe, only fignifies that he
was ftudious, and had a contemplative mind, eao;er
in the queft of fydereal njyfteries. Again, that^of
Dedalus, who is likewife reported to have been car-
ried into heaven, which arofe from his great atten-
tion to this fcience, and his towering fpeculations ;
while his lefs ingenious fon Icarus falling much
ftiort of his father, both in thefe fublime obferva-
tions and in underftanding the reafons and demon-
fcrations of his theory, made little progrefs, in his
ftudies ; and fell from the true and epodiillical cog-
nition of celeftial motions and viciflitudes.
There are likewife many others mentioned by
Lucian, as that of Endj-mion, the favourite of the
moon ; of Tirefias, the prophet, &zc. There is
mention made both by Lucian and Tacitus, under
the account of heroical times, which feems to come
fomewhat nearer to the hiftorical, of a remark-
able contention that arofe betwixt Atreus and
Thyeftes about fupreme dominion ; when, by the
vote of the Argives; the kingdom was to be given
to hiin who fhould give the moll eminent teftimony
of fcience. Thyeftes fhewed them the fign Aries
in heaven, for which he was honoured with a gol-
den ram : but Atreus declared a thing far more e.x-
cellent ; for he made it appear that the apparent
motion of the fun and of the ftarry orb were not
carried the iame, but quite contrary ways ; and con-
fequently, that the part of the heavens which was
the weft, or Occident, of the ftarry orb, was the
very rifing, or orient, of the folar orb : therefore
Atreus was made king, becaufe of his fuperior
knowledge in aftronomy. Lucian reports of Or-
pheus, that he ftudied attentively the feven planets,
and that he reprefented their harmony by the feven-
ftringed harp. Uranus, king of the country fitu-
ated on the fhore of the Atlantic ocean, for his (kill
in aftronomy, is faid to have been defcended from
the gods. 2'oroafter, a Perfian philofopher, is ce-
lebrated by all antiquity, as a fkilful aftronomer;
and the honour and dignity of this fcience was had
in fo great a reputation, as to be called the Royal
Science, being that in v/hich kings moft delighted
above all others ; for the kings of Africk and
Syria firft invented and improved it, and that long
before it was known in (Jreece, This Plato ac-
knowledges in his Dialogue which he calls Epino-
mis. " The firft, fays he, who obferved thefe
" things, was a barbarian, who li\ed in an ancient
" country, where, upon the account of the clear*
" nels of the fummer-feafon, they could firft dif-
" cover them, luch as Egypt and Syria, where the
" ftars are clearly feen, there being neither rains
" nor clouds to hinder their profpeil. And be-
" caufe we are more remote from this fummer-
•' clearnefs of weather than the barbarians, we
■' came later to the knowledge of thefe ftars." So
Lucian
AST
Lucian tells us, " That the Ethiopians firft took
*' notice of the heavenly motions, and, by linding
" the caufcs of the lunations, they knew that the
" moon had no proper light of its own, but bor-
" rowed it from the fun." However, it is certain
that aftronomy, from the very b^'ginniiig, was cul-
tivated and improved by the ealliern nations : for
if we may believe Porphyry, when Alexander took
Babylon, Califlhenes, at the dellre of Ariftotle, car-
ried from that city the obfervations of ] 903 years,
which brings the beginning of thefe obfervations
to 115 years after the flood, and 15 years after the
builduig of Babel. Pliny, in his Natural Hiitor)',
relates that I^pigencs affirmed, that the Babylo-
nians had obfervations of 720 years, all graven
upon bricks. And Achilles Tatius, in the begin-
ning of his Introdu6tion to Aratus's Phenomena.
informs us, " That the Egyptians were the firfl.
" who meafured the heavens and the earth ; and
'■ t*icir fcience in this matter was engraven on co-
" lumns, and by that means delivered to pofterity.
" Yet the Ciialdeans take the honour of the inven-
" tioii to themfelves, and afcribe it toBelus." The
Greeks jiau all their allronojnical learning from
Egypt : for Laertius owns that Thales, Pythago-
ras, Eudoxus, and many others went to that coun-
try to be inilrucled in the fidereal fcience : thefe
men were not only the firfl, but the greateft philo-
fophers that Greece produced : and from the fame
author we know, that thofe who ftaid longeil in
that country were moft famous for their fkill
in geometry and aftronomy, after they returned
home : fo Pythagoras, who lived in focietv with
the Egyptian prlefts feven years, and Was initiated
into their religion, carried home from thence, be-
fides fevcr.al geometrical inventions, the true fvflem
of the univerfe ; and was the firft that taught in
Greece, that the earth and planets turned round
the fun, \\hich was immoveable in the center, and
that the diuinil motion of the fun and fixed ftars
was not real, but apparent, arifing from the motion
of the earth round its axis. At that time no body
was eftecmed as a philofopher, but who was well
acquainted with the mathematical fcienccs.
But thei'e fciences were foon neglei^ed by the
philofophers that came after them, who much de-
generating iVom their predecelTors, had fo little care
and concern for the mathematical fciences, efpe-
vially allronomy, that of all the obfervations of
eclipfes, for the fpace of nearaoco years, that were
fent from Babylon by Calillhenes, Ptolomy could
recover but a very few, the reft being loft by the
carelefliiefs, negligence, and want of Ocill of thofe
men v/ho fhould have preferved them ; for thefe
pretenders to philofophv, haviiig no concern for
the ufeful parts of it, Ipent tlieir time about tri-
fles, and difputes of no value, and in endeavouring
to find out fophifms, whereby they would im-
pofc upon their ov/n and the common fenfe of all
13
AST
mankiiiJ ; fuch Were Zeno's arguments agalnlt
motion, and moft of the philofophers difputations
againft the divifibility of matter in infinitum ; where--
as a little knowledge of geometry would eafily
have difiblvcd all the difficulties they could r.-vife.
But tho' aftronomy was thus baniftied out of the
fchools of the common philofophers, yet it was re-
ceived and culiivatcd by fome, tho' but a few, ef-
psci illy by the Pythagorean feet, which flourifhed
in Italy many yenrs, among wltom was Philolaus
and Ariftarchus Samiiis. "I'he Ptolemy's, kings of
Egypt, were alfo great patrons of learning ; they
founded an academy for aftronomy at Alexandria,
which furniftied us with great men, the chief of
whom was Hi,-parci;,:=, who, according to Pliny,
" undertook a bufuiels which would have been a
•' great work for a god to perform, that is, to number
" the ftar?, and leave the heavens for an heritage to
" all that come after." This man foretold the
eclipfes of both fun and moon for fix hundred years ;
and upon his obfervations is founded that precious
work of Ptolomy, which he called his ijnya-Mj cw-
IdL^if, or his Great Conftruction ; for fro.-n tliem he
gathered the preceJion of the equinoxics, and the
theory of the planets.
When Egypt was conquered by the Saracens, and
Alexandria reduced under their jurifdidion, the con-
querors took aiirronomy, with the reft of the liberal
arts, under their proteftion ; and took care tha;
moft part of tlie books concerning the liberal arts
and fciences ftiould be tranflated from the Greek
into their own Arabian language.
The Saracens paifir.g from Africa into Spain,
and having a commerce with the weftern European
nations, imparted to them the fcience of aftrono-
my, which before was almoft loft in Europe j fo
that about the year 1230, at the command of the
empei-or Frederick, Ptolemy's Ahnageft, or his
gre.it Syntaxis, was tranflated from the" Arabic into
Latin.
After that timej aftronomy received .many im-
provements from the patronage of the greateft
princes, and the labours of the moft celebrated phi-
lofophers ; among whom, in the firft place^ is to
be named Alphonfus king of Caftile, who is never
to be forgotten, en the account 6? the aftronomi-
cal tables called after his name. Nicolaus Coper-
nicus was not only a diligent obfcrver, but alfo a
reftorer of the ancient Pythagorean fyftem. Prince
'William, landgrave of Hefie, who procured qua-
drants and fextants much larger than \'/hat were
formerly ufed^ to obferve the true placs of the
ftars : this prince's obfervations are publifticj by
Snellius. Sir Henry Savill was moft fKilfiil both
in aftronomy and geometrv, whd is ever to be ho-
noured for his munificence in founding our tvro
profelibrfliips of aftronomy and geometry in the uni-
verfity of Oxford, and endowing them with ample
falaries : upon which account, a:t4 many other be-
S s s
nelit
AST
;iefits he befiowed on the learned world, he will al-
ways be had in remembrance with the greatefl: re-
fpe£t. That noble Dane, Tycho Brache, v/ho
tor his (kill in obi'erving, v/as fuperior to all that
went before him ; and who, for the furniture of
his obfervatory, exceeded even princes and kings.
He pubiiflied a catalogue of feven hundred and fe-
venty fixed flars, which he had diligently obferved.
John Kepler, a moft excellent aftronomer, by the
help of Tycho's labours, found out the true fyltem
of the world, and the laws the celeftial bodies ob-
ferve in their motions, with which he vaftly im-
proved aflronomy : his excellent v/orks are well
known to the learned world, and will ever fhew
how much he is to be praifed. Galileus, the Lyn-
cean philolbpher, v.'ho firft applied a telefcope to'the
heavens, and by its means dlfcovc-.'ed a great many
new furprizing phsenomcna ; as the moons or fa-
tellites of Jupiter, and their motions ; the various
phafes of Saturn ; the increafe and dccreafe of the
light of Venus; themountainous and uneven furface
of the moon; the fpots of the fun; and the revo-
lution of the fun about his own axis ; all which
were firft obferved by this great philofopher.
Hevelius has given us a catalogue of liars much
larger than Tycho's, compofed from his own obfer-
vations. Huygens and Cafiini firft faw the fatellites
of Saturn, and difcovered his ring. Mr. Flamftead,
who for more than forty years watched the motion
of the ftars, and has given us innumerable obferva-
tions of the fun, moon, and planets, which he
made with inftruments much fuperior to any that
had been made before, whence aftronomers could rely
on his obfervations more than thofe that had been
made without the afliflance of telefcopes. The
faid Mr. Flamftead likewife compofed the Britifh
Catalogue, containing about three thoufand ftars,
which is twice the number that are in the catalogue
of Hevelius, to each of which he has annexed its
longitude, latitude, right afcenfion, and diftance
from the pole, with the variation in right afcenfion
and declination, while tlie longitude encrcafcs a
degree together with moft of his obfervations.
The great and immortal Sir Ifaac Newton, who,
befides his innumerable other wonderful inven-
tions, has difcovered the fountain and fpring of all
the celeftial motions, and the great law which is
univcrfally difFufed through the whole fyftem of na-
ture, which the almighty and wife Creator has
commanded all bodies to obferve, viz. That every
particle of matter attrafts each other in a reciprocal
duplicate proportion of its diftance.
This law is, as it were, the cement of nature,
and the principle of union, by which all things re-
main in their proper flate and order ; it detains
riot only the planets, but the comets, within their
due bounds, and hinders them from making excur-
fions into the immenfe regions of fpace ; which
they would do if they were only a<5luated by a mo-
A ST
tion once implanted in them, which naturally
t'ney would always preferv's, accoiding to the prin-
cipal law of motion.
We are obliged to the fame gentleman for the
difcovery of the law that regulates all the heavenly
motions, fets bounds to the planets orbs, determines
their greatcft excurfions from the f'dn, and their
neareft approaches to him. To this fublime ge-
nius we owe^ that now \va know the caufe why
fuch a conftant and regular proportion is obferved
by both primary and fecondary planets in their
circulations round their central bodies, in compar-
ing their diftances with their periods ; and why
all the celeftial motions are ftill continued in fuch
a wonderful regularity, harmony, and order. The
fame incomparable perlon having a compleat knov,'-
ledge of the laws of nature and motion, has from
them furniflied us with a nev/ theory of the moon,
which accurately anfwers all her inequalities, and
accounts for them by the laws of gravity and me-
chanifm ; fo that now the moon's place, computed
by the rules of this new theory, which has been
correfted by Dr. Bradley's accurate obfervations,
does not fenfibly differ at any time from what it is
obferved to obtain in the heavens, which far ex-
ceeds the hopes and expectations of our aftrono-
mers ; fo that we have now a profpedl of improi--
ing our navigation, by finding from obfervations-
of the moon the longitude of a fhip at fea, a pro-
blem, the folution of which has long been defired,
and is now compleated.
Aftronomy owes many and great improvements
to the iudetatigahle Dr. Halley, in whofe labours
there fhines out the greateft dexterity in praiffical
aftronomy, and a moft profound and e.xquifite IkilJ
in geometry: he has favoured the world with the
aftronomy of comets, aftronomical tables, and a ca-
talogue of thefouthern ftars.
The next of the Regius Profeflbrs of aftronomy 1?
Dr. Bradley, whofe fuperior merit and abilities in
practical and theoretical aftronomy are well known
to the world to excel all that went before, but wc
hope not all that will follow. 'Tis to this great
genius we owe the difcovery of the nutation of the
earth's axis, the aberration of the ftars, &c. difco-
veries, which in themfclves are fo minute, that fome
of our modern pretended praflical obfervers, whofe
heads and hands are too immechanical for fuch em-
ployment, will never be able to corroborate.
The reverend Nathaniel Blifs, fucceflbr to Dr.
Bradley, was the next and laft of the deceafed
Regius ProfefTors ; but his fhort enjoyment of the
royal place, and bad ftate of health, prevented
him from letting the world know he was not
lefs ingenious than his prcdeceftbrs.
The writers on aftronomy are Albategnius, Sacro
Bofco, Regio Montanus, Purbachius, Lanfbergius,
Longomontanus, Clavius, Boyer, Hook, Hcrrox,
RiccioluSj Sir Jonas Mocre,Tacquet, Bullialdus,
Ward,
AS Y
. WarJ, Cuuiit Pagan, Wing, Street, Dc lu Hire,
Dr. Gregoiy, Mercator, Whifton, Kcil, the two
Caffini's, Leadbcttcr, Dunthorn, Ho.lgfon, Brent,
Dr. Long, Da la Caille, Wright, Fcrgufon,
Heath, Kennedy, De la Landc.
Aflrononi)' is fometimes divided into old and
ncv/. — The oU aflrononiy is that which fuppofes
the earth hxed and quielcent in the center; and
that the heavenly bodies perform thtir rcvohitii.ins
round it.
The tmu aftronomy is that which has generally
been followed fince the time of Copernicus, who
revived the Pythagorean, or trucfolar fyftem. See
CoFERXICAN' S)J!,m.
ASTROSCOPE, the name of an inflrumcnt
compofcd of two hemifpheres, with the conllelhi-
tions delineated on the fiiperficies.
ASTYIs'^OMI, in antiquity, magiftrates at
Athens, whofe office was the fame with that of
the sediks at Rome. See /Edile.
ASYLUM, a place of refuge, or fantftuary : it
is compounded, according to Scrvius, of a, priv.
and (rvKAii, to draw out, becaufe no one could be
taken away by force out of an afylum.
Afylums are of very ancient date, both amongft
the Heathens and the Jews : the hrft that wo read
of, among the former, was one eftablifhtd at Athens,
by the defcendants of Hercules, to (helter them-
felves from the fury of his enemies. In the days of
Mofcs, al'ylums were in ufe ; for God commanded
him to appoint cities of refuge, to which thofe
who had been guilty of particular crimes might
efcapc, and continue there unpunifhed and un-
molefted.
The temples, altars, flatues, and tombs of he-
roes, were of old the ordmary retreat of thofe
who found themfelves aggrieved by the rigour of
the lav/s, or opprefled by the violence of tyrants :
but of all others, temples vrere eftccmed the moll:
facrcd and inviolable refuge. They fuppofed that
the gods took upon them to [lunifh the criminal
who thus threw himfelf upon them, and that it
would be the higheft degree of impiety, to attempt
to wreft vengeance out of the hands of the im-
mortals. Hence arofe, amongft: the Greeks, a
kind of proverbial faying, f-X'-' 7^? x-^l'^euymi',
6>fp (jliv -TTilsiv, /kAo/ /= Caux( biov : " A wild beaft
" has for its afylum a rock, or den, and flaves the
" temples of the gods."
It is reported that there were afvKims at Lyons
and Vienne, among the ancient Gauls, from
which no one durit attempt to force criminals
away : and there are even now fome cities in Ger-
many, which preferve the ancient right of afylum.
Wc meet with the infcription ASTAOI, to which
is added IF.PAI, on the medals of feveral ancient
cities, paiticuhnly in Syria: thus for inllancc,
TTPOT lEPAS KAI ASYAOSSIAftNOSIEPAS
A S Y
K.'M ASTA02. There were formerly in Atlicu?_
fix altars or temples, that enjoyed the right ot
afylum, viz. the temple of Pity, the temple of
IVlinerva, the temple of the Furies, the temple of
Munychia, and the two temples of Thefeus, of
which one was within the city, and the other with-
out the walls. Thefe temples afforded a refuge or
fandluary to malefactors of all kinds, to flaves who
had fled from their maflcrs, and to debtors of every
denomination, whatever might be the nature or
amount of their debts. No one could be forced
from thefe retreats ; but if it was found that any
one who had fled thither, was guilty of preme-
ditated villainy, that the number of crimes might
not encreafe through impunity, he was fufrered to
llarvc with hunger, or fire was fet to the place,
to oblige him to quit it : hence Euripides makes
Andromache fay to Hermione, -too rot TTforsio-a.
In the times of Coiillantine and TheoJofius,
afylums were found in the Chrillian world, the
altars and infides of churches only being places of
refuge. Afterwards this privilege was extended to
church -yards, the houfes of bilhops and priefls,
the graves and fcpulchres of the dead ; nay, even to
crofles, fchools, monafleries, and hofpitals. At
length, thefe afyla, or fanctuarics, were flripped of
their immunities, as they contributed only to make
guilt more bold-faced and abandoned.
AsyLVM for penitent Projiitutes, commonly called'
the Magdalen'-Hous£, a charitable foundation,
which was carried into execution in the year 1758,
and does honour to the benevolent and Chriftian
fpirit of the prefent age. It is intended to refcuc
the motl indigent and helplefs part of the creation
from variety of wretchednefs ; to relieve thole un-
fortunate females who have been feduced from
their innocence, and prevent them from plunging
ftill deeper and deeper into fin, till difeafe and death
put an end to their mil'erable beings. As it is im-
pofTible to conceive any thing more deplorable than
a ftate of guilt and proftitution, th.it charity can-
not fail of being highly ufeful which is intended
to remedy fuch terrible evils, and provide for the
temporal and eternal good of our fellow-creatures.
Such a charity is this, of which we are here fpeak^
ing ; a charity that extends its influence to the
molf wretched and abandoned ; to thofe who
would otherwife be expofed to the naufcous breath
of brothel ribaldry, and the w.inton infults of un-
governed riot ; who are deferted by their friends,
and fpurn-ed at by the world ; poor houfelefs
wretches, fubjeiTc to every mifery that humaa
nature can experience, to fcorn and penurv, to
difeafe and pain ! From this fhocking condition,
they are removed by this excellent charity; and
inftead of continuing the bane of youth, and the
pefts of fociety, are converted into ufeful members
of the community, by having an opportunity givta
A S Y
A S Y
then of repenting of their crimes, and exercifing
their talents in fome honefl and beneficial em-
ployment.
i'his charity is under the diredion of a prefi-
deijt, four vice-prefidents, a treafurer, and com-
-inittee of twentf-one governors, feven of whom
are to be eleded yearly. No bufinefs is to be
tranfacSled except at a general court, which is to
conGil of at leaft ten governors, the prefident, or
vicc-prefident, and th? treafurer. Thefe general
courts are to be held quarterly, viz. on the lail
Wednefday of March, June, September, and
December. A quorum, confiiling of five of the
general committee, are to fit once a v/eek or oftener,
:to receive perfons petitioning for admittance, in-
fpeiTt the cloathins;, furniture, and provifions, ex-
amine the condudt of all the officers and fervants,
&c. A perfon is qualified to be a governor for
life, who fhall fubfcribe twenty guineas, and for
one year, who fhall fubfcribe only five. The
Piiiiicnts are difl:ributed into feparate wards, over
each of which a head is appointed, yet they are all
iubjcdl to the Matrcn. They are entirely concealed
from fight, except when they attend divine worfhip
in the chapel ; and can receive no me/Tages, but
what are beforehand communicated to the matron.
Upon their being guilty any of them of bad be-
haviour, they are either confined for a time, re-
primanded, or difmifled from the fucietv, without
a poflibility of being admitted again, according to
the nature of their crime. Each perfon is em-
ployed in fuch v.'oric and bufinefs, as is fuited to
her abiuty ; and part of the benefit arifing from
■her labour and ingenuity, is allotted to her. Tiie
articles in which they are employed, are making
their own cloaths, which confiil of a light grey
uniform ; knitting, and fpinning ; making bone
lace, black lace, artificial fiowers, and children's
toys; winding filk, drav.'ing patterns, making
■women and childrens fhoes, mantuas, fta\ s, coats,
&c. After the continuance of any woman in the
hou.'e for three years, upon her modeft and \irtn-
ous demeanor, or upon the application of her
parents or friends, the governors may difcharge
her by her own confcnt ; and upon her difcharge,
the cloaths which fhe brought along with her into
the houfe, or if they ha\e been fold, their value
in money will be returned to her, together with a
certificate of her good behaviour. If any woman
is placed in a fervicc out of the houfe. and fhall
continue one whole year in fuch fervicc, to the en-
tire approbation of her mafter and miftrefs, a gra-
tuity not exceeding tv/o guineas, v/ill be given her
by the committee. Upon the good beliaviour of
the won-.en, the committee will always intcreft
themfelves to obtain a reconcilifition with their
p:ireiits and fiiiends, v/hen their contract is can-
celled. In fKbrt, this fchenre feems to be excel-
lently calculated to preferve the lives, the Svelfarc, arj(J'
the fouls of many unfortunate women ; to recover
thofe that are loft, and bring them back as well to
the community, as to the fold and family of
Chriil's flock ; and as fuch, cannot fail of meeting
with the bell wiflies and affiitance of every true
lover of his country, his religion, and his God.
ASSYMMETRY, the want of proportion be-
tween the parts of any thing ; being the oppofite
to fymmetry.
The word is Greek, and compounded of a,
priv. isuv^ and ^.jTpoc, meafure.
It is fometimes ufed by mathematicians to fignify
incomprehenfibility, or when there is no com-
mon meafure between two quantities or mag-
nitudes.
ASY]\lPTOTE, in geometry, a line which
continually approaches nearer to another, but tho'
continued infinitely will never meet with it.
Dcfiriiion of the Asymptotes. If the right
line rtTA be drawn perpendicular to the axis IT,
at one of its extremities, as T, and-lW q be made
equal to the reftangle IDT; having taken Tdi
rzTA ; through the centre C and the points A,
a draw the lines AC, aC, indetermined both ways
from the ccnrre ; theie lines are called afymptotes
to the hyperbola, or the oppofite hyperbola's.
Corollary.
It is e\'ident that the afymptotcs to one hyperbo-
la are alfo afymptotcs to the other that is oppofite.
Prop. I.
If the ordinate of an hvperbola be produced until
it meet the afymptotcs in B and G ; the reit-
angle GPB is equal to TAf. (See Plate XI.
The lines T A and OB are parallel ; wherefore
CTq: TA? :: C O i^ : O B y , and CTq:
TAj : : COy-CT^ = reaangle lOT: OPf.
and, ex ceqitc, CO q, O ^ q : : C O q. — C T q :
OPf, and alternately C O ^. CO?. - CT^ : :
O ^ : OPf, and, by divifion, COy: CO?—
CO? fCT? = CT?: : OB?: OB? - OP?,
and alternately CO?: OB? :: CT?: OB?-
OP^=revflang!e GPB: but in the firft propofition
CO?:OB?::CT?:TA?; vihercfore the red-
angle GBP = T A?, ir. IV. D.
Prop. II.
If from forr.e point, as P, in a hyperbola be drawn
the right line P^ parallel to the axis I T, meet-
ing the two afymptotcs in iand^; then is th
rectangle ^ P ii equal to CT?.
J
From the pofition of the afymptotcs, is bifeiSl
in O hv the axis CM ; and from fimilar triangles,
OB?:
A S Y
OBq: (lee/?. 6.) CO^ = POy : : COf, or
oPy: obq; and by ciivifioii, OBq: OBq-OVq
:: oPq: o?q—ol>q; and alternately, and by
inverfio'n, OBq-0?q= reaangleGPB: a? q
—obq = reaangleGPB : : OB^. oVq-COq:
but OB^: C6q :: TAq: CT q ; wherefore,
ex ^qi/!, reftangle GPB. reiAangle «■ Pi : : TAq.
CTq; but rcitangle GPB =: T A j. (h'thelail
prop.) wherefore r<:aangle g P />=C T q. IVa'/.D.
P R o p. III.
The hyperbola and its afymptotc approach con-
tinually to one another the farther both of ther.i
are produced, and yet \vill never meet, though
PB, the part of the ordinate contained between
the hyperbola and its afyniptote, may be found
fuch, that it fhail be lefs'than any line given.
The re^anc-le GPB rs equvil to TAy. (See
Plate XI. fig. 6.) (by prop. I.) but G B cncrcaks
the farther it is diftant from C ; wherefore PB con-
tinually diminiflietii ; but it can never become
equal to nothing, for then the reftangje GPB
would be Clonal to nothing, which would contra-
dict the foremer.tioned Prop, wherefore the hyper-
bola and its afvmptotc can never meet : then if a
rectangle be made, one of whofe fides fliall be lefs
than the g'.vcn line, which recvungle fhall be equal
to TAq; the fum of the two fides of this reft-
angle, as G B, being applied within the angle
made by the afymptotes perpendicularly to the
axis rr, P the point that divides the fides of that
leiStangle will be within the hyperbola (by prop. I.)
ajid confequenlly PB is lefs than the giveji line.
IF. TV. D.
Prop. IV,
If two points, as P and A, (Plate XL /^. 7.) be
taken in a hyperbola, or one point only in each
of the oppofue hyperbola's, and through thefe
points be drawn two right and parallel lines,
as PH and AD terminated by one of the afymp-
totes, as CD; in like manner, if through the
fame points P,A be drawn two other lines PF,
AB, parallel to one another, and terminated at
the other afymptote CB ; then is the rectangle
PHxPF=:ADx AB.
Through the points P, and A, having drawn
the perpendiculars to the axisEPG, andLAK
terminated by the afvmptotes in EG, LK; the
triangles EPFand LAB, PGH and KHD, are
fimilar, by reafon the lines that compofe them are
parallel; wherefore EP. PF : : LA. AB, and
PG. PH :: AK': AD; wherefore multiplying
thefc two proportions into one another, antece-
dents into antecedents, and confequents into con-
fequents ; there will arife this proportion; EP x
PG: PF X PH J : LAxAK: ABxAD; but
die rectangle EPG equal redtangle LAK; for
AS Y
(by prop. I.) they are equal fquares of cne and t!i^
fame right line ; wherefore the reiSlangle P F X P H
is equaf to the ledangle A B X A D. IF. IF. D.
Corollary.
It is evident that what wc have dcmonftraten
above for t.vo points only, may be demonftrateJ
in like manner for any number of points whatfo-
cver.
Prop. V.
If a right line, asFH, (Plate XI. /ij. 10.) touch nn
hyperbola -a P ; then it meets the afymptotes in V
and H, and is bifecled by the point of contact P-.
I. Through the point P draw EPO an ordinate
to the I'.xis, and if the tangeiu P do not meet the
afvmptotes, it Wul be parallel to one of thcr.t,
which let be C G, it it be poffible. By prop. ifL
one may find a line lefs than P G, which being
parallel to C G, let it be comprehended between
the hyperbola and the afymptote; this line pro-
duced' will neceffarily meet the tangeiit FPH
parallel to C G within the hyperbola, which is ab-
furd ; for FPH is fuppoicd to be a tangent ;
therefore a tangent meets both the afymptotes,
which is the firft part of the propofition.
?.. If P PI bo unequal to P F, let it be greater if
polTible ; having cut ofl" H/> = F P, draw epg
parallel to E P"G ; then, becaufe /> F=:H;>, and
ge parallel to G E, /*^ : P G : : H/5 : H P ; and
Up : H P, or their equals F P : F/. : ; PE : p e,
and, ex aquo, pg: PG : : P E : ^ f ; wherefore
PGxP Eri/J^X/i^; and by the converfe of the
gth Prop, the point p will be one of the points of
the hyperbola ; therefore FPH will meet the hyper-
bola 'in two points P, />, contrary to the hypothefis,
for it is fuppofed to be a tangent. Wherefore the
Propofition is true.
Prop. VI.
Through the points P, A of an hyperbola, (Plate
Xl./^r. g.) draw the right lines F H, B D paral-
lel to one another, and meeting the afymptotes
■each of them in the poincs F, H, B, D ; then
the reaangle P F X P H is equal to the reel-
angle A B x A D or A B ?, if B D touch the
hyperbola in the point A.
This propofition Is evident from prop. IV. and V.
for the lines P F, PH, and A B, A D are parallel ;
and if B D be a tangent in the point A, it is
divided bv the point A into two equal parts
(by prop. V.)
Asymptotic, fomcthing relating to afymptotes.
See Asymptotes.
Asymptotic Space^ the fame with hyperbolic
fpace.
ASYNDETON, a figure in grammar, imply-
ing the want of conjun<5tions in a fcntcnce. It i^
compounded of the (5reek a, priv. and jvvS'-.a., I
T t t bind ■
AT H
.bind together : becaufc a fentence is conneiled by
the ufe of conjun(3;ions.
In the following fentence, Vetti, vidi, vici, the
copulative et is omitted : as alfo in that paffronate
cxpreffion of Cicero about Catiline, Jl/iit, exctjjit,
(Viift:, erupit. This figure is properly applitd to
exprefs any violent aflion or emotion of the foul :
thus for inllance in Virgil,
Ferte citi Jiammas, date vela, impelUte remos.
Whe.'i we fpeak with coolnefs and deliberation,
conjundlions are abfolutely neceffary ; and when
we would particularize feveral things, initead of
an afyndeton, we (hould employ a polyfyndeton,
or figure by which the copulatives are multiplied.
See Polysyndeton.
ATARAXY, a term ufed by the ftoics and
fceptics to denote that calmnefs of mind wiiich
I'ecures us from all emotions arifing from vanity or
felf-conceit. In this confifted the fummum bonum,
or fovereign good.
The word is Greek, ctTJipctH/Si nnd compound-
ed of rt, priv. and xctp*^^, perturbation.
ATAXY, in a general fenfe, the want of or-
der : with phyficians it fignifies the irregularity of
the crifes and paroxyfms of fevers.
The word is Greek, strati*, and compounded
of a, priv. and Tttf/f, order.
ATCHE, in commerce, a fmall filver coin
nfed in 'I'urky, and worth only one-third of the
Englifh penny.
ATCHIEVEMENT, in heraldry, denotes the
arms of a perfon, or family, together with all the
exterior ornaments of the fhield, as helmet, man-
tle, creft, fcrolls, and motto, together with fuch
quarterings as may have been acquired by alliances,
all m.arihalled in order.
ATE, in the pagan theology, the goddefs of
mifchief.
She was the daughter of Jupiter, and cafl: down
from heaven at the birth of Hercules : for Juno
having deceived Jupiter, in caufing Eurillheus to
be born before Hercules, Jupiter exprefled his. re-
fentment on Ate, as the author of that mifchief,
and threw her headlong from heaven to earth,
fwearing flie flwuld never return thither again.
The n.ime of t'r.is goddefs comes from c-ra.a,
jiocco, to hurt. Her being the daughter of Jupiter
m.eans, that no evil happens to us, but by the per-
miflion of Providence ; and her baniihment to
earth denotes the terrible effects of divine juftice
among men.
ATELLAN^'E, in Roman .antiquity, comic and
fatyric pieces prefented on the theatre ; but as in
the later times they grew exceffively lewd, they
were fupprefi'ed by order of the fenate.
A TEMPO GiusTO, in mufic, fignifies to fing
or pl.iy in an equal, true, .and jull time.
A'l'HAMADULET, the prime minifter of the
4
A T H
Pcifian empire, as the grand vizier is of thcTurkifb
empire.
The athamadulet is great chancellor of the king-
dom, prefident of the council, fuperintendant of
the finances, and is charged v.-ith all foreign
affairs.
ATHANASIAN Creed, that fuppofcd to be
compofed by Athanafius. See Creed.
ATHANATI, in Perfian antiquity, a body of
cavalry, confifling of ten thoufand -men, always
complete. 'J'hey were called athanati, becaufc
when one of them happened to die, another was
immediately appointed to fucceed him.
ATHANOR, in chc-miflry, a kind of fixed and
large digelling furnace, made with a tower, fo
contrived as to keep a coniiant moderate heat for a
confiderable time, which may be increafed or
diminifhed at pleafure, by (hutting the regifters.
Plate XIII. /^. 3. reprefents an athanor furnace,
aaaa, the tower of the athanor, or chief furnace,
which receives the fuel of the fire : the pricked
lines indicate the thicknefs of the wall : bh hb, the
inner fides v.diich form the cavity, and are each ten
inches long ; c, the door of the afli-hole ; e, the
upper-door ; d, the grate which is placed even
with the bottom of the door e ; f, the cover where-
with the upper aperture of the tower is fhut; ggy
a flue, through which the fire afcends from the
tower into the firft furnace ; h h h h, a hollow prifm,
which forms the firft fecondary furnace; //, a
lemi-cylindrical arch, wherewith the aforefaid prifm
is clofed up ; k k k i, an iron plate coated within,
wherewith the firft fecondary furnace is fhut. In
this plate is a round hole, tlirough which the neck
of the vefl'el 7 may be pafl'ed ; ?/, iron-bars ; 00 o-,
iron-hooks, faflened to the wall to receive the iron-
bars ; qqqq, the funnel of the furnace ; z, an iron,
plate, wherewith the funnel may be fhut; tt^ ano-
ther flue, through which the fire pafl'es from the
firfr fecondary furnace to the fecond ; u uii u, ano-
ther fecondary furnace cylindrical; vv, its upper
circular aperture, floped at the fore-part, to re-
ceive an iron pot, which is to be hung in this fe-
condary furnace ; z, a flue, which conveys the fire
from the fecond to the third furnace ; 11 11, the
third fecondary furnace, having an iron pot, like
the fcccnd ; 2222, the feccnd funnel; 3, a plate
to Ihut the funnel; 4, an aperture which leads
from the third furnace into the funnel ; 5554 thi-
third funnel ; 7, an earthen retort, placed in the
firft fecondary furnace, with its neck through the
hole in the door ; 8, a receiver ; 9, a glafs retort,
placed in the iron pot belonging to the fecond fe-
condary furnace, which pot is filled with fand ;
JO, a receiver ; 1 1, a glafs cucurbit, with its head
placed in the pot of the third furnace; 12, 12,
Hands which fupport the receivers, and which may
be raifed or lowered by the help of fcrews.
Ufa of the Athanor, — You muft put in, at
the
A T H
the upper arch-door r, a femi-cylindrical muffle,
twelve inches long, of the fame height and breadth
of the door, three quarters of an inch thick, and
open behind, being flint there by the hinder part of.
the athanor : for this piirpofe, a tile muft be placed
on the grate .-/, to fupport the muffle. Under this
niufile you may place your cement-pots, or iuch
bodies as muft be calcined with a long and violent
fire ; which may be done without a muffle, though
not fo well. In the firft fecondary furnace, hhhh,
i i, you may perform the moft violent diftillations
with an open iire ; for retorts and other \efiels may
be introduced into it, by taking away the door
i i i, and placed either upon the hearth itfclf, or
on a particular fupport of llone : but j'ou muft be
careful to place thofe vefTels in fuch a manner, that
their necks may pafs through the hole in the door
/•/■. You may clofe all the crevices of the door
with lute. To the neck of the retort apply a cy-
lindrical fegment ten or tv.'-elve inches long, that the
lieat of the \ apours may be graJualiy diminilhed,
left the receiver, which muit be of glafs, fhould
fplit. The receiver inuft be luted to the other
orifice of the faid fegment, and fupported by a kind
of trivet, in this chamber, inftead of diftillations,
you may make cementations, calcinations, &c. in
which cafe tlie round hole in the iron plate i /•,
muft be Ihut.
The fecond and third fecondary furnaces ferve
chiefly to perform fuch operations as are made in
baths of fand, afties, or hllngs. You may alfo
make in thcfe furnaces diftillations by a reverberat-
ing fire, as in the firft ; only the fire is lefs violent
in thefe, though -fufficient for diftiiling aqua-fortis.
In order to this, you muft take out the iron pot,
and invert it on the mouth of the furnace ; by this
means the fegment cut out from the pot, together
with that cut out from the fide of the cavity, will
form a hole for the neck of the retort.
All the .ipparatus being thus prepared, you muft
introduce, through the top of the tower bbbb, a
few burning coals, and then a fuiHcient quantity
of fuel, fo that the tov/er may be entirely filled,
or only in pait, according to the nature of the
operation. Then immediately put on the iton
cover/", and clofe exadily all the crevices with lute ;
for if you neglect this caution, all the fuel contain-
ed in the tower would immediately be kindled,
which might be attended with ver\' bad coiife-
qucnces.
Maimer of regulating the Fire. — The fire may be
made very ftrong in the firft chamber hhhh, ii^ by
leaving the door of the afh-hole c, and the funnel
qqqq-, of the chamber, quite open, and the fire
have free liberty to pafs from the tower into this
c.ivity : bul the clofer the funnel is fhut, together
with the door of the afh-hole, the more the violence
«f the heat diminilhes ; and this will be foon efFeit-
A TH
cd, if the iron flider, which feparates this cavity
from the tower, be partly let down. Obferve alfo,
v,-hen the ftrongcft fire is required, that the hole in
the door k k be clofely flopped ; bccaufe, when
open, the air, by ruJliing violently through it,
cools the bodies placed in that cavity. At the fame
time, diftillation, or fome ether procefs, mr.y be
performed, and with the fame fire, in the fecond
and third furnaces ; for the fire penetrates from the
firft cavity into the fecond, and incrcafes when the
funnel 2222, ereded on it, is opened : but, before
you do this, the funnel of the firft cavity muft be
ftiut as much as that of the fecond is opened. By
the fame means j-ou may hinder the fire, which
ferves for the operations made in the t'AO firft cavi-
ties, from going out through their funnels, and
force it out through the funnel 555, by which
means it will alfo aft upon the bodies placed in
that cavity : for the more the funnel ereiled on the
third cavity is open, the more one or both the
funnels of the other cavities muft be clofed :
whence it is plain, that you cannot have the
ftrongeif fire in the third cavity, unlefs there be an
equal degree of fire in the other two ; but, on the
contrary, the heat in the third cavity mav be ren-
dered lefs, by clofing its funnel, though it be
violent in the others. The fame is true of the fe-
cond cavity^ with regard to the firft. You cannot
make the ftrongeft fire under the muffle .placed
within the upper door Cy of the tower, unlefs you
have an equal fire in the firft cavity ; which
fire may conlequcntly be increafed by fiiutting the
door quite againft the muffle, and diminiflied by
opening it ; there being, at the fame time, an
equal heat in the firft and following chambers.
ATHEIST, one who difbelieves the being
and pro\ idence of God. It is derived from the
Greek ctpiiv. and 6jo;, a God.
We may diftinguifh our mpdern"atheifts into two
kinds ; fjtuulative atbeijh, or thofe who, thro' a pride
or fingularity of learning, afFed: to deny the exilt-
ence of a God, from theory or principle, as they
would make us believe ; and praSiical atheijh, or
thofe whofe wicked lives lead them to believe, I
mean, to wifh. that there may be no God. It is to
be doubted v/hether there ever yet exifted one fen-
fible reafoning perfon who actually, and in his
heart, entertained a difbelief of a Pro\ idence : it is
to be doubted, I fay, and for this reafon ; becaufe
the whole creation, rational and irrational, ani-
mate and inanimate, bear teftimony to the great
and important truth. Thzt fools have faid in their
hcatts there is no God, is not altogether fo impro-
bable ; as they are incapable of examining any
thing with attention, or employing thofe faculties
properly with which nature has invefted them.
The eyes of their mind are darkened, fo that they
cannot fee the cleareft and moft glaring truths j and
they
ATL
they pafs their time in a dull inaftivity of reafon
and foul, that degrades and debafes them below
the brutes.
ATHELING, ADELI^?G, Edling, Ethling,
or Etheling, amonc; our anceftors, was a title of
honour belonging to th;heir apparent, or prefump-
tive, to the crown. This honourable appelhuion
was firft conferred by Edv/ard the ConfefTor ou Ed-
gar, to whom he wLS great uncle, when, being;
without any i.Tue of his own, he intended to make
him his heir.
ATHtNyEA, in antiquity,- a feaft celebrated
by the ancient Greeks in honour of Minerva, who
was called Athene.
ATHEN^UM, in antiquity, was a pub-
lic ftrud^ure wherein the profeflbrs of the libe-
ral arts held their afTemblies, the rhetoricians de-
claimed, and the poets rehearfed their perform-
ances.
Thefe firufliures, of which there were feveral at
Athens, were built in the form of amphitheatres,
•encompafled with feats, called cunei.
ATHEROMA, in furgery, a tumour without
pain or difcoloration of the fkin, containing, in a
membraneous bag, mJtter refembling pap, inter-
mixed with hard and ftony particles. Thefe tu-
mours are eafily cured by incilion.
The word is Greek, stS-spa^^, and derived from
a-jMps, pulp, or pap.
ATHLETjE, in antiquity, perfons of ftrcngth
and agility, properly difciplined for performing in
the public games.
The word is Greek, a.'ihtnifi, and derived from
ei5h<^', combat.
Under the name athletas were comprehended
wreftlers, boxers, runners, leapers, throwers of
the difcus, and thofc prasSifed in other exercifes
exhibited at the Olympic, Pythian, and other fo-
Icmn games, where prizes were eflabliflied for the
conquerors.
ATHWART, in the marine, acrofs ; as, We dif-
covered a fleet at day-break {landing athwart us,
i. e. difcovered a fleet fleering acrofs the line of our
courfe.
Athwart haufe. When a fhip is driven by the |
v/ind or tide againfl the fore-part of another,
and preiTes upon it with her fide, fne is then faid to i
•Jie athwart-haufe of the latter.
Athwart the fore foot : a (hot is commonly j
f.rcd immediately before a (hip's fore-part by another '
of fuperior force, when flie wants to intercept her, I
that fhe may remain with her fails flackened until
ihe is examined ; and this is called firing athwart
the fore-foot.
Athwart Shlpi^ reaching acrofs the fnip, or
from one fide to the other.
ATLANTIDES, in aftronomy, the fame with
Pleiades. See Pleiades.
ATX'AS, in anatomy, the name of the firft vcr-
A T M
tebrae of the neck, or that v/hich fupports the
head. It has its name from an alUlion to a
celebrated mountain in Africa, of fo Uupendous a
height, that it feems to fupport the heavens ; and
from the fable, in which Atlas, king of that coun-
try, is faid to bear' the heavens upon his fhoui-
ders.
Atlas, in architecture, is a name given to thif;
whole or half figures of men, fometimes ufed iii-
flead of colunuis or pilafters to fupport any mem-
ber in architecture. They are fometimes calkd
Telamones.
Atlas, in matters of literature, denotes a book
of univerfal geographv, containing maps of all the
known world.
ATMOSPHERE is a thin elaftic fluid, i.-iter-
mixt with particles cf dift'erent natures furround-
ing our globe to the height of about fortv or
forty-five miles. The nature and properties of
this fluid, we have (hewn under the article Air.
But fome of its ufes we (hall now point out, and
firft as to Vegetation, Dr. Grew and Malphighi
have fhev.-n that it is a principal concurrent theie-
in, and by experiments on feeds fov/n in earth and
put in an exhaufted receiver, it has been proved
that no vegetation can fucceed without it; what
makes it (o nece{rary feems to be, becaufe it be-
ing more eafily rarefied, and heated by ti;e adiion
of the fun than other more compact, heavy, and
lefs fpringy fluids, is fitter to promote the afcent of
juices in the flender channels of vegetables ; and
there being no fluid without a confiderable portion
thereof, lodged up and down among its parts, the
fi.rft- impulfcof the juices upwards does thence arife. |
As alfo becaufe of its active, fpringy, and fubtile "
nature, it rarefies, a£luates, and refines the more
fizy vegetable juices to promote their circulation,
and performs fumSions on them analogous to that
it does on the anim.al fluids. Next, as to ani-
mals, it is well known that they could live but a
few minutes without this elaftic fluid, and proba-
bly that which fo fuddenly kills thundcr-ftruck
animals, is the quick and violent rarefaftion of the
air about them ; for the lungs of all fuch, upon
opening, are found quite deftitute of^ir, and the
fides of their veficles quite clapped together. It
is certain that the blood is fent from the right
ventricle of the heart to the lungs, and if the vefi-
cles thereof be not diftended or blov.m up by the
air, the circulation muft ftop there, and the ani-
mal pcrifh ; and both for the comminution of the
particles of the blood, that they may more eafilv
pafs through the capillary and terminating ve(rel:s,
and for the propagation thereof in the wider ones,
there is necefTarily required a fluid of a determinate
gravity and cbfticity. We have as great difticidty
in breathing, in a thin (as is evident from the di-
ficulty of breathing on the tops of high moun-
tains, and from experiments on animals in nearlv
exhaufted
A T iM
cxhaviftod receivers) as in a thick air; and even
in filhe?, where the water in fome mcafurc fup-
plies the want of air, yet if you draw out
all the bubbles of air, which are always found in
water, they will languifli and die ; and in great
frolls, if the ice be not broken to admit frefh air,
the fifh in lochs and ponds will languifh and die,
Jiot to mention here their fwimming- bladders,
which are fo ncceilary to them, and communicates
with the air in their gills. So that even to them.,
a certain portion of this elafi:ic fluid is neceflary.
Now how well is this fluid fitted for the generality
of the inhabi;ants of this globe ? it being neither
too heavy, nor too light, neither too much, nor
too little elullic, for the ufes of refpiration. Ano-
ther advantage we reap by our atmofphere, is, that
by it our clouds and vapours are fupported, without
which we fliould neither have frelh water, nor
inow, nor rain, nor any of thofe things which
moilten and enrich our foil, and make it fit for
vegetation. For though it be the fun that rarefies
the water, and makes it take its firft flight in
vapours and iteams ; yet it is by the atmofphere, its
progrefs is continued to the upper regions, and
fupported when it is there, to be afterwards formed
int(5 fnow, or hail, or rain, or carried into other
regions, whofe foil may want it more. Every
body knows, that if there were no atmofphere,
but a perfefl: void, around the earth, the aftion of
the lun would not be able to raife the vapours
above a few feet from its furface ; and that it is
only the atmofpherc's being fpecifically heavier
than thcfe vapours, that buoys them up in the air,
by its greater tendency toward the center. Now
then, if there were no atmofphere, the vapours
could rife to no fufficient height, and fo could never
be cooled fufficiently, fo as to be formed into fnow,
or rain ; for at a fmall diflance from the earth's
furface, the reflejfted rays of the fun make the
j)laces I'o v/arm, that no vapour could be turned
uito fnow, or rain, there ; for it is the coldnefs of
the upper regions, (being deftitute cF thefe refiecSled
rays) and the length of their defcent, that forms
thefe clouds and \apmirs into fnow and rain. When-
ever the fupporting atmofphere becomes lighter
than thefe accumulated vapours, they fall down
with the temper of he::t or cold they had iii the
upper regions, and fo become fnow or rain accord-
ingly. So that it is plain, it is our atmofphere that
is one of the principal means of our dews and
rains, and all the bleiiings that follow upon thefe.
A third advantage of our atmofphere is, oar breezes
and our winds, v.fhich carry our fliips upon tjie
fea, and purify our air from noxious fleams,
v/hich (with the concurrence of the fun) melt our
fnows, and dry our ground when over-moiftened ;
and ferve for fo many other purpofes, for the ac-
xommodation of human life. Wind is nothinn-
hjt a violent motion of the air, produced princi-
J4
A TO
pally by its rarera<3ion, more in one place than
another, by the fun's beams, the attravitions of
the moon, and the combinations of the earth's
motions. Without our atmofphere, we fhould
have no more wind above than under ground,
and Ip be deprived of all the benefits arifing thence.
Lailly, Our atmofphere is the vehicle and medium
of found, that fcnfe which mofily diilingui&es
us from fifhes, and the inferior fort of infects.
Sound is nothing but a modulation or porcuflion
of the air, communicated by an impulfe from thj
vibrating fonorous body, and propagated in un-
dulations, through the fluid of the atmolphere,
every way round. Without our air v/e fiiould not
be able to hear the report of a thoufand pieces of
ordnance difcharged at the fmallelt diftance, as is
evident from the experiments en founds in ex-
hauf!:ed receivers. We fhoidd have no fuch thing
as languages or mufic, and what a cc-nfortlefs flate
this would be, we leave the reader to judge. Add
to all thefe, that it is to our atmofphere the beauty,
variety of colours and figures, which are painted
on the fkies, the lightfomcnefj of our air, and the
twilight are owing. By it t'nc day is protracted,
and the night fliortened, and in thefe places moft;,
which want thofe molt. By the refractions of our
atmiSfphere, the fun rifes fooner, and fets later iit
appearance, and with its beneficial confequences,
even a m»onth fooner in fome places than it would
otherwife ; and the land and mountains appear
fooner to the weary wandering failor. Thefe are
great and noble advantages to the inhabitants of
this globe, as they bed can tell, who by accidents
are fometimes deprived of them. From all which,
it is very plain that there was counfel and defign
i]i the contrivance and produdtion of our atmofphere.
TFc'l^ht of the Atmosphere upon every I'quare
inch on the furface of the earth, is about fifteen
pounds, being equal to a column of mercury
whofe height is thirty inches, and its bafe one
fquare inch ; for fuch a column of mercury would
weigh about fifteen pounds. The wei2;ht of the
atmofphere therefore which prcifes upon a man's
body, is equal to fo many times fifteen pounds, as
the furface of his bo.iy contains iquare inches.
The reafon v/hy a perfon fufters no inconveniency
from fo great a prelTure, is owij.,;; to the air in-
cluded witliin the pores and fluids uf the body,
which by re-action proves a counterpoife to the pref-
fure of the external air.
Atmosphere of the AL jh atid Su:- . S e e M o o :<
and SuK.
ATOM, in pliilofophy, an indi\irible particle,
or corpufcle of matter.
The word is Greek, a.roi/^, and compounded
of a, priv. and Tiui'f>, to cut, or di\ ide.
Atoms arc properly the minima fiaiura, the leaft
or ultimate particles into which bodies are divifiblc ;
and are conceived to be the firft rudiments, orconv-
U u u poneijt
A T R
A T R
ponent parts of all phyfical magnitude ; or the pre-
exilknt and incorruptibk- matter vvliereof bodies
arc formed.
The notion of atoms artfes from a fuppofition,
that matter is not divifible ad infinitum. And hence
the Peripatetics are led to deny the reality of atoms.
An atom, fay they, either has parts, or it has not :
if it has no parts, it is a mere mathematical point ;
if it has, thele parts muft alfo confill of others,
and fo on to infinity.
But this is to recede from the genuine characlers
of atoms, which are not efteemed indivifible from
their want of parts (for all phyfical magnitude muft
have three dimenfions, length, breadth, and thick-
nefs, and all extenfion is divifible) ; but they are
indivifible on account of their folidity, hardnefs,
and impenetrability, which preclude all divifion,
and leave no vacancy for the admiilion of any
foreign force to fepa rate or difuiiite them.
It is neceffary that atoms, as being the firfl:
matter, ihould be indifiblvible, in order to 'their
being incorruptible. Sir Ifaac Newton adds, that
immutability is alfo requifite, in order to the world's
continuing in the fame ftate, and bodies being of
the fame nature now as formerly.
Hence the ancients were alfo led to maintain
that atoms were eternal j for what is immutable
muft be eternal.
ATOMIC AL Philofiphy, the doftrine of atoms ;
or the method of accounting for the origin and
formation of things from the fuppofition of atoms
being endued with gravity and motion. See Cor-
puscular Philofopby.
ATONYj Ln phyfic, a relaxation, or debility of
the folids of the human body.
The word is Greek, ctronx-, and compounded of
d,, priv. and Tov'h--, tone.
The Methodic feet confidered relaxation and
ftricture, or a mixture of thefe, as the caufcs of
v.n diitempers.
ATRA BiLis, black bile, among the ancient
phyficians, implied one of the humours of the
body ; the m.oderns call it melancholy. See Me-
iANCHOLY.
ATRACTYLIS, diftafF thlftle, in botany, a
genus of plants bearing radiated flowers, containing
many herm.aphrodite florets, which are included
in a common fcaley empalcment ; the feeds are
comprefled, coronated with a plumofc down, and
itandina: on a plane villofe receptacle.
Atractylis is alfo the name by which Var-
iant calls a fpecics of the carthamus. See the ar-
ticle Carthamus.
ATRAGENE, in botany, a genus of polyan-
drious plants, the flower of which confifls of twelve
petals, containing a number of fhort filaments
with oblong antherse ; it hath feveral oblong ger-
mina, which produce a number of caudated
feeds,
ATRAPHAXIS, in botany, a genus of hex-
andrious plants, the flower of which confifts of
two roundifii, finuated, and premanent petals ; it
hath fix capillary filaments, with roundifh an-
thers, and the calyx, which is premanent, contains
a comprefTed feed.
One of the fpecies of atraphaxis is called atri-
plex by Tournefort. This is a ftirub which rifes
about four or five feet high, fending out many
•weak lateral branches, which are armed with fpines ;
thefe are furniflied with fmall lanceoiated leaves of
an afh-colour, and are fmooth ; the flowers come
out of the ends of the fl:ioots in clufters, which
confift of two white leaves, tinged with purple,
and are included in a two leaved empalement, of a
white herbaceous colour ; they appear in Auguft.
This plant is propagated by cuttings, and mull be.
protected from hard frolts.
A-TPvIP, in the marine, a fhip's top-fails are
faid to be a-trip, when they are drawn up to the
mafl-head, or to their full extent. See Top-saiJj.
A-TRip, the anchor is fo called, when the fhip,
in a perpendicular dire(5tion, drags or heaves it off
the ground.
ATRIPLEX, orach, in botany, a genus of
polygamious plants, whofe flowers are female and
hermaphrodite, vv'ith no petals ; the female flowers
have a two leaved empalement, which are plane,
large, upright, and pointed in the center : it has a
comprefled germen, fupporting a bipartite ftyle,
crov/ned with a fharp reflexed iligma. The her-
maphrodite flowers hjive a pentaphyllous calyx,
which is perfiflent, and contains five fubulated
filaments, placed oppofite the leaves of the em-
palement, fupportins; a double roundifh antherse :
the germen is orbiculated, and contains a ftyle like
the female, and in both becomes an orbicular com-
prefled feed inclofed in the empalement.
Atriplex is eftemed cooling and emollient, and
its feeds, given internally, diuretic, and good in dif-
orders of the uterus.
ATROPA, deadly night-lliade, in botany, a
genus of pentandrious plants. The common fort,
which grows wild in feveral parts of England,
hath a perennial root, which is long, thick, and
brown, and fends forth ftrong herbaceous (talks,
which rife to the height of about three or four feet,
purple at the bottom, and of a pale-green upwards ;
thick, hairy, and divided into a few branches : tha
leaves are numerous, oblong, hairy, of a faint green,
and placed irregularly on the branches ; the flowers
rife from the bofoms of the upper leaves, and arelarge
and campanulated, fpreading at the top, which is cut
into five fegments, of a duflcy greenifh colour,
flriated and ftajned in various degrees with a dull
purple ; the bafe within is yellowifh, and the up-
per part purple ; from the bafe of the petal arifeth
five fubulated filaments, which are toppsd with
large anthcra?, which Hand upwards ; the ftyle is
flsnder.
ATR
Hc-nder, and a little bent; it rifes from a roundiOi
rudiment of a berry, crowned with an oblong Itig-
ma, placed tranfvcrfely ; the flowers are fucceeded
by a large round berry, a little flatted at top,
which is rirft green, but when ripe turns to a finn-
ing black, fitting clofe upon the empalcment,
and containing three cells filled with kidney-fliaped
feeds.
'I'his plant is rarely admitted into gardens, nor
indeed fliould it be fuft'ered to grow in any places
v/here children relbrt, for it is a llrong poifon,
and there have been many inftances of its deadly
quality, by feveral children being killed by eating
the berries, which are of a fine black colour, about
the fize of a black cherry, and not unpleafant to
the talle. Buchanan, in his Hiftory of Scotland,
gives an account of the deftruftion of the army of
Sweno the Dane, when he invaded Scotland, by
mixing a quantity of the juice of thefe berries
with the drink, which the Scots by their truce
v/fere to fupply them with ; which fo intoxicated
the Danes, that the Scots fell upon them in their
fleep, and killed the greateft part of them ; fo that
there were fcarcely men enough left to carry off
their king. With thcfc bad qualities it poffefles
alfo great virtues, which were known among the
antients, though at prefent little noticed. Ma-
thiolus mentions the ufe of deadly night-fliade-
internally, in the diftillcd water, againft inflam-
mations of the vifcera, and in a fyrup from the
juice of the berries ; as alfo outwardly, in various
inflammatory fwellings. In the writings of thofe
who firil defcribed this plant, it is flrongly re-
commended as a cure for cancers, though this ar-
ticle has been long over-looked, as it was dreaded
as a poifon, while neglefted as a remedy : but
later experience has proved, that it hath not the-
tlefired effedt.
ATROPHY, in phyfic, implies an univerfal
conlumption, proceeding from the whole habit of
body, and not from any diftemper of the entrails ;
it is attended with no remarkable fever, and is
natural in old age.
The word is Greek, a.Tfooia., and compounded
of d, priv. and Tpiao, to nourifh.
An atrophy is either nervous, or the efledt of
immoderate evacuations. A nervous atrophy is
that which owes its origin to a bad and morbid
ftate of the fpirits, or to a weaknefs or deflruftion
of the tone of the nerves ; v/hence a weaknefs and
an univerfal ccnfumption of the body proceeds,
for want of a proper afiimilation of the nutritious
juices ; fo that, from the beginning of the difeafe,
there is a detect of appetite, and a bad digeflion in
the flomach
An atrophy from inanition proceeds from a pre-
ternatural defedl: or fubtraiSlion of the nutritious
juice, NYiVch varies according to the different out-
ATT
lets of the body, whether by nature or art. Sec
Consumption.
ATTACHMENT, in law, implies the taking
or apprehending a perfon, by virtue of a writ or
precept.
It is diftinguiflied from an arrcft, by proceeding
out of a higher court by precept or writ ; whereas
the latter proceeds out of an inferior court by pre-
cept only. An arrefl: lies only on the body of a
man ; whereas an attachment lies often on tPie
goods only, and fcnietimes on the body anJ
goods.
An attachment bv writ differs from diftrcfs, in
not extending to lands, as the latter docs ; nor
does a diftrefs touch the body, as an attachment
does.
In the common acceptation, an attachment im-
plies the apprehenfion of a man's body, in order
to his anfwering the action of the plaintiff.
Attachment- out of the Chancery is obtained
upon an aflidavit made, that the defendant was
ferved vvith a fubpoena, and made no appearance ;
or it iffueth upon not performing fome order or
decree. Upon the return of this attachment by
the fherift, quod non eft inventus in halUva fua^
another attachment, with a proclamation, iffues ;
and if he ftill refui'es to appear, a commiffion or
rebellion.
Attachment of the Foreji is one of the three
courts held in the foreft.
The lowelt court is called the court of attach-
ment, or wood-mote court ; the mean, fwan-mote ;
and the higheft the juftice in eyre's feat.
The court of attachments has its name from the
verdarers of the forefl having no other authority
in it, but to receive the attachments of offenders
againft vert and venifon taken by the forefters,
and to enroll them, that they may be prefented or
puniflied at the next juftice in eyre's feat.
This attachment is- by three means ; by goods
and chattels, by body, pledges, or mainprize ; or
by the bodv only. This court is held every forty-
days throughout the year ; and is thence called
forty-days court.
Attachment of Privilege is by virtue of a
man's privilege to call another to that court where-
to he himfelf belongs, and in refpedl whereof he
is privileged to anfwer fome aftion.
Foreign ATTACHMENT is an attachment of.
money or goods found within a liberty or city,
to fatisfy fome creditor within fuch liberty or
city.
jjy the cuftom of London, and feveral other
places, a man can attach money or goods in the
hands of a Arranger, to fatisfy himfelf.
Attachiamenta Bcnorum, in our old ftatute
books, imports a diftrefs taken upon the goods or
chattels of a perfon fucd for a perfonal cllale, or ■■
deb!;:> ,
ATT
debt, by the legal attachiators, or bailiffs, as a fe-
■ curity to anfwer the aftion.
Attachiamenta (is Sf'inis iff Bofco, denotes an
ancient privilege granted to the officers of forefts,
to take to their own ufe thorns, bruih, and wind-
falls within their own precinfts or liberties.
ATTACK, a violent attempt upon any perfon
or thing, an aflault, or the act of beginning a
combat, ordifputc.
•Attack, in the military art, is an effort made
to force a pofl, break a body of troops, &c.
Attack of a Siege, is a furious afliault made by
the befiegers with trenches, covers, mines, &c.
in order to make themfelves maflers of a fortrefs,
by florming one of its fides. If there are two or
three attacks made at the fame time, there fhould
be a communication betwixt them.
ATTAINDER, in law, is when a man has
committed felony or treafon, and fentence is palled
vipon him for the fame. The children of a per-
fon attainted of treaibn, are thereby rendered in-
capable of being heirs to him, or to any other an-
ccllor ; and if he were noble before, his pofterity
are degraded and made bafe : nor can this corrup-
ticn of blood be falved, but by an aft of parlia-
ment, unlefs the fentence be revcrfed by a writ of
error.
Attainder is two-fold, either by appearance, or
by procefs.
Attainder by appearance, is cither by battle,
by confefuon, or by verdidl. By battle, is when
the parcy appealed by another, choofuig rather to
try the truth by combat than by jury, is vancjuifii-
ed. Attainder by confcffion, is either by pleading
guilty at the bar, and not putting hinifelf upon
trial by the jury, or before the coroner in landluary,
where, in ancient times, he was obliged to re-
nounce the realm.
Attainder by verdift, is when the prifoner at
the bar pleads not guilty to the indidtmcnt, and is
pronounced guiky by the jurv.
Attainder by procefs, ocherwife called attain-
der by default, is where a party flies, or does not
appear after being three times publicly called in the
county court, and at laft, upon his default, is pro-
nounced guilty.
Bill cf Attainder, a bill brought into parlia-
nient for attainting, condemning, and executing a
perfon for high treaibn
ATTAINT, in law, a writ which lies againft:
a jury that have given a falfe verdiiSt in any court
of record, in a real or perfonal adtion, where tlie
debt or damages amount to above forty {hil-
lings.
If the verdift be found falfe, the judgment, by
comnu n law, was, that the jurors meadows fliould
be ploughed up, their houfes" broken down, their
woods grubbed up, all their lands and tenements
A TT
forfeited, hz. but by ftatute the feverity of the
common lav/ is mitigated, where a petty jury ir-
attainted, and there is a pecuniary penalty ap-
pointed.
But if the verdift be afHrmed, fuch plaintiff
fhall be imprifoned and fined.
Attaint, among farriers, a knock or hurt in a
horfe's leg, proceedmg either from a blow with
another horfe's leg, or from an over-reach in
froily v/eather, when a horfe being rough-fhod, or
having fnoes with long calkers, llrikes his hinder
feet againfl his fore-legs.
ATTAINTED, in lav/, is applied to a
perfon found guilty of any crime or offence,
efpeciaily of treafon or felony, by due courfe of
law.
ATTENTION, the applying either the car or
the mind afliduoufly to any thing faid or done, in
orderto underltand it.
The word is Latin, attention and compounded of
ad, to, and tendo, to ftretch, or bend.
To increafe attention, we mufl banifli every
thing that may interrupt it, and feek every means
to ftrengthen and affiil it. Our fenfes are apt to
divert our attention ; new fenfations obfcurc, efface,
and obliterate acts of imagination. Ycflerday you
lav/ a fine piece of painting, were fo ftruck with it,
that its idea quite pofllfied you ; another, offered
to your view to-day, drives the former out of your
imagination ; thus external objcdls deftroy atten-
tion : for this reafon fomc pray with their eyes
fhut, or directed fteadily towards fomc fixed and
immoveable point. Students choofe a room remote
from noife and the interruption of external objecfts ;
and the fcudies of the night have been more fuc-
cefsful-than thofe of the day, becaufe a more uni-
vcrfal calm and filence reigns.
The hurry of the imagination deflroys attention
as much as that of our fenfes ; after a play, it is
difncult to rcfume our ftudies im.niediatj^ly ; next
day forne images will recur, apt t o divert us, and
interrupt our attention. The fenfes, the imagina-
tion, and the paiTions operate upon the foul, and
give it a kind of modification. All, therefore,
who would apply themfelves ffrenuoufly to the dif-
covcry of truth, fhould be careful to avoid ftrong
and immoderate fenfations, a great noife, a glaring
light, excels of grief, or joy, he. they ought to
keep their imagination free from any thing that
weakens or difquiets the mind. They ought efpe-
ciaily to control their paffions, which, let loofe,
make very powerful impreffions on the foul and
body, and exercife a flrange dominion over both ;
yet the paffions and the fenfes may be made of ufe
to prefcrve our attention : as, for inflance, a de-
fire of difcovering truth, rendering ourfelves ufeful
to our neighbours, and improving ourfelves, is
highly laudable, and tends to fix our attejntion ;
6 -but
ATT
ATT
but our attention !s fixed alfo by motives muc'n Icfs
generous and noble, a thirfl: of fame, defire of
riches, nay, even vanity. Experience fhcws us
the fenfes are of no fmall fervice to fix the atten-
tion ; for they have a natural connection wltli our
lltuation ; a man, retired to meditate in a iblitary
cell, will be alarmed, diflraiSted, and his attention
entirely dcftroyed by an uncxpeiitcd noile, or inter-
miffion of adventitious light ; fo, if we, on the
contrary, refleiSt Itrongly on an objedl amidfl day-
light and noife, that idea baniflies all others and
poilefTes us ; thus light and noife are no interrup-
tions to attention, but fer\e to fix it more ftronglv.
It is, in ftiort, a habit of the mind : and the phijo-
fophers, who have fliut their eyes to help their me-
ditation, have furnifhed us with nothing but chi-
meras. Had Defcartes kept his eyes open to have
furveyed the univerfe with attention, inllcad of
finking into meditation, he would never have pub-
liflied fuch dreams as he has for a plan of the uni-
verfe. Attention is progrcflive, and the power of
it may be acquired, but depends, in fome meafure,
on the conftitution.
ATTENUANTS, in pharmacy, are medicines
which refolve the vifcofity of the humours in the
human body, and thereby promote their free cir-
culation, and, at the fame time, difcharge all nox-
ious and excremcntitious matter.
The word is formed from the Latin, ad^ and
tcnuo^ to render fmall.
ATTESTATION, the afl of affirming, or
witnefling, the truth of fomething, efpecially in
writijig.
The word is Latin, eittejlatlo, and compounded
of <?/•/, to, and ie/iis, a witnefs.
ATITC, fomething relating to Attica, or the
city of Athens. Thus, Attic fait, fales Atlica, im-
plies a delicate and poignant fpecics of wit and
humour peculiar to the Athenian writers: Attic
witncis, JtUcui tf/iii, a witnefs incapable of cor-
ruption, &c.
Attic, in architeflure, a fort of building ; the
I'oof or covering of which is concealed ; fo called
from the Athenian buildings, which were in ocne-
ral Of this form.
Attic Order, in architcdure, a fmall order
raifed upon a l-irge one, by way of crowning, or
to finifh the building.
The word is alfo applied to the whole fiory in-
to which this order enters.
Attic of a Roof, a kind of parapet to a terrace,
platform, or the l.ke.
Attic Contmued, that which encompafles the
whole circumference of a building, without any
intenuption, following all the jetts, the returns «f
the pavilions, &c.
Attic luterpojed, one fituatcd between two tall
ftnncs, fometimes adouied with columns, or pi-
lafl-ers.
H
Attic Bnfi. See the anicJe B.^SE.
AT'TIRE, in botany, a name given by (bmc
to the generativ c parts of plants ; and by others,
to im.ply the third part or divifion of the (lower of
a plant ; the other two being the cmpalemcnt
and the foliation, or the cup and the flower
petals.
Attire, in hunting, fignifies the head or horns
of a deer. See the article Head.
ATTITUDE, in painting and fculpture, fig-
nifies the gcfture of a figure or ftatuej or fuch a
difpofition of their parts as ferves to exprefs the
action a]id I'cntiments of the perfon reprcl'entcd.
The word is formed from the Italian, atthudine,
which fignifies the fame thing.
AT'TOLLENS, in anatomy : fee Levatores
and Elevatores.
The word is compounded of the Latin, ad, to,
and tolh, to raife.
ATTORNEY, in a general fenfc, a .perfon
appointed by another to do fomething in his
ftead.
The word is formed from the Latin, ad, to,
and the French, tournsr, to turn ; q. d. to turji a
bufinefs over to another.
Attorney at Law, one who is retained to pro-
fecute or defend a law-fuit.
Attornies, being properly thofe who fue out
writs, or procei's, or commence, carry on, and
defend aftions, in any of the courts of common
law, are diftinguifhed from folicitors, as tlic latter
do the like bufinefs in the courts of equity ; and
none are admitted, either as an attorney or folici-
tor, unlefs they have fer\ed a clerkfliip of five
years, been enrolled, and taken the oath in that
cafe provided; and the judges of their refpec-
tivc courts are required to examine their fcveral
capacities.
By a late order of all the judges, all attornies
arc to be admitted of fome inns of court or chan-
ceiy (except houfe-keepcrs in London and Wef^-
minfl-cr, &c.); and no attorney fhall put himfelf
out of that focietv, into which he is admitted,
till he is admitted to fome other focietv, and de-
liver a certificate thereof; and all attornies are to be
in commons at the times ordered by the fociety to
which they belong, otherwife thev (h^U be put out
of the roll of attornies.
Attornies may be puniflicd for ill prai5lices ; and
if an attorney, or his clerks, of which he muft
have but two at one time, do any thing aj^ainil
the e::prefs rules of the court, he or they may be
committed.
Neither a plaintiff nor defendant may change
his attorney without rule of court, while the fuit
is depending ; and attornies are not generally
obliged to deliver tip the writings in their hi.nds,
till their fees are fatisfied: likevvil'e, an action does
not lie againil an attorney, for what he advifes in
X X X tl-.c
ATT
ATT
t!ie way of his profeiuon ; yet, if aa attorney
plead any plea, or appear, without warrant
irom his chent, afticn of the cafe lies a^iinfl:
him.
Attornies have the privilege to fuc and be fued
only in the courts of Wcftminfter, where they
pradife; and they fliall not be chofen into ofikes
againft their will.
Attorney of *l.e Duchy of Lav.cnficr is the fe-
cond officer in that court, and feenis to be there,
for his fkill in the lav/, placed as aflcfibr to the
chancellor of the court.
Attorney-General is a great officer under
the king, created by letters patent, whofe office is
to exhibit informations, and prolecute for the
crown in criminal caufes ; and to file tlie bills
in the exchequer, for any thing concerning the
king in inheritance or profits. To him come
warrants for making of grants, pardons, &c. His
falary from the crown is icool. per ann.
ATTORNMENT, in law, impHes a transfer
made from one lord to another, of the homage and
fervice a tenant makes ; or that acknowledgment of
duty to a new lord.
ATTRACTION, in natural philofophy, an
indefinite term applicable to all actions whereby
bodies tend towards one another, by iome latent
power. The different kinds of attractions are
commonly divided into four, viz. of Cohefion, of
Eledtricity, of Gravity, and Magnetifm.
Attraction of Cohefion is that by which
minute bodies, or the feveral particles of the fame
body when placed afunder, or at very fmall dif-
tances, mutually approach each other, and then ad-
here or flick together, as if they were but one
body. This attraiStion is ftrongeft when the parts
of the bodies touch one another, but decreafes
much fafter than the attracSlion of gravity, when
The parts that were before in contact ceafe to touch ;
and when they become to be at any lenfible dif-
tance, this attraction of cohefion becomes almofl:
infenfible.
The attradfion of cohefion may be proved by a
great number of experiments, of which fome of
the moft obvious are as follows: Firil:, Suppofe a
capillary tube, open at both ends, be put into a
veffel of water,, the water will immediately rife up in
the tube to a certain height above the level. This
rife of the water is m.anifeftly ov/ing to the attrac-
tion of thofe particles of the glaf^, which lie in
the inner iurface of the tube immediately above
the water ; for the quantity of water raifed is
always proportionable to the largenefs of that
furface ; and the heights the water rifes to in dif-
ferent tubes, are obfervable to be reciprocally as
the diameters of the tubes ; from whence it fol-
lows, that the quantities raifed, are as the furfaces
v/hich raife them ; which may thus be demon-
11 rated. Let there be tv/o tubes, the diameter of
the firft double to tliat of the fecond, then will the
water rife half as high in the firft as in the fe-
cond ; for v/as it to rife equally high in both, tb.e
quantity in the firft v/ould be four times as great as
in the fecond, cylinders of equal heights beiro;
as the fquares of their diameters; therefore, fince \t
is but found to rife half as high, the quantity is
but twice as much, and therefore is as the diameter ;
but the furfaces of cylinders are as their diame-
ters, therefore the quantities of water raifed are
as the furfaces.
Again, let two fpheres of quickfilver be placed
near each other, and they will immediately ran to-
gether, and form one globule ; but thefe fpheres
will not approach each other, except they are
placed very near ; from whence it is plain, that this
kind of attraction only acSts in contaCt, or at very
fmall diftances ; likewife, by the following experi-
ment, we may prove that it is ahva\s the fl-ronjjeft,
where the contact is the greateft. Let two boards
of fir, or oak, be glued in the middle along the
grain, and it will be cafier to break them afunder
in any other part, than in the glued place ; becaufe
there are more pores, and confcquently fewer
touching parts along the wood, any where elfe than
there are in the glued part; for when a joint is
fliot, or the tv/o pieces of wood made fmooth in
order to join them, the glue which is fpread on
the pieces fills the pores, and caufes the wood not
only to touch where it did before, but even in the
interftices where it did not touch, becaufe thofe
little fpaces are filled v/ith glue, that fupplies the
place of wood. On the contrarv, v/hen the wood
is more folid, or has fewer pores than the glue, it
does not hold fo faft where it is glued, as in the
other parts of the wood, which may be feen in
Brazil-wood, ebony, or lignum-vits, and in
metals; likewife the parts of giafs which are al-
moft round, touching but in few points, areeafily
fcparated, and therefore it breaks eafily. We may
likewife prove by experiment, that this kind of at-
traction acts according to the breadth of the fur-
faces of the attracting bodies, and not according
to their quantities of matter ; for let there be po-
lifhed glal's plates laid one upon another in fuch a
manner as to touch at one end, and there make a
very fmall angle ; then if two unequal drops of
oil be put between thofe plates, at equal diftances
from the line of contaCt, fo that the Icaft may
touch both glaffes, they will then both move to-
wards the ends that touch, becaufe the attraction
of the furfaces inclines that way ; but the largcft
touching the glalles in moft points, will move tho
fafteft.
It is likewife obferved, that this attraction of co-
hefion decreafes, much more than that of the fquares
of the diftances of the attracting bodies from each
other increafe ; that is, whatever the force of at-
traction is, at a given diftance; at twice that dif-
tanccj,
ATT
ATT
Uncc, it fliall be more than four times Icfs than
before.
From the nature of the attraflion of cohcfion,
wc have a rational folution of feveral very curious
and furprifmg phenomena ; as why the parts of
bodies adhere and flick fo firmly together ; why
iome are hard, others foft ; fome fixed, others
fluid; fome tlallic, others void of elallicity : all
v.'hich aril'e from the different figures of the parti-
cles, and the greater or lefier degree cf attraction
confequent thereupon. On this principle, we ac-
count for the manner how plants imbibe the nutri-
tive juices by the fibres of the roots ; alfo for the
rife of the fap in vegetables, and for the whole
O-'conomy of vegetation. Hence the rationale ot
the various fccretions of fluids by the glands, and
their wonderful circulation through the fine caj)!!-
lary vefiels. Hence alfo the rcafon of foldering and
gilding metals ; alfo of melting, or fufion, hylieat.
Hence alfo the exhalation of vapours by the heat
of the fun or fire ; the aggregation of aqaeous
particles in the air, forming the drops of rain.
\Ve hence fee the reafon of dilHllation, filtration,
diffohition, digeftion, fublimatlon, precipitation,
crylfallization, and the other operations cf cb.e-
milby and pharmacy. Laillv, it is l>y this power
of attraction and repulfion, that we are to account
for thofe wonderful phenomena cf fubterranean
afcenfions and explofions ; of volcanos and earth-
quakes ; of hot fprings, damps, and fuffocatiag
exhalations in mines, &c. See the article Co-.
HESIOK.
The fecond fpecies of attraiSlion is that of
eleclrical bodies, as glafs, amber, fealing-wax,
jet, &c. for the properties of which fee Elec-
tricity.
Attraction cf Gravliation is that by which
diftant bodies aiR: upon each other. Of this we
have daily inftances in the falling of heavy bodies
toward the earth.
Tiie laws of this attraftion are, Firfl, That it
decreafes, as the fquares of the diftances between
the centers of the attrailling bodies ir>creafe.
Thus, a body which at the furface of the earth
(i.e. about the diftance of four thoufand miles
from its center) weighs ten pounds, if it ww;
placed four thoufand miles above the furface of
the earth, i. e. twice as far diftant from the cen-
ter as before, would weigh four times lefs ; if
thrice as far, nine times lei's, &c. The truth of
this propofition is not to be had from experiments,
(the utmoft diftance we can convey bodies to, from
the furface of the earth, bearing no proportion to
their diftance from its center) but is fufficiently
clear from the motions obferved by the heavenly
bodies. Secondly, Bodies attraiSt one another with
forces proportionable to the quantities of matter
they contain ; for all bodies are obferved to fall
equally faft in the e.xhaufted receiver, where they
meet with no rcfiftancc. ]'"rom whence it follows*
that the action of the earth upon bodies is exactly
in proportion to the quantities of matter they con-
tam ; for was it to act as ftrongly upon a Xcin body
as upon a larger, the Icaft body, being moft eafily
put into motion, would move the faltclh Accord-
ingly, it is oblcrvable, that the weight of a body
is tile fame, whether it be whole, or ground to
powder.
From hence it follows, that, was a body to de-
fcend from the furface toward the center of tiie
earth., it would continually become lighter and
lighter, the parts above attracting it, as well as
thole below; in which, cafe it is dcmonftrated
by mathematicians, that liie gravity would de-
creafe with the diftance of the body from the
center.
Thus,. Let. there be a body as P, (Phite XVI.
fi^. I.) placed any where within a concave fplurc-, ,
as AB, which kt us fuppofc divided into an infi-
nite number cf thin concentric furfaces ; we fay,
the body P v/ill be attracted equally each wav by
any oneof thefe, v.g. the interior HiKLM. Let
there be lines, as IL, HK, &c. drawn through
any poirit of the body P, in iuch a manner as to
form the furface of two fimilar figures, fuppofe
cones, the diameters of whofe bafcs may belH,
KL, which let be infinitely fmall. 'Thefe bafcs
(being as the fquares of the lines IH, KL) \y\\\
be directly, as the fquares of their diflances from P
(for the triangles iPH, KPI, being infinitely
fmall, are fimilar.) But thofe bafes include all the
particles of matter in the interior furface, that arc
oppofite to each other ; the oppofite attractions are
therefore in the fame ratio with thole bafes, that is,
as the fquares of the diftances PK, P L But the
attracStion is inveifely, as the fquares of the dif-
tances of the attrading bodies, /. e. inverfely as
the fquares of the fame diftances PK, PI; thefe
two ratios therefore dcftroying each other, it is
evident, that if the concavity of the fphere was
filled v.'ith matter, that alone, .which lies nearer the
center than the body, .can effedl it, the refpedive-
aftions of all the parts, that are more diftant, be-
ing equal, and in contrary diretSlions, fince the
fame is demonftrable of any of the remaining con-
centric furfaces. Let us fee then what eftedt that,
which lies nearer the center than the body, will
have upon it, which m.iy be confidered as a fphere,
on whofe furface the body is placed. The dif-
tances of each particle of matter from the body,
(taken colledtively) will be as the diameter of the
fphere, or as the radius, i.e. as the diftance of the
body from the center : their adion therefore upon
the 'body v.-ill be inverfely as the fquare of that
diftance: but the quantity of matter will be as
the cube of that diftance; the attracHion there-
fire will be alfo in that proportion. Now,
thefe two ratios being compounded, the at-
traiTiion
T T
traflion will be only as the diilance of the body
from the center.
It may be proper to obferve here, that when
philofophers fpeak of beings gravitating to, or
attracting each other, tliat body is faid to gravitate
to another, which moves towards it, while the
other aftually is, or appears to be, at rcit, and this
other is faid to attraiS the former ; though, indeed,
the force being mutual and equal on both iides, the
fame term might be applied to cither the gravitat-
ing or attracting body-
It is farther to be obfcrved, that when we ufe the
terms attraction or gravitation, we do not thereby
determine the phyhcal caufe of it, as if it proceeded
from fome fuppoled occult quality in bodies ; but
only ufe thofe terms to fignify an eftc6t, the caufe
of which lies out of the reach of our philofophy.
Thus, we may fay, that the earth attraCts heavy
bodies ; or that fuch bodies tend or gravitate to
the earth ; although at the fame time we are whol-
ly ignorant, whether this is effedted by fome power
actually exifling in the earth, or in the bodies, or
external to both ; fmce it is impoihblc any error
in our reafonings can follow from hence ; it being
evident, that all the confequences of fuch tendency
muil be the fame, let the caufe be where or what
it will.
All philofophers agree that there is a certain force
by wliich the primary planets tend towards the fun,
and the fecondary planets towards their primary.
As we ought carefully to avoid multiplying princi-
ples, and impulfe is the moll known and leaft con-
troverted principle of the motion of bodies, it is
clear, a philofopher would naturally attribute this
impelling power to a fluid. To this notion, the
vortices of Des Cartes owe their birth, and thisopi-
!iion feem.cd more plaufible, becaufc it accounted
for the motions of the planets by the ciriiular mo-
tion of the matter of the vortices, and their ten-
dency towards the fun by the centrifugal force of
the fame matter ; but an hypothecs is not to be ad-
mitted, which accounts only for general phsenome-
na; particular phxnomena arethe tefts of an hy-
pothefis, and the failure of the Carteiian fyfleni in
thofe overturned it. The do6trine. of vortices is
therefore j'jflly exploded, as fo many difficulties at-
tend it which never can be furmounted ; for, if the
planets move by virtue of the adtion of a fluid, this
fluid muft have contrary properties, it muft impel
in one intention, and in another make no refiftance,
jin apparent abfurdity ; and the remedy is worfe
than the difcafc ; for the force by which the pla-
nets tend towards the fun, muft, on this hypothefis,
■be afcribed to an occult quality, which \s faying
nothing at all : and Ariftotle, who pe;haps invent-
. td the term, is much more pardonable than many
modern philofophers who have blindly followed
him.
Wc may therefore truly aflert, that attradlion is
6
ATT
a primordial quality of matter ; nor is it perhaps
pofiiblc to explain the celeftial bodies on the prin-
ciple of impulfion. Sirlfaac Newton feems to waver
in fome parts of his v.'orks concerning the nature
of attraction, and admits of an impelling power j
there is reafon to think it was a kind of tribute he
chofe to pay to the prejudice, or rather the gene-
ral opinion of the age he lived in, than his real fen-
timent ; bccaufe he admitted Mr. Cote.s, his difci-
ple, to adopt attraction without referve, as may be
feen in the preface to his fecond edition of his Prin-
cipia; and this preface was written under the eye
of Sir Ifaac, and had his approbation. Befides, Sir
Ifaac admits a reciprocal attraction among the celef-
tial bodies, and this very opinion feems to fuppofe
attraction a quality inherent in bodies ; but be that
as it may, according to Newton, the attractive force
decreafes in an inverie ratio to the fquares of the
diftances : this learned philofopher has folved a
great part of the celellial phrenomena on thi? finijle
principle, and all who have tried to account for
them fince, on the fame principle, ha\e fucceeded
to a furprizing degree of exadhiefs. The motion
of the moon's apogee, which was pretended to be
irreconcileable to this hypotliefis, is now found to
be entirely conformable to it, and does honour to
the Newtonian fyftem. All the other inequalities
of the motion of the moon, which are very confidc-
rable, may alfo eafily be accounted for by the fyftem
of attraction, and dcmonftrated by calculation.
All the pha-nomena hitherto obferved, demon-
ftrati a mutual tendency of the planets towards
each t)ther ; wherefore, vvc nuift admit this for a
truth on its own evidence : and though we fliould
be forced to acknowledge this a primordial and in-
herent quality in matter, we may venture to fay,
that the difiiculty of conceiving fuch a caufe v/ould
be a very v/eak argument againft its exiftcnce. No
one doubts but that a body which meets another
communicates motion to it ; but have we an idea
of the power by which this communication is made?
The A ulgar eye here, perhaps, penetrates as far as
that of the philofopher. No body is furprized at
feeing a llonc fall ; they have always feen it ; philo-
fopher?, well acquainted with the effects of impul-
fion, have never troubled them.felves about the caufe
which produces them. Now, if every body which
meets another fhouid flop without communicating
motion to it, a philofopher would be as much afto-
nifhed at this phaenomenon, as a common man at
feeing a heavy body fufpended in the air. Ifwc
underftood wherein the impenetrability of matter
confifts, we fliould not perhaps be clearer about
the nature of the impelling power. We only fee
that, in confe<juence of this impenetrability, the
fhock of one body againft another muft be fol-
lowed by fome change, either in both or one of
the bodies ; but we know not, and perhaps never
fliall, by what power this change is efteCted ; and
why.
AT T
ATT
why, for iiiflance, a body which firikcs agaiiiil
anorhtr flioiild not always continue at reft after
the (liock, without communicating a part of
its motion to the body which refills it. It is ap-
prehended attradUon contradi(Sls the notion wc
have of matter; but, if wc enquire attentively,
we fhall find thefe ideas no way repugnant. The
imiverfe is concealed from us by a curtain, wc
fee only fome part of it ; were tliat drawn up on
a fudden, we fhould be furprized to fee what pafles
behind it : befides, tiie pretended inconfiftence of
attraction with the. nature of matter, is folvcd by
admitting an intelligent Being, who could as eafdy
ordain bodies to a6t on each other at a diftance as
in contact.
M. de Maupertuis,in his difcourfe on the figures
of the planets, has gi\-cn an idea of the fyftem of
attraction, with remarks on it : and the lame author
obferves, in the Mem. Acad. 1734, that, long be-
fore Sir Ifaac Newton, Roberval de Fermat and
Pafcal thought gravity an attradlive power, and in-
herent in bodies. We will add, that Hook had
the fame notion, and foretold that all the motions
of the planets would one day be accounted for on
this fingle principle. .Thefe reflections, by in-
creafina; the number of great men who were of the
■fame opinion with Sir Ilaac, take nothing from his
glory ; for, as he was the flrft who adually demon-
Itrated this principle, he is properly the author of
it.
Attraction of Alouniains. If it be admitted
that all parts of the earth attradl each other mu-
tually, it muft be granted that there are moun-
tains on it, whofe magnitude is confiderable enough
to make a fenfible attraction. Let us fuppofe the
earth a globe of an uniform figure, whofe radius is
equal to 1500 leagues, and fuppofe a mountain on
the furface of fome part of this globe one league in
height, it is eafy to demonftrate, that a weight
placed at the bottom of this mountain fhall be at-
tracted horizontally by the mountain, with a force
equal to a 3000th part of the weight ; i'o that a
pendulum or plumb line, placed at the bottom of
this mountain, muft deviate from a perpendicular
about a minute ; the calculation is not difficult,
p.nd this rriay be admitted by way of I'uppofition :
from whence it folloi^'s, that when we obfcrve the
elevation of a ftar at the foot of a great mountain,
the plumb-line m.uft deviate from a perpendicul.ir ;
and an obfervation of this kind, certainly v/ould
i.rtbrd a very ilrnng proof in favour of the fyltem of
aitraction : but it may be objected, how fhall wc
befurethe plumb-line aftuallv deviates from a per-
pendicular, as the direction of the plumb-line only
determines the vertical fituation of the ftar ? This
difficulty is eafily iurmounted.
Let us fuppofe a ftar on the north of the moun-
tain, and the perfon who is to make his obferva-
tion placed on the fouth : if the attr.aflion of t!i'--
mountain acts fcnfibly on the plumb-line, it will
deviate from a perpendicular towards the north ;
and, confequently, the apparent zenith of the ftar
will go back towards the I'outh ; and fo the diftancc
of the ftar, on which the obfervation is made in the
zenith, muft be greater than if there was no attrac-
tion.
After having made this obfervation, if we go at
a diftancefroni the mountain, or a right line to-
wards the eaft or weft, (o far that the attraction no
longer operates, an obfervation made in this new
ftation will fhew the ftar at lefs diilance than in
the former.
But there is another and better method. It is
certain, that, if the plumb-line on the fouth fide of
the mountain deviates towards the north, the
plum.b-line in the north fide muft deviate towards
the fouth, and the zenith of the ftar, which in the
firft cafe v.'ent back towards the north, muft, in the
latter, advance towards the fouth : therefore, tak-
ing the diifcrcRce of thefe two diftances, and di-
viding it into tv/o equal parts, will fiiew how much
the pendulum has deviated from a perpendicular by
the attr.a.ftion cf the mountain.
The whole theory is clearly e.xphiined, with fe-
veral remarks, in an excellent Memoir of M. Bou-
guer's, printed in the year 1749, at the end of his
book on the figure of the eartli : in which he gives
an account of the obfervations he made in com-
pany with M. Condamine, on ths north and fouth
fides of the great mountain Chimboraco, in Peru ;
the refult of his obfervations is, that the attradtion
of this great mountain caufes a deviation of the
plumb-line from its perpendicular of 7" and a half.
Mr. Bouguerjudicioufly remarks, that the greateft
mountain is a trifle compared to the vaft body of
the terreftrial globe ; and that a hundred obferva-
tions where no fenfible attraction is found, pro\e
nothing againft the Newtonian fyftem ; but thai"
this made at the foot of the vaft mountain Chim-
boraco, which is in favour of tlic doctrine of at-
traction, deferves the attention of all philofophers.
For the properties of the fourth kind of attrac-
tion, fee Magnetism.
ATTRACTIVE, fomething that has the pov.-e:
or prnperh' of attaflion.
AwTTR-ACTIVES, or Attractive MeJidnes,
a name given by fon>e writers to what are other-
wife called (3%<»//'/wj, ^A'rtwm,£5'(-.
■ATTRIBUTE, in a general fenfe, means a
quality or property that is inherent in fome perfou
orthino-.
We may diitinguifh attributes into prefer and
connnon : vvhen an attribute is founded on all the
efiential qualities of any being, it may be caUed
proper; when it belongs only to fom.e one or more
of them, it is cormnon. To illuftrate this by An
example : the equality cf the three r.hgles'of every
redihneal triangle to two right ones, is ':>.pncper h-
Y y y ' tiibuie.
A TT
A U D
in'/ntc, becaiife this equality is deterujined both by
the number of the fides, and tha particular kind or
lines', that are eiTcntial properties of this triangle :
but the number of angles in ^i triangle is only de-
termined by the fides of the triangle ; and there-
fore this is a c-.mmoirattrihuie, that happens in ge-
neral to all figures of this kind, whether they are
reciilineal triangles or curvilineal.
Of the feveral attributes of any fubjeft, that
which prefents itfeif firiir, and which the mind con-
ceives as the foundation of all the relt, is called
its cffential attribute. Thus extenfion is bv fome,
a;id iblidity by others, made the effential attribute
of body or matter. The other attributes are called
accidental ones, fuch s.s figure, mnlleabdity, &c.
Attributes, in theology, are qualities or per-
fections in the Deity, which conftitute his effence :
fuch, for inftance, arc infinity, eternity, mercy,
goodnefs, juftice, omnipotence, immutabiiitv, &c.
The heathen mythology divided the Deity into
as many diflin£l beings us he had attributes : hence
urofe that vaft plurality of gods v/hich over-ran the
heathen world. The powerof God was called Ju-
piter, his vengeance Mars, his wifdom Apollo, &c.
Thefe, however, were rather vulgar notions, adapt-
ed to the mean underflandings of the populace,
than believed by their philofophers ; the v/ifcft of
v.'hom thought that the one Supreme pofTelTed all
thefe qualities in their higheft perfei,T:ion, and yet
remained at the fame time uniform, fmiple, and
harmonious.
Attributes, in logic, are the predicates of any
fubjecb, or. what may be affirmed or denied of any
thing.
Attributes, in painting and .fculpture, figni-
fy the fymbols added to leveral figures to intimate
their particular office and charatter. Thus the
eagle is the attribute of Jupiter ; a peacock of
Juno ; a caduce of Mercury ; a club of Hercules ;
a trumpet of Fame ; a balance of Juftice; and a
palm of Viciory.
ATTRITION, in a general fenfe, implies the
rubbing or flrikingof bodies one againfl: another,
fo as to throw off fome of their fuperficial parti-
cles.
The word is Latin, attn'tia, and derived from
dttero, to rub againft.
The grinding or polilhing of bodies is perform-
ed by attrition, the elfeiSs of which are heat, light,
fire, and electricity.
Attrition is often ufed for the friction of fuch
fimple bodies as do not wear from rubbing againft
one another ; butwhofe fluids are, by that motion,
fubjected to fome particular determination ; as the
various fenfations of hunger, pain, and pleafure,
arc faid to be occafioncd by the attrition of the or-
gans formed for fuch imprcffions.
Attrition, among divines, fignifics a forrow
or repentance for having offended God, arifing
chiefly from the apprehenfions of punifnment, the
lofs of heaven, and the torments of hell ; and dif-
fers from contrition, inafmuch as this laft is con-
ceived to arife from a lo\'e to God, as an inoredi-
ent or cniet motive to our forro%v and repentance.
See the article Contkitiok.
AVANT Fcfs, in fortification, is a moat or
ditch full of water, running round the counter-
fcarp, on the outfide next the country, at the foot
of the glacis. It is not proper to have fucii a water
ditch where it c.".n be drained drj-, bccaufe it is a
trench ready made tor tl;e befiegers to defend them-
felves agaiiiit the fallies of the befieged ; befides, it
hinders putting fuccours into the place, or at leaft
makes it difficult fo to do.
AVAST, amongft leamen, flop, hold.
AVAUNCHEH.S, among hunters, the fecond
branches of a deer's horn.
AUBIN, in horfeman{hip,a kind of broken pace,
between an amble and a gallop. It is reckoned a
defea.
AUCTION, Ju.n!o, a kind of public fale, very
much in ufe for houfliold goods, books, plate, &c.
By this method of fale, the higheft bidder is alwava
the buyer.
This was originally a kind of fale among the an-
tient Romans, performed by the public crier, yj/i
hnjia, i. e. under a fpear, ftuck up upon that occa-
fion by fome magiftrate, who made good the fale by
delivery of the goods.
AUDIANISM, the fame with antliroponior-
phifm, or the doctrine of the anthropomorphites.
See the article Anthropoworphites.
AUDIENCE, in a general fcnie; fee the arti-
cle Hearing.
Audience given to ambaffadors, implies the ce-
remonies obfcrved in courts, at the admiffion of am-
baffadors, or public minifters, to a hearing.
In England, audience is given to ambaffadors in
the prefence-chambcr ; to envoys and refidents, in
a gallery, clofet, or in any place where the king
happens to be. Upon being admitted, as is the
cuftom of all courts, they make three bows, after
which they cover and fit down ; but not before the
king is covered and fat down, and given them the
fign to put on their hats.
When the king docs not care to have them co-
vered, and fit, he himfelf ftands uncovered ; which
is taken as a flight.
At Conftandnople minifters ufually have audi-
ence of the grand vizier.
Audience is alio the name of a court of juflice
eftablifhed in the Weft-Indies by the Spaniards,
anfwering in cffcit to the parliament in France.
Theie courts take in feveral provinces, called
alfo audiences, from the names of the tribunal to
which they belong.
Audience is alfo the name of an ecclefiaftical
court held by the archbifliop of Canterbury} where-
ill
A U D
in diflVrcnces upon elcftions confeci-auons, infii-
tutions, marriages, Sec. are heard.
AUDIENDO & TERMiNyVNDO, a writ,
or more pioperly a conimiflion, diredted to certain
perfons, when any riotous afilmbly, infurreaion,
5:c. is committed in any place, for appealing it, and
puniftina; the oftenders.
AUDlENTS, an order of catechumens, in the
primitive Chridian church, confifting of fuch as
were but newly inlbudted in the myRcries of the
Chriflian religion, and not yet admitted to bap-
tifm.
AUDIT, a regular hearing and examination of
an account Ijy fonie proper oflicers appointed lor
that purpofc.
AUDITA QUERELA, a writ that lies ufu-
ally v.'hcre one is bound in a ftatute merchant, fta-
tutc flaple, cr recognizance, when a perfon has any
thin? to plead, but hath not a day in a court for
pleading it ; cr v.here judgment is given for debt,
and the defendant's body in execution ; then, if he
have a releafe, or other fufficient caufe to be dif-
charcred therefrom, but wants a day in court to
plead the fame, this writmay be granted him againft
the peribn that has recovered, or againft hi; exe-
cutors.
This writ is orr.nted by the lord chancellor, up-
on view of the "exception fuggefted .to the judges
of cither bench, willing theiii to grant fummons
to the (herifts of the county where the creditor is,
for his appearance, at a certain day, before thein.
AUDITOR, in a general fenfe, a hearer, or one
who liftens and attend's to any thing.
Auditor is alfo ufed for fcveral omccrs appoint-
ed to audit. See Audit.
It WES anticntiy ufed for a judge. Notaries are
alfo frequently called auditcres.
Auditor, according to our law, is an officer of
the king, or fome other great perfon, who, by ex-
aminint^ yearly the accounts of the under-officers,
makes up a genera! book, with the difference be-
tween their receipts and charges, and their allow-
ances or allocations.
Auditor of the Rnripn is an officer of the ex-
chequer, who files the tellers bills, makes an entry
of then-., and gives the lord-treafurer a certificate
of the money received the week before. He alfo
makes debentures to every teller before they receive
any rr.onev, and takes their accounts. He keeps
the black-book of receipts, and the treafurer's key
of the treafury, and fees every teller's money locked
<ip in the new treafury.
Auditors of the Revenue, or cf the Excheq'ier,
officers who take the accounts of thofe who collect
the revenues and taxes railed by parliament, and
take the accounts of the flieriffs, efcheators, col-
leftors, tenants, andcuftomers, and fet them down
in a book and perfeft them.
Auditors of the prcj^ mid impref- are officers of
AVE
the exchequer, who take and make up the account
of Ireland, Berwick, and the Mint, and of any
money imprefled to any man for the king s ler-
vice.
Auditors CoHegiate^ Cciizentual, fc officers
formerly appointed in colleges, &c. to examine and
pals thtir accounts.
AUDITORY, fomething relating to the fenfc
of hearing. See tlie article Hearing.
Auditory, or Audience, an .aiVembly of peo-
ple who attend to hear a perfon that fpeaks in
public.
Auditory is alfo ufed for the bench whereoii a
maaiftrate or judge hears caufes.
Auditory was alfo the place in ancient
churches where the congregation flood to hci.r
fermons.
Ivkatm AuDiTonius, auditory paflage, in anato-
my ; fee Meatus Juclitvins.
Auditory Nerves, in anatomy, a pair of nerves
arifing from the medulla oblongata, with two trunks,
theone ofv/hich is cUled the portio dura, or hard
portion, the other portio mollis, or foft portion.
See the article Nerve.
The portio mollis enters the foramen of the os
petrofum, and thence through various little aper-
tures, gets into the labyrinth of the ear, where it
expands over ail its parts, and conftitutes the pri-
marv organ of hearing. ^
Tiie portio Gura, pa.Ting the aqureducl of Fal-
lopius, turns back one or more branches froni
the anterior furface of the procefs of the petrofum,
into the cavity of the cranium. It fends off al-
fo another branch internally, which with llie
branch from the fifth pair, ferves for the con-
flruciion of the chorda tympani. It alfo fends
off a number of other fmall ramifications, which
run to the mufcles and other parts of the tym-
panum.
AVE-MARIA, the angel Gabriel's falutatioii
of the Virgin Mary, when he brought her the tid-
ings of the incarnation.
It is become a prayer, or form cf devotion, in
the Romifli church. 'Their chaplets and rofaries
are divided into fo many ave-maries, and fo many
pater-noilers, to which the papiils afcribe a won-
derful efficacy.
Dr. Bingham obferves, that among all the fliort
prayers ufed by the primitive Chriilians before their
fermons, there is not the lead mention of an ave-
maria.
AVENA, the Oat, in botany ; fee the article
O.A.T.
AVENACEOUS, in botany, fom.cthing belong-
ing to, or partaking of the nature of the oat.
'^AVENOR, an officer belonging to the king's
flablcs, who provides oats for the horfes. He acts
by warrant from the mafter of the horfc. See the
article Master of the Horfe,
^ ^ AVENUE,
AVE
AVENUE, in gardening, is a broad walk lead-
ing to an houfc, wood, &c. planted on each fide
witli trees, and generally terminated with fomc
diftant objeft.
Avenues were formerly more in requeft than at
prefent, for of late they are with good reafon dif-
ufed, as nothing can be more abfurd than to have
the fight contracted by two or more lines of trees,
whicli ihut out the view from all parts, except be-
tween the lines. The ufual Vidth formerly al-
lowed to thefe avenues was equal to tlie breadth of
the houfe, but if planted twelve or fourteen feet
ividcr, the trees will not only grow better, but
ajfo enlarge the view ; as to the dillance from each
other in the row, they fhould not be planted nearer
than thirty-fiveor forty, efpecially if the trees are of
the fpreadingkind. As to the trees which are pro-
per for planting avenues, viz. the Engiifh elm, the
lime-tree, the horfc-chefnut, the -common chefnut,
the beach, and the poplar ; the Englifli elm will
do in moft grounds, except fuch as are very moift
and fjiallow ; therefore, it is preferable to ail other
trees, becaufe it v/ill bear cutting, heading, or lopping
in any manner, better than mod: others ; a fpeci-
mcn of the growth and beauty of elm-trees, plant-
ed in avenues, may be feen in Greenwich-park :
the lime-tree is valuable for its regular growth
and fine (hade, therefore not improper for this
purpofe : the horfe and eatable chefnut alfo makes
a grand appearance, as may be kvn in the afore-
faid park, and other places : the beech is a beau-
tiful tree, but is apt to mifcarry by tranfplanting :
lallly, the poplar, or abele, is fit for any foil, and
is a quick grower ; it fucceeds very well in wet
■foils, in which others are apt to fail.
The old method of planting avenues being much
exploded, we have at prefent a much grander way
by planting the trees in clumps, or platoons, mak-
ing the opening much v/iJcr tlir.n before, .and
placing the clumps of trees at about three hun-
dred feet diitant from each other ; in one of thefc
clumps, there fhould be planted feven or nine
trees, at about thirty feet afunder ; but this is only
to be prattifed, where the avenue is of a confider-
nblc length. The avenues made by clumps are
i'ttcfr of all for parks, as they not only appear very
beautiful, but when grown up afi:brd a good fiiade
ibr the deer in hot weather; but v/hen young, a
licnch lijould be made round ihem, to prevent the
deer coming to the trees to bark them.
AvEK-UE, in fortification, an opening or inlet
into a fort, baftion, or the like. See the article
Lastion.
AVERAGE, in law, an ancient fervice which
the tenant owed to his lord by horfe or carriage.
Average, in commerce-, fignifies the accidents
p.nd rver'Ttunes which happen to fliips and their
-he time of their loading and failing,
and unloadino; : and it is di\'idcd
AVE
into three kinds. i. The fimple or particular
average, which confifls in the extraordinary ex-
pences incurred for the fhip alone, or for the mer-
chandizes alone. Such is the lofs of anchors,
mafts, and rigging, occafioned by the common ac-
cidents at fca J the damages which happen to mer-
chandizes by ftorm, prize, fhipwreck, wet or rot-
ting ; all which muft be borne and paid by the
thinj which fuffered the damage. 2. The large
and common average, being thoie e.xpences incur-
red, and damages i'ulbiined for the common good
and fccurity both of the merchandizes and velfels,
confequcntly to be borne -by the fliip and cargo,
and to be regulated upon the whole. Of this
number are the goods or money given for the ran-
fom of the fliip and cargo, things thrown over-
board for the fafety of the fhip, the expences of
unlading for entering into a river or harbour, and
the pro\'ifions and hire of the faiiors, when the fhip
is put under an embargo. 3. The fmall averages,
which are the e.xpences for towing and piloting the
Ihip out, or into harbours, creeks, or rivers, one
third of which mull be charged to the fhip, and
two thirds to the cargo.
Average is more particularly ufed for a certain
contribution, xhiit merchants make proportionably
towards their lofles. It alfo fignifies a fm.all duty
\vhich tliofe merchants, who fend goods in another
man's fhip, pay to the mailer for his care of them
over and above the freight. Hence it is expreffed
in the bills of lading, paying fo much freight
for the faid goods with primage and average ac-
cuHomed.
Average, In agriculture, a term ufcd by the
farmers in many parts of England, for the break-
ing of corn-fields, eddifh, or roughings.
The word in the firfl or law fenfe is derived from
averium, a labouring beafl : in the fecond, or mer-
cantile fenfe, from tivcr'ia., goods, or chattels ;
from the French, avoir, to have or pofibfs. In the
laft, or the farmer's fenfe, it may be derived from
haver, an Englifli name for oats.
AVER-CORN, that conveyed to the lord's
granaries by his tenants.
AVERDUrOJS, or AvERDUpoisE might, a
weight much ufed in Englar.d, and whofe
pound confiiti) of fixteen ounces. Sec the article
Weight.
AVERIA, a general nam.e for cattle of any
kind ; but, in lav/, is confined to oxen and horfes
of she plough.
AVER-LAND, that ploughed by the tenants
for t!ie ufe of their lord.
AVERMENT, an o.Ter of the defendant to
make good a.n exemption pleaded in abatement, or
bar of the plaintift-"'s aclion.
Gc.'.fjiv/ Averment is tiie conclufion of every
plea to the writ, or in bar of repUeations, or ether
nleadinais, containin:; affirmative matter.
6 Fart-.cvmr
AUG
P(j>t'uii!nr Averment is when the life of a te-
nant for life, or a tenant in tail, is averted.
AVERNl, among the ancient naturalills, im-
plied certain lakes, grottoes, and other places,
which inftdt with poifonous Ikams or vapours.
AVER-PENNY, money paid inftead of a-
verage.
AV'ERRHOA, in botany, a genus of plants,
whole flower confifts of five huiccolated petals, and
ten filaments, wiih roundlfh antherse ; tiie fruit is
an apple of a turbinated and obtufe pentagonal
figure, containing five cells, in which are difpofed
angular feeds, feparated by membranes.
AVERRHOISTS, a fedl of Peripatetic phi-
lofophers, who appeared in Italy fome time before
the reiloration of learning, and attacked the im-
mortality of the foul.
They took their denomination from Avcrrhoes,
a celebrated interpreter of Ariftotle, born at Cor-
dova in Spain, in the 12th century, from whom
they borrowed their diftinguifhing doctrine. The
founder of this feit, Averrhoes, is fometimes called
the Commentator, by way of eminence, as being
fuppofed to have entered beft of all ihe commen-
tators into the fentiments of that philofopher ; in-
fomuch that fome have pretended the foul of Arif-
totlc had migrated into the body of Averrhoes.
The Averrhcifls, who held the foul was mortal,
according to reafon or philofophy, yet pretended
to fub.mit to the ChrilHan theology, which declares
it immortal. But the diftiniflion was held fufpici-
ous ; and this divorce of faith from reafon was re-
jected by the doetors of that time, and condemned
by the laft council of the Lateran, under Leo X.
yet it was flill fecretly maintained. Pomponatius,
Casfalpinus, and others, were fufpefted of favour-
ing this opinion : but the corpulcuiar philofophy,
now introduced into Italy, feems almofl to have
extinguilhed Averrhoifm.
AVERRUNCATION, in the ancient agricul-
ture, lignined the fame with pruning. See the
article Pruning.
AVERRUNCI, in the ancient mythology, an
order of deities, whofe peculiar office it was to
avert misfortunes. Apollo and Hercules were of
this order among the Greeks, and Caftor and Pol-
lux among the Latins.
The v.'ord is Latin, and compounded of <?,
from, or away, and the obfolete verb, -verrunco,
to turn.
AVERTI, in the manege, implies fuch a pace
in a horfe as is regulated and required in the
leflbns.
AUGES, in aftronomy, the fame with apfides.
See Apsis.
AUGMENT, Augmentum, in grammar, an ac-
cident of certain tenfes of Greek verbs, being either
the prefixing a fyllable, or the increafe of the
quantity of the initial vowels.
AUG
There arc two fpecies of augments, diftinguifh-
cd by the epithets tcnipoiak and fyilaticum. The
augnuntum temporaU is when a fhort vovkcl is changed
into a long one, or a diphthong into anotlicr of
greater length : an augmenttim jyttahuum is when a
fyllable is added at the beginning of a word.
Augments, in mathematics, the fame with
increments. See Fluxions and Increments.
AUGMENTATION, in a general fenfe, im-
plies the aiSl of adding or joining fomething to ano-
ther, in order to incieafc its magnitude, or render
it more confiderable.
The word is Latin, cugmenial'to, and derived
from augeo, to increafe.
Coitrt of AuG.^IF.^:TATION, a court created in
the 27th year of Henry VIII. to take care that the
re\'enues of the crown were properly augmcnLed by
the eftates arifing from the fuppreifion of religious
houfes. This court was difiblved in the firlt year
of the reign of queen Marv ; but the office, in
which are many valuable records, {till remains.
Augmentation, in heraldry, are additional
charges to a coat armour, frequently given as par-
ticular marks of honour, and generally borne either
on the efcutcheon or a conton. Thus all the
baronets of England bear the arms of Ulfter in
Ireland.
AUGRE, or .'\wGRE, an inftrument ufed by
carpenters, millwrights, &c. for boring large
round holes. It confifts of a wooden handle and
an iron blade, terminated with a ftcel bit.
AUGURS, among the old Greeks and Ro-
mans, were officers appointed to foretel future
events by the chattering and feeding of birds, 6:c.
There was a college, or community of them, con-
fifting originally of three members, with refpeiSt
to the three tribes, the Luceres, Rhamnenfes, and
Tatienfes : afterwards the number was increafed to
nine, four of them patricians, and five plebeians :
this was in the confulfiiip of M. Valerius, and Q^
Apuleius. They bore an augural ftafF, or wand,
as the enfign of their authority. Cicero was of the
college of Augurs.
AUGURY, in its firft and proper fenfe, the art
of foretelling future events liy the chattering,
finjrinc, and feedino- of birds : but in its more
general fignification, comprifing all the different
kinds of divination ; which Varro diftinguiflies in-
to four forts, according to the four elements ; viz.
Pyromancy, or augury by fire ; Aeromancy, or
augury by air; Hydromancy, or augury by water ;
and Geomancy, or aue;ury by the earth. It was
a very ancient fuperftition ; for we find it forbidden
bv Mofes. -It was in great efteem among the
Chaldseans, from whom the Greeks learned it ; and
from them the Tufcans had fo high a value for
this art, that, by a decree of the fenate, it was
ordered, that the advice of the augurs Ihould be
held fac red. and never deviated from. But what
Z z.z opinion..
AUG
AUG
opinion the wifer Romans had of the 2.rt, apper^rs
from the faying of Cato, recorded bv Cicero,
That he wondered how two augurs could meet,
without laughins; in each other's face.
The place fr(-in whence auguries were taken,
was a riiing ground; and Servius, on Virgil, ob-
ferves, that there was a field fet apart for it, at a
little diftance from Rome. ^Vhen all things were
difpofed for taking an augury, the augur entered
into his -tent or pavilion, habited in his robe, and
holding his augural ilafr in his hand; with which
he divided the heavens into four parts, drawing a
line frcm eart to weft, and another crofs it from
north to fouth : then he facrificed to the gods, and
offered up a prayer ; after which he returned to his
feat, and obferved with great attention from what
part, and in what manner, the fign from heaven
appeared. If, for inftance, there happened light-
ning, or a clap of thunder, from the left, it was
tr.ken for a favourable prefage.
But the principal kind of augury, and from
vh ch it has its name, was theobfervation of bird? ;
to which the ancients were fo fupcrflitioulVy addi(5l-
ed, that they never would undertake any thing of
the lead importance, without confulting thefe fea-
thered oracles. The invention of this art is by
fom3 alcribed to Prometheus ; by others to Or-
pheus.
The Romans, whenever they went to war, not
cnly confulted the chattering and flight of birds,
but their nvmncr of feeding lilcewife; for which
purpofe they ktpt poultry, which they commonly
fttched from the ifland of Eubcca. When they
would take a prefage from thence, they flung corn
before ihcm : if the facred chickens crowded about
it, and ate it greedily, it was looked upon as a
favourable omen ; but if they refufcd to eat or
drink, it was an unlucky fign.
AUGUST, in chronology, the eighth month
of the year, according to our method of comput-
ing, beginning with January : but it was the iixth
v/ith the Romans, who for that reafon called it
Sextilis; which name was changed to Auguft,
frcm Auguftus Caiar, becaufe this emperor, being
returned from the Gauls in the 746th year of
Rome, endeavoured to reform the calendar ; and,
in honour of him, Sextilis was changed to Auguft.
Others allege, the reafon was, becaufe he v/as firft
made conful in this month, and becaufe he gained
great \'ictories in it. The Turks have alfo taken
this name from the Greek or Roman calendars,
fmce they call it Agoftos.
AUGUSTALES, in Roman antiquity, an epi-
thet given to the flamens or priefts appointed to
facrifice to Auguftus, after his deification, and alfo
to the ludi or games celebrated in honour of the
fame prince, on the fourth of the ides of Oc-
tober.
AUGUSTALIA, a feftival inftituted by the
Romans, in honour of Auguftus Csfar, on hU
return to Rome, aier having fettled peace in Sici-
ly, Greece, Syria, Afia, and Parthia ; on which
o cafion they likewifs built an altar to him, in-
icribed F > tunes rcduci.
i^UGUSTALIS Pr.^fectus, a title peculiar
to a Roman magiltrate who governed Egypt, with
a power much like that of a pro-coniul in other
provinces.
AUGUSTAN, in a general fenfe, denotes
fomething relating to the emperor Auguftus. Thus,
we fay, Aueuftan age, Auguftan sra, &c.
AUGUSTiN MONKS^; a religious order in
the church of Rome, who follow the pretended
rule of St. AugTiftin, prefcribed them by pope
Alexander IV. in the year 1256. There had arifen
feveral religious orders in the thirteenth centun.' ;
as the preaching brothers, founded by Dominic
Guzman; the minims, by St. Francis Aflifiius ;
and others. Innocent IV. formed a defign of unit-
ing fe\eral of tl»efe orders into cne ; whicli defign
was executed by his fuccefibr Alexander IV. who
made one congregation of them, under the name
of Auguftin hermits.
At prclent the order is divided into feveral
branches ; as the hermits of St. Paul ; the leronY-
mitans ; the mcnk^ of .St. Bridget ; and the bare-
footed Auguftins, inftitutcd by a Portuguefe, in
1574, and conhrired by pope Clem.ent VIII. in
i6co. As to the ruleof St. Augviftin, which they
pretend to follow, it is briefly this-: The monks
are to have all things in common ; the rich, who
enter into the order, are to fell their polTefliions,
and give them to the poor : nothing is to be receiv-
ed, without lea\e of the fuperior ; if it happens
that the monks are obliged, through perfecution,
to retire, they are to betake thcinfelves immediately
to the place whither their fuperior is withdrav.'n :
they are to employ the firft part of the inorning in
labouring with their hands, and the reft in read-
ing : they have Saturday allowed them to provide
themfelves with necefiarics, and are permitted to
drink wine on Sundays. When they 20 abroad.
ay
they muft always go two in a company : they are
never to eat but in their monaflery : they are for-
bidden to harbour the leaft thought of women:
they are to receive no letters or prefents in fecret.
Thefe, with feveral other precepts relating to
charity, modefty, chaftity, and other Chriftian
virtues, ccnftitute what they call the rule- of St.
Auguftin, which is read in the preience of the
monks once every week. The Auguftins are
cloathed in black. At Paris, they are known un-
der the name of the religious of St. Genevieve,
that abbey being the chief of the order. 'There
are nuns likewife of this order.
AUGUSTINUS, the name of Janfenius's
treatifc.
A U N
trcatife, from which are collo»flcd the five famous
propofitions eiiunierated under the article J anrcnifni.
See Jansenism.
AVIARY, a place fet apart for feeding and
propagating birds. It fhould be fo large, as to
give the birds fome freedom of flight ; and turfed,
to avoid the appearance of foulnefs on the floor.
AVIS, the name of an order of knighthood in
Portugal, inftitutcd by Sancho the firlt king, in
imitation of the order of Alcantara, whofe green
crofs they wear.
AULA is ulcd for a court baron, by Spelman ;
by fomc old ecclefiaftical writers, for the nzve of a
church, and fometimes for a court-yard.
AULIC, an epithet given to certain officers of
the empire, who compofe a court, which decides,
without appeal, in all procefles entered in it.
Thus we fay, aulic council, aulic chamber, aulic
counfellor.
The aulic council is compofed of a prefident,
who is a catholic ; of a vice-chancellor, prefent-
ed by the archbifliop of Mentz ; and of eighteen
counfcllors, nine of whom are protellants, and
nine catholics. They arc divided into a bench of
lawyers, and always follow the emperor's court,
for which reafon they are called jijiitium impera-
tcris, the emperor's juflice, and aulic council.
The aulic court ceafes at the death of the em-
peror ; whereas the imperial chamber of Spire is
perpetual, reprefenting not only the deceafed em-
peror, but the whole Germanic body, which is
reputed never to die.
Aulic, in the Sorbonne and foreign uni\erfities,
is an acft which a young divine maintains upon be-
ing admittetl a dotitor in divinity.
It begins by an harangue of the chancellor, ad-
drefied to the young doctor, after which he receives
the cap, and prcfides at the aulic, or difputa-
tion.
AULNEGER, or Alnager. See the article
Alnager.
AULOS, av\'^, a Grecian long- meafure ; the
fame with {i-adium. See Stadium.
AUMBRY, a country word denoting a cup-
board. See Cupboard.
AUME, a Butch meafure for Rheniili wine,
containing forty Englifh gallons.
AUNCEL-\Veight, an ancient kind of bal-
lance, now out of ufe, being prohibited by feveral
ftatutes, on account of the many deceits pratStiled
by it. It conri(l:cd of fcales hanging on hooks,
faflened at each end of a beam, which a man lift-
ed up on his hand. In many parts of England,
auncel-weight fignifies meat fold by the hand, with-
out fcales.
AUNE, a long meafure ufed in France to mea-
fure cloth, ftufTs, ribbons, &c.
At Rou.en it is ecjual to one Englifli ell, at Ca-
A UR
his fo r. 52, at Lyons to i. ci6, and at Paris to
0.95.
AVOCADO Pear. See Laurus.
AVOCATORLA, a mandate of the emperor of
Germany, addrelFed to fome prince, in order to
ilop his unlawl'ul proceedings in any caufe appealed
to him.
AVOIDANCE, in the canon law, is when a
benefice becomes void of an incumbent, which
happens either in faft, as by the death of the par-
fon, or in law, asbycefiion, deprivation, rcfigna-
tion, cxc. In the hrll of thefc cafes, the patron
muft take notice of the avoidance, at his peril ;
but in avoidance by law, the ordinary is obliged to
give notice to the patron, in order to prevent a
lapfe.
AVOWEE, one who has a right to prefent to a
benefice. See Advowson.
He is thus called in contradiftinflion to thofe who
only have the lands to which the advowfon belongs
for a term of years, or by virtue of intrufion o:
difieifin. See the article Intrusion, &c.
AVOWRY, in law, is when a perfon dillrain-,
ed fues a replevin; for then the diftrainer mud: a-
vow, and julbifv his plea, which is called his avow-
ry. See the article Replevin.
The avowry .muft contain fufEcient matter for
judgment to have return, but fo much certainty is
not required therein, as in a declaration ; and if
made for rent, though it appears that part of that
rent is not due, yet the avowry is good for t!ie reft.
AURA, in chemiftrv, a certain fine and pure
fpirit, found in every animal or vegetable body; but
i'o fubtile, as only to be fufceptible by its fmell and
tafte, or other efieiEls, not found in any other but
that body. This aura exhibits the proper charac-
ters of the body, by which it is accurately diflin-
guiihed from all others ; but is itfelf too fine and
thin to be feen by the eyes, though armed with a
microfcope, or felt by the hands ; and, withal, is
extremely volatile ; fo that, when pure and fingle,
it flies off" by its great mobility, mixes with the air,
and is received into the great chaos of all volatilcs;
and there, ftill retaining its fam.e nature, it floats
till it falls down in fnow, hail, rain, or dew,
when it again enters the bofom of the earth, im-
pregnates it with its prolific virtue, and is at length
received by other juices of the earth, and conveyed
into the bodies of animals and vegetables ; and, by
this revolution, palTes into nev/ bodies, whole mafs
it animates and diredfs. The fubtile fiuid is lodged
in the oil of the body, to prevent its being dlillpated
and thrown off; and hcuce it is, that all the an-
cient alchymifts fay, fpirit refides in fulphur. Boer.
a.'fvi.
AURANTIUM, in botany, the orange. See
the article Orange.
AURELLA, in natural hltlory, the fame with
w^.at
AU R
vJh-it Is more ufually c?.lled chryfalis, and fcmc-
t'mes nymph. See the articles Chrysalis and
Kymph.
AURELIANA, in botany, a name given by
feme to the p:;nax, or alheal. See the article
Panax.
AUREOLA, in its original fioiiification, fiq;ni-
fics a jewel v/hich is propofed as a reward of victo-
ry in fome public difpute. Hence the Roman
Ichoolmen applied it to denote the reward beliroxyed
tin martyrs, virgins, and doftors, on account of
their works of fupererogation : and painters ufe it
to fignify the crown of glorv, with which they a-
dorn the heads of faints, confeflbrs, &c.
AUREUS, a Roman gold coin, equal in value
to twenty-five denarii.
According to Ainfworth, the aureus of the higher
empire weighed near five penny-weight ; and in
the lower empire, little more than half that weight.
We learn from Suetonius, that it was cuftomary to
eive aurei to the vidlors in the chariot-races.
AURICLE, in anatomy, that part of the ear
V.'hich is prominent from the head, called by
many authors auris externa. See the article
Ear.
Auricles of the Heart, Thefe are a kind of
appendages of the heart at its bafe, and are diitin-
guifhed by the names of tire right and left. The
right auricle is much larger than the left, and this
is placed in the hinder, that in the anterior part.
They are intended as diverticula for the blood, dur-
ing the fyftole. Their fubftance is mufcular, be-
ing compofed of llrong fibres, and their motion is
not fynchronous, but achronous with that of the
heart. See the article Heart.
AURICULA Urji, bear's ear, in botany, a genus
of pentandrious plants, claffed with the primula ve-
ris, or priinrofe, by Dr. Linnseus ; but, as they are
very different both in their foliage and flowers, and
are looked upon in common as dlftincf genufes, it
may therefore be proper to treat on them fcpa-
rately.
The auricula plant has, of late years, been cul-
tivated with extraordinary care and pains by the
curious in gardening, being greatly efleemed, as it
produces a flov/er of exceeding beauty, which is di-
verfified with a greater variety of colours, and ex-
hibits more properties to complete the idea in the
fancy of a florift, than any other fpecies of the
blooming vegetable tribes. The flower confifts of
a bunch, or trufs, of petala, by florifts called pipps,
fupported by as many pedicles, or foot-ftems, arif-
ing out of the top of the main ilalk : the proper-
ties of a fine auricula may therefore be well diftin-
guifhed and divided, ift, into thofe that regard the
pipps ; adly, thofe which refpeft the bunch, or
trufs ; and, '^dly. thofe which belong to the main
ftalk.
AUR
J ft, Of the Pipps.
The petals, or pipps, of an auricula have four re-
markable parts; viz. the difk, or outer rim, the
eye, or inner rim, the tube or pipe, and the brufli,
or thrum, fo termed in the Eorifts language, but by
botanifts called filaments, and anthers. The pro-
perties belonging to the perfedion of the pipps,
are,
I. The difl-:, or rim, to be of a lively and good
colour or colours, fuch as may fuddenly ftrike and
captivate the fight, for this property is the foun-
dation^of all the reft ; it is that which makes a flower
valuable at all, or to be preferred before the grafs
or foliage of the plant that bears it ; if the colours,
therefore, make a faint or dead appearance, or ara
ot an inelegant or ordinary tinge, or hue, fuch flower
is not good, even though all its other properties
fhould be the moft- excellent, becaufe all the relt
are not otherwife of any account, but as they affift
in the more full and perfedt difplay of this chief one
of colour.
2. The colours (in all painted and brindled
flowers) ought to be fo equally diftrihutcd over the
rim or dilk, that there may be an agreeable unifor-
mity amidft the variety ; fo that, upon the whole,
the fight may not be offended with any difpropor-
tion, or fee one fide remarkably of a lighter or
darker hue than another.
3. The outward edge of the rim ought to be of
a circular figure, or at leaft fo near it as that the in-
dentures may bear but a fmall proportion to the
breadth of the dilk ; for when thele are deep and
wide, and the points of the fegments ftand in the
form of a ftar, greatly divided, the vacancies will
offend the fight with an obvious deficiency and
want : the cafe is ftill worfe in thofe pipps which
are fubjedf to run out into a greater breadth on one
fide of the eye than on tlie other; this irregularity
and difproportion is very difagreeable.
4. The eye (which is the annulus that environs
the tube or pipe) ought to be formed like the difk,
either perfeftly or nearly round, and of one entire
clear colour, of a ftrongand pure v/hite in all paint-
ed or brindled flowers, and either the fame, or of a
bright yellow, or good ftraw colour, in whole co-
loured flowers.
5. The eye fliould be well defined from the diflc,
that is, it ought not to he mixed with, or fhaded
into, it, fo as to occafion any indiftinftnefs between
the edge of one or the other.
In flowers where thefe two properties of the
eye are imperfcd, the lively contraft betwixt the
rim and the eye (which otherwife reciprocally fliew
each other to advantge) is in a great meafurc de-
ftroyed. Though they may be allowed, in fome
meafure, to be blended by the line meal or powder
which
AUR
which moft auriculas have a fhare of, but not fo
much as to render the edges indilliniSt.
6. The face of the wliolc pipp (difl: and eye)
ought to be fo well opened as to lie cxaclly or nearly
flat, for when cither it inclines inward, wliich is
called cupping, or throws its extremity backward,
botli the true form of the flower and part of the
colours are thrown out of fight, and the whole trufs
is greatly disfigured.
7. The tube or pipe fliould ftand exaiElly in the
center of the pipp, and be truly circular, or round.
8. The tube Ihould be well filled willi filaments
and anthera^, in the form of a brufh, generally call-
ed the thrum, arifing even with the face of the
pipp ; for when only the l^yle rifes like a pin, with-
out being encompafied with the apices to ths fame
lieight, tiie flower is called pin-eyed, and lliews a
chalin or vacancy fo very unpleafant to the cu-
rious eye of a floriti:, that fuch flowers, thoujih
they may otherwife ha\e good properties, yet,
failing in this central beauty, they are held but of
very imal! account.
g.l'he thrum fliould be of a bright colour,and the
filaments and anthera; of which it iscompofed, clear
and diftinft ; for when they fecm clotted together,
or appear mifhapen, or of a dull colour, the beauty
of the flower is much hurt and impaired.
10. The rim, the eye, and the pipe, ought all
to hear an agreeable proportion to one another ;
for where any one of thefe is beheld either too
large or too fmall with refpeft to the other two, it
will give the fight of a fiorift great ofl:ence: thus
if the rim is too large, the whole pipp will look
heavy and clumly, and the eye will appear nar-
row and mean ; if the rim is too fmall, it v/ill
look abortive, and the eye monllrous ; alfo, if the
pipe is too wide, the thrum cannot fill it duly, and
it will appear vacant ; if the pipe is too fmall or
narrow, it will feem pinched, and the thrum will
not have room ; lo that there will be an apparent
want of due grace, air, and freedom : perhaps the
beft proportions may be obferved where the fcmi-
diameter of the pipe is one, the breadth of the an-
nulus of the eye one, and the breadth of the diflc or
rim one and a half.
2d. Of the Bunch, or Trufs.
11. It is an excellent property of an auricula to
be a good truficr, that is, one which generally puts
forth a great number of pipps from the main flalk,
for by that means the beauty of the flower is great-
ly magnified, and makes in the whole a moil de-
lightful appearance,
12. 1 he length of the pedicles which fupport
the pipps in the trufs fhould be proportioned to
the number and fize of the pipps they fuftain ; for
if the pedicles are vei-y long, and the pipps few and
fmall, there will be unfightly vacancies in the trufs ;
or if they arc fliortj and the pipps many and large,
1.4
A UR
they would too much crowd together, fo that nei-
ther the colours can be fully viewed, nor the other
properties of the pipps fully dilj^layed.
13. The pedicles ihould be (ufficiently ilrong and
firm, that they may not droop with the weight of
the pipps, nor fall loofe in a diforderly manner, but
fupport the trufs entire and clofe, without either
vacancy or crowding, fo as to appear one complete
free- blown flower.
14. The pedicles ought to be near all of the
fame length, fo that the pipps may ftand together,
at the like height, and form a regular umbel, or ra-
ther corymbus, which is the formal perfedlion of the
trufs.
15. The pipps fhould be all fimilar, that is, Co
near of the lame fize and colour as not to be eaiily
dillinguilhed from each other ; for otherwife the
unity and harmony of the trufs will be deilroyed,
and, though ever fo pcrfeclly lormed, it will appear
as if it were made up of pipps taken from different
forts of auriculas.,,
16. It is an exceeding good property of an auri-
cula to blow freely, and expand all its pipps nearly
at the fame time, for by this means the colours in
them all will appear equally frcfh and lively ;
whereas in thofe which do not blow fome of their
pipps till others have pafied their prime, the whole
appearance of the trufs falls much fhort of that
beauty which would otherwife be feen.
3d. Of the main Stalk.
17. The fialk which fupports the trufs ought to
be ftrait and fufiiciently ftrong to bear it up widiout
drooping.
18. it is an excellence of the fl:alk to be lofty as
well as erecft, for thereby the trufs, and confequtiit-
ly the whole flower, will make a more {lately anJ
grand appearance.
To thefe eighteen properties, which complete the
florifts idea of a beautiful auricula, there ought to -
be added, the graceful difplay of a good plant, co-
vering the top of a flower-pot with frefli verdure or
foliage of luxurious growth, and an agreeablegreen
colour, fuch as is expreflive of the molt perfeft
health and vigour : this vaftly enriches the whole
view of the flower and plant taken together. More-
over, though every auricula that has the above-men-
tioned properties cannot fail pleafing the mofi: cu-
rious and critical florills, yet as, upon one hand, an
auricula may befomewhat deficient in feveral parti-
culars of fmall confideration, and yet bejuitlyeflieemed
a hne and valuable flower ; fo, on the other hand, it
will be a farther addition to the excellence of an au-
ricula which has all the properties, that it natural-
ly ftands long in bloom, and wears its colours with-
out fading or alteration ; and alfo when the flower
begins to decay (as decay it muft, like all other ter-
reltrial beauties) if the colours fade equally, flowly, .
and gradually, the florifts think it an addition to
4 A its
A U R
A U R
its character, and is by them termed dying well.
Auriculas are propagated either by fovving their
i'eeds, or by planting their ofF-iets, )n order, there-
fore, to obtain good flowers from feeds, choice muft
be made of the beft flowers, which {hould be ex-
pofed to the open air, that they may have the bene-
fit of fhowers, which is neceflary for their produc-
ing good fjeds.The timeof their ripening is in June,
which is cafily difcovercd by their feed-veffel turn-
ii;g to a brown colour and opening, when they muit
be gathered before they are loft on the ground.
The time of fowing thefj feeds is from Auguft to
Chriftmas. The heft foil for fowing thefe feeds is
in good frcfh earth from a common, rather light,
mixed with very rotten dung and leaves, which
Ihould be pre^■ioufly prepared : with this compoft
the pots or tubs, in which the feeds are intended to
be fown, fhould be filled. Ha\'ing le\elled the fur-
f.ice of the earth very fmooth, fow the feeds there-
on, co\-ering it very lightly with rotten ■willow
mould, t.aken out of the ftems of decaved hollow
willow trees, after placing a net or wire over the
earth, which will prevent the feed from being dif-
turbed by cats, fowls, &c. The boxes or tubs
fliould be fituated where they can only receive the
morning fun. In the fpring following the young
plants will come up, when they muft be frequently
refrefhed with water in dry weather till July, when
they will be large enough to tranfplant ; at which
time, with the aforefaid preparation of earth, plant
them in beds or boxes, about three inches afunder,
fhading rhem from the fun in hot weather. The
fpring following many of thefe plants will fhew
their flowers, when thofe that anfwer the proper-
tics above defcribed may be taken up and tranf-
planted into pots of the fmalleft fize ; for if they
have too large pots, they will not fo well thrive.
Thofe flowers which are not efteemed may be plant-
ed in the flower garden, where they will make a
fhcw, and ferve for nofegays, &c. Thofe which
do not fhew their flowers ftiould be taken up, and
planted in a frefh bed, to remain till the next fea-
fon, when their goodnefs may be judged of. The
manner of propagatingthefe flowers from flips or ofF-
fets, is to take them off" in April, when the old
plants are in bloom, and planted in fmall pots, in
the fame fort of earth as before dire£led, and, dur-
ing; the fummer feafon, fhould be fet in a fhady
place, and frequently refrefhed with water, but
Ihould be protected from violent rains, which may
fall in autumn, and in winter fliould have very lit-
tle wet fall on them, for nothing is more prejudi-
cl.al to auriculas in winter than wet ; nor muft they
be too much expofed to the fun in the fpring, which
is apt to forward their flov.-ering too foon, when the
frofts in March are too apt to damage the pipps,
unlefs carefully protefted. To prevent this, thofe
who are curious place their pots of auriculas un-
jdcr a common hot-bed frame, M'herc, in good wea-
6
ther, the plants may enjoy the free air, by taking
off the glafl'es, and in great rains, fnow, or froft,
the plants may be fcrecned by covering them :
where this method is practifed with judgment, the
flowers will be m.uch ftronger, and the plant will
encreafe fafter, than when they are expofed abroad.
In the beginning of February, if the weather is
mild, the upper part of the earth in the pots fhould
be taken off as low as poflible, fo as not to difturb
the roots, and fill up with frefh earth : this will
much contribute towards ftrengthenir.g the bloom,
as alfo preparing the off-fets for tranfplanting in
April, by caufing them to pufh out new roots. Thofe
plants which have ftrong fingle heads always pro-
duce the largeft truflTes of flowers ; therefore the ofF-
fets fhould be taken off fo foon as it can conveni-
ently be done with fafety to their growing, in or-
der to encourage the mother plants to flower the
ftronger. The auricula pots fhould be covered
with matts in frofty weather, during the time of
their budding for flower, left the fliarp mornings
blight them, and pre\ent their blowing. When
the flower ftems begin to advance, and the blolTom
buds grow turgid, they muft be protedled from
heavy rains, which would wafh off their white
mealy farina, in which a confiderable fhare of their
beauty confifts ; but at the fam.e time obferve to
keep them as much uncovered as poflible, otherwife
the ftems will be drawn up too weak to fupport
the trufs, alfo frequent waterings fhould be given,
but not to wet the leaves. When the flowers begin
to open, the pots fhould b)e removed upon a ftage
built purpofely, facing the morning fun, and cover-
ed at top ; in this pofition they will appear to much
greater advantage, efpecially when the flowers are
judicioufly contrafted ; in this fituation they may
remain till their beauty is paft, when they muft b«
fet abroad in the open air, in order to obtain good
feeds. It may be remiarked, than an auricula never
thrives well, unlefs the pot is well filled with its
roots ; therefore the largeft plants, as Perry's King
George, when at its greateft fize, fhould not have
a pot larger than a thirty-t\vo (ib called); and
others, v/hich grow of a lefs fize, a half-penny pot
is fufficient, into which fized pots, according to
the growth of the plant, they fhould be fliifted in
the latter end of July, or beginning of Auguft, tak-
ing, if poflible, the advantage of moift weather.
AURICULAR, whatever belongs or relates to
the ear. Thus we fay, auricular witnefs, auricu-
lar confeflion, 8:c. as being done fecretly, and as
it were in the ear.
Auricular Mfd'ctnes^ fuch as are ufed in
the cure of diftempers in the car. See the article
Ear.
AuRicuLARts Digitus, the little finger, (o
called, becaufc it is ufed commonly to pick the
ear.
AURIGA, the waggoner, or carter, in aftrono-
my.
A U R
A U R
my, a conftellation of the northern hemifphcrc,
containing fixty-fix ftais according to the Britifh
catalogue, forty by Hcvelius, and twenty-three by
Tycho. In this conilcllatioii there are two other
conftellations to be noted, whereof the one con-
firteth but of one ftar, which is in the left llioul-
der of auriga, and is called hirciis, or capra, the
goat. The other confiflcih of two little liars, a
little beneath the other, Handing in the hand of
auriga, this conffellation is called haepi, the bids.
Auriga by the Arabians is called ahiiot, and by the
Greeks, hemochus, that is, a man holding a bridle in
his hand. Eratoflencs affirmeth him to he Eridlho-
nius king of Athens, the fon of Vulcan, who
having deformed feet, firft devifed the ufe of the
waggon or chariot, and joined horfes together to
draw the fame, fo that fitting therein he might
the better conceal his deformity : for which inven-
tion, Jupiter tranflated him into heaven.
The fabulous ftory concerning the other two
conftellations is this : Saturn being told by the
oracle, that one of his fons fhould expel him
his kingdom, determined to deiVroy them all.
But Ops by flcalth conveyed away Jupiter, and
fent him to Meliflus king of Crete, who had
two daughters, Amalthea and Melifla, to whofe
care Jupiter was committed. Amalthea had a
goat, that gave fuck to two kids, fo that by
the milk of this goat fhc nourished Jupiter ;
therefore, to requite this her favour, when he
came to his kingdom, he tranflated the goat and
two kids into heaven, in remembrance of his
nurfe.
Novidus faith, that when Chrift was born, and
his birth made maiiifeft by the angels unto the
Ihepherds, one of them brought with him a pre-
fent of a goat and two kids, which in token of his
good-will were placed in hea\'en.
The right afccnfion, dillance from the pole,
he. to the year 1770, will be found in the following
Catalogue.
1
2
5
5
Name.
3
4-
4
5
6
5
6
6
7
8
9
4
4
6
Hicdr. pr.
10
4
Ha;dr.fcq.
1 1
12
5
6
/
Right
Afcenfion
1 Diftance
from No.
Pole.
68.36.58
69.19. 3
70.30.59
70.54.46
71. 7.25
71. 8.23
71.22. 2
71.36.29
72-13-37
72.35.19
74.26.17
52.
53'
57'
52.
50,
50.
46.
49,
3B.
49
51
74.52.34 43
55-42
42. o
12-34
21.51
57-41
41.42
31-50
16. 9
42.29
5. 6
,47.58
50-57
Var.iii
Var.ir
Right 'J"l'-
Afcen.'"^"""
/^
^^
59-7
7-4
^ri
7-2
7-J
60.2
6.q
60.9
6.8
61.2
6.6
63-5
6.5
6 J. 8
64
69.2
6.2
62.3
6.0
60.8
5-7
65.7
5-5
g^Namc.
13 I
14 5
15
1616
/
8
6
20 6
2.|5
22, 6
Capella
23
2
24
5
25
5
26
6
27
6
28
7
29
5
30
6
3'
6
32
5
33
4
34
2
35
6
36
6
37
4
38
6
39
6
40
6
4«
6
42
6
43
6
44
4
45
6
46
5
47
6
48
6
49
5
50
5
51
5
52
5
53
6
54
6
55
5
5^-
6
57
6
58
4
59
6
60
6
61
6
62
6
63
4
64
5
65
5
60
5
Right
Afcenfion
74-
75-
75-
75-
75-
76.
76.
76,
77'
77'
77'
78,
79'
80.
82
H
83
83
83
83
85
85
85
85
86
86
87
90,
90
90,
90,
91,
93
93'
95-
95-
95-
95-
95-
96.
96.
97-
97-
98.
99.
99-
99-
ico.
103
105.
J 06.
107,
Diflance
fromNo.
Polo.
51-59
9-43
43-26
46-43
48.42
3 49
1338
27.1
.16.29
,17.58
59-23
, 6.50
26.27
58.31
• 3-21
13.10
18.58
■55- 3
■50-39
•53- o
.20.14
.36. 6
■43-23
.54.25
. O.II
.41.16
. 8.17
.40.20
13-34
8.33
■19- 3
10.55
47-57
,48.54
10. o
30.24
13-17
17
13
2
16
42
41
40,
57'
19-34
34 49
44.
57-
50-
56.
56.
56.
56.
48.
52-
61.
61.
55-
57-
59-
40.
50.
50-
34-
52.
50,
35-
45-
44,
42.
52.
47-
47-
51-
41.
43-
43-
63-
36-
40.
43-
59-
61.
47-
50.
49-
60.
61.
45-
46.
40.
47
50
5'
15-43
26. 7
36.48
17- 7
20.26
32. 6:51.
50.35|5'
56.32I50,
,29 58;48,
■33 -26 15 2
. 2.47 48
16.36
34.16
5-36
52.48
30.11
16.28
17.48
26.24
50.36
17.29
35-47
4329
59.42
39.52
17-20
33-34
54.20
22.
26.32
55-5
.44.54
. 5.44
5-38
■ 7-57
49.10
0.40
0-53
30-39
15.25
31. 8
34- 6
26.5
28. 8
37- '
11.21
23-32
49- 6
19.16
25.29
55-19
50.14
33-2-1
16.12
12.32
59- 3
57-29
52.1 1
17.21
14.50
39.12
19-37
43-37
49-37
54.14
Var.in
Var.in
Right
Decli-
Afccn.
nation
66.3
5^28
58.0
5.2
61.9
51
58.4
5-1
58.5
5.0
58-5
4-9
58.6
4-9
62.9
4.8
62.5
4-7
66.4
4-3
66.4
4-1
59-3
3-9
58.1
3-6
57-3
3-1
69.2
2.8
62.0
2-7
61.8
2.5
74.6
2.4
60.9
2.2
61.9
2.0
73-4
1-7
66.6
1.58
66.3
1-5
67.8
1-4
60.9
1-3
64.4
1.2
64.4
I.O
61.8
0.8
68.7
0.6
69.9
0.0
69.9
0.0
57-3
0.1
0.2
69.2
0.7
67.4
I.I
57.7
1-3
56.6
1-4
^4.3
1.6
62.4
1.9
62.7
1.9
57.2
2.0
56.8
2.1
65.7
2-3
62.6
2-4
62.6
2.S
63.8
2.6
62.2
2.8
6r.8
3-0
61.9
3-4
bi.b
3-9
62.2
4.8
63.2
5-3
60.6
5-6
62.S
5-9
AU R
AURIPIGAIENTUM, Orpiment, in natu-
ral hiftory. Sec Orpimknt.
AURIS, the Ear, in anatomy. See Ear.
AURISCALPIUM, an inlhument to clean the
ears, and fcrving alio for any other operation in
difcrders of that part.
AURORA, the morning twilight, or that faint
light which appears in the morning, when the fun
is within eighteen degrees of the horizon.
Aurora, the goddefs of the morning, accord-
ing to the pagan mythology. She was the daugh-
ter of Hyperion and Theia, according to Hefiod ;
but of 'I itan and Terra, according to others.
It was under this name that the ancients deified
the light, which foreruns the rifing of the fun
above our hemifphere. The poets reprefent her as
rifmg out of the ocean, in a chariot, with ro(y
fingers dropping gentle dew. Virgil defcribes
her afcending in a flame-coloured chariot with four
horfes.
Aurora Borealls, the northern dawn or light ;
a remarkable meteor of a luminous appearance,,
often vifibie during the night in the northern parts,
cf the heavens.
This meteor exhibits a great variety of phse-
riomena, of which the following are the prin-
cipal.
1. In the northern part of the horizon there
is commonly the appearance of a very black cloud ;
we fay appearance, becaufe it is evidently no real
cloud, the fmallell Itars being vifible through it.
This apparent cloud is extended fometimes farther
towards the weft than towards the eaft ; fometimes
farther towards the eaft than towards the weft ;
and generally takes up about a quarter of the
horizon.
2. The upper edge of this cloud is generally
terminated by a very luciJ arch, from one to four
or five degrees broad, whofe center is below the
norizon. Sometimes there are two or more of
thefe arches, one above another. In fome the
cloud is not terminated by an arch, but by a long
-flreak of light lying parallel to the horizon. The
limb of this luminous arch, or parallel ftreak, is
not always even and regular, but finks lower in
iome parts than in others.
3. Out of this arch proceed ftreams of light,
generally perpendicular to the horizon, but fome-
times a little inclined to it. Moft of them feem to
end in a point, like pyramids or cones, and often
very much refemble the tails of comets. Some-
times there is no luminous arch, nor ftreak of
light ; and then the ftreams feem to iilue out from
behind the dark cloud, being diftinft from each
other at their bafes.
4. The upper ends of the ftreams inceflantly
appear and vanifh again, as quick as if a curtain
were drawn backwards and forwards before them j
A UR
\
which fometimes caufes fuch a feeming trembling
in the air, that the upper part of the heavens
were, if we may be allowed the expreflion, incon-
vulfions.
5. They fometimes feem to meet in the zenith,
or more commonly about ten degrees to the fouth-
ward of it, and there curling round, they, in fomc
meafure, imitate flame confined under an arch ;
and, being frequently tinged with various colours,
exhibit a moft beautiful appearance, rcfembling a
canopy finely painted, of about ten or twenty de-
grees in breadth.
In majiy auroras there are ftreams afcending from
theie parts of the heavens, which lie feveral degrees
■to the fouthward of the canopy ; and in feme they
appear' to arife, though very rarely, almoft as large
and numerous from die fouthern as from the north-
ern parts of the horizon.
6. The height of the aurora borealis is very
great; for that on the fixth of March 17 15, was
vifible from the weft fide of Ireland, to the confines
of Ruflia and Poland to the eaft ; and perhaps
much further ; extending at leaft over thirty de-
.grecs of longitude, and in latitude from about the
fiftieth degree over almoft all the north of Europe,
and exhibiting, nearly at the fame time, the fame
appearances at all places.
7. Thefe phenomena have always been very
frequent in countries near the frigid zone; but ve-
ry rare in our latitude. They are now hov^'ever be-
come very frequent with us, but always feem to
proceed from the north ; and are as yet unknown
to the inhabitants of the more fouthern parts of our
hemifphere. Whether they are known to thofe
who inhabit the fouthern frigid zone, is yet unde-
termined.
8. In fome there are trains of light running ho-
rizontally, fometimes from the middle of the ex-
tremes, and fometimes with one extreme to ano-
ther : and from thefe trains ftreams perpendicular to
the horizon often arife, and accompany them as
they pafs along.
g. When all the ftreaming is over, the aurora
borealis comm.only degenerates into a bright twi-
light in the north, and there gradually dies away.
10. It is probable thefe phenomena often hap-
pen in cloudy nights, though we are not fenfible of
them ; for it is obfervable, that in fuch nights there
is frequently more light than whr.t ufually proceeds
from the ftars alone.
The moft obvious folution of the aurora borealis,
or at leaft what would appear fo to- thofe who have
only attended to the circumftances of Iome particu-
lar meteors of this kind, is, that it is a thin nitro-
fulphureous vapour, raifed in our atmofphere, ccn-
fidcrably higher than the clouds ; that this vapour,
by fermentation, takes fire, and the explofions cf
one portion of it kindling the next, the flaflies fuc-
ceed
AU R
ceeJ one another, till the whole quantity of vapour
within their reach is fet on fire.
Some have thought that vapours rarefied exceed-
ingly by fubtcrrancous fire» and tinged with ful-
phureous fleams, might thence be difpofed to ftiiic
in the night, and rifing up to the top of the at-
mofphere, or even beyond its limits, might pro-
duce thofe undulations in the air, which conllitutc
this ph.^nomenon. But thcle hypothelcs have
been rejected, as infufficient ; it hiivingbcen thought
impo/Tible to accouatfor all the circumftances from
them.
Dr. Hallev therefore th-oaght pro^wr to have rc-
courfe to the magnetic effluvia of the cartli, which
he fuppofes to perform the fame kind of circulation
with regard to it, as die effluvia of any particular
terrella do with rel'pect to that, viz. that they enter
the earth near tlie fouth pole, and, perv;'/ling its
pores, pafs out again at the fame diifance from the
northern : and thinks, they may fometimes, by the
concourfe of feveral caufes, verj' rarely coincident,
and to us as yet unknown, be capable of producing
a fmall degree of light, either from the greater deu-
fity of the matter, or perhaps from the greater ve-
locity of its motion ; after the fame manner as we
-tee eleftrical bodies emit light in the dark.
M. deMaiian has given us a phyfical and hifto-
'rical treatife on the aurara borcalis, and endeavours
to pro\'e, that it is owing to the zodiacal light, or
the atmofphere of the fun, fp.-'ead on each fide of
it along the zodiac, in the form of a pyramid.
This he fays is fometimes extended to fuch a length
•js to reach beyond the orbit of our earth, ajxd then
by mi-xing itfelf with our atmofphere, and being of
a heterogeneous nature, produces the feveral ap-
pearances obfer\'able in the aurora borcalis.
We thought proper to mention thefe folucions,
becaufe they come from two very ingenious phi-
lofophers ; though they are certainly too fine-fpun to
liokl, and feem no other than the ingenious reve-
ries of perfons determined to frame an hypothefis
at any rate. V/e may certainly find materials for
the aurora borealis, without having recourfe either
to the magnetical effluvia of the earth, or the zo-
diacal light, the nature of both which we are
wholly unacquainted with The effluvia continu-
ally exhaled from the furface of the earth, if right-
ly cojifidered, will afford a very eafy and natuial
foltition, as we fhall now endeavour to fhew.
Firft, We know from experiment, that there are
fome fleams, as inflammable fulphureous ones,
which are capable of fo great a degree of expan-
fion, that they will render themfelves lighter than
the air they float in, even when that fluid ik. as
rare as it can be rendered by art ; for they will rife
to the top of an exhaufted receiver : fuch fleams,
or exhalations, therefore, ifluing from mines, vol-
canos, &c. in the bowels of the earth, niuft ne-
ceflarily afc«nd towards the top of the atmofphere,
A U R
at Jcafl till they come to a region where the air
is as rare and as much expanded as it can be made
by the air-pump here below. This height, ac-
cording to Dr. Halley's computation, founded on
the refradlon of a ray of light, is ibrty-four mile.";
and a half (fee AXMosrHERF.) : but may probab'v
bc much greater ;. for the air is higher than anv
vapours capable of refrafling a ray of light can
afcend.
Secondly, Thefe effluvia being raifed to the top
of the atmofphere, or near it, and floating there,
will ncccffarily be carried towards the polar regions
for the fallowing rcafons. i. Becaufe the fuperior
current of the air, at a great diflance from the
ctpiator, tends that way. 2. M''e know from ex-
periment that whatever fwims upon a fluid, which
revolves about an axis, ia by that \'cry motion car-
ried towards the extremities of that axis. This ii
exactly the cafe of thefe effluvia ; for they float
near the top of the atmofphere, which continually
revolves about the a:;is of the earth ; and mulf
therefoic be neceffarily carried towards the polar
regions. 3. Thefe effluvia being collefted toge-
ther, at or near the poles, and of an inflammable
nature, may eafily be fuppofed to ferment, when
they meet with other heterogeneous particles pro-
per for producing fuch an effeft, and emit fiery
ilreams, which will naturally rife into fuch parts
of the atmofphere as are flill lighter than that in
which thele corpufcles naturally floated ; that is,
dirciftly upwards from the center of the earth :
but, according to the rules of perfpedi\'e, thefe
ft reams, though they really diverge as radii from a
center, will appear to a fpedtator on the furface
of the earth to converge towards a point ; which
point will feem to be direftly over his head, if the
flreams afcend in right lines from the center of the
earth ; but if they deviate all one way from that
dirCiStion, the point will be on that fide the zenith
towards which they incline. To illuflrate this,
let us fuppofe feveral firings to hang down from
the ceiling of a room, and a candle to be placed
on a table below them : the fliadows of thefe
threads will all converge towards the point on the
ceiling immediately over the candle: and if they
are made to incline from a perpendicular direilion,
iuppofe all one way, the point of convergency will
remove from the fpot immediately over the candle,
towards that fide of the room to which the upper
ends of the ftrings incline. Now, if a perfon
had viewed them from the place where the candle
was fet, and referred their places to the ceiling,
they would have a^ipearcd to have converged to-
wards the fame point to which their fhadows were
directed by the candle.
And if the flreams fpread themfelves as they
rife, but not too much, they will flill appear taper-
ing towards their upper-ends, like cones or pyra-
mids J juft as the fides of a long walk feem to a
4- ^ perfon
AU R
perfon viewing it from one end, to approach each
other at the fartheft extremity.
Hence every ph.-tnomenou of the aurora borcalis
may be eafily accounted for ; and its height maybe
calculated in the following manner :
Let the fine of the elevation of the pole be = q,
the fine of the greateft altitude of the lucid arch
=7«, the fine of half the diftance of the legs of
the arch from each other, at the horizon —g ; the
femi-diamcter of the earth —a, and the fine of the
angle which is equal to the greateil altitude of
the arch, and the altitude of the equator taken to-
gether be — b; thus the diftance of the matter in
the vertex of the arch, from an obferver, will be
2 a ni q' e^
cxprefied by -r-r —t-
^ ^ r' b — ''g'i'
AURUM, Gold, in natural hiflory ; fee the
article Gold.
The Latin term, aurum, is chiefly ufed to' de-
note certain chemical preparations, whereof gold
is the principal ingredient.
Aurum Fnhnhians, a chemical compofition pre-
pared by difiblving gold in aqua regia, and precipi-
tating the metal from the menftruum, by adding a
volatile alkali : after which the precipitated powder
is edulcorated by frequent effufions of warm water,
and then dried in the {hade.
The aurum fulminans, prepared in this manner,
weighs about one fourth part more than the gold
employed, three parts of gold yielding four of the
fulminating powder, according t-o Lemery, Kunc-
kel, and other practical writers. Part of the in-
creafe proceeds from the volatile alkali ; for, on
adding to the aurum fiiiminans a little vitriolic
acid, the v-olatik fait rifcs in fiibhmation, fatiated
with the acid : the remaining powder is found to
be divelied of its fulminating power. From the co-
alition of the volatile alk:»]i with the nitrous acid
in the menftruum refults an ammoaiacal nitre, a
felt which of itfelf detonates on being heated ; but
by what power or mechanifm its detonating quality
is fo remarkably incrcafed in the aurum fulminan?,
is unknown.
The explofion of aurum fulminans is mcM-e ve-
fement than of any other known kind of matter :
it goes off in a lefs degree of heat than any of the
other explofive compoiitions ; and even grinding it
fomewhat fmartly in a mortar, is fufficient for mak-
ing it explode. Some inltances are mentioned ii>
the Bref-au Colledlions, and the Ephemerides Na-
turae Curicforum, of a very fmall quantity burlliiig
in pieces the marble mortar in v/hicli it was rubbed ;
and an accident of the fome kind happened fonie
years ago to a (kilftil chemift here. The operator
cannot therefore be too much on his guard in the
management of fo dangerous a preparation.
It has been reckoned, that a few grains of
aiirum fulminans a(£l with as much force as feveral
■flUncesof gun-powder: but the.a<3ions of the two
A UR
are of fo dLfPjicnt kinds, that it is difficult to de-
termine in what maimer their ilrcngth can be
compared. The report of aurum fulminans is of
extreme acutenefs, offending the ear far more than
that of a much larger quantity of gun-powder ;
but does not extend to fo great a diftance, feeming
to differ from it as the found of a fhort or tenfe
mufical firing, from that of a long one, or of one
which is lefs ilretched. In fome experiments made
before the Royal Society, and mentioned in the firft:
volume of Dr. Birch's hiftory, aurum fulminans
doled up in a ftrong hollow iron ball, and heated
in the fire, did net appear to explode at all ; while
gun-powder, treated in the fame manner, burft the
ball. On the other hand, a little aurum fulmi-
nans, exploded on a metalline plate in the open
air, makes an impreffion or perforation in the
plate ; an effeft which gunpov/der could fcarcely
produce in any quantity.
This remarkable effedl of aurum fulminans on-
the body, which ferves for its fupport, has induced
fome to believe that its aiSion is exerted chiefly or
folely downwards. It appears, however, to a£t in
all directions : for a weight laid upon it,, either
receives a like iniprcflion, or is thrown off: and,
in the colleflion abovementioned, an account is
given of a large quantity (fome ounces) which,
exploding from too great heat ufed in the drying-
of it, broke open the doors, and fhattered the
windows in pieces. Mr. Hcllot found, that when
a few grains of the powder were placed between-
two leaves of paper, and cemented to one of them
by gum water, only the kaf which touched the pow-
der was torn by the explofion, and the other
fvvxlled out ; and that when both were brought-
into clofe contadl v.'ith it, by pre.Ting them toge-
ther, it tore them both ; from v.'hence he con-
cludes, that the action of the aurum is greateft on
the bodies which it immediately touches. Both-
this property, and the acutenefs of the report,
may poffibly depend upon -one caufe, the celerity of
the expanfion : experiments have inewn, that the
rcfiftance of the air, to bodies in motion, increafes
with the velocity of the body in a very high ratio ;
aiid perhaps the v-elocity with v/hich aurum fulmi-
nans explodes, may be fo great, that it is refiited
by the air as by a folid inals. Lnvis's Ccfrimeicitun
Philofcphico- Techriicu7u .
Aurum Mufrju^n^ or Mofaicum^ a chemical pre-
paration ufed by japanners in gilding their vefitls :
it is made in the following manner :
Take of tin one pound, of flowers of fulphur
feven ounces-, of fal ammoniacum and purified
quickfilver, each half apound. Melt the tin, and
add the quickfilver to, it in that ftate ; and when
the mixture is become cold, powder it, and grind
it with the fal ammoniacum and fulphur, till the
whole be thoroughly commixt. Calcine them iiv
a mattrafs ; and the other ingredients fublimingy
the.-
AUT
thf tin will be converted into the auriim mo-
Uicuin, and will be found in the bottom of the
glafs like a inafs of bright flaky gold powder : but
it any black or difcoloured parts appear in it, they
muft be carefully picked or cut out.
The fol ammoniacum employed, ought to be
perfe<Sly white and clean ; and care Ihould be
taken, that the quickfilver be not fuch as is un-
adulterate with lead, which may be known by
putting a fmall quantity in a crucible, into the
iiie, and obferving when it is taken out, whether
ir be wholly fublimed away, or have left any lead
behind it. The calcination may be beft performed
in a coated glafs body, hung in the naked fire ;
and the body fhould be of a long figure, that the
other ingredients may rife fo as to leave the colour-
ed tin clear of them. The quickfilver, though it
be formed into cinnabar along with the fulphur,
need not be wafled ; but may be revived by diftil-
ling it with the addition of quick-lime.
AvRVM PotabiL; or tinclure of gold, a medi-
cine formerly of great requeft, but at prefent rare-
ly if ever ufed. It is prepared by mixing effential
oil of rofcmary v/ith a foluticn cf jjold in -aqua-
regia ; and, after fliaking the veflel,"thc gold will
be retained in the oil, fwimming on the top.
This oil is feparated by inclination, and after-
v.-ards digcllcd for a mojuh in highly rectified fpirit
of wLne.
But, after all, this is not a genuine tinflure of
gold, being only the gold divided into very fmall
parts by the fpicula of the aqiia-regia, fwimming
m the oil of rofemary ; nor can there be any radi-
cal tindlureof gold, which may not, by evaporat-
ing the oil, be reduced to a powder, and the pow-
der by melting reduced into gold. The virtues
of this tinfture are entirely owing to the oil of
rofemarv.
AUSPICIUM. See Augury.
AUSTERE, rough, aftringent. Thus an a-ufl-ere-
tafte is fuch a one as conflringes the mouth and
tongue with fome auiferity ; as the tafte of unripe
fruit.
Things of an aufiere tafte are fuppofed by
fome, from their glutinous quality, to generate thc'
ftone.
AUSTERITY, amojig moral writers, implies
feverity and rigour. Thus we fay, aufterity of
manners.
Aufterity of bodies, according to the Cartefians,
confifts in having obtufe angular particles, like a
bJunt faw.
AUSTRAL, the fame as fouthern ; thus auftral-
figns are the fix laft figns of the zodiac, being
called thus, becaufe they are of the fouthern flde^
of the equinoiftial.
AUTER DROIT, in law, is when perfons
fue, or are fued in another's right, as executors,
guardians, &:c.
A UT
AUTER FOIS ACQUIT,' m hw, a plea-
made by a criminal that he h-is been already acquit-
ted of the fame crime, with which he is charged.
There are likewifc pleas of auter fois convift and
attaint, that he has been before convicted of the
fame felony.
AUTHENTIC, fomething of acknowledged
and received authority. In law it fignifies fome-
thing cloathed in all its formalities, and atteftcd
by perfons to whom credit has been regularly
given. Thus we fay, authentic papers, authentic
inftruments.
AUTHOR, properly fignifies one who created
or produced any thing. Thus God, by way. of
eminence, is called the author of nature, the
author of the univerfe.
The word author is fometimes employed in the
fame fenfe as in\entor. As, Otho de Guerick is
reported to be the author of the air-pump.
Author, in matters, of literature, a perfou
who has competed fome book or writing.
Authors may be diftinguifhed into facred and
profane, ancient and modem, known and anony-
mous, Greek, Latin, Ehglifli, French, 6zc. and
with regard to the iubjects they treat, into divines,
philoibphers, orators, hiftorians, poets, gramma-
rians, phyfiologifts, &c. See the articles Sacred,
Profane, &c.
An original author is he, who, in treating any
fubject, does not follow any other perfon, or imi-
tate any model, either in the matter or method of
his compoiltion : for inftance, M. de Fontenelle is
an original author in his Plurality of Worlds, but
not in his Dialogues of the Dead.
AUTHORri'Y, in a general fenfe, fignifies a
right to command, and make one's felf obeyed.
In which fenfe, we fay, the royal authority, the
epifcopal authority, the authority of a father, .
&c.
Authority denotes alio the teftimony of an
author, fome apophthegm, or fentence of an>
eminent perfon, quoted m a difcourfe by way of
proof.
Authority, in law, fignifies a power given
by word, or writing, to a fecond perfon to aft i
fomething, and may be by writ, warrant, com-
miihon, letter of attorney, &:c. and fometimes by
lav/. An authority given to another, to do what*
a perfon himfelf camiot do. is void, and it muft be
for doing a thing that is lawful, otherwife it will"
be no good authority, .
Authority is reprefented, in painting, like a
grave matron fitting. Ln a chair of ftate, richlv
cloathed in a garment embroidered with gold, hold-
ing in her right hand a fword, and in her left a
fceptre. By her fide is, a doable trophy of books .
and arms.
AUTO DA FE, ad of faith. The ceremony
of putting in excution the feveral fentences pro-*.
nounced.i
A U X
rioiiiiccd on criminals by the tribunal of the inqui-
fition. It is fo called, becaufe it is confidered, in
thofe countries where that tremendous court is
fettled, as the moll illuftrious and public proof that
can be given of a zeal for religion and the Catholic
faith. See Inctuisition.
AUTOCEPHALOUS, MTOKi<p^.Ko,y in church
hiftory, denotes archbifhops who were independent
of any patriarch.
AUTOGRAPH, ttuToyfApovy denotes a perfon's
hand-writing, or the original manufcript erf' any
book, &c.
AUTOMATA are mechanical, or mathema-
tical inftruments, that, going by fprings, weights,
&c. feem to move themfelvcs, as a watch, clock,
Sic.
AUTUMN, the third (eafon of the year, when
the harveft and fruits are gathered in. Hence, in
the language of the Alchemifts,. it fignines the
time when the philofophers ftone is brought to per-
fection.
Autumn is reprefented, in painting, by a man
at perfecS age, cloathed like the ve.nal, and like-
wife girded with a flarry girdle ; holding in one
hand a pair of fcales equally poized, with a globe
in each ; in the other, a bunch of divers fruits
and graphs. His age denotes the pcrfeiftion of
this icafon, and the ballaiice, that fign of the
zodiac which the fun enters when our autumn
begins.
Autumnal, fomething relating to autuma.
Thus,
Autumnal Point is that point of the equinox
from which the furt begins to defcetid towards the
fouth-pole.
Autumnal Si^ns, in aflronomy^ arc the figns
Libra, Scorpio, and Sagittarius, through which
the fun palTes during the autumn. See ZoDiAC,
Libra, &c.
Autumnal Eguinox, the time when tbx fua
enters the autumnal point. See Eqijinox.
Autumnal Flnvcrs. See Flower..
AUX, the fame with apogeum.
Aux alio denoted the arch of the ecliptic, in-
tercepted between the firft degree of Aries r.nd the
apogeum.
AUXILIARY, Jux'diaris, v/hatever is aiding
or helping to another.
Auxiliary Verbs, in grammar, are fuch as
help to form or conjugate others ; that is, are pre-
fixed to them, to form or denote the moods or
tenfes thereof. As to have and to be, in the Eng-
lifh ; et>e (J avoir, in the French; bo ^ J'ono, in
the Italian, &c.
In the Englifh language, the auxiliary verb
am, fupplies the want of paffive verbs. See
PasSH E.
AUXILIUM, in law, the fame with aid. See
Aid.
A X I
AuxiLlUM Curia, in law, a precept or oufer
of court, to cite or convene one party at the fuit
of anuuier.
AuxiLiUM ad filium militem faciendum, vel filiam
mariiandhm, a precept, or writ direfted to the
fiieriH of every county where die king, or other
lords, had any tenants, to levy of them reafonaWe
aid towards ' the knighting his cldelt fon, or
the marriage of his eldeil daughter. See the ar-
ticle Aid.
AWARD, in law, the judgment of an arbi-
trator, or of one who is not appointed by the
law a judge, but chofen by the parties them-
felvcs tor terminating their ditterence. See Arbi-
trator.
A-\V FATHER, in the marine, the oppofite
term to a-lee. See the article A-lee.
A-WEIGH, in the marine, the anchor is
called a-weigh, or a-trip, when the cable, being
drawn perpendicularly over it, and continued to be
heaved into the fhip, at length weighs or trips it
out of the ground.
AWL, or AuL, among £hoe-makers, an in-
flrument wherewith holes are bored through the
leather, to facilitate the Hitching, or fewmg the
faine. The blade of the awl 1"^ ufually a little
flas ai-id bended, ;md the point ground to an acute
angle.
AWME, or AuME, a Dutch liquid meafare,
containing eight freckans, or twenty verges or ver-
teels, equal to the tierce in England, or to one
iixth of a ton of France.
AAVN, arilhi, inbotv.ny. See Arista,
AWNiNG,. in the m.arine, a canopy of can-
vas extended over the decks in hot weather, to pro-
tedt them from being fplit by the heat of the lun y
likewiie for the convenience of the officers, &c..
An awning is fupported by a range of woodeu!.
pillars, called flanchions, ereitcd perpendicularly
with the iliip's lide, on each fide of the deck,
and fufpended in the middle by crowfeet. See the
article Crowfoot.
AX, or Axe, the fame with axis.
Ax, among carpenters, an inllrument where-
with to hew wood.
This implement differs from the joiners hatchet,
as being deeper and heavier.
AXiLLA, in anatomy, the arm-pit, or th*
ca\ity under the upper part of the arm.
Axilla, in botany, the fpace comprehended
betwixt the flems of plants and tiieir leaves.
AXILLARY, Axillaris, fomething belonging,
to, or lying near, the axilla. Tiius,
Axillary Artery is that part of the fub-
clavian branches of the al'cending trunk of the.
aorta, which paffciii under the arm-pits. Sec A-Rr,
tery.
Axillary Glandi are iltuatcd under the arm-
pLtS,_
A X I
pit?, enveloped in fat, and lie clofe by the axillary
xellLls.
Axillary Vein, one of the fubclavian veins
which palTes under the arm-pit, dividing itftif in-
to fevcral branches, which are fprcad over tiic arm.
See Vein".
AXIOM, in philofophy, is fuch a plain, firlf-
cvidcnt, and received notion, that it cannot be
made more plain and evident by dcmonftration ;
bccaufe it is itfelf better known than any thing
ih.at can be brought to prove it : as, that nothing
can aiSt v.'hcye jt is not; that a thing cannot be,
and not be, at the fame time : that the whole is
greater than a part thereof; and that from nothing,
nothing can arifc.
By axioms, called alfo maxims, are undcrllcod
all common notions of the mind, whofe evidence
is fo clear and forcible, that a man cannot deny
them, without renouncing common fcnfe and natu-
ral reafon.
The rule whereby to know an axiom, is this :
Whatever propolition exprellcs the immediate clear
comparifon of two ideas without the help of a
third, is an axiom. Uut if the truth does not ap-
pear from the immediate comparifon of two ideas,
it is no axiom.
Thefe fort of prcpofitions, under the name of
axioms, have, on account of their being felf- evi-
dent, paffed not only for principles of fcience, hut
have been fuppofcd innate, and thought to be the
foundation of all our other knowledge, though, in
tiuth,.they arc no more than ioencic propofitions :
for to fay that ajl right angles are equal to each
other, is no more than faying, that all right angles
are rieht angles, fuch equality being implied in the
very definition. All confideration of thefe maxims,
therefore, can add nothing to the evidence or cer-
tainty of our knowledge of them ; and how little
they influence the refl: of our knowledge, how far
they are from being the foundation of it, as v/ell as
of the truths firfl: known to the mind, Mr. Locke,
and feme others, have undeniably proved.
According to Bacon, it is impoiTible that axioms,
raifed by augmentation, fhould be ufeful in dif-
coveiing nev/ truths ; becaufe the fubtilty of nature
far exceeds the fubtilty of arguments : but axioms,
duly and methodically drawn from particulars, will
again cafdy point out new particulars, and fo ren-
der the fciences a(5five.
The axioms in ufe being derived from {lender
experience, and in a few obvious particulars, are
generally applied in a correfponding manner. No
wonder, therefore, they lead us to few parti-
culars ; and if any inftance unobferved before,
happen to turn up, the axiom is prefervcd by fome
trifling diftiniSlion,- where it oui'ht rather to be
corre6fed.
Axiom is alfo an eftablifhed principle in fome
art or 'fcience.
15
A X'l
Thus it is an ellablifhed axiom in pli\rn;.^-, th,it
nature does nothing in vain : fo it is in geometry,
that if to equal things you add equals, the fums
will be equal. It is an axiom in optics, that the
angle of incidence is equal to the angle of reflec-
tion, &c. In which lenle too, the general law,
or motion are called axioms : whence it may be
obfeived, tliat thefe particular axioms are hut dt-
diiiitions from certain hypothefcs.
AXIS properly figni/ics that ftraight line in any
plain figure at reit, about which the motion is per-
formed, or the figure revolves, in order 60 produce,
or generate a folid.
Axis, in architedlure, is a line in the Ionic capi-
tal, pafling perpendicularly through the middle of
the eye of the volute. See Volute.
Spiral Axis, in architeciure, is the axis of a
twilled column drawn fpirally, in order to trace the
circumvolutions without. See Column.
Axis, inaftionomy; frrff, the axis of the v/orld
is a right line, conceived to pafs through the cen^
■ter of the earth from one pole of the world to
the other; this line is repiefcnted by the line 90,
90, Plate IV. fig. 6. in the armillary fphere,
drawn from the artic pole to the antartic, through
the earth in the center. About this line as an axis,
the fphere in the Ptolemaic fyftem is fuppofed to
move or make its diurnal revolution.
Axis of a Planet, is that line drawn through its
center, about which the planet revolves. The
fun, together with all the planets, except Mercury
and Saturn, are known to revolve round their re-
fpeflive axis by obfervation. The earth's axis
during its revolution round the fun, remains al-
ways parallel to itfelf, and is inclined to the plane
of the ecliptic, making therewith an angle of 66f
degrees. See Parallelism, &c.
The axis of the equator, ecliptic, horizon,
meridian, &c. are right lines drawn through the
centers of thofe circles, perpendicular to the planes
of the faid circles.
Axis of a Cone, is a ftraight line or fide about
which a right-angled triangle moves, and by its
rotation forms the cone. Only a right cone can
properly be faid to have an axis ; for an oblique
cone cannot be generated by the motion of a
plain figure about a ftraight line at reft : but be-
caufe it is plain from the definition, that the axis
of a right cone is a ftraight line, drav/n from tlic
center of Its bafe to the vertex ; therefore, the
writers q\\ conic feftions call likewife that line
.drawn from the center of the bafe of an
oblique cone to the vertex, ■ the axis of the
■cone.
Axis cf a Conic SeSficv, is a right line dividing
the fection into two equal parts, and cutting all its
ordinatcs at equal angles. Thus, if the line AB,
(Plate XI. y^. 4.) be drawn to cut the ordinates
a a and bb at right anglss, and divide the feflion
4 C into
A X I
into two equal parts, tlien is AB fsid to be the
axis of the iediion.
Tianfvcrfe Axis In r,n Eilipfe, is the right line
AP, (Plate XL fig. I.) drawn through the center
of the ellipfe, and is always the longeft right line
that can be drawn in the ellipfe.
Traifverfe Axis in //v Hyperbola, is the right line
IT, (Plate XI. Jig. 7.) cutting the curves in the
point I and T.
Conjugate Axis of an Ellipfe, is the line B D,
(fig. I.) drawn through the center C, at right
angles, to the tranfverfe a\is PA ; and in the hy-
perbola, it is the line R4C, (PlatcXI./^'. 6.) drawn
through the center C, parallel to the ordinate
OP.
Axis of a Cyliwler, is that line either in an
obli(|ue or right cylinder, joining the center of the
two bafes ; or a line about which the parallelogram
revolving forms the cylinder.
A'X.is of a Balance, in mechanics, is that line
about which it moves.
..-vis of Ojcillati-on, is a right line pafllng through
the center- i'.hout v/hich a pendulum vibi'ates, and
is parallel to the horizon.
Axis in periti-cchio, a machine for raifing
weights, confifting of awheel fixed on a cylinder
for its axis. Thus, when a power by help of a
rope, or an)' other means, is fo applied to the cir-
cumfrence of a wheel, as t« caufe the faid wheel,
toget'ier with its axis, to turn round, and raife a
Avei£;iit applied to the axle; fuch a machiive is
calloJ an axle in the wheel, or axis in peritro-
chio.
Let- the circumference of the wheel be ABv,
(Plate XVI. /^. 3.) and that of the axle DEf,
each moving round the common center of motion
C. Let the vright to be raifed be P, and the
moving power be M ; then Vv-ill RI : P : : DC :
C B ; or in words t'uis. As the power is to tlie
"iveight, fois the femidiarpeter of the axis to the
lemidiameter of the wheel ; when the -weight and
power will be in equilibruin. Likewife the veloci-
ties of the power and weiglit will be to one ano-
ther as the peripheries of the wheel and axle, and
chefe are to one another as their diameters. The
life of this machine is to raife. weights to a greater
iieight than the lever can do, becaufe the wheel is
< apable of being turned fev-cral times round, w4>ich
the lever is not, and alfo to communicate motion
from one part, of a machine to another, by com-
bining two or more of the axes in peritrochio lo-
jtethcr : thus Plate XVI. fg. 2. is a rcprefentation
yii a machine thus combined ; where \V is a weigtit
hane-ing to the axis GMB ; Pa weight or power
;i(5ling at the point F, of the wheel I F K ; N E Q_
the axle of the faid wheel, acting on the wheel
II C L by teeth, and M B R of the wheel H C L.
Having giwen the diameter of the faid wheels
..tad. axles, with the power P tp find the. weight
A X r
W, that will keep the weight or power P ui
equilibrio.
Rule.
The rectangle of the femidiameters of the two
wheels, multiplied by the power, and that produft
divided by the redangle of the femidiameter of the
two axles, gives a quotient equal to the weight
required.
If we put « = DF, h^DE, <-=AC, ^/=AB,
wzrweight, and/' = power, then we fhall have the
following theorems tor finding the dimenfion of
any one part of the machine, the others being fupr
nofed to be known. Thus,.
p a c
ifl.
10 h d
:=zp.
2':
a c
zz.a.
3''-
/"■
-[^'-c.
4<-.
fa
IV d
5'^
t±l-d.
Kvl)
6.h
But if wo would have the machine to do the moft ■
execution in a given time, we diminifh the weight •:
IV, -J of itfclf, and then we (hall have it in the
greateft perfection- poffibie, with the faid dimen-
lions. Itmuft likewife.be remembered in practice,
that the femidiameter of the rope muft be added to
'.die dimenfions of the v.-heel or axle, about which
it coils, and likewife that the power fhould always
aiSt in the direcEtion of a tangent to the curve,
otherwife its power v/ill be diminiflied, according
as it varies from that dire61ion.
Axis, in optics, is that rav which is perpcndi^
cularly on the furface of the eye, and confequent-
ly pafies through its center.
Axis of a Gtafi, in optics, is a right line, con-
necting the middle points of the two oppofite fur-
faces of the ilafs.
Axis cf Incidence, in dioptrics, is a line perpen-
dicular to the refracting furface in the point of in-
cidence, and in the medium through which the ray
of incidence pafTes.
Axis ef a Afagnet; is a line pafling through the
middle of a magnet length-wife, in fuch manner^
as that however the magnet be divided, provided
the divifion be made according to a plane wherein
fuch line is found, the loadftonewiU be divided in-
to two loadltones, and the extremes of fuch lines
are called the poles of the ftone.
Axis, in natural hiftory, an animal of the deer
kind, common in feveral parts of Africa. It is
without herns; but has a tail reaching down to ics-
hams..
Pz-irK Trr
• /j^/vw Azimuth.
'CZtftiJi' i^Vf//t
A z r
hams. The female is lefs than the male ; but th;y
arc both full of red, yellow, and white fpots, ex-
cept the belly, which is entirely white.
AXUNGIA, in a general fenfe, denotes old
brd, or the drieft and hardefl: of anv fat in the
bodies of animals ; but, more properly, it fig-
nifies only hog's lard. See the articles Fat and
Lard.
AxuN'GJA Viiri, fandiver, or fait of glafs, a
kind of fait which feparates from the glafs while It
is in fufion.
A"^'EL, in law, a writ which lies where the
grand-father was feized in his demefne the dav he
died, and a flranger enters the fame dav, and dif-
poflefles the heir.
AYR\', or Aery of Hawks, a neft or com-
pany of hawks, fo called from the old French
word aire, which fignified the fame.
AZAB, in the Turkifli armies, a diftinft
body of foldiers, who are great rivals of the Jani-
zaries.
AZALEA, in botany, a genus of pentandrious
plants, bearingamonopetalous campanulated flower,
divided at the fummit into five fe^nnents ; in the
receptacle are infertcd five flender iilamcnts topped
with oblong bifid antheras ; the germen, which is
roundifi), (upports a filiform ftyle, crowned v.'ith
;m obtufe ftigma : the fruit is a roundifh capfule,
formed of five valves, and the fime number of
cells, containing a number o? rounJifh fmall
ieeds
One of the forts of azalea has much the ap-
pearance of the honev-fuckle, and is as agreeably
fcented ; the flower is white, r.nd appears in Jul}',
but their feeds do not ripen in England ; they are
nati\'cs of North America, and are propagated here
by fhoots from their roots, and by laying their
branches in autumn.
AZAZEL, the fcape-gcat, m Jewifh antiquity.
See Scape-Goat.
AZEDARACH, the bead-tree, in botany.
See the article Melia.
AZEROLE, or L'Azarole, in botany, a
fpecies of the medlar. See the article Mespi-
LUS.
AZIMUTH, in nfironomy, is an arc of the
horizon comprehended berween the meridian and
any great circle paffinrt- through the zenith and
jiadir, or the angle a^ the zenith contained be-
tween the faid meridian and "vertical circle. .
The azimuth of the fun, planet, or ftar, is the
angle contained between the meridian and a vertical
circle pafling through the center of the fun,
planet, or flar.
The method of finding the fun's azimuth at Tea,
is by carefully obferving his altitude with a Hadley's
quadrant, and eftimating the latitude of the fhip,
from the way it iias made fince the laft obfervation
of the meridian, or other altitudes- for that purpofe ;
A Z 1
likcwife, by taking the fun's declination from foiife
Ephemerides, or corredt tables. From hence wc
have the three fides of a fpherical triangle, to find
one of the angles, which is the azimuth required.
Thus, Z o (Plate XW.fig. 4.) will be the com-
plement of the altitude ; Z P, the complement of the
latitude ; P the complement of the fun's decli-
nation; and O ZP, the angle or azimuth required-;
which is found by the following rule, viz.
From half thefum of the three fides, fubtrad the
complement of the fun's declination, or the fidfe
oppofite the angle fought, and note the rem.ainder ;
then fet down the arithmetical complements of the
fine of tlie complements of altitude and latitude ;
and place under thefe the fine of the half ium of
the fides, and the fine of the noted difference ;
then will half the fum of thefe four logarithms
be the cofine of half the azimuth required.
Example.
Suppofe the latitude in per reckoning be 40 de-
grees north, and the fun's altitude obfer\ed 20 de-
grees, and Iiis declination 20 degrees north, what
Nvill his azimuth be ?
70° : o' Comp. of Decl"-
50 : o Comp. of Lat.
70 : o Comp. of Alt.
iqo : o Sum of the fides
i^5 : o fSum - - -
15:0 DlfF. of f fum and comp. of
■ declination - - - -
0.1157460
0.0270142'
9.9983442
9.4i2995'2
Sum = 19.5541006
53: 1 1 +=; fine comp: half Sum n 9-7770503
tlicrefore, 53° : 1 1 being doubled gives 106° : 22
for the Ami's azimuth required.
'Fo find the azianuth by the globe. See the ar-
ticle Globe.
AJdgntticaJ AziMUTH, is an arch of the hori-
zon, intercepted between the azimuth or vertical
circle, pafling through the center of any he.ivenly
objcft and the magnetical meridian, which is
fouiid by obferving the object with an azi-
muLh-conipafs.
Azimuth-Compass, an infirument for finding
either the magnetical azimuth or amplitude of an
heavenly objciil.'
The learned Dr. Knight invented fome-timc
fince a very accurate and ufeful fea-compafs, \-. li'ch
is at prefent ufed in the navy, and will be defcribed
under thf article Compass. This inftrument,
with the following contrivance added by the inge-
nious Mr. Smeaton, anfwers the purpofe of an
azimuth and amplitude-compafs.
The cover of the wooden box being taken off,
the compafs is in a condition to be made ufe of in
the-
A Z I
the bittacle, when the weadier Is moJerate : but if
the fea runs high, as the inner box is hung very
free upon its centers, (the better to anfwer its other
purpofes) it will be neceflary to flacken the milled
nut, placed upon one of the axes that fupports the
ring, and to lighten the nut on the ouifitie that
correlponds to it. By this means, the inner box
and ring will be lifted up from the edges, upon which
they rei\, when free ; and the friction v/ill be in-
creafed, and that to any degree neccfiary, to pre-
vent the loo great vibrations, which otherwife
would be occafioned by the motion of the
ihip.
To make the compafs ufcful in taking the mag-
netic azimuth, or amplitude of the fun and ilars,
as alio the bearings of headlands, fliips, and other
objefts at a diftance, the brafs edge, defigned at
firlt to fupport the card, and throw the weight
thereof as near the circumference as pofTible, is it-
felf divided into degrees and halves ; which may
be eafily eflimated into fmaller parts, if neccllary.
1"he divillons are determined by means of a c-it-
gut line, itretched perpendicularly with the box, as
near the brafs-edge as may be, that the parallax,
arifing from a different pofition of the obferver,
may be as little as pofTiblc.
Underneath the card are two fmall weights,
Aiding on two wires, placed at right angles to each
other, which being moved nearer to, or farther
from, the center, counterbalance the dipping of
the card in different latitudes, or redore the equili-
brium of it, where it happens by any other means
to be got too much out of level.
71iere is alfo added an index at the top of the
inner box, which may be put on and taken off at
pleafure ; and ferves for all altitudes of the objecf.
It confifts of a bar, equal in length to the diame-
ter of the inner box, each end being furniflied
with a perpendicular ililc, with a flit paiallel to the
fides thereof; one of the flits is narrow, to which
the eye is applied, and the other is v/ider, with a
fmall cat-gut ftretched up the -middle of it, and
from thence continued horizontally from the top of
one flile to the top of the other. There is aUb a
line drawn along the upper furface of the bar.
Thefe four, viz. the narrow flic, the horizontal
cat-gut thread, the perpendicular one, and the line
on the bar, are in the fame plane, which difpofes
itfelf perpendicularly to the horizon, when the inner
box is at reft, and hann-s free. This index does
not move round, but is alvi'ays placed on, fo as to
anfwer the fame fide of the box.
When the fun's azimuth is defired, and his rays
are ftrong enough to caft a fhadow, turn about the
wooden box, till the fhadow of the horizontal
thread, or (if the fun be too low) till that of the
perpendicular thread, in one ftile, or the light
through the flit in the other, falls upon the line in
.the index bar, or vibrates to an equal diftance on
4
AZI
each fide of it, gently touching the box, if it
vibrates too far : obferve, at the fan.e time, the
degree marked upon the brafs edge by the cat-gut
line. In counting the degree for the azim.uth,
or any other angle that is reckoned fmm the meri-
dian, make u!e of ihe outward circle of iiTurea
upon the brafs edge ; and the fituation of the index
bar, with regard fo the card anil iiecdle, will al-
ways diredt upon -''lac quarter of the compafs the
object: is placed.
But if the fun Oocs not fhine out fufficiently
flrong, place the eye behind the narrow flit in
one ot the ftiles, and turn the wooden box about, ■
till ibme part of the horizontal, or perpendicular
thread appears to intci.'ecSt the center of the fun',
or vibrate to an equal diftance on each fide of if,
uf.ng fmoked glafs next the eye, if the fun's light
is too ftrong. In this method, another obferver
will be generally neccfiary, to note the degree
cut by the nonius, at the famo time the firft
gives notice that the thread appears to fplit the
objecl.
P'rom what has been faid, the other obfcrvations
Will be eafily performed ; only, in cafe of the
fun's amplitude, take care to number the degree
by the help of the inner circle of figures on the
card, which are the complements of the outer to
90"; and, confcquently, fhew the diftance from
eaft or weft.
The azimuth of the ftars may alfo be obferved
by night ; a proper light ferving equally for one ob-
ferver tq fee the thread, and the other the degree
upon the card.
It may not be amifs to remark fartlrer, that,
in cafe the inner box fhould lofe its equilibrium,
and, confcquently, the inde.x be cut off" the plan.c
of a vertical circle, an accurate obfervatioii m.ay
ftill be riiade, provided the lun's fhadow is dif-
tincl ; for, by obferving firft with one end
ot the index towards the fun, and then the
orher, a mean of the two obfervations will be tlie'
truth.
Plate XVI. _fig. 5. is a perfpcflive view of the
compafs, v\heii in order for obfcrvation ; the point
of view being the center of the card, and the dif-
tance of the eye two feet.
AB is the wOoden box.
C and D are two milieJ nuts, by means where-
of the axis of the inner box and ring are taken
fi'oin their edges, on which they move, and the
fridtion increafed, v/hen ncceffary.
E E is the ring that fupports the inner box.
C H is the inner box ; and
I is one of its axes, by which it Is fufpended on
the ring: EE.
The magnet or needle appears pafling through
the center, together with a fmall brace of ivory,
that confines the cap to its place.
'I'he card is a fmglc varniflied p.rpcr, reaching
as
AZ U
as far as the outer circle of figures, which is a
circle of thin brafs ; the edge whereof is turned
down at right angles to the plane of the card, to
make it more lUff.
O is a cat-gut line, drawn down the infide of
the box, for determining the degree upon the brafs
edge.
PQRS is the index bar, with its two ftiles and
cat-gut threads ; which being taken off from the
top of the box, is placed in two pieces, T and V,
notched properly to receive it.
W is a place cut out in the wood, ferving as an
handle.
Azimuth Dial, one whofe ftyle or gnomon is
at right angles to the plane of the horizon.
Azimuth Circla, commonly called vertical
circles, are great circles of the fphere iiuerfe<5ling
each other in the zenith ::nd nadir, and cutting the
hoii/.on in every point at ri,;nt angles. I'hefe
azimuths are rcprefriited on tlic globe by the brafs
quadrant of altitude, and on the common fea-
charts by the rumbs. On the azimuth circles is
reckoned the altitude or height of heavenly objeifts,
when n.it in the meridian.
AZOGA Ships, are thofe Spanifli fbip& com-
monly called the quiekfilver {hips, from their
carrying quickfdver to the Spanifh Well-Indies,
in order to extratl; the filver out of the mines of
Mexico and Peru. Thefe fhips, ftriiSlly Ipeakirig,
are not to carry any goods anlefs for the king of
Spaiii's account.
AZONI, a^covoh in ancient mythologyj anarrve
applied by the Gieeks to fuch of the gods as were
{"cities at iarge, not appropriated to the worfhip
of any particular town or country, but acknow-
ledged in general by all toun-tries, and wor-
fliipped by every nation. Thefe the Latins called
fiii ammunes. Of this fort were the Sun, iVlars,
Luna, &c.
AZOTH, ia ancient chemiftry, the firfl: matter
of metals, or the mercury of a metal ; more par-
ticularly that which they call the mercury of phi-
lofophers, which they pretend to draw from- all
forts of metallic bodies.
The azoth of Paracelfus, which he boafted of
as an iiniverfal remedy, is pretended to be a pre-
paration of gold, filver, and mercury.
AZURE, in a general fenfe, the blue colour of
the (ky. See Sky and Blut.
Azure, among painters, the beautiful blue
AZ Y
colour, with a greenifh caft, prepared from the
lapis lazuli, generally called ultramarine.
With greater propriety, however, azure fig-
nifies that bright blue colour, prepared from the
lapis armenus, a different ftone from the lapis
lazuli, though frequently confounded together.
This colour is, by our painters, commonly called
Lambert's blue.
Azure, in heraldry, the blue colour in the arms
of any pcrfon below the rank of a baron. In the
efcutcheon of a nobleman, it is called faphire ;
and in that of a fovereign prince, Jupiter. In en-
graving, this colour is exprefled by lines, or ftrokea
drawn horizontally..
AZURIUM, the name of a chemical prepara-
tion from two parts of mercury, one of fulphur,
and a fourth of fal ammoniac, mixed in a mortar^
put into a glafs veflcl, and fet over the fire till a
bluifli fmoke arifes, &c.
AZYGOS, in anatomy, a vein rifing within
the thorax on the right fide, having no fellow
on the left ; whence it is called azygos, or vena
fine pari.
It is extended through the right fide of the
cavity of the thorax, and being defcended to the
eighth or ninth vertebra, it then begins to keep
the middle, and fends forth on each.fide intercoltal
branches to the interif ices of the eight loweft ribs ;
being then divided into two branches, of which
the larger defcends to the left, betwixt theprocelFes
of the diaphragm, and is inferted fometimes into
the cava, above or below the emulgent, but oftener
joined to the emulgent itfelf. The other, which
goes down on the right fide, enters the cava, com-
monly a little above the emulgent, but is very fel-
dom joined to the emulgent itfelf.
AZYMITES, azymitse, in church-hiflory^
Chriftians who adminifter the eucharilt with un-
leavened bread.
The vv-ard is formed from the Greek, <t, priv.
and i^ti^/H, ferment.
This appellation is given to the Latin by the
Greek chuich, becaufe the members of the for-
mer ufe fermented bread in the celebration of the
cucharift. They alio call the Armenians and Maro-
nites by the fame name, and for the fame reafon.
AZYMOUS, fomething unfermented, ormade
without leaven ; as unleavened bread. Sea-bifkct is
of this kind; and therefore, according to CJalcnj
lefs wholefome than bread that has been fermentcJ^
3 ^^
4D
B.
BAG
BThc feccnd letter of the Englifli and moil
other alphabets, ancient and modern, ex-
) cept the old Irifh, where it is the firft,
and the Abyffinian, in which it is the ninth.
B, among the ancients, was a numeral letter,
and with the Hebrews . and Greeks denoted 2 ;
but with the Romans 300, and with a dalh over
it 3000.
B. A. fignifics batchelor of arts, B.L. batchelor
of laws, and B. D. batchelor of divinity.
BAAL, or Bel, an Hebrew and Chaldaic word,
which fignifies lord, or mightv. It was the name
of the idol of the Moabites and Phoenicians, and
molt of the nations that bordered upon the Jews.
Perhaps the idolaters pretended to adore the true
God under the name and figure of Baalim. The
Grecians, who were accullomed to take the eaftern
divinities for their own, called this idol Jupiter,
and fometimes Mars ; but the Babylonians under-
Itood by it either the iftars and hoft of heaven, or
fuch kings and heroes whofe memory they had
confecrated to pofterity by a religious v/orfliip.
7"hc Phoenicians adored the fun under the names
• of Baal and Moloch. It is thought this idol was
firft invented by fuperftition, and the original wor-
fhip of idolatry. Seldcn de Dtis Syiiis.
BABBLING, among fportfmen, is faid of
hounds which are too bufy after they have found
a gcod fcent.
BABOON, in natural hiftory, a large kind of
ape, common in the Eall and Wefl-Indies. The
head is large, and the mouth furnifhed in a parti-
cular manner with whifkers ; the face is naked,
but the back part of the head hairy. It has a very
fhort tail, and is of a dark olive colour.
BABYLONISH, or Babylonian, fomething
belonging or peculiar to Babylon. Thus we meet
with Babylonifli epocha, hours, &c. See Epocha,
Hour, &c.
BACCA, in botany, the Latin appellation for
a berry : it implies a round fru.'t, for the moft part
BAG
foft and covered with a thin fl:in, and contains
feeds in a pulpy I'ubdance ; but if it be harder, or
covered with a thicker fubilance, it may with more
propriety be called pomum, or apple. Berries which
grow fcatteied upon trees and flirubs are diflin-
guifhed from acini, which are berries hanging ia
clufters. See the article Acinus.
Thefe berries are of various forms, fizes, pro-
perties, and ufes, according to the plants on which
they grow : fome are ufed in dying, as French
berries, a fpecies of the lycium ; the mofl: remark-
able in the materia medica are, baccts alkekengi, hac-
ca juniperi, bacca myrti, and bacca o^ni cajli. See
the properties of each under its refpcctive article.
BACCHANALIA, feafts celebrated in honour
of Bacchus, by the ancient Greeks and Romans.
Two of thefe feafts were particularly remark-
able, and diftinguifhed by the epithets greater and
Icjfer. The latter were held in the open fields dur7
ing the autumn ; but the former were celebrated in
the city about the vernal equinox.
Both thefe feafts were accompanied with games,
rpc<^l:acles, and theatrical reprefentations ; and' it
was alfo at thefe feftivals that the poets contended
for the prize of poetry. Some of thofe who'
were initiated into the Bacchanalia reprefent-
ed Silenus ; others Pan ; others Satyrs ; and in
this manner appeared in public day and night,
counterfeiting drunkennefs, dancing obfcenely,
committing all kinds of licentioufnefs and de-
bauchery, and running over the mountains and
through the forefts, with horrible flirieks ai" d howl-
ings, crying out, Fuo/ Brt;c> s, or \a Betrvt.
Livy informs us, that, during the Bacchana-
lian feafts at Rome, fuch fhocking diforders were
praclifed under the cover of the night, and which
thofe who were initiated were bound by the
moft: horrid oaths to conceal, that the fenate
were obliged to interpofe their authority, by fup-
preffing them fiiil at Rome, and afterwards through-
out all Italy.
BAG-
BAG
BACCHARIS, in botany, a genus of plants
whofe flower is compofcd of many hermaphrodite
and female florets : the herinapiirouitc are ijuinqiie-
fid and funnel-fhaptd, and contain five fmall liairy
filaments crowned with cylindrical antherx : the
gcrmen is ovated, fupporting a filiform flylc ; and
the calyx (which is cylindrical and imbricated) in-
clofes a fhort oblong folitary feed crowjied with
fim[)le down. The female florets have no ftamina,
but in other refpedtb are the fame as the hermaphro-
dite. There are two fpecies in this genus, one of
which is known by the name of African tree
groundiel, with a fawed leaf; it is a native of feve-
ral parts of America, and has been long prefer\ed in
England by the curious : the other ibrt, called the
Virginia groundfel tree, is a fhrub which grows
about feven or eight feet high, and produces here
white f.owers in Odobcr, and the leaves are ever-
green. Both forts may be multiplied, by cuttin?,s,
in the fummer months.
BACCHIUS, in aiicient poetry, a kind of foot
compofed of two long and a fhort fyllable, as the
word hvar'i. It has its name from the god Bacchus,
becaul'e it frequently occurred in the hymns com-
pofcd in honour of that deity.
Bacchus, in mythology, a pagan deity, the
inventor or god of wine. He is feigned to have
teen the fon of Jupiter and Semele ; and is faid to
have been the firlt: that yoked oxen to the plough.
BACCIFEROUS, '(from Batco, a berry, and
yira, to bear) in botany, are fach plants as. bear
berries,.
Mr. Ray divides baccifero us trees into four kinds.
I. Such as bear a calicute, or naked berry, the
fiower and calyx both falling oft' togetlier, and leav-
ing the berry bare ; as the fali'afras, &c.
2. Such as have a naked but polypvreneous fruit;
that is, containing two or more kernels or feeds
within it ; as the jafmine, privet, &c.
3. Such as ha\e a naked polypyreneous fruit;
that is, containing in it fcveral feeds ; as the ar-
butus, &:c.
4. Such as have their fruit compofcd of feveral
acini, or foft round balls, fet clofe together like a
bunch of grapes ; as the honey-fuckle, I'cc.
BACHELOR, or Batchelor. Sec Bat-
CHELOR.
BACK, in anatomy ; fee Dorsum.
Back-Astern, in rov/ing, to ply the oars in
fuch a manner that the boat or veffel (hall move
ilern-foremolf, contrary to her ufual motion.
Back-Board of a Boat, a piece of board ftretch-
iiig acrofs the hinder-part of any boat, for the paf-
fengers to redine againft.
Backing the Salfs, in the marin?, to difpofe
them in afituation that v/ill force the fnip to retreat,
or impel her backwards : this, however, is only
done in narrow channels, when a fhip is carried
along fideways by the tide or current, and wants to
3
BAG
avoid any objcifl that may intercept herprogref», as
fhoah, vcfll-ls at anchor, &c. or in the line of battle,
when a fhip wants to lie immediately ojipofitc. to
fome other with whom fae is engaged, or is too 'fa i
advanced for her flation. Sec Aback; alfoEiLL,
Shiver, Veer.
Back-Bone. See Vektebka.
Back-Painth.-g, the method of painting mcz-
zotinto prints, palled on glafs, with oil-colours.
_ The art confills chiefly in laying the print upon a
piece of crown glafs, of fuch a'fize as fits the print.
In order to do this, take your print and lay it in
clean water for two days and tv.o nights, if the print
be on very ftrong, dole, and hard gummed paper ;
but if upon an open, foft, fpungy paper, two hours
will fo.mctimes fuffice, or more, according as the
paper is.
The paper or pidinre having been fufficicnt'v
foakcd, take it out and lay it upon two fhects of
paper, and cover it with two more ; and let it lie
there a little to fuck out the moiflure.
In tlie mean time, take the glafs the pifture is to
be put upon, atid fet it near the fire to warm ; take
Strafburg turpentine, warm it over the fire till it is
grown fluid ; then with a hog's- hair-brufh fpread
the turpentine very fmoothly and evenly on the
glafs.
When this has been done, take the mezzotintb
print from between the papers, and lay upon the
glafs ; beginning firft at one end, rubbing it down
gently as you go on, till it lie clofe, and there be no
wind bladders between.
Then, with your fingers, rub or roll o J the pa-
per from the back-fide of tlie print, till it looks '
black, i. e. till you can fee nothing but the print,
like a thin film, left upon the glafs, and fet it by to
dry.
When it Ts dry, varnifh it over with fome white
tranfparent varnifh, that tlie print may be i'een
through it, and then it is fit for painting.
The utmoft care will be neceltary in rubbing or
rolling the paper oJl' the print, fo as not to tear it,
efpccially in the light parts.
You may, inllead of foaking your prints two davs
and two nights, roll them up and boil them for
about two hours, more or lefs, according to the
quality of the paper, in water, and that will render
it as fit for rubbing, rolling, or peeling, as the other
wav.
This being done, and )'our oil colours prepared,
ground verv fine, and ten-pcrcd up very llifl", lay oil
the back-fide of the tranfparent prints fuch colours
as each particular part requires ; letting tlie maflcr-
lines of the prints ftiil guide your pencil, and fo
each particular colour will lie fair to the eye on the
other fide of the glafs, and look almoft as well as
a painted piece, if it be done neatly.
llie fhadows of the print are generally fufficient
for the fliadow of evei-y colour; but if you have a
mind
BAG
BAG
tnind to give a Ihadow by your pencil, then let the
ihadows be laid on iirft, and the other colours after-
ward.
In laying on colours in this kind of back-paint-
iiiET. you need not be curious as to the laying
them on fmooth. This is not at all requifite here,
v/here the chief aim is only to have the colours ap-
pear well on the fore-fide of the print ; and there-
fore the only care to be ufed in this work, is to lay
the colours on thick enough, that its body may
ftrike the colour of it plainly through the glafs.
Back-Staff, the fame with Davis's Qiiadrant.
See Davis's Quadrakt.
Back-Stays, in the marine, ropes that reach
from the tcp-mali-heads down to the outfide of the
(hip, when they are flretched extremely tight: two
of them are generally formed of one rope; the
middle part of which is fixed on the maft-head :
their ufe is to fupport the mails, and keep them
from bending too much when they are prefled by a
load of fail, againii: the impulfe of which they ait
with a counter-force,
BACON'S Philofophy, the philofophy propofed
and recommended by lord Bacon.
That great genius was born in the year 1560,
and gave marks in his youth of what his manhood
would produce. Qi^ieen Elizabeth was an adm.irer
of his remarkable fagacity. He fludied the Ariftote-
lian philofophy at Cambridge; and, before he was
fixteen years of age, difcovered the abfurdity of that
jargon in vogue at that time. He afterwards applied
himfelf to the ftudy of the law ; and his merit raifed
him to the dignity of lord chaiKcUor, under king
James I. He was accufed of bribery ; and, the
king refufmghim protection, was fined by the houfe
of lords, flripped of his chancellorfliip, and cafl: into
prifon. He was foon after reinfirated i:i his honours
and fortunes ; but what he had undergone gave
him a diflike to hufmefs, and increafed his pafTion
for ftudy. At laft he died aged 66 years, poor, and
in very mean circumftances.
No man has contributed more to the advancement
of learning than lord-chancellor Bacon : he faw the
imperfeftion of the philofophy of the fchools, and
taught the only way to amend it. This great man,
indeed, did not know nature; but he knew and
pointed out all the ways that led to her. He enter-
tained an early contempt for what the univerfities
called philofophy; and did every thing in his power
to prevent focieties, inftituted for the improvement
of hunnn reafon, from continuing to fpoil it by a
heap of impertinent terms, fubflantial forms, &c.
which had, not only made ignorance to be reve-
renced, but was, by a ridiculous mixture with reli-
gion, rendered facred.
He compofed two works v/ith a defign to improve
the fciences, and carry them to perfection. In the
firft, intitled de Augmenth Siicntiarum, he fticws the
ftate of learning, 2, d points out a method of carry-
ing it to greater perfe6tion ; but adds, that w emurt
never hope to carry our difcoverics to any great
length, unlefs other methods were purfued than
thofe then in ufe. He (hews that the logic then
taught in the fchools, was fitter for wranglmg than
to direct the mind in its fearch after truth. Arif-
totle, fays he, from whom we have this art, has
proceeded on wrong principles ; he has made his
phyfics conibrmabie to his logic, iiiftcad of making
his logic conformable to his phyfics ; and thus over-
turning the order of Jiature, has fubjected the end t^
the means.
To correiSl the faults in the common logic, Ba-
con compofed a fecond work, intitled Orgj/uim Scl-
entiarimi, wherein he has taught a new logic, the
principal end of which is to fhew how to make a-
good indui^tion, as the end of Ariftctle is how to-
make a good fyiiogifm.. Bacon looked on this as his
maller-picce, and fpent eighteen y^.-ars in compofing
it. '^
Nor was the caufe of our errors Irid from this
o;re3t man ; he faw that our ideas- were operations
of the mind ; and that, in order to difcover truth,^
they muft be directed in a new method..
This advice he frequently repeals in the workjuft
mentioned. But who, in an age fo prejudiced in
favour of the jargon of the fchools, and the notions
of innate ideas,, liftened to his dodtrinc ? Who did
not look on his new niethod of improving the hu-
man underftanding, as a chimerical projetl ? The
method Bacon propofed was too pei feit to be acr
cepted at once:, errors of long ftanding maintain
their poft with fomc obftinacy ; and the Cartefian
philofophy was embraced, becaufe it admitted fome
of the former errors. Bcfides, lord Bacon's cm-
plnyment took up much of his time, and prevented
him from, carrying into execution himfelf the advice
he gave to others : whereas Deltartes gave himfelf
UJ-) entirely to philofophy ; and, being a man of a
very lively and fruiifu! imagination, has fubftituted
in the room of the errors of the fchools, others of a
more feducing nature.
Lord Bacon's attention to the fciences in general
did not hinder him from applying to fomc in parti-
cular ; and as he thought natunol philofophy the
bafis of all the other fciences, he principally applied
himfelf to bj'ing that to fomc degree of perfection :
but in this he acled like fome great architects, who,
fcorning to wor'fc after others, begin with pulling
every thing down, and raife their building on aplaji
entirely new. H?, like thefe, never thought once
about enibeliifliiiig or repairing what had been al-
ready begun by others ; but propofed to eltablifh a
new fyftem of phyfics, without making any ufe of
what had been left us by the ancients, whofe prin-
ciples he fufpedted. To accomplifli this great de-
fign, he refolvcd to publilh a ph)fical treatife every
month ; and began with one upon the Winds : he
afterwards publifhed one on Heat 3 another on Mo-
tion ;
BAD
tion; and, at 1 aft, one on Life and Death. But
as it was impofTible for a fingls man to give a com-
p!fat fyftcni of phyfics in general, with equal exadt-
ncfs, after having given directions to ferve as a rule
for tholb who were defirous of proceeding en his
principles, he contented himfclf with drawing the
out-Hnes of four other treatifes, and furnilhed mate-
rials for them, in a work, intitled Sylva Syhiuiim,
v.'herein he has colledled a vaft number of experi-
ments, to fervc as a foundation for his new ph;fics.
In {hort, before Lord Bacon, nobody knew any
thing of natural philofophy ; and all the experiments
made fmcc his time feem to have been pointed out
b\' th.is great gejiius.
His moral eflnys are muchefteemed; but they
are wrote rather to i'nftru6l than entertain : an eafy
genius, a found judgment, the fenfible philofopher,
and man of refleiliion, fhine in thefe eiTays by turns.
This was one of the fruits of the retreat of a man
who had quitted the world, after ha\ing long fup-
ported a great fliarc in its profperity and adverfity.
There are alfo fome -very fine things in his book
concerning the wifdom of the ancients, wherein
he has moralized the fables which compofe the my-
thology of the Greeks and Romans.
He wrote, befides, the Hiftory of Henry VIL in
which, notwithftanding there are fome traces of the
bad tafte of his age, yet it abounds in judicious re-
marks, and ihcws he was a refined politician, as
well as a great philofopher.
IIKC\}LI£., in fortification, a kind of portcullis,
or gate, made like a pitfall with a counterpoife, and
fupported by two ftrong flakes. It is ufually ere£led
before the corps de gard, not far from the gate of
a place.
BACULOMETRY, according to fome, is
the art of meafuring accefTibleor inaccefTible heights,
by the help of ftaves.
The Avord is formed from the Latin, laadus, a
ftafF; and the Greek, //.sTpsn), to meafure.
BADGE, in naval architei5lure, an ornament
placed on the outfide, very near the ftem of fmall
iliips, containing either a window for the conveni-
ence of the cabin, or the reprefentation of it : it is
commonly decorated with marine figures, martial
inftruments, &c. &c. See Stern.
Badger, Tuxus, ovMeles, in natural hiflory,
the name of an animal very common in many parts
of England.
It has a thick fhortifh body, with a very fhort
!;i.ck, and coarfe hair, nearly refenibling that of a
hog. On the back it is of a palifli yellow at the
roots, in the middle brown or black, and yellow at
the ends : infoLTiuch that at hrft fight the creature
appears to be of a blackifh grey. On the fides and
under the belly the hair is entirely of a pale yellow ;
and on the fhoulders, legs, as well before as behind,
and under the throat, he is quite black. From the
top of the head there is a white line or ftripe two
J5
BAD
inches broad ; and bcJow it, on each fide the nof-
trils, about tlie eyes, and farther than the ears, there
is a black fpacc or ftripe in the fliape of a pyramid ;
and below that again, on both jaws, the hair is
white, which render the whole head of a pied co-
lour.
The tail is fhort and thick, befet with ftrong
longlfh hair, and the ears are Ihort, roundifh, and
refemble thofe of a rat. The eyes are fmall in pro-
portion to the body, and the muzzle is like that of a
dog. The tongue is of a middle fize, the legs faort,
and the teeth like thofe of a dog. ' The fore-feet arc
armed with very long claws, with which it makes
holes in the earth ; and the head is in fliape nearly
like that of a fox ; for from a broad bafe, it ends in
a fliarp muzzle, v/hich renders it almoft of a trian-
gular figure. The jaw-s, or checks, are full and tu-
mid, on account of the thickncfs of the mufcles ;
for which reafon this creature bites very hard.
He lives upon beetles and other infe£ts ; for in his
ftomach, which is very large, great numbers of thcfc
have been found, mixed with the roots of grafa.
Some fay he feeds upon apples ami grapes; and that
he is fond of rabbits, geefc, fowls, and other birds;
but, of this, little can be faid with any certainty.
He has none of the grofs inteftines ; nor no blind
gut, at leaft none could be found ; but the Icidnies
are pretty large. Tiie greateft peculiarity is a large
orifice direcftly under the tail, above the pafl'age for
the excrements : it is a fort of a bag, or purfe,
which is hairy within, and full of a white fubftance
of a thick conflftence. Sometimes it is very fmall
in quantity, and has no fenfible fniell. The exter-
nal part of this purfe is covered with conglomerate
glands on all fides. Befides this cavity, there arc-
two larger glands near the anus, which are hollow
v/ithin, and full of a fort of fat of a ftrong fmell,
which empty themfelves by two holes into the gut.
The gall-bladder is long ; and there are three biliary
du£ts which belong to three diftin(Sl veffels; that is,
there are three biliary pailages that concur v.'ith the
cvfiic duct.
The burrows that he makes in the earth are not
only for his own fafety, butfor the fake of gettin" his
food ; for he finds a great many infefts under the
earth, as well as the roots of plants. The parts of
England in which he chiefly abounds at prefent,
are EfTex, SufTex, and fome of the midland coun-
ties.
The flefh of a badger is faid to be good eating,
and to tafte like that of a boar. The fat is emolli-
ent, warm, and penetrating ; and is thought to bs
good to eafe pains in fits of the gravel.
IVblts Badger, an animal fometimes feen in
New-York ; from the tip of the nofe to the end of
the tail is a foot and nine inches in length. The
eyes are fmall in proportion to the fize, and the ears
fhort; the legs are alfo very fliort, with white
claws. The whole body is covered with \'ery thick
4 E hair.
B A F
h"-ir, which is white on the back, and of a whitifn
Yellow on the lower parts.
The badger of Surinam is about a foot and a
half long, with fliort ears, a roundifh head, longifh
muzzle, and fhcrt legs. The claws are black,
long, and crocked : and the whole body, except
the belly which is yellow, is covered with hair of
a deep chcfnut colour inclining to black ; but tlie
foie-part of the head is net of fo deep a colour ;
and the tail, which is as long as th.e body, ^s brown,
and as it v/ere ftriped with ye!!ow.
D.'\DGER, in old law books, a perfon liccnfcd
to purchafe corn 'at one place, and fell it at
another, without incurring the penalty of an en-
grofTer. ' . . ; .
BADIANE, or Badiant, the feed of a tree
growing in China. It has the fmel! of anifeed ;
and is ufed by the Chinefe to give their tea an aro-
matic taflc.
BiECKEA, in botany, a genus of oftandrious
plants, producing a flower with a nionophyllous
tunncl-fliapsd calyx, in which is inferted five
roundifh petals ; it contains eight fliort filaments,
topped with fmall egg-fhapcd anthera; ; the ger-
men is roundifh, fupporting a filiform llyle, and
aftcrvi'ards becomes a globofc capfule of five ceils
containing roundifh feeds.
B-STYLIA, anointed flones, worfliipped by
the Phoenicians. They were .commonly of a black
colour, and confecrated to feme god, as Saturn,
Jupiter, the Sun, &c.
The memory of Jacob's fetting up the flone he
had ufed for a pillow, pouring oil on the top of it,
and calling the place Bethel, feems to have been
preferved under the boetulia, or anointed flones,
of the Phoenicians.- Damafcius, a pagan writer
in the time'of Jullinian, tells us, that he had feeii
on Mount Libanus, near Heliopolis in Syria,
feveral of thefe ftones, .of which many wonderful
things were reported. .. .- . i
BaFFETAS, or Baftas, a cloth made in the
Eafir-Indics, from coarfe white cotton thread,
'i'hcfe of Surat are reckoned, the beft. ' They are
from thirteen French elfs and three quarters to
fourteen long, and feven eighths broad. There
are a!fo fome which meafure but five fixths of an
cii,' or even but half of an c!) in.brc.idth. Thefe
narrow bafFetas are called Orgagis, Gaudivis, Ne-
rirides, and Labouis, according to the names of
the places v/here manufactured. .
There are alfo narrow whits' bafFetas, which
meafure thirteen ells and an haif in length, by
half an ell in breadth ; broad white bafFetas, four-
teen cUs by three quarters.
Broad-brov/n aiid narrow-brown balTetas are
made of raw thread ; that is, thread before it has
been bleached. The former are fourteen ells long,
by half an ell broad ; the latter of the fame length,
and three quarters in breadth.
B.A'G
BAG, in commerce, a term ngnifying a certain
quantity of fom.e particular commodity ; as a bag
of almonds, for inifance, is about three hundred
weight ; of anifceds, from three to four hundred,
&c.
Bags arc ufed, in moft countries, to put feve-
ral forts of coin in, either of gold, filver, brals,
or copper. Bankers, and others, v.'ho deal much
in current cafh, label their bags of money, by
tying a ticket or note at the mouth of the bag,
fignifying the coin therein contained, the fum total,
its weight, and of whom it was received. Tare is
allov.'ed for the bag;.
Bag, among farriers, is when, in order to re-
trieve a horfe's loft appetite, they put an ounce of
afl'a-foetida, and as much powder of favin, into a
bag, to be tied to the bit, keeping him bridled for
two hours, feveral times a day : as foon as the bag
is taken off, he will im.mediateiy eat. The fame
bag will ferve a long time.
BAGGAGE, is particularly ufed, in the mili-
tary art, for the necefiaries, utcnfils, apparel. Sec.
of the ofKcers and foldiers.
The b.aggage includes alfo women, children,
futtlers, &c. The baggage-waggons before a
march are appointed a rendezvous, where they arc
marfhalled by the waggon-mafler general, accord-
ina: to the rank the feveral resriments bear in the
army. On a jnarch, they are fom.etim.es ordered
to follow the refpeftive columns of the army, fome-
times to follow the march of the artillery, and
foinctimes to make a column of themfelves. The
general's baggage is commonly firft. If the army
march from the right, the baggage of that wing
has the van ; if from the left, the baggage of the
left has the van. Each waggon lias a dilHnguifli-
ing flig, to fhew to what regiment it belongs.
GuUhi. ■■• ' " '
BAGNIO, an Italian word, fignifying a bath :
we ufe it for i: houfe with conveniencies for bath-
ing, cupning, fweating, and otherv/ife cleanfing
the body ;' and fometin>ts for worfe purpofes.
Bagnio is, in Turky, become a general name
for the prjfons where their flaves are inclo'.ed, it be-
ing ufual in thefe prifons to have baths.
BAGNOLIANS, Bagnoienfei, in church hiflory,
a {ndi of heretics, wno in reality were Manichee.'-,,
though they fomewhat diiguifed theirerrors. They
rejected the Old Teflament, and part of the New ;
held the world to be eterngl, and affirmed that God
did not create the foul when he infufed it into the
bodv.
BAGPIPE, a mufical infirument of the wind
kind, chiefly ufed in country places, efpecially in
the Ncji'th : it confifls of two principal parts ; the
firfi: a leathern bag, which blows up like a foot-
ball, by means of a port-vent, or little tube, fitted
to it, and flopped by a valve : the other part con-
fiffs of three pipes- or flutes, the fitfl called the
BAI
B Al
great pipe, or drone ; and the fccond, the little
one ; which pafs the wind out only at the bottom :
the third has a reed, and is played on by com-
prcffing the bag under the arm, when full, and
opening or flopping the holes, which are eight,
with the fingers. The little pipe is ordinarily a
foot long ; that played on, thirteen inches j and
the port-vent fix.
BAHAR, or Barr, a weight ufed in Ternate,
Mocha, in the Moluccas, Achcm, and divers other
parts of the Eafl-lndies.
There are two kinds, the great, wherewith fpice
is weighed, equivalent to 200 catis, at 26 taels to
thecati, amounting to 481 pounds 4 ounces, Paris
mcafure.
The little bahar fcrves for the weighing quick-
filver, vermilion, ivory, filk, muflc, and other
precious wares, containing likewife 200 catis, but.
at 22 taels to the cati, aniounting to about 401
pounds fcven ounces, Paris meafure. The Chi-
jicfe bahar is 300 catis, but each cati only equal to
]6 taels.
BaHIR, a Hebrew term fignifying famous or
illuftrious ; but particularly ufcd for a book of the
Jews, treating of the profound myfleries of the
cabala, beiiig the moft ancient of the rabbinical
works.
BAIL, in lav.', the fetting at liberty one arreft-
ed, or imprifoiied, upon an aclion, either civil or
criminal, upon fureties taken for his appearance at
a day and place. aiTigned ; and is either common or
fpecial.
Common bail is in actions of fmall prejudice,
or flight proof, in which cafe any fureties are
taken.
Special bail is that given in cafes of greater
moment, v/here it is required that the fureties be
fubfidy-mcn at leafl, and according to the matter
in queftion.
It was fome years aijo ena£led, that no perfon
^.ould he held to fpecial bail in anv aclion broup-ht
:3r lefj than ten pounds : but this is only obferved
us to writs ifiued out of the courts of Weflminfter-
Hall ; for the raarihai's court continues to arreli:
. and hold to fpecial bail in aclions e.xceediiig forty
faillings.
By th.e indulgence of the common-law, ?.!1 per-
fons might be bailed till they were convicted of
the oifcncc laid to their charge : but it is enacl-
cd, by flatute, that murderers, outlaws, houfe-
burnsrs, thieves, openly defamed, fhall not Jje
bailed However, this itatute does not extend to
ilie court of the king's-bench, which bails in all
cafes v/hatfoever, and may bail even for murder,
&c.
Ckri of the Bails .is an ofScer belonging to
the court of king's-bench : he flics the bail-
pieces taken in that court, and attends for that
purpofe.
BAILE, or B.me, in the fca-Ianguagc. The
feamcn call throwing the v/ater by hand out of
the fhip or boat's hold, bailing, 'rhcy alfo call
thofc hoops that bear up the tilt of a boat, its
bails.
BAILEMENT, in law, the delivery of thing.;,
whether writings or goods, to another, fometimcs
lo be delivered hack to the bailer ; that is, to hini
who fo d(?>ivcrs them ; fometimcs to thj ufe of him
to whom they are delivered ; and fometimcs to a
third perfon.
B-AILIFI'", an officer appointed for the [ad-
minilfration of juilicc wiifiin a certain diftridt,
called a bailiwick.
Bailifi's £rrflK/, fuch as are appointed by the
fheriiF to go up and down the county, to fervc
writs and warrants, fumrnon county-courts, feflions,
aifizes, and the like.
Bailiffs of Frc.nchifs, thofc appointed by every
lord within his liberty, to do fuch offices therein,
as the bailiif errant does at large in the count)'.
There are alfo bailiffs of forefls, and bailiffs of
manors, who diredl hufbandry, fell trees, gather
rents, pay quit-rents, &;c.
BAILI'WICK, that liberty which is exempted
from the fhcriff of the county, over which liberty
the lord thereof appoints his own bailifF, v/ith the
like power within his precinft, as an under-fhcriff
exercifes under the fheiiff of the county: or it
fignifies the precinft of a bailiff, or the place with-
in which his jurifdiCLlon is terminated.
BAIOCAO, a copper coin, current at Rome,
and throughout the whole flate of the church, ten
of which make a julio, and an hundred a Roman
crown.
BAIRAM, in the Mahometan cuftoms, a year-,
Iv feflival of the Turks, which they keep after the
faft of Ramazan.
The Mahometans have two bairams, the great
and the little.
The little bairam holds for three cays, and is
feventy days after the firft, which f:>llows imme-
diately the Ramazan. During the bairam the
people leave their work for three days, make prc-
ients to one another, and fpend the tim.c with great
manifefiations of joy. If the day after Ramazan
fhould prove fo cloudy as to prevent the fight of
the new moon, the bairam is put off to the next
day, when it is kept, even if the moon fliould flill.
\ be obfcurcd. "VVhen they celebrate this feafl, after
nimierous ceremonies, or rather flrange mimicries,
in their mofque, it Is concluded v/ith a foleniii
prayer againft the infidels, to extirpate Chriffian
princes, or to arm them againft one another, that
they may have an opportunity to extend the bor-
ders of their law.
BAIT, among fiflicrmen, implies a fubftancc,
proper to be faflencd to a hook, in order to catch
the differtnt forts cf fifli.
Baits
B A L
B A L
Baits are of two forts, i. The natural ones, or
thoi'e generally living, as maggots, bobs, frogsj kc:
2. Of till.- fccond kind are all artificial baits, whe-
ther iuch as imitate the living baits, or paftes of
leveral compofitions and figures.
Sheep's blood and cheefe nre good baits in April ;
the bobs dried, v/afps, and bees, are for May ;
brown flies for June ; maggots and hornets ior
Julyi fnails in Augufl: ; grafshoppers in Septem-
ber ; corn and bramble berries at the fall of the
leaf: the red-earth worm is good for fmall fi(h all
the year round ; and fmall tifh are good baits for
pikes at all timeo'.
There are feveral artificial baits for intoxicat-
ing of fov/ls, and yet without tainting or hurting
their flefli : for the greater fort of land-fowls, the
bait may be made thus : Take a peck, or a leller
quantity, of wheat, rye, &c. with which mix two
handfuls of nux vomica ; boil them together till
they are almoft ready to burll ; llrew them upon
the land v/here you defign to take the fowl, and
fuch as eat thereof will be intoxicated, and lie as
ifdead. Small birds may be taken with only this
alteration; inftead of wheat, or the like grain, take
hemp-feed, &c.
BAKER's Central rule, for the conftruftion of
all equations not exceeding four dimenfions, with-
out any previous deduftion of them, or firft taking
away their fecond term, by means of a given para-
bola and circle.
BAKING, the art of preparing bread, or of
reducing meal of any kind, whether fimple
or compound, into bread. See Bread, Bis-
cuit, &c.
Baking of Porcelain, or China JVarc, See
'China Ware
BALANCE, or Ballance, in mechanics, is
one of the fix fimple powers chieSy ufed in diflin-
guiihing the equality or difference of weights in
ponderous bodies, and likewife from hence the
bulks, or quantities of matter. The balance is of
tv.'o kinds, ancient and m.odern.
The Ancient, Roman, flatera Romana, or freel-
yard, confifVs of a beam, as A B (Plate XVII.
fig. I.) moveable on a center C, fufpended near one
of its extremities ; the two arms C B, and C A,
are kept in equilibrio by the ball B, and hooks, or
other apparatus fixed on C B, to which the bodies
to be weighed are applied, according to the appa-
ratus fixed on the faid arm C B for that purpofe.
On the arm C A is a moveable weight, as W,
•which /hews by the fcale, graduated on CA,
the weight of the body applied to the arm C B.
This balance, or ficel-yard, is dill ufed by fome ;
but it is not fo exaft in weighing heavy bodies as the
Modern Balance, now generally ufed, which
confiftsofa beam, or lever, fufpended exaftly in
the middle by the trutina, having fcales or ba-
fons hung to each extremity. This balance is re-
piefentcd by Plate XVII. fig. 2. where A B is
called the jugum or bcarii, and the two parts on
each fide the center C, the arms or hrachia. The
line on V/hich the beam turns, or which divides it
into two equal parts, is called the axis, and when
confidered with regard to the length of the brachia,
is only efteemcd a point, and called the ceiiter of
the balance ; and that flender part which fhews
the fcale's preponderating, (or what is called the
turn of the fcale) is called the tongue.
A balance is faid to be in equilibrio, vi^hen the
aiStion of the v.'cights upon each brachium to move
the balance are equal ; fo that they mutually de-
flroy each other. Unequal weights can equipon-
derate ; for if the diflances from the center be re-
ciprocally as the weights, the balances will be in
equilibrio ; as for inftance, one ounce at nine inches
diftance from the center will equiponderate with
three ounces at three inches diftance from the cen-
ter ; and upon this principle the Roman fteel-
yard is conftrufled. In the Roman balance the
weight ufed for a counterpoife is always the fame^
but the points of application are different or va-
rious, but the contrary in the modern balance ;
for in it the counterpoife is various, and the point
of application the fame. The principle on which
both are founded, may be eafily undcrftood from
the general properties of the lever. See Leveii.
The Deceitful Bi Ah MiCE is fuch whofe beam will
hang in equilibrio without the fcales, or with the
empty fcales, and yet fhall alfo be in equilibrio
when unequal weights are put in the fcales. Thefe
kind of balances are conftrufted upon the fame
principle as the ftatera, or freel-yard, and may
be made (o as to cheat in any proportion. Dr.
Defagulieres in Le£ture 3, Problem 27th, con-
ilru6ted one in the following manner :
To the beam A B fig. 3. (which is 23 inches ]ong»
whofc brachium C B of 1 1 inches in length, keeps
in equilibrio about the point C, the brachium C A
of 12 inches in length, by being made fo much
thicker, or having fo much the more matter as
may make amends for its being fhorter,) fufpend
the fcales D, E, in fuch manner that D, which
weighs one part in 12 lefs than E, ihall hang r.t
the longefi: end of the beam, and they will keep
each other in equilibrio ; then placing 12 pound
weight at G in the fcale E, it v/ili keep in equi-
librio no more than 11 pounds of F, the commo-
dity to be fold, if placed in the fcale D ; becaufe
then F will be to G, in a reciprocal propor-
tion of B C to A C ^^Tho' fuch a balance may
be fo nicelv made as to deceive the eye ; yet the
cheat is immediately difcovered by changmg the
weights and the commodity F from one fcale to
the other ; for then the owner of the fcales muft
eitherconfcfs the fraud, or add to the commodity he
fells, not only what was wanting, but aifo as much as
he intended to cheat the buyer of, and a fraftion of
that
JiATxsmi
♦ j^/4/./. '.^yfii4t/ i/a/'n ' (X") ii/(i ^uy
m^iS^SSSm^Si^StSlSISI^S^i.
^ZZiJiifi' ^ni/p
B A L
that added wciglit proportionable to the inequality
of the brachia of tlie balance. That is, in this
cafe the buyer, inllcad of 1 1 pounds offered him
for 12 his due, will have by changing fcales i 3t't
pounds.
for whereas in the firft pofition of t'le ba-
lance, FxAC was equal to Gxl3C, when G
is placed in the fcaie J), then 12X12 will be
equal to no ki's than CB (11) x by i3T'r G.
As the brachium CB 11 inches long :
Is to the brachium CA 12 inches long : :
So will P', or the weight 12 placed in the
fcale D :
To G— i3Vt> or the weight of the commo-
dity keeping the fcales in equilibrio.
And therefore as this analogy gives a reciprocal
proportion between the weights and their velocities,
the momenta will be equal, which, with contrary
directions, deflroy one another : but we muft re-
mark, that in thefe cafes the weights are fuppofed to
lung freely from thofe ends of the balance to
which they are faifened. Tho' in the common ufe
of the balance the counterpoifing weights or the
fcales generally hang freely ; yet there are fome cafes
where they do not; and in compound engines, where
the balances are often a part of a complex machine,
inllcad of weights, powers are applied to their ends
in all manner of directions, and then they become
levers of the firft kind ; fuch as the regulators in
water-engines, beams to blow bellows, &c.
y^J/iiy Balance, a very nice balance ufed in do-
cimaftical operations, to determine exactly the
weight of the minute bodies.
This balance fliould be made of tlie beft fteel,
and of the hardeft kind ; becaufe that metal is not
fo eafily fpoiled with ruft, as iron ; and it is more
apt than any other to take a perfc;.'! poliih, which at
the tame time prevents the ruft.
The ftruifture of the affayer's fcale is little diffe-
rent from that of common fcales, otherwife than
by its nicety and fmallnefs. The longer the beam
of it is, the more exact may th3 weight of a body
be found : however, ten or twelve inches are a fuf-
ficient Icnath. Let the thicknefs of it be fo little,
that two drachms may hardly be hung at either of
its extremities, without its bending : for the larg-
cft weight put upon it feldom exceeds one drachm.
The whole furface of this beam muft be altogether
without ornaments, whichonly incrcafe the weight,
and gather ihift, &c. The beam is fufpended in a
fork, the two legs of which are fteel-fprings joined
at top, but kept together below with a biafs pliant
clafp, parallel, and two lines and an half diftant
from each other. This clafp being taken off, and
the legs of the fork being ftretched out, the axis
of the beam may be put into two holes for that
piirpofe at the cii'.'s of the legi, or be taken away
'5
B A L
from them. Let a very fharp needle be fi.xtd i;i
the head of the fork, ftandin^ perpendicularly down-
wards, if the fork is fufpended, and fo long, as that
it may almoil touch the top of the tongue of the
beam, put into the fork, when in equilibrio. This
needle is the mark of the cq\iilibrium ; and, that
the artifts may be able to obferve this, the legs of
the fork mult be broader in that place, and have an
opening tv/o or three lines wide; this fork may be
adorned at pleafure, provided the motion of the ba-
lance is net hindered by fuch ornaments : then
take two fcales made of a thin plate of filver, one
inch and an half in diameter, hanging on three fmall
filk ftrings, almoit as long as the beam, tied toge-
ther at top, with a filver hook, in form of an S, and
hang them to the extremities of the beam : a fmaller
filver dilh, or blued rteel, fomewhat lefs than one
inch in diameter, belongs to each of thefe fcales.
You firft put into thefe diflies, with a pair of pin-
cers, the bodies to be weighed, or with a fpoon or
a fmall fhovel, when they are pounded, and then
you put them into fcales ; therefore the fmall difhes
muft be perfectly equal in weight. We life them,
that bodies may be more conveniently put into and
taken out of the fcales, and that thefe, which are
vaftly thin, may not be bent or foiled, and thence
rendered filfe bv wiping.
This balance is fufpended on a moveable brafs or
copper fupport, which confifts of a pedeftal, and of
a column fet upon it about twenty inches high, at
the top of which comes out at right-angles an arm
one inch long. At the extremity of this arm, put
a fmall pulley three lines in diameter, another at
the top of the column, and a third near the bottom
of it; all which pullies muft turn very eafily oti
their axes. At the diftance of one inch and a hv.lC
below the upper arm, let another arm., one inch and
a half long, come out of the coluiyin at right-angles,
having a hole through it two lines long, a quaitcr
of a line broad, and placed perpendicularly below
the pulley of the upper arm, to receive a fmal!
plate, one inch and a half long; and of fuch
breadth and thicktiefs, as that it may move freely up
and down, and yet not have too much play v.'ithiii
the hole. This plate muft alfo have a fmall hook
at the extremity.
And as fuch a balance will hardly ft&nd ftill in
the open air, and becomes fah% when fpoiled with
duft ; it muft be put together with its fupport into a
fmall glafs-cafe, having glades at top and all round
it, that you may fee v.hat is within.
Afiinner of vfing ihe j^jfay Bai.akcE. — Pafs a filk
ftring ever the three pullies cf the fu}->^3ort, and tie
it at its upper extrernitv to the fmall hook intro-
duced into the hole of the inferior arm ; then put
the fupport in the middle of the fmall cafe, and pafs
the other extremity of the filk ftring below, th.'-ough
a hole bored in the middle of the lower part of the
frame, containing the windtw in the fore-part of
4 f ' ^ ' t:ie
B A L
th-e cafe, anJ faften it to a fmall weight of a cubic
form. Sufpend the fork of the balance on the infe-
rior hook of the plate. By this means, if you move
backwards aad forwards the wcij^ht fartenad to the
ilrincr, placed upon the top of rhc drawer jutting out
beyond the fore-part of the cafe, th; balance within
is either lifted up, or let down. But you muft put
the bodies to be weighed, and the weights them-
felves, in the fmall filver difties ; and thefe, when
loaded, into the fcalcs, through the fide-windows,
which muft be opened for tliat purpofe. When
any thing is to be added to, or taken out of them,
vou do it with the fmall pincers, or, if it is powder,
with the fmall fliovel or fpoon : but you mufl: let
the balance down every time any thing is to be add-
ed or taken away, that the fcales may reft upon the
bottom of the cais ; and lliat the windows before
the balance is lifted up again, efpecially if the air is
not perfcdly calm.
H^droflatical Ualance, an inftrument fiift in-
•lenred for deteiiniaing the fpecific gravity of bodies,
both liquid and folid, in an accurate, eafy, and
expeditious manner.
Several methods have been propofed, and more may
lie ftiil invented, to determine what proportion bo-
dies differ from one another as to their fpecific gra-
vities ; yet after all, moft men with good reafon pre-
fer the ufe of the hydroftatical balance for exadt-
jiefs and convcniency.
It is very probable that Archimedes was the firft
that ever attempted this bufinefs, in which the ba-
lance is employed, with any fuccefs, in order to dif-
cover the cheat of the workmen that had debafed
king Hiero's crown ; yet tlie way he then made ufe
of was certainly much inferior to what is now prac-
tifed, by the invention of, and great improvements
in, this machine.
It is of great ufe in eftirnaiing the degree of pu-
rity of bodies of all kinds, the quality and richnels
of metals, minerals, ores, &c. as well as the pro-
portion, mixture, adulteration, or the like, all of
which the fpecific weight is the only judge.
The common hydrollatical balance, as reprefsnt-
ed by Plate XVII. _/%. 4. needs very little explana-
tion, it being fo very fimple. It has commonly a
lump of folid glafs in form of a heart, and fome-
times in fhape of a wedge, the more eafily to cleave
and feparate the parts of thofe fluids in which it
{hall be occafionally immerfed. Now this being
made of a matter not liable to be injured by any
liquor, and of weight fufHcient to fink it in moft,
is convenient for the purpofe, and is reprefcnted as
in ufe .by A. The machine has a fixevl counter-
poife for the other end of the beam, as 13, which,
when the glafs is poifed in rain or river-water,
will keep the balance-beam juft level, whether it be
put at the top, middle, or bottom of the jar.
Now ail fuch liquors as are fpecifically hca\'ier.
B A L
that is, more buoyant than common water, will re-
quire weight to be added on the fide of the im-
merfed glafs A, to reflorc the equilibrium :
and luch as are lefs fo, or lighter than common
water, will require weight to be added to the coun-
terpoiie, to bring the beam, which ought to be
hngularly good and true, to a horizontal pofition.
In comparing of two liquors, in order to find
fimply which of them is the heavier, 'tis of no great
concern to knov/ what the bulk or folid content
of the glals bubble A is, becaufe the grains on ci-
ther fide added, to bring the beam again to a level,
will fufficicntiy determine how much a quantity of
them, equal to the bulk of the bubble, differs from
rain or river-water, to which the machine is com-
monly adjulled ; which is fomething more of fatis-
faction than from the_ hydrometer can be had. But
how niucii the denfity of the one exceeds that of the
other, or generally in what proportion, cannot be
known 'till the weight of the glafs bubble A, both
in air and water, and conlequently the weight of
a quantity of the fluid under confideration in bulk
equal thereto, with which it is generally compared,
be firft adjurted and found.
It may here be remarked, that the beam of the hy--
droftatical balance cannot well be too light, if it be
but equal to its office without yielding or fpringing.
The way to prove whether it be true or not, is^
when you have found any exa<5f equilibrium by it,
to change both weight and fcales together, end for
end ; and then, if no alteration appears, it is per-
feftly well executed; otherwife not.
A fquare piece of paper, weighing but one grain,
may without difficulty be divided by meafure into
two and thirty parts of a grain ; and if you dcfire
your beam fhould be affected by the weight of a
few of thefe, the reft of your apparatus muft be
very light alfo ; left the weight laid on the point
of fupport, fhould make it too fluggifh to move
fo free and finely as it properly ought to do.
Suppofe then the weight of our efiay-bubble A,
wheii taken in the water, is one hundred and
eighty-two, and in the air two hundred and fix.
grains ; the difference, or twenty-four grains, is the
juft" weight of a quantity of water equal in bulk
and dimenfions thereto : which being known, may
be received as a general ftandard whereby to efti-
mate the fpecific gravity of liquors by tiiis ma-
chine. For example ; warm a jar of water pretty
well, it will be thereby rarefied, and rendered fpe-
cifically more light, and of confequcnce the bub-
ble, before adjufted to that liquor cold, will, on
im.merfing, fink therein. And by adding weight
on the other fide, we may eafily learn how much
it is thereby become fpecifically lighter than a like
quantity of water cold ; viz. merely by dedufting
the weight found on experiment neceffary to re-
ftore the equilibrium, let us fuppofe three grains
from
}
B A L
from twciity-fcur ; Co that the fpccific gravity of
the cold water will be fouml to be to that of the
hot, as 24 to 21, or 8 to 7.
For experiment's fake, a fecond trial may be
made the fame way, on a fluid denfcr than common
water; as fuppole Ihong alh-lees, replete with a
lixivial fait, in which cafe we are to add the diffe-
rence found on the immcrfion of the ciray-biibbjc,
i'uppofe four grains to twenty-four ; the Ipcciiic
(';ra\ iiy hereof will then be fignificd by the number
28, and an equal quantity of lees will be to com-
mon cold water, as 28 to 24, or 7 to 6 ; and
to an equal quantity of the water before warmed,
as 28 to 21, or 4 to 3 ; and thus of any otlier.
The fpecific weight of equal quantities of dif-
ferent liquors might indeed be alio found, by fdl-
iii2; a fmall phi;il, cf known dinienfions and
capacity, with them fucceffively ; which ought to
be Hrll exadtly tared or couiitcrpoifed on the op-
pofite fide. Their fcveral weights then taken by a
nice pair of fcales, and noted down, may after-
wards be compared together tolerably well.
In like nunncr mi^ht alfo the fpecific gravities
of folid bodies heavier than water be found, was
it pradficable to reduce them by any means to fomc
certain or determinate dimenfions, as to the fize of
a cubic inch, or the like: but that being not only
laborious, and expenfive, and tedious, but alfo
very inconvenient and much lefs exa<3: ; the beauty
of the hydroftatic balance will therefore appear in
afli^-ning their comparative gravities, be their
figures never fo various or irregular, with very
sireat truth, eafe, and expedition.
For the weighing of folids fpecifically heavier,
or which fink in water,, hydrollatically, this in-
itrument is provided with a Imall gUfs bucket,
marked C, which in the air is exactly counter-
poifed by H ; and in water, by adding the fmall
wei'^ht D on the bu,:ket-fide at E, to counter-
balance the buoyancy of the water on the bucket
immerfed. By this machine fragments of fuch bo-
dies may be weighed inditTcrentiy either in water
or the air; both which, in thefe experiments, are
always carefully to be difl::n£lly done ; noting their
feveral weights. Clare's Motion of Fluids.
As the learned Mr. Gravcfande has greatly im-
proved the common hydroftatic balance, and ren-
dered it more accurate and expeditious, we fliall
wive the reader a defcription of it, according to the
improvements of this ingenious author.
The figure of this machine (Pjate XVI. fig. 6.)
leprefents the balance in its hydrofratic ufe. We
Ihall firil: defcribe the machine ; then (fiew the new
contrived artifice for exaftnefs ; and, laftiy, give
an inilancc of its univerfal ufe. V C G is the
ifand or pillar fixed in the table. From the top
at A hangs, by two filken ftrings, the horizontal
piece or bar B&; from wnici; is fufpended, by a
ring at /', the fine beam of z. balance /, which is
B A L
kept from defccnding too low on either fide, hy
the gentle fpringing piece zx yx, fixed on the fup-
porter M. The harnefs is aimulatcd at 0, to fliew
diilindly the perpendicular pofitions of theexamcn,
by the fmall pomted index fixed above it. The
firings by v/hich the balance is fufpended pafling
over two pullies, one on each fide the piece at A,
go down to tlie bottom on the other fide, and are
hung over the hook, by means of a fcrev/ P, v.'hich
is moveable about |th of an inch backwards and
forwards ; and therefore the balance may be raifed
or deprefled as much : but if a greater elevation or
depreflion be required, the fliding-plece S, v/hith
carries the fcrew P, is readily moved to any part of
the fcjuare brafs rod V K, and fixed by means of a
fcrew.
The motion of the balance being thus pro-
vided for, the reft of the apparatus is as follows :
HH- is a iinall table fixed upon a piece D, under
the fcales ^ and >, and is moveable up a;id down
in a long flit in the pillar above C, and faflencd at
any part with a fcrew behind. At the point at the
middle of the bottom of each fcale, is hung by a
fine hook, a brals wire ad, ac. Thefe pals through
two holes ??;, w, in the table ; and to the wire ad
is fufpended a curious cylindric wire r ;, perforated
at each end for that purpofe. This wire rs is
covered with paper graduated by equal divifions,
and is about five inches long. In the corner of
the table at .E, is fixed a brafs tube, in which a
round v/ire /;/ is fo adapted as to move neither too
hard nor too freely by its flat head I : upon rhe
lower part of this moves another tube Q__, which
has friiSfion enough to caufe it to remain in any
pofition required ; to this is fixed an index T,
moving horizontally when the wire /;/ is turned
about, and therefore may be eafily fet to the gra-
duated wire rs. .
To the lower end of the wire r s han<is a weieht
DO
L, and to that a wire p r, with a fmali brafs ball ^,
about 5th of an inch in diameter. On the other
fide, to the wi.t-e acy hangs a large glafs bubble R
to a horfe-hair. Let us, at prefent, fiippofe the
weight L taken av/ay, and the wise p n fufpended
from S ; and, on the other fide, lee the bubble ]l
be taken awav, and the v.^eight F fufpended in its
room at .' This weiglit F, we fuppofc to be fuch
as will keep in equiiibrio with the feveral parts ap-,
pcnded to tiie other fcale, at the fame time that
the middle point of the vi\r& p n is in the furface of
the water in the vefTel N.
The wire p n is to be of fuch a fize, that the
length of one inch (hill weigh four grains. Hence
it is evident, fince brafs is eight times he.avier than
water, that for e\ery inch the wire finks in the
water, it will become half a grain lighter; and
half a grain heavier for every inch it rifes out of
the water : confeqiiently, by finking two inches
below the middle point, or rifing two inches
above
B A L
B A L
above it, the wire will become one grain lighter
or heavier.
And therefore, when tiie miJdle point is at the
furtace of the water in equiiibrio, the index T be
iet to the middle point a of the graduated wire r j,
and the dillar.ce on each fide a r and (7^ contain
100 equal parts ; then, when in weighing bodies
the weight is defired to the hundredth part of a
grain, it may eafily be had by proceeding in the
follov.'ing manner.
Let the body to be v/eighed be placed in the
fcale <■/, and put the weights in the fcale; and let
thefe be fo determined, that one grain more fliall
be too much, and one grain lefs loo little. Then
the balance being gently moved up or down by the
{"crew P, till the equilibrium be nicely fhewn at o ;
and then, if the index T be at the middle points
of the wire r.f, it fhews the weights put into the
fcale e are iufl equal to the weight of the body.
But if the index T (land at any part betv.'een a
and r, it fhews the number of grains of the fcale
e were more than equal to the weight of the body
in the fcale (^ ; bccaufe the wire p n is now made
lighter by finking below the middle point. Thus,
luppofe the v/eights put into the fcale * were 1095
grains, and the indexTcuts the 36thdivifion abo\e
a, it fhews that 36 hundredth parts of a grain are
to be added, or that the weight of the body is
1^)95,36 grains.
(Jn the other hand, had the index flood at 36,
the divifion below a, it would have fhewn the
weights in the fcale e were m.ore than equal to the
weight of tlie body by 36 hundredths of a grain,
:;nd that then the weight of the body was 1094,64
grains. By this method we find the abfolute
weight of the body ; the relati\'e weight is found
by v.-eighing it hydroflatically in water, as follows :
Inflead of putting the body in the fcale rl, as before,
let it be appended with the weight F at the hook
f, by a horfe-hair as at R, fuppofing the vefiel of
v.'ater O were taken away ; then the equilibrium
being made, the index T ilanding between a and r,
at the 36th divifion, fhews the weight of the body
1095,36 grains. As it thus hangs, let it be im-
merled in the water of the vefTel O, and it will be-
come lighter by much ; the fcale e will defcend till
the beam cf the balance refts on the fupportcr z.
Then fuppofe ico grains, put into the fcale cl,
Tcfiored the equilibrium precifely, fo that the in-
dex T again pointed to the 36th divifion above a ;
it is plain the weight of an equal bulk of water
would, in this cafe, be exaftly ico grains. But
it 100 grains in the fcale d, caufe it to prepon-
derate a little, then, by turning the fcrew P, the
balance may be raifed, till the wire />?; becoming
heavier, rcllores the equiiibrio. Let now the in-
dex T cut the 6th divifion above a ; then
36—6 = 30, which fhews that the wire pn is now
■J,, of a grain heavier than before ; therefore the
weight ot the water is only 99,7 grains; whence
its gravity to that cf the body is as 99,7 to
1095,36, as required.
After a like manner may this balance be applied
to find the fpecific gravities of fluids, whicli will
not be difficult to thole who apprehend what has
been already faid.
In practice, it will be neceffary to ufe great pre-
cautions in every particular ; the wire/>« iliould
be oiled, and then wiped as clean as pnflible;
ciiougli will remain to pre\ ent the water adhering;
thereto: alfo the balance ought to be raifed very
gently, and when come to an equilibrium,
Ihould be gently agitated, to fee if it will come fo
again.
Bal.'vkcing, in the marine, a certain manner of
contracting or reducing a fidl in a fcorm, in ccntra-
diflincfion to reefing, which is common to all the
principal fails, whereas balancing is peculiar to the
miz,en, and to mainfails that are fet on a boom.
Balancing the mizen is performed by gathering a
certain portion of the fail together at the peek or
upper-corner, faflening it to the mizen-yard, at
fome diifance within the yard-end. A boom-main-
fiiil is bal.mced, after all the reefs are taken in, by
tying a iimilar portion of the outmoft or aftmoil
lower-corner, called the clew, in the fame manner
to the bottom, having firfl: wrapped a piece of can-
vas round it, which is done in both cafes, to pre-
vent the fail from being fretted by the cord which
fallens it. See Reef.
BALANI Marini, certain multivalve fliells,
ufually growing in clufiiers on the fliells of the larger
fort of the fea fhell-fifh : fometimes thev are found
large, loofe, and petrified, at a great diilance from
the fea ; in which flate they are diftingulfhed by the
name of balanitas.
BALASS, or Bai.lass, the name of a kind of
ruby. See the article Ruby.
BALAUSTINE, large rofe-Iike flowers, of a
deep red colour, fet in long bell-fliaped tough cups.
They are the produce of the wild or double-flower-
ed pomegranate tree, a lovv prickly tree or fhrub,
with long narrow leaves, bearing a brownifh acerb
fruit, about the fize of an orange ; a native of the
fouthern parts of Ein-ope ; and cultivated in fomc
of our gardens on account of the beauty and con-
tinuance of its flowers. The fhops are ufuallv
iupplied with the dried flowers from abroad, tho'
thofe of our own growth- do not appear to be aiiy-
wife inferior to the foreign.
Balaufline flowers are mildly aftringent and cor-
roborant ; of a moderately rough and fomewhat
bitterifii tafte, and of little or no fmell or particu-
lar flavour. They give out their aflringent mat-
ter, together with a pale red colour, both to water
and rettifi.ed fpirit : the extrads obtained bv "in-
fpiilating
B A L
fpiflating the tinftures, in which the active parts of
the flower arc concentrated, arc pretty (trongly
ftyptic.
BALCONY, in architctSlure, a projeclurc in
the front of a houfe, or other building, fupported
by pillars, or confoles, and encompalTcd with a
' lulhade: or it is a Icind of open gallery, fur
iple to (land in, to behold any public fiiow, or
for taking the air in. They are ufually level with
the firft Hoor, and are made of wood, or iron.
BALDACHIN, of BALUAQi-'iN, in architec-
ture, a building \n form of a canopy, fiipported by
pillars, and frequently ufcd as a covering to in-
fulatcd altars. Some alfo ufe the term baldachin
for the fhcll over a door.
BALE, in commerce, is faid of merchandizes
packed up in cloth, and corded round very tight,
in order to keep them from breaking, or preferve
them from the weather.
Bai-E-Goods, among the Englifti merchants,
are all fuch as arc imported or exported in bales ;
but the French gi\e that name to certain hard-
wares, and other fort of merchandize, which come
to Paris, and are commonly made by bad workmen
of indifferent materials.
BALISTA, a machine ufed by the ancients for
fliooting darts ; it refembled in fome meafure our
crofs-bow,
BALIVO AmoX'Exdo, in law, was a writ for
removing a bailiff from his office, for want of
having fuflicient land in his bailiwick to anfu'crthe
king and his people, according to the ilatute of
Weftminfter, 2 reg. Orig. 78.
BALK, among builders, is fometimes ufed for
the fummer-beam of a houle ; fometimes for the
poles and rafters which fupport the roofs of
barns, &c. and fometimes for the beam.'; ufed in
making fea-holds.
BALL, a ipherical and round body, either na-
turally fo, or turned into that form. •There are
halls of common wood, of box, of iron, tVc.
Ball, in the military and pyrotechnical arts, is
a compoiition of divers ingredients, generally of
the combuilible kinds, ferving to burn, fmoak,
give light, &;c.
Bimb Balls are made in the fame manner as
grenadoes ; a bomb is firft put at the bottom of a
bag, then a bed or layer of three bombs, and a
bed or layer of powder are laid in alternately.
Thefe bombs are fix inches in diameter, and two
or three layers of them are contained in a ball.
Fire Balls, in military aftairs, are either round
or tjval, filled with difi'erent compofiticns, all dif-
ficult to be extinguifhed. Thefe are thrown to a
great diilance by a mortar, and fome of a fmallcr
fize are thrown by hand like grenado&s. Their
ufe is to gi\'e a light by which an enemy may be
difcovered in the dark, and fired upon with more
certainty : they are alfo ufed to fire magaziiies of
16
B A L
forage, and houfes in a town which is attacked.
And to prevent any one from coming near them
and attempting to cxtinguifli the fire, they are
filled in the fame manner as carcafcs with grena-
does, and fmall ends of mufket-barrels, charged
with bullets, which keep thofe atadifbnce, wlio
might otlurwife throw fomething on tliis fire-work
to prevent its effect. See Carcase, Grexadoe,
Mortar.
Grenada Balls, in military affairs, are faces
made of a very coarfe dry cloth. They are fill d
by putting in firft about two pounds of powder at
the bottom of the bag, with a grenado; this firft
layer, or bed, is covered with four grcnadoe.;, the
intervals between them are then Tilled up with
powder, and they are covered with a layer of
powder, as the former ; upon which, four ether
grenadoes are laid, in the fame manner as the firft.
Four different layers of powder and grenadoes are
thus difpofed alternately, which ought to fill the
bag, leaving only fufficient room to tie it up at the
mouth, into which a fufe is inferred, and ftrongly
bound up with it j after which, the whole is ftrit
dipped into pitch or tar, and put into another fack,
which is firft dipped, as the former, into pitch or
tar, and then into water, to prevent it from flick-
ing to the places where diey are kept for ufe : the
fufes of the grenadoes contained in this bag, are co-
vered with etcu!;€lles, which is a kind of match con-
fiftingof the finelt cotton, well foaked in brand)', and
piiming, or pounded pov.-der, the fire of which
inftantly communicates itfelf to all parts ; and by
this means, the grenadoes arc more certainly fired
than if covered with powder onlv.
PehLle Balls, are made in the fame manner as
grenado and bomb balls ; but in thefe, iiiftcad of
grenadoes and bombs, pebblis are made ufe of;
and thefe balls are contrived fo as to burft in the
air, that the pebbles they are filled with may fall
like hail upon the places defigned.
Li^ht Balls, gkbi hccr.ics, are fuch as diitufe
an intenfe light around ; or they are balls
which, being caft out of a mortar, or the hand,
burn for fome time, and illuminate the adjacent
parts.
Smcak or Dark Balls, thofe which fill the air
with fmoak, and thus darken a place to prevent
difcoveries.
Ball of a Pindulwn, the weight at the bottom.
In fliorter pendulums, this is called the bob.
Ball, among the Cornifh miners, fignifies a
tin-mine.
Ball, among printers, a kind of wooden tun-
nel Itulfed with wool, contaiiied in a leather cover,
which is nailed to the wood, with which the ink is
applied on the forms to be wrought off.
Horfe Balls, among farriers, a kind of cor-
dial medicine, adminiftered in the form of balls,
fuppofed of great virtue for feeding and ftrengthen-
4 G inj
B A L
B A L
ing found, as v/ell as healing and railing unfound
horfcs.
Chewing Balls are thofe which the horfe keeps
champing or mafticating in his mouth, a confider-
ab!c time, y/ithout fvvallov.'ing. Th-.fs are chiefly
Tifed for a lofl appetite, a thing very incidental to
horfes.
They are ufually made of afa-ftEtidn, li\cr of
antimony, juniper, bay-wood, and pellitory of
Spam, beaten and incorporated into a mafs with
verjuice. The method of adminiflration is to
wrap one of the balls in a linen cloth, and, having
a firing iaflened to it, make the horfe chew it three
or four hours at a time. Riijl DiSf.
Ball Fan, in mineralogy, a name given bv the
miners of SufTex to a fort of iron ore, common
t.here, and wrought to confiderable advantage.
Ball and Socket is an inllrument made of
brafs, with a perpetual fcrevv, to hold a tclefcope,
quadrant, or furveying inftrument, on a llafF, for
various ufes.
BALLAD, or Ballet, a fpecies of fong,
adapted to the lower clafs of people.
BALLANCE, or Balance, in mechanics;
fee Balance.
Ballance «/" TJ-flrtV. See Trade.
Ballance of a Click or IVatth. See the articles
Clock and Watch.
BALLAST, in the marine, a certain quantity
of flone, iron, gravel, or other materials, de-
pofited in a Ihip's hold, when fhe has either no
cargo, or too little to fink her to a fufficient depth
in the water, that Ihe may be enabled to carry fail
withaut danger of overturning. There is often
great difference in the quantity of bidlalt requifite
to prepare fhips of equal burthen for a voyage ;
the quantity being always more or lefs in propor-
tion to the fharpnefi or flatnefs of the bottom,
which feamen call the floor.
It is very far from being a matter of indifference
how a fliip is ballafted ;" for although feamen, in
general, know very well that few veffels will carry
a ftout fail, till they are laden fo deep, that the
iurface of the water may nearly glance on the ex-
treme breadth amidfhips ; yet there is more than
this general knowledge required to ballaft her with
- propriety ; fince if fhe has a great quantity of
heavy ballaft, as lead, iron, &c. in her bottorn, it
will place the center of gravity too low in the hold ;
and although, by this means, flic will be enabled
to carry a great fail ; yet fhe would fail very badly,
and be in danger of being difmafted by her fudden
jerks and violent rolling. Seamen commonly en-
deavour to prevent this, by raifing the weighty
ballaii: v/ith dinnage, /. e. boughs of trees, faggots,
or fach materials, by which means the center of
gravity being more elevated, the fhip will roll eafily,
and fail fmoothly through the water. On the other
hand, if fbe be too lii?;ht, (lie will incline till her
extreme breadth refts upon the water, and confe-
quently want fufficient liability for a frcfh winii ;
whereas, if fhe is well ballafted, fiie v.'iil carrv a
good fiil, incline but little, and ply well to the
windward. See Gr-avity, Sailii-jg, Trim.
BALLIAGE, in commerce, a fmall duty pi
to the city of London by aliens, and even denize. ,
for certain commodities exported by them.
BALLISTA. See the article Balista.
BALLOON, or Ballon, in a general fenfe,
implies any hollow body of a fpherical form, be
its compofition or ufes what they will.
Balloon, in chemillry, is a large receiver of
around form, and very fhort neck.
Balloon, in architcdlure, figniries a round ball
or clobe, placed on the top of a pillar, &c. by
v/ay of crowning.
Balloon, in pyrotechyny, is a kind of bomb
made of parte board, and played off in fire-worko,
either in the air or water, in imitation of a real
bomb.
BALLOTA, in botany^ a genus of plants, the
flower of v/hich is monopetalous and cloven, the
upper lip being ereft and crenated, and th€ lower
obtufc, and divided into three fegments. It con-
tains four filaments, two of which incline to the
upper-lip: the germ.en is quadrifid, fupporting 2
ftyle the form of the fiamina; it is dcftitute of a
pericarpium, the cup inclofing four ovated feeds.
BALLOTADE, or Balotade, in the ma-
nege, the leap of a horfe between two pillars, or
en a flraight line, made with juftnefs of time, and
v.ith the aid of the hand and calves of the legs j
and in fuch a manner, that, when his fore-feet are-
in the air, he fliews nothing but the flioes of liis
hinder feet, without yerking out.
BALLS, or Ballets, in heraldry, make-fc
frequent bearing in coats of arm.s, though they are'
never called by thofe names, but acquire other d^
nominations from their feveral colours. ThuK
v.'hen the colour is or, they are termed hefant^
v/hen argent, plates; when azure, hurts; whem
gules, tcrteaux ; when vert, ponuis ; when fable,,
agreffes ; when purple, ^•^//'t'i ; when tanne, orenges\.
and when fanguine, guzcs.
BALLUSTER, in architedlure, a kind of fmail
pillar ufed in balluflrades.
BALLUSTRADE, a row or feries of bal^
lufiers joined bv a rail, and fixed on a teiTace 6r
the top of a building by way of fecurity ; as
alfo to inclcfe balconies, altars, fronts, ftair-
cafes, he.
BALM, or Balsam ; fee Balsam.
Balm, or Baum, in botany ; fee Baum.
BALNEUM, a term much ufed by chemifts to
fignify a veffel filled with fome matter, as fand,
water, or the like, in which others are placed for
performing various operations that require lefs heat
than a naked fire.
BAt-
B A L
B A L
Balneum Aremfum^ or i';'av,«/, a fnnd, or dry
heat ; a vefi'iil iilkJ with laiul, ;iihes, or filings of
llecJ.
Balneum Maria, or Maris, a water-bath, or
a vcl'ic! filled with water, which is made to boil,
and in which the vcficls containing the ingredients
are placed.
Balneum Vapons, a vapour-bath, or when the
vcilcl coritaining the ingredients, on v/hich the pro-
ccfs is to be jicrformed, is heated by the vapour
arifing from boiling water.
li/iLSAJ.I, BalfamhTn, an oily, rcTinoiis, and
odorous fubilance,, flowing either fpontancoully, or
by incifion, from certain plants, of great vinucs
in the cure of feveral diforders.
Balsam of Gi'iead, or of Mecca, Opohalfamum,
the nioiV precious of all balfams ; and commonly
called balm of Gilead.
It is the produce of certain trees, which grew
formerly in the \ alley of Jericho ; but after the
concjueit of the Holy Land by the Turks, were
removed to Grand Cairo, and afterwards to Mecca,
where the ballam plantation is faid to be now
guarded by janizaries, and the rcfinous juice col-
ledled for the fultan only.
The precious balfam exfudes in very fmall quan-
tity, from flight incif.ons made in the bark :
according to Profper Albinus, it is at iirll
white, of a very flrong. penetrating (mell, of the
turpentine kind, but tweeter and more fragrant,
and of a bitter, acrid, allringent taftc. It looks
in part turbid and thick, like the oil newly ex-
prefied from olives ; afterwards it grows extremely
thin, limpid, and light ; its colour changes to a
greenifh, then to a gold yellow, and, by long
keeping, ta that of honey : it now grows thick
I ke turpentine, and lofcs much of its fragrance.
Inferior forts of balfam are faid to be obtained
by boiling the branches in water. When the
liquor begins to boil, a thin oil arifes to tlie fur-
face, and on continuing the coftion a grofler and
thicker one.
It is ufed in medicine to open obftru6lions of the
lungs, and to heal eroiions frem acrimony, and
die v/orft kinds of ulcerations. It is alfo pre-
fcribed in afthm.as, pleurifies, and whenever ex-
pedloration is neceffary, in internal bruii'es, and to
cleanfe the urinary pafTages.
Balsam cf Toiu is commonly of a thicker con-
fidence than the foregoing', and more of a brown -
jfn colour. When frcfli, it has an exceeding
pleafant fmell, fomewhat refembling that of
citrons.
It is faid to be the produce of Nev/ Spain, and
to exfude in very hot weather from incifions made
in the bark of a fmall tree of the f.r kind, called
tola.
We have no particular dcfcription of the tree
which produces this balfam. Linnsus ha? given
hs gcncrical characters, under the name of to!ui-
feru ; and in thefe it differs greatly from the firs
and j)incs, to which it is commonly rcftn.blcd.
The balfam is one of the moft elegant and grateful
of the fubltanccs of this clafs, and does not lofe
much of its fragrance when by age it grows con-
fiftent. It yields very little eircntiai oil in diflii-
lation, but impregnates the diftilled water ftrongly
with its flavour. By difl'olving in this water, in a
gentle warmth, a proper quantity of fine fugar,
we obtain a balfamic fyrup, greatly fupericr to that
made in the common manner with a dccotTbion of
the balfam.
Its virtues are the fame with that of Gilead, and
is given in convulfions, and other diforders of the
breall, fometimes in the form of pills, and fome-
times in electuary; but the beft form of giving it
is in emulfion, diflolved in the yolk of an egg,
afid then mixed with water.
Balsam cf Copaiba, Copkahu, Copaif, Cam^aif,
Copalyva, or Gaitula, is obtained from a tree of the
fame name, growing in the Brazils, near Rio de
Janeiro.
This balfam is of a pale yellowifli colour, and
thin confiftence. It is obfervable, that on mixing
this juice with the watery fpirit of fal ammoniac,
made by quick-lime, a frothing, or efFervcfcence,.
as it is called, enfues, ftronger and of longer con-
tinuance than that produced by the fame fpirit with
any other natural balfam : by this mark we may
diitinguifh the genuine copaiba from the thin refin
of the turpentine or fir-tree, which is frequently
mixed with or vended for it. This balfam is at
prefent of very common ufe as a medicine.
It is obfervable alfo of this balfam, that on be-
ing diftilled in a retort, it gives over towards the
end of the operation, an oil of a fine blue colour,
preceded by a limpid, and a yellov/ifh or brownilh
one. Diftilled with water, it yields a large quan-
tity of a limpid eflTential oil : from fixteen ounces
I ha'/e gained eight.
The copaiba-tree is one of the large foreft trees
of Brazil and fome other parts of America. Mr.
Ray calls it Arbor bulfamifera Bra%iHenfis fruBu mines
permo^ The leaves are roundifli and oval, the
flowers pentapetalous, the fruit, a pod, containing
a kernel like a filberd. The v/ood is of a deep red
colour, and great hardnefs ; and hence is employed
in ornamental mechanic works, and is faid to be
ufed alfo in djing. The balfam is extratied by
making deep incifions in the trunk of the tree,
in the fummer heats ; if this operation is performed
tco early, no iuice exfudes, in which cafe the
wounds are for a time clofed up. It is faid that
twelve pounds of balfam ifTue from one tree in a
'itw hours; but that after oiice bleeding, it never
affords any more. .
it is more deterfivc and more fragrant than com-
mon turpentine ; palles very quickly by urine, and
greatly
B A L
greatly aflifts in cleanfirg thofe paflfages ; for which
realon it is frequently given in gonorrhoeas, and all
obftruilions and ulcerations of thofe parts.
Balsam if Peru is obtained from certain trees
of Peru and IVIcxico, diiYering fomewhat from one
another in appearance, and foincvvhat alfo in the
quality of their juices.
The balfom-tree defcribed, by Pifo, under the
name of cabureiha, has fmall leaves like thofe of
the myrtle, and a thick afti-coloured bark, covered
with a very thin red one ; under this is lodged a
j'ellowifh balfam, that impregnates the whole iub-
ftance of the bark, which by age becomes more
and more fragrant. Hernandez dcfcribes this bal-
fam tree, as having leaves like thofe of the almond,
and a thick bark like cork, from which the ballam
flows upon wounding the outer thin rind. Plun-
kenet mentions a tree of the fame kind in Virginia,
by the name of Aibor J'irginiana, Pijaminis folio,
Baccata Btn%oinum redolens.
This balfam is of a thick confiftence, like
honey; of a dark black colour in th; mafs, but
when fJ5rcad thin of a clear reddifh or yellowifli
brown, of an agreeable itrong fmell, iomewhat
approaching to that of a mixture of benzoine and
florax, and of a bitterifli pungent tarte, eafily in-
flammable, not in the leall mifcibie with water,
nor rendered turbid or white on being agitated
with that fluid. It becomes foluble in water,
like the other balfams, by the mediation of
yolk of eggs, or of fugar ; when dillolved by
the latter, it foon feparatcs from the water,
whilft the former keeps it much longer fuf-
pended.
In diftiUation with water, it yields a fmall quan-
tity of a fragrant eflential oil. Hoffman prepares
alfo a grateful fpirit, by drawing over fpint of
rofes from a mixture of the balfam with half its
weight of fait of tartar, divided by moift fand.
Diflilled in a retort with an open fire, it affords a
butter like that of benzoine, and oftentimes a
confiderable quantity even of concrete faline flowers,
fimilar to thofe procured from that refm.
It is of a heating and drying quality, and is fre-
quently ufed externally in the cure of wounds.
The perfumers alfo ufe it on account of its agree-
able fmell.
Odoriferous Balsams are a fragrant kind of un-
guents, generally of a thick confiflence, compofed
of fome fatty, denfe juice, joined with fome dif-
tilled oils of various kinds.
Boerhaave's method of preparing thefe balfams,
is this : Melt an ounce of line pomatum, in a
China vefTel, over a fmall and pcrfeiflly clear fire ;
then gradually add a dram of white wax, fliaved
into thin pieces : after thefe are perfectly blended
together, remove the velTel from the fire ; and
when the matter begins to thicken in cooling, drop
in, by flow degrees, a dram of any of the fragrant
7
B A L
eflential oils ; keep the whole continually flirring, all
the time the oil is dropping in, that it may perfect-
ly mix: after which, let the veiTel in cold wat<:r,
that the v/hole matter, immediately condeni'ing by
the cold, may keep in the oil and fpiiit. When
the baifam is thoroughly cold, put it immediately
up in veflels of lead or pewter ; and, if thefe are
clofe covered, it will keep perfc»5l a great many
years.
Inltead of pomatum and wax, the expreficd oil
of nutmeg may be ufed in this procefs, after it has
been waflied in water, till perfectly inllpid, white,
and inodorous.
If thefe balfams are required to be of any colour,
it m.iy be ecfily given at pleafure. A fcrupie of
fine cochineal, m fine powder, will tinge the bal-
fam of a fine purple ; or the fame quantity of the
infpiflated juice of buckthorn berries, to a fine
green ; a little native cinnabar will turn it fcarlet :
turm.eric, yellow; and fmalt, to a beautiful blue.
Any of thefe may be ufed at pleafure, provided
that they have no ill fmell, or hurtful pro-
perties.
Thefe balllims are prepared as rich perfumes, to
rail'e the languid Ipirit ; and the noblelf and richeil
of the eflTential oils fhould therefore be ufed in them.
The oils, principally diredted by Boerhaave to this
purpofe, are thofe of balm., calamus aromaticus,
cinnamon, cedar, citron, cloves, jafmin, laven-
der, white lilies, marjoram, mace, nutmegs, ori-
ganum, oran2;es, both thofe of China and Seville;
rofes, rhodium, and yellow launders; to which
may be added, the natural balfams of Peru and
Gilcad ; thefe two being fpontaneoufly fragrant
without diflillation. Boerbaave's Chemijlry.
BALSAMICS, in pharmacy, foftening, reftor-
ing, healing, and cleanf^n^- medicines, of gentle
attenuating principles, very friendly 1:0 nature.
Thefe medicines, on account of their fine, fub-
tilc, and volatile oil, are not only grateful and
agreeable to the conftitution, but a£l upon the
fluids, as well as the folids, of human bodies ;
difFufing their virtues through every part, and fup-
plying the blood and humours with a feafonable
reinforcement of fulphureous, warm, and ethereal
parts, increaftng their inteifine m.otions, and con-
veying vigour to the vital juices.
Thefe medicines may be ufed with good fuccefs,
both internally and externally, in all difeafes of the
head, nerves, fpinal marrow, ft:omach and heart ;
fuch as palfies, apoplexies, numbnefs and torpor
of the fenfes, weaknefs of the memory, difficulty
of hearing, exceffive weaknefs, and faintings ; they
are alfo of Angular fervice in inoft: diforders of the
flomach and inteftines, and are exquifitely adapted
to the old and infirm.
BALSAA4INA, the female balfam, in botany,
the name of a genus of plants, whofe flowers are
of the polypetalous anomalous kind : the flowers
come
BAM
coriie out from the joints of the ft;ilks upon flonii.-i
foot-ftjlks about an incli long, each fullaining a
I'lnglc flower, which is compoltd of five large un-
equal petals, which in front are fliapcd like the
lip-flowcr^ ; at their bafc, they have a long tail,
wliich is crooked ; thefe are fucceeded by an uni-
locular capfulc, opening with an elaftic force in
five valves : the feeds it contains are fixed to the
axis or placenta.
The moft beautiful and valuable kind are thofe
which produce double flowers, of which t-here are
three forts, finely ftriped with pink, fcarlet, or
purple, fo as to appear alinoft as beautiful as a
carnation, and are much noticed bv the curious.
Thefe plants are raifed on hot-beds in the fpring,
and nearly managed as the amaranthus. See
Amaranthus. As thefe flowers are apt to de-
generate, fo as in a few years to become fingle ;
the beft method to preferve their plenitude of pe-
tals, is by changing feeds with fome perfon who
lives at a diftance, and can be depended upon for
liis care in the choice of blofibms for feed ; for all
fingle flowers fhould be plucked off fo foon as they
open, likewife all double tlowers, which are of one
colour, referving only thofe which are both double
and ftriped. This genus of plants is called by
Linnrcus, impatiens.
BALSAMITA, in botany, a fpecies of tanfey,
called alfo coftmary ; a corvmbiferous plant, the
roots of which are hard, flcifiy, and creep in the
ground. Its lower leaves arc about the fize of thofe
of garden-mint, of a yeiiowilli green colour, ele-
gantly ferrated at their ed2:es. The ftalks rife from
two to three feet high, and fend out branches from
the fide ; they are furniflied with oval fawed leaves
like thofe at the bottom, hut fmaller, and fit clofe
to the ftalk. The flowers are produced at the top
of the ftalks in a loofe corymbus, are naked, and
of a deep yellow colour ; they appear in A.uguft,
but produce no feeds in England; the v/hole
plant has a foft pleafant odour.
It is propagated by parting its roots in autumn.
Where thefe plants are cultivated for ufe, they
fhould be planted in beds at about two feet diftance,
that they may have room to grow ; for in two years
the roots will meet, fo that every other year they
fhould be tranlplanted and parted, to keep them
within compafs.
In medicine, the leaves chiefly are ufed as a
ftomachic, cephalic, carminative, and deobftruent ;
they are alfo externally applied by way of fermen-
tation, or bathing, in order to ftrengthen the
joints, &c.
BAMBOE, or Bambow, as they fpcll that word
in the Indies, in botany, the name of a plant that
multiplies very n^uch by its root, from which-
fprings a ramous or branchy tuft, after the manner
of the European reeds';' of which, as well as the
i6
BAN
fugar-canc, it is a fpecies. The Indian bamboe is
the largeft kind of cane hitherto known. It is of
an extraordinary height and bignefs when it bears
its bloflbm ; each fhoot or cane is often at the
bottom as large as a man's thigh, and decreafes
gradually to- the top, Vv-here it bears a bloflbm or
flower, like our reeds, in th.cir proper fcafon.
'J 'he br.niboe grows in all the maritime countries
of the Eaft-Indics. Its leaves are like thofe of the
other canes or reeds, but neither (b long nor fo
broad at their ba(e. With thefe bamboes the In-
dians build their houfes, and make all forts of fur-
niture, in a very ingenious manner. The wood is
fo hard and llrong, that they fcrve very well to
make piles for fupporting their little houfes, built
over rivers, or in plains eve: flowed at fome feafons
of the year with v/ater. They alio make with
this wood all forts of utenfils for their kitchens
and tables. The thickeft bamboes fervc to make
the fticks or poles with which the flaves or other
perfons carry thofe forts of litters which are called
palanquins, fo generally ufed in all the Eaft.
They alfo make of that wood a kind of pails, in
which the water keeps extremely cool.
BANANA-TREE, in botany, a fpecies of the
mula, • or plantain, growing plentifully in the
Weft and Eaft-Indies. This plant rifes with a
foft herbaceous ftalk, marked with dark purple
ftripcs and fpots, and grovv^s fifteen feet high and
upv.'ards : the lower part of the ftalk is often as
large as a man's thigh, diminifhing gradually to
the top, where the leaves come out on every fide :
thefe are often fix feet long, and above a foot wide.
The fruit is fix or feven inches long, and covered,
when ripe, with a yellow and tender flcin. It grows
on a ftalk which bears a bunch or clufter of bana-
nas ; when the bunch is gathered, they cut oiF the
ftalk, othcrwiie it would bear no more fruit.
The pulp of the fruit is very foft, and of a plea-
fant taftc, and is generally eaten in the hot coun-.
tries by v/ay of defert. It is faid to be very nou--
rifliing, to excite urine, and provoke to vcnery. •■
BAND, in a general feiifc, fome fmall, narrow
ligament, wherewith any thing is bound, tied, or
faftened. : ,
B.\KD, in architcfture, a general name for any
flat, low member, or moulding, that is broadj but'
not very deep. i
BAfiD of SsUiers, in military aflairs, thofe who
fight under the fame flag or enfign.
Band ef Pirficners, are a company of one hun-
dred and twenty gentlemen, who recei\e a yearly
allowance of one hundred pounds for attending on
his m::jcfty on folemn occafons.
Band is alfo the denomination of a military
order in Spain, inftituted by Alphoiaus XI. king
of Caftile, for the younger fons of the nobility,!
v/ho, before their adniiilion, muft ferve ten years,.
4 H at
BAN
at leaft, either in the army, or at court; anJ are
hound to take up aims for the catholic faith againll
the ijifidels.
Band, infurgery; fee Bandage.
Bandage, in furgery, a fillet, roller, fwathe,
&C. applied to any part of the body.
That bandages are very ufeful, and even necef-
ftry, for curing the diforders of the human bodv,
is evident, not only from the teflimonies of Hip-
pocrates, Galen, and other eminent phyficians,
but alfo from this, that there can fcarcely be any
operation, in furgery, performed fuccefsfully with-
out their affillance : for fliould a furgeon perform
an operation with the greatefc care," but mifcarry
in the application of the bandage, all his endea-
vours would be to no purpofe ; and more efpecial-
ly in the treatment of wounds, fraiSiures, luxa-
tions, and amputations : and we often find, that, in
fraftures and luxations, after a proper reduiStion of
the parts, the cure depends more on a fkilful ap-
plication of the bandage to the part affeded, than
on the medicines : and in the cafe of violent hse-
niorrhages, a proper application of the bandage
and compreiles proves the mofl: eflecSlual and fpeedy
remedy, as mud be acknowledged by every one
who has any fkill in furgery ; not to mention that
the applying and making a bandage, after a genteel
and ready manner, is jurtly reckoned among the
good qualifications of a furgeon, as it gains him
the efteem of the fpeclators, and the confidence of
his patient, which is of great influence in forward-
ing the cure ; for both the one and die other judge
of a furgcon's other abilities by his performance on
iuch occafions.
BANDALEER, or Bandeleer, in military
affairs, a largo leathern belt, thrown over the right
fhoulder, and hanging under the left arm ; worn
by the ancient muflcetcers, both for the fuibining
oi- their fire-arms, and for the carriage of their
mulket charges, which being .put up in little
wooden cafes, coated with leather, were hung, to
the number of twelve, to each bandaleer.
BANDELET, or Bandiet, in architedure,
any little band, or flat moulding, as that which
crowns the Doric architrave.
BANDEROLE, a little flag, in form of a gui-
don, extended more in length than breadth, ukd
to bo hung out en the mafts of vefll-ls, &c.
BANE-BERRIES; fee Act^-ea.
BANDITTI, a term peculiarly denoting com-
panies of highwaymen, common in Italy and
France ; but fometimes alfo uled, in a more gene-
ral fenfe, for robbers, pirates, out-lawed perfons,
ruffians. Sic.
BANIAN-DAYS, a cant-name given by fca-
men to tJiofe days in which they are allowed fome
other fpecies of provifion, as peafe, butter, cheefe,
&c. in the room of flefh-meat,.
BAN
BANIANS, a religious fe£t in the empire of the
Mogul, who believe a metempfychofis, and will
therefore eat no living creature, nor even kill no-
xious animals ; but endeavour to releafe them when
in the hands of others.
The Banians are faid to be fo fearful of havijig
communication with other nations, that they brealc
their cups, if one of a different religion has drank
out of them, or even touched them. It is faid,
that if they happen to touch one another, they
purify and wafli themfelves before they ear, or en-
ter their own houfes. They carry, hanging to
iheir necks, a ftone, called tamberane, as big as
an egg, and perforated in the middle, throun-h
which run three firings : this fione, they fay, re-
prefents their great god, and upon that account
they have great refpecl fliewn them by all the
Indians.
BANISHMENT, a kind of punilhment,
whereby the guilty perfon is obliged to leave the
realm.
There are two kinds of banifhment ; one volun-
tary, and upon oath ; the other upon compulfion, ,
for fome crime or offence : the former, properly:
called abjuration, is now ceafed ; the latter is chiefly
enjoined by judgment of parliament, or other
courts of juftice.
Ey Magna Charta, none fhall be outlawed, or
baniihed his country, but by lawful judgment of
his peers, according to the law of the land, ,
9 Hen. III. 29.
BANISTERIA, in botany, a genus of plants
producing papilionaceous flowers, and are natives
of feveral parts of the Weff-Indies : one of the
fpecies, which grows naturally in Jamaica, fends .
forth a woody i1:alk, which twifts itfelf round the
neighbouring trees, and raifes itfelf to their tops.
It is garniflied with leaves as large as thofe of the
bay- tree, and of the fame thicknefs, grov/ing op-
pofite in pairs ; the flowers are produced in long
branching fpikes at the ends of the branches, and
are of a yellow colour, coinpofed of five fmal!
leaves ; thefe are fucceeded by two or three winged ;
feeds, like thofe of the greater maple, from which
circumilance it has been called by fome the
climbing maple.
BANK, in commerce, a common repofitory,
where many perfons agree to keep their money,, to
be always ready at their call or direftion : or cer-
tain focieties or communities, who take the charge
of other people's money, either to improve it, or
to keep it fecure.
Bank, in hydrography, an elevation of the
ground or bottom of the fea,, that is oftca fo high
as to appear above the furfacc of the water, or at
leaft f J little below it, as not to permit a vefTcl to :
float over it.
In this fenfe, bank amounts nearly to the fame
8 as.
BAN
B A IsT
as fhallows, flats, &c. The fhclvcs (hnt have
rocks underwater, are diftinguiflicJ by other names,
as ridges, reefs, &c.
Banks are ufually marked by a beacon or buoy :
on charts, fajid-banks arc coinmonly marked by
little dots, and ridges of" rocks by erotics. The
principal banks in the Wellern Ocean arc, the
banks of Newfoundland, and the Bahama bank :
the chief of thofc at Newfoundland is called the
grand bank, which is of a vaft extent, being near-
ly two hundred and fifty miles in length, reaching
north and fouth ; its ufual depth is from twenty to
lifty fatlioms ; and this is the great fccne of the
cod-fifliery, which is lo capital an article in
European commerce.
An exact knowledge of the banks, their extent,
and the different depths of water on them, confti-
tutcs a very efl'ential portion of the fcience of a
pilcjt, or mafter of a Ihip. If the veffel be large,
and draw much water, great attention will be ne-
celiary to avoid the banks ; if, on the contrary, it
be fmall, the fame banks afford a fure afylum,
where it may brave the largeft rtiip, that dare not
follow it to fo dangerous a retreat. Many fmall
vcflels have efcaped the purfuit of their enemy, by
means of this hoipitable barrier.
BANKER, a pcrfon who trafficks and negotiates
in money ; who receives and remit^i money from
place to place by commiflion from correfpondents,
or by means of bills or letters of exchani^e.
B.^NKER, in bricklaying, a piece of timber where-
on they cut the bricks.
The hanker is fix feet long, or more, accord-
ing to the number of men to work at it, and nine
or ten inclies fquare: it is to be laid on two
piers of timber, three feet high from the floor they
ffand on.
BANKING, the making of banks to oppofc
the force of the fea, rivers, or the like, and fecure
the land from being overflowed thereby.
With relpecl to the water which is to be kept
out, this is called banking ; with refpecf to the
land, which is thereby to he defended, imbank-
itig.
Banking, in a fait work, the raifing a fence
againil the fea, whereby its waters may he kept
out, excepting fo much as is neccffary for the pre-
-paration of the lalt.
BANKRUPT, any pcrfon, either man or wo-
man, that by trading hath gotten other perfons
goods into his or her hands, and concealcth hlm-
felf from his creditors. It is not biiving cr felling
of lands, but of perfonal things, that will make
a perfon liable to be a bankrupt ; nor is it buying
only, but both. Every one that gets his liveli-
hood by buying and felling in trade, mav fall un-
der a ftate of bankruptcy upon his failing: but
adventurers in the Eaff- India company, members
of .the bank of Eugland, or of the South-fca com-
pany, fball not be adjudged bankrupts, in rffpcft
of their ftock : alfo no perfon concerned as re-
ceiver-general of the taxes, &c. Ihall be a bank-
rupt. If a merchant gives o\er trade, and fome
years after becomes not folvcnt for money owed
while a merchant, he is a bankrupt ; but if for
new debts continued on nev/ fecurity, it is other-
wife.
BANKRUPTCY, the failure, abfconding, and
relinquiftiing of traffic in a merchant, a banker,
or any other trader. See the article Bankrupt.
The French make, this difference between a
bankruptcy and a faihn-e, that the firft is fuppofed
voluntary and fraudulent, and the latter conflrained
and neceflary, by means of accidents, &c. A
failing, breaking, or flopping of payment, di-
minifhes the merchant's credit; but does not note
him with infamy, as bankruptcy does.
When a merchant fails to appear at the Ex-
change, without apparent reafon, it is called a
failing of p-.efcncc : the bankruptcy becomes open
from the day he abfconds, or the feal is affixed to
his effe^ils.
BANN, or Ban, Bamium^ or Bdnnus, in the
feudal law, a folemn proclamation or publication
of any thing. Hence the cuftom of afking, or
bans, beibrc marriage.
Banx, in military affairs, a proclamation made
in the army by beat of drum, found of trumpet,
&c. requiring the ftriiSb obt'ervance of difcipline,
either for the declaring a new officer, or punifliing
an offender.
Bann of the Empire,. an imperial profcription,
being a judicial piuiifhment, wherewith fuch as
are acceffory to diflurbing the public peace, arc
judged unworthy of the immunities and protec-
tion of the empire, and are outlawed or baniflied,
kc.
BANNER denotes either a fquare fl.ig, or the ■
principal ftandard belonging to a prince.
We find a multiplicity of opinions concerning
the etyiyiology of the word banner ; fome deriving
it from the Latin l>a>iniim, a band or flag ; others,
again, from the German ban, a field or tenement,
becaufe landed men alone were allowed a banner ; .
and, finally, there are fome who think it is a cor-
ntption of patmicre, from pamws, cloth, becaufe
banners v^'cre originally made of cloth.
BANNERE1\ an ancient order of knights, or.'
feudal lords, who poffcfling feveral large fees, led ■
their vaffals to battle under their own flag, when
fummoned thei'cto by the king.
This order is certainly moff honourable, as it
never was conferred but upon fome heroic adtion
performed in the field. Anciently there being but
two kinds of knights, great and little, the firff
were called bannerets, the fccond batchelors ; the
firft compofeJ the upper, and the fecond the middle
nobiUty.
In:-
B A F
In I'nuice they arc faid to tranlmit their lifgrue
to their polkrity : but in -England it .cires with
•them. We have had none of tiiis' order created in
England, fincc the tim&of king Charles L fa that
.'this order is irow become extinct. among jusIs -ciu-Ji
The form of the bairncret's. creatioiirvrasrtihis ;
■on a day of battle, .the candidutc prel'ented .'hisilag
to the king, or general, who cutting oW the train,
or fkirt thereof, and making it.a.fc).i:are, x£.turned it
Again ; the proper banner of bannerets, who, from
hence, are fometiinei called knii^hts of the Square
/flag. : _ . ^ : .;a.
BANQUET, in the manege, that iinall part of
the branch of a bridle that is under the eye, .which
being rounded like a fmall rod, gathers and; joins
•the extremities of the bitt to the branch, and that
in fuch a manner, that the banquet is not feen, but
covered by the cope, or that part of the bitt that
is next'tlie branch.
Banquet Liiia, an imaginary line drawn in
making a bit't along the banquet,, and prolonged
up or down 'to adjull the defighcd' force or weak -
nefs of the branch, in order to make it ftiff or
eafy.
iJ.ANQUET, or Banquette, in fortification, a
little foot bank, or elevation of earth, forming a
path, which runs along the infide^of a parapet,
upon which the mulketeers get up. in order to dif-
cover the counterfcarp, or to fire on the enemy in
the moat, or in the covert-way.
BANTAM-WORK, a kind of Indian paint-
ing, and carving on wood, refembling Japan work,
only more gay, and decorated .with .a great variety
cf gaudy colours. :r.' <- i ..■;'., .. -. • f!
BAPTISM, in theology, the ceremony of. wafli-
ing ; or a facrament whereby a perfon is adiiiitt'ed
iiUo the Chriflian church. ;; .j..- ji'.'
The word is formed from the Greek, ^i-s-'j/^vj;,
of liti-TJa, to dip, or wafh. ''■-.'
In the primitive Chrilfian church, the ofEce of
bnptifmg was vefted principally in the bifliops, and
priefts, or pallors of the refpecfive parifhes, : butj
vvitli the confent of the bifliop, it was ailoBned to.
the deacons, and, in cafes of nfeceffity,, even to:
laymen, to baptife ; but never, under any necelTity
whatever, was it permitted to Women to. perform
this office. Nor was it enough, that baptinn wa.s
conferred byaperfon called to the minifiiy, unlefs he
was alfo orthodox in the faith. This became mat-
ter of great budle in the church ; and hence arofe
the famous controverfy between Cyprian and
Stephen bifhop of Rome, concerning the re-bap-
tifmg thofe who had been baptifed by heretics,
Cyprian aflerting that they ought to be re-baptifed,
and Stephen maintaining the contrary opinion.
B-.PTISMAL, fomething belonging to bap-
tifm ; thus we fay, baptifmal vov/, fonts, . pre-
fents, &c.
BAPTISTS, in church hiftory, the name by
BAR
which tlu- anabaptifls lo\'e to'diftinguifh themfel\e=.
See An'abaptists.
By\PTISTERY, the place in which the cere-
n;onyi of baptifm is performed. I .:
,■ liAR;^ '..in, a general .fenfe, idtdiotes .a flcnuer
piece of wood oi' ir6n for keeping things.-elofe to-
gether. ■ ::fi ., - .!■ ! "i-fj:
!Bar, in courts: of juffice,. an' inclofure made
with a ib'ong partition of timber, where the coun-
cil arc placed to plead caufcs. It is alfo applied to
the benches^ v/here the lawyers or advociites are
feated, bccaufe anciently there was a bar to fepa-
r.ate the pleaders from the attornies, and others.
Hence: our. lavvyers who are called to the bar,
or liccnfcd to plead, are termed barrifters, :aa
appellation equivalent to licentiate in other coun-
tries. ■
Bar, in law, a plea of a defendant v/hicli
is faid to be fufficient to deftroy the plaintiff's
aftion.
Bar, in heraldry, an ordinary refembling the
fefs, but much fmalier.
It differs from the fefs only in its narrowncfs.
The fefs is alio confined to a fingle place, whereas
the bar may be placed in any part of the ihicld.
Bar, in horfemanfhip, implies the higheft part
of a horfc's mouth, between the grinders and
tufhes, that part only which lies under and at the
fide of the bars, retaining the name of gum.
Bar, in mufic, a flroke drawn, perpendicularly
acrofs the lines of a piece of mufic, including,
between every two bars, a certain quantity, or
meafure of time, which is dificrtnt, according
as the mufic is either triple or common. In the
former the meafure »f tlu.ee crotchets is included,
i a tlje. latter four. :' The principal ufe of bars is to
regulate the beating of time.
Bar, iji hydrography, iafhoal, or bank of fand,
gravel, &c. fituatcd at the; mouth of a river or
linrbour, v.'hich frequently endangers, and ibme-
rimes totally prevents the navigation.
Bars of a Capftan ; fee the article Capstan. ,
BAR-AIASTER, among miners, the peffon
who keeps the difh, or gage, for meafuring the
ores.
Bar-Shot. See Shot.
BARACKS. See Barracks.
BARALIPTON, among logicians, the firfl:
indirect mode of the firft figure of a fvlloeifm.
When the two propofitions are general, and
the third particulai", the middle term being the fiib-
]tSi in the firfl: propofition, and the predicate in the
fecond, the fyllogifm is faid to be in baralipton.
The following is of this kind :
B A. Every evil ought to be feared ;
R A. Every violent pafiion is an evil ;
LIP. Therefore fomething that ought to be
feared is a violent paffion,
BARA-
BAR
BARALOl'TS, Baralctti, a fed of heretics at
! Bologna in Italy, .imong whom all things, even
their wives and children, were in common. They
were alio called ohedicnts, or compliers, bccaufe
they readily complied with every thing that tended .
to promote debauchery.
BARI'A fozirs, Jupiter's beard, in botany, (or
the fdver-bufli, fo called from the vvliitcnels of its
Jeaves) is a fhrub which often grows ten or twelve
feet high, and divides into many lateral branches,
which arc furnifhed with winged leaves, compofed
of an equal number of narrow lobes, which are
very white and hairy. The flowers, which are papi-
lionaceous, arc produced at the extremity of the
branches, collected into fmall heads, of a bright
yellow colour, and appear in June ; thefe are fuc-
ceeded by fliort woolly pods, containing two or
three kidney-fhaped ieeds. This plant is increafed
by feeds or cuttings ; but being fomcv/hat tender,
it requires flielter in winter in this climate.
BARBACAN, or Barbican, properly figni-
fies the outer wall, or exterior defence of a city or
fbrtrefs.
Barbac."lN alfo implies a fort at the entrance of
a bridge, or in the out-let of a city, . having a
double wall with towers.
It likewife denotes an aperture made in the walls
of a fortrefs, to fire through upon the enemy. .
Barbacan, in architeiture, is a canal or open-
ing left in the wall, in order to give room for the
water to run in and out, when buildings are erefl-
cd in places liable to be overflowed, &c.
BARBADOES-TAR, Petroleum Barhadsvfi, in
the materia medica, a fluid bitumen, or mineral
oil, of a reddifh colour, and thick confiftence,
approaching to that of treacle, or common tar.
It is found in feveral of our American dominions,
efpecially iir that ifland from which it receives its
name.
This bitumen is greatly efteemed by tlie Ameri-
cans as a fudorific, and frequently given in difor-
ders of the breaft. It is alfo ufed as an external
difcutient and antiparalytic.
BARBARA, in logic, is a name 2-iven by the
fchoolmen to the firft mode of the hrll figure of
fvUogifms.
A fyllogifm in barbara ;. is that whofe propo-
fitions are all univerfal and affirmative; the middle
term being the fuhjeiff: of the firft propofition, and
the attribute in the fecond : as.
Bar. Every wicked man is miferable;
li A. All tyrants are wicked men ;
R A. Therefore all tyrants are miferalle.
BARBARISM, in grammar, an offence againfl
the purity of flyle or language ; or a hard and
coarfe exprefnon, never ufed by polite authors.
BAR BE, a name ufually given to a Barbary
16
BAR
horfc, greatly cReemcd for its beauty and fwift-
nefs.
Barbe, in the military art, is a term applied to
the firing of cannon. Thus, to fire in barbe, is to
fire the cannon over the parapet, inikad of firing
through the cmbrafurcs. The parapet nuiit not be
above threefeet and a half high, otherwife it will be
impoflible to fire in this manner.
Barbk, among our anceflors, fignified the ar-
mour of a knight's horfe.
BARBEL, Barents^ the name of a river fifh,
and fo called from its having a barb or beard under
its nofe.
BARBERY, in botany; fee Berbeius.
BARBLES, or Bares, in farriery, are fmall
excrefcences under the tongue, and which may b&
difcovered by drawing it afide, and cured by cut-
ting them clofe off, and wafhing the part with
, brandy, or fait and water.
BARCALAO, a fpecies of cod refembling that
of Newfoundland, caught in feveral parts of the
South-fea, particularly on the coaft of the ifland of
Juan Fernandes.
BARCA-LONGA, a fmall coaRing vefTcl, na-
vigated on, the coalt of Spain : it is equipped with
two, and fometimes three pole-mafls, z. e. mails
that have no top-maft or upper-part, and long
fquare fails, called lug-fails.
BARD, a poet among the ancient Gauls and
Britons, who fung the praifes of heroes, in order
to recommend virtue, and compofe tlie diffenfions
among mankind.
BARDANA, in botany. See Arctium.
BARDESANITES, in ecclefiaftical hiftory, a
feiS of heretics in the fecond century, the fol-
lowers of Bardefanes, a native of EdefTa, in Mefo-
potamia.
They held the devil to be a felf-exiflent inde-
pendant Being ; and taught that Chrilt was not
born of a woman, but brought his body with him
from heaven ; maintained that God himfelf was
fubje£t to fate ; and that virtue and vice depended
on the influence of the ftars.
BARGAIN, in commerce, a contraiSt or agree-
ment in buying and felling.
Bargain a>ul Sale, inlaw, is properly a con-
tra6f, made of manors, lands, and other things,
transferring the property thereof from the bar-
gainer to the bargainee, for a confideration in
money.
BARGE, in the marine, a veflel or boat of
ftate, curioufly decorated, furniflied with elegant
apartments, canopies, and cufhiops, equipped with
a band of rowers, and adorned v.'ith flags and
ftream.ers : they are generally ufed for proceffions
on the water by noblemen, officers of ffate, or
magiftrates of great cities. Of this kind we may
with great probability fuppofe the famous barge or
4 L galley
BAR
BAR
palley of Cleopatra, fo elegantly painted by Shake-
fpeare, which, as it is fo clofely conne6led with
our fubjecl, that is, fo beautifully illuftrated by
it, we fliall partly infert :
The barge flie fat in, like a burnifhed throne,
Burnt on the water ; the poop was beaten gold,
Purple her fails, and fo perfum'd, that
The winds were love-fick with 'em ; the oars
were lilver.
Which to the tune of flutes keptftroke, and made
The water which they beat, to follow fafler.
As amorous of their Itrokes ....
on each fide her
Stood pretty dimpled boys, like fmiling Cupids,
'With divers-colour'd fans, whofe wind did feem
To glow the delicate cheeks which they did cool,
And what they undid, did . . , .
At the helm
A feeming mermaid (reer'd : the fdken tackles
S well'd with the touches of thofe flower- foft haiids
That yarely fram'd their office. From- the barge
A {Irange invifible perfume hit the fenfe
■ Of the adjacent wharfs.
There are likewife other barges of a fmaller
■ kind and a lighter frame, for admirals and cap-
tains of fhips of war, calculated to be eafdyhoifled
into and out of tlie fnips to which they may
belong.
Barges are alfo large P.at-bottomcd veirds of
burthen, for lading and difcharging lliips, and re-
moving their cargoes -in a harbour. See Lighter,
Frame, Keel.
Barge-Couples, in architefture, a beam mor-
tifed into another, to frrengthen the building.
Barge-Course, with bricklayers, implies that
part of the tiling which projects over without the
, principal rafters, in all forts of buildings whete there
is either a gabel-end, or a kirkin-head.
BARILLA, a fpecies -of pot-afli, fom.etimcs
called foda, and prepared in Spain from a plant
■called kali. See Kali.
BARING of Trees, in agriculture^ See Abla-
'QUEATION.
BARK, Cortex, the exterior part of trees, ferv-
ing them for a fkin or covering. There are two
barks belonging to every tree, the outward one,
CTsWt&cortex, and the inward one, called liber ; which
latter, being placed between the outward bark and
the wood, comes neareft to the nature of the
wood, and in time pafTes into it, by a fucceffive
mutation of the cortex into liber, and the liber into
wood. The outward bark is generally of a fpongy
texture, and comir.unicatcs with the pith by a mul-
tiplicity of fmall fibres, paffing through the capil-
lary tubes of which .the wood confifts ; fo tiiat
•the roots having imbibed the proper nourishment
of the tree, it is carried up by the warmth of the
fun, through the fine arterial veffels of the tree-,
to the top of it, and being there condenfed by
the cold, it does, by its own gravity, return down
by the vefills which lie between the wood and the
inner bark, which perform the office of veins,
and as it palTes bv, lea\es fuch parts of its juice
as the texture of the bark will receive, and requires
for its fupport.
The bark ferves for divers purpofes ; for it not
only tranfmits the nutritious juices of the plants, but
alfo contains divers fat oily humours, to defend
the inner parts from the injuries of the weather.
As animals are furnifhtd with a pannkulus adipofus,,
ufually replete with fat, which inverts and covers
all the flelhy parts, and I'crecns them from external
cold ; fo are plants encompafTed with a bark re-
plete with fat juices, by means whereof the cold is
kept out, and in winter time, the fpiculje of ice
prevented from fixing and freezing the juices iu
their veffels ; whence it is, that fome fort of trees
remain e\er-2reen throughout the year, by reafon
their barks are more compadt, and contain a
larger quantity of oil than can be fpent and ex-
haled by the fun. The antients wrote their books
on bark, efpecially of the afh or lime-tree, not
on the exterior, but on the inner and finer bark.
There are many kinds of harks in ufe in feveral
arts ; as the oak-bark for tanning leather, which
when it has done that office, is fit for ufe in
hot-houfes, &c. and alfo for firing. Some barks
are ufed in medicine, as the jefuit's-bark, mace,
&c. and others for divers purpofes, as the bark of
the cork-tree : in the Eaft-Indies, they fpin the
bark of a certain tree into a fluff; they likewife
mix it with filk in manufadluring of fi:uffs which
go under different denominations.
Jt'fuits Bark. See the article Quinquina.
Bark, in the marine, a general name gi\'en to
fmall fliips : it is however peculiarly appropriated
to thofe that carry three mafts and no mizen-top-
fail. Our northern fcamen who navigate the col-
liers, give this diftiniiion to a broad-llerned fhip
which carries no ornamental figure on the ftern,
or prow. ^
BARKING of Trees, the peeling off the rind
or bark.
It is neceffary in our climate, to perform this
operation in the month of May; becaufe in that
month the bark will more readily feparatc from the
wood, than at any other time of the year.
BARLEY, //a;-a'.z,7;;, in botany, a gramineous,
frumentaceous plant, whofe feeds are of the larger
1 fort, covered with a hufk growing in a fpike, and
the grains bearded. Barley, properly dried into malt
and ground, makes a pruicipal ingredient in that
well known liquor called beer and ale, for which
purpofe it is greatly propagated in England,
The
BAR
The culture of barley is to Tow the feed in the
fpring of the year ; if the land is light and dry, the
beginning of March is the proper fcafon ; but in
Ifrong clayey foils, it fhoiild not be fown till April,
and fometimes not till the beginning of May ; but
when it is fown fo late, it requires a favourable
autumn to get it well rn. Some fow barley upon
land where wheat grew the former year ; but when
this is praiflifcd, the ground fhould be ploughed
the beginning of October, in a dry time, laying it
in fmall ridges, that the froft may mellow it the
better, and this will much improve the land ; and
if it is ploughed again in January or February, it
will ftill ,be more advantageous : in A'larch the
ground fhould be ploughed again and laid flat,
where it is not very wet ; but in ftrong wet lands
the ground fhould be laid rounding, and the fur-
rows made deep to receive the water. When this
is hnifhed, the common method is to fow the feed
with a broad calt, at two ibwings ; the firll being
harrowed in once, and the fecond harrowed until
the feed is buried. The common allowance of
feed is four bufhels to an acre : this is the quan-
tity of grain ufually Town by the farmers ; but if
they could be prevailed on to alter this pradfice,
they would foon find their account in it, for if Icfs
than half that quantity were fown, there would be a
greater produce, and the corn ki's liable -to lodge
(which has been proved by experience) ; for when
corn, or any other vegetables, Hand very clofe to
each other, the flalks are drawn up very weak,
and are therefore incapable to refiit the force of the
winds, or bear up under heavy rains ; but when
they are at a proper diftance, their {talks will be
more than twice the fize of the others, and confe-
quently muft fupport thcmfelves with more flrength ;
toi the natural growth ot corn is to fend out many
Ifalks from a root, and not rife fo much in height,
therefore it is entirely owing to the roots ilanding
too near each other, that the llalks are drawn up
tall and weak. Wben barley is fown, the ground
fhould be rolled after tlie firft fnower of rain, to
break the clods and lay the earth fmooth, which
will render it better to mow, and caufe the earth
to lie clofer to the roots, whicli will be of great
fervice to it in dry v/cather. Where barley is to be
fown upon newbroken-up land, the ufual method
is to plough it up in March, and let it lay fallow
until June; at v/hich time it fliould be ploughed
again and fown with turnips, which arc eaten by
flieep in winter, by whofc dung the land is greatly
enriched : in Adarch following the ground is
ploughed again, and fown with barley, as before
directed. There arc many people who fow clover
with their barley, and fome have fown lucern ; but
neither of thefe methods is to be commended, for
w here there is a good crop of barley, the clover or
lucern muft he fo v/eak as not to pay for flanding ;
fo that the better way is, to few barley v/ithout
BAR
any other crop among it, for when the barley is
taken off the ground, th- land will be at liberty to
receive any other crop.
The practice of fcwing clover, rye-grafs, and
other grafs feeds with corn, has been fo long and
univerlally eftabliftied among farmers, that there is
little hopes of prevailing with thofe people to alter
a cuftom which has been handed down to them
from their predeccfTors, although there may be
many examples produced to Ihew the abfurdity of
this pradicc.
When barley has been up three weeks or a
month, it is not amiis to roll it over with a weigh-
ty roller, which 'will prels the earth clofe to 1he
roots, and thereby prevent the fun and air from
penetrating the ground, which will be of lingular
fervice in dry feafons, particularly where the'land
is light ; and this rolling of it before it ftalks, will
caufe the roots to produce a greater number of
ftems ; fo that if the plants fhould be thin, this
operation will make them fpread fo as to fill the
ground, and likewife flrengthen the ftalks.
Barley^ is fit to cut when the red colour of the
ears is olf, the ftalks turn yellow, and the ears
begin to hang down. In the north of England
they always reap their barley, and make it up in
fheaves, as is pra(Stifed for wheat, by which me-
thod it becom;s more handy for {tacking, and lefs
corn is wafted than by the com.mon way of mov/-
ing iti but it cannot be fo well pradtifed where
there are many weeds among the corn, efpecially
in nioilt ieafons ; for when it lb happens, the bar-
ley muit lay in the fwarth till all the weeds a.'e
d-ad ; :uid if it fhould be wet weather, it muft be
{hook up, and turned every drv day after rain, to
prevent its fprouting. When it is carried to be
Itacked, it fhould be thoroughly dry ; for if it be
ftacked wet, it will turn mufty;'or if too green,' it
is fubject to burn in the mow: to prevent which,
the bell method is to cut a hole from top to bottom
in the middle of the mow ; or if it is fufpeded 'be-
fore ftacking, to lay in tlie middle ibnie trufles ■of
ftraw, at the .tin\e of building the mow, which can
be readily removed if it is likely to iire. The
common produce of barley is two and a half, or
three quarters on an acre.
Commoji Engliili ba.'-Jey is feldom or never ufed
medicinally; befides its nutritive \irtues, in which
it agrees with all other grain of the like kind, it
is reckoned to have fomewhat more abfterfive in it ;
for v/hich re:ifon, thofe who are not accuftomed to
eat barley bread, (of wliich it makes the v/orft fort)
will fijid it at iirft to operate with them like a
gentle cathartic. It is very probable, that a change
from a finer and more nourifhing bread to this,
would in many coipulent conftitutions.be of
great fervice, by reducing their exorbitant bulks,
and cleanfing the fecretory pallligcs.
Eajii.ey-Corn, the Icafl long-meafure known
HI
BAR
in England ; it is equal to one tixird ot iui
Jiiclx.
BARNABITES, in ecdefiaflical hiftoty, a .re-
ligious Older founded in .the fixteenth ceittury by
fatee. Italian gentlcmsx!, who had been ad vi fed by
:■. tamou-s preacher of thafe.days, to read carefully
•the epiitles of St. Paul ; and kence they were fti led
cleriis cf.St. Paul ; but acquired the nanjc of Bar-
nabit<s. from tb.eir performing their firft cxcrcife in
the churcJi of St. Earnabas.at Milan. Their habit
it, black, and their duty confdls in inftructing, ca-
techiliiig, and ferving in m'iflion.
BAPvNICLE, or foland goofe, in natural hif-
tory, a fpecies of goofe with a black beak, whidi is
much fnortfr than that of the common goofe. It
is common in the north of Scotland.
Barnici.e alfo fignifies a fpecies of fliell-fifh,.
r.ften found iHcking to die bottoms of iliips,,
rocks, &C-.
Barnici-ES, among farriers, an inilrument com-
pofcd of two branches, joined at one of the extre-
mities with a hinge. It is put upon the nofe of a
horfc, v.'hen he will not otherwife ftand quiet to be
ihod, blooded, ordreffed.
ij.AROCO, in logic, implies the fourth mode of
the fecond figure of fyllogifms.
A fyllogifm in baroco has the firft propofition
univerfal and affirmative ; but the fecond and third,
particular and negative ; while the middle term is
the predicate in the two firft propofitions. The
following is of this kind :
B A. Every virtue is attended with difcre-
tion :
I?, o. Some kinds of zeal are not attended -with
difcretion ;
c 0. Therefore fome kinds of zeal are not vir-
tues.
BAROMETER, an inftrument with which v.-e
iind the weight and variations of the atmofphere,
in order to deterniine the changes of die wea-
ther.
In the beginning of the laft century, it was a
prevailing opinion among philofophers, that the
univerfe v/as full of matter ; and that Nature (as
they exprefled it) abhorred a vacuum : accordingly
they imagined, diat if a fluid was fucked up a pipe
with a fufficient force, it v/ould rife to any height
whatever ; fince Nature would nut fuifer any
part of the pipe to remain empty. Gaiilso, who
fiourifhed about that time, found upon trial, that
the common pump would not raife water, unlefs
the fucker reached within three and thirty feet of
its furface in the well : from hence he judicioufly
inferred, that a column of water thirty-three feet
high was a counterpoife to a column of air of an
equal kife, whofe height extended to the top of the
atmofphere ; and that, for this reafon, the water
would not follow the fucker any f^-jdier. Torri-
BAR
cclli, obferving this, took the iiiut; and confidcr-
cd, that if a column of water of about thirty-three
feet, was equal in weight to a column of air of
the lame bale ; a CQlumn of mercury, no longer
than about twenty-jiine inches.and.a half, would be
fo too J luch a column of mercury being as heavy
.as thiity-thr^e feet of wat9J\ Accordingly he tritd
the experiment in a glafs-tube, and found it to fuc-
cecd. The apparatus he made ufe of is now the
common barometer, -or weather-giafs..
The mercury itanding at a lefs height, the
nearer it is, earned to the top of the atmofphere,,
renders it ufeful in determining the height o^'
mountains, and finding out die different eleva-
tion, of one place above another. Accordingly, Dr.
Halley has given a table for that purpofe, in the
Philofophical Tranfaclions, N". i8i, ihewing how
many ket the defcent of the mercury eacli inch
anlwers to, as it js conveyed to the top of a moun-
tain, or other elevated place. And Dr. Nectletoi!
has done the like in the Philofophical Tranfac-
tions, N°. 388, fliewing what number, of feet an-
fwers to each tenth part of an inch, from twenty-
fix to thirty-one inches of mercury.
But the principal ufe of it is, to eftimatethe gra-
vity of the air at different times, in order to fore-
fee the alterations of the weather, which are con-
fequent diereon. To this end. Dr. Halley in the
fame tranfadfion has alfo laid down the more re-
markable phaenomena, relating to die different
heights of the mercury at different times, together
with the folution of each ; which are fo juft, and
fo agreeable to true philofophv, that we doubt not
but the reader will excufe us for giving his ac-
count in his own words, rather than to render it
imperfecl:, by endeavouring to vary from it, or
abridge it.
" I. In calm weather, when the air is inclined to
" rain, the m.ercury is commonly low.
" 2.. In ferene, good, fettled weather, the mer-
" ciu'v is generally high.
" 3. Upon very great v.'inds, though they be
" not accompanied with rain, th.e mercury links
" lowell- of all, with relation "to the point of the
" compafs the wind blows upon..
" 4. Ceteris paribus, the greateft heights of rhs
" mercury are found upon ealterly and north-eai-
" terly winds..
" 5. In calm frofty weather, the mercury ge-
'' nerally Hands high.
" 6. After very great {forms of wind, when
" the m.ercury has been low, it generally rifes again
" very faff.
" 7. The more northerly places have greater.
" alterations of the barometer, than the more fou-
" therly. ',
" 8. Within the tropics, and near them, thofe
" accounts we ha\e had from others, and my owa
" obfervations at St. Helena, make very little or
•3 *'^ no.
BAR
BAR
" no variation of the height of the mercury in all
♦' weathers.
" Hence I conceive that the principal caufe of
" the rife and fall of the mercury, is from the va-
" riable winds, which are found in the temperate
" zone, and whofe great inconflancy, here in
'' England, is moft notorious.
" A fecond caufe is the uncertain exhalation and
" precipitation of the vapours lodging in the air,
" whereby it comes to be at one time much more
" crouded than at another, and confequently hea-
" vier, but this latter in a great mcafure depends
" upon the former. Now, from thefe principles, I
" fhall endea\our to explicate the fexcral phsno-
" mena of the barometer, taking them in the fame
" order I laid them down. Thus :
" I. The mercury's being low, inclines it to
" rain, becaufe the air being light, the vapours
'' r.re no longer fupported thereby, being become
'' fpecifically heavier than the medium v/herein
" they floated, fo that they defcend towards the
" earth, and in their fall, meeting with other aque-
" ous particles, they incorporate together, and
'' form little drops of rain ; but the mercury's be-
" ing at one time lower than at another, is the ef-
" feCt of two contrary winds blowing from the
" place where the barometer ftands, whereby
'' the air of that place is carried both ways from
" it, and, confecjuently, the incumbent cylinder
" of ai,r is diminiflied, and accordingly the mcr-
" cury fmks : as for inftance, if in the German
" ocean it fhould blow a gale of wefterly wind,
" and at the fame time an eafterly wind in the
" Irifli fea ; or if in France it fliould blow a nor-
'' therly wind, and in Scotland a foutherly ; it
••' mull: be granted, that that part of the atmo-
" fphere impendent over England, would thereby
" be cxhaulied and attenuated, and the mercury
" woulil lubfide, and the vapours, which before
" floated in thofe parts of the air of equal gravity
" with thcmfelvcs, would fink to the earth.
" 2. The greater height of the barometer is oc-
" calioftcd by two contrary winds blowing towards
" the place of obfervation, whereby the air of other
" places is brought thither and accumulated ; fo
" that the incumbent cylinderof air, being increafed
" both in height and v/eight, the mercury preiTed
" thereby mull: needs ftand high, as long as
" the winds continue fo to blow; and then the
" air being fpecifically heavier, the vapours are
" better kept fufpendcd, fo that they have no in-
" clination to precipitate and fall dovv-n in drops,
" which is the reafon of the ferene good weather
" which attends the greater heights of the
' ' mercury.
" 3. The mercury finks die lowell of all by the
" very rapid m.otion of the air in ftorms of wind.
♦' For the traft or regioh of the earth's furface,
" wherein the winds rage, not extendins; all
ID
" round the globe, that ftagnant air which is left
" behind, as likewife that on the fides, cannot
" come in fo faft as to fupply the evacuation
" made by fo fwift a current, fo that the air mud
" ncceffarily be attenuated, when and where the
" faid winds continue to blow, and that more or
" lefs, according to their violence ; add to which,
" that the horizontal motion of the air being fo
" quick as it is, may, in all probability, take off
" fome part of the perpendicular preflure thereof;
" and the great agitation of its particles is the rea-
" fon why the vapours are diffipated, and do not
" condenfe into drops, fo as to form rain, other-
" wife the natural confequence of the air's rare-
" fadion.
" 4. The mercury flands the higheft: upon the
" eaftcrly and north-eafterly wind, becaufe in the
" great Atlantic ocean, ori this fide the thirty-fifth
" degree of north latitude, the winds are almoii: al-
" ways wefterly or fouth-wellerly ; fo that when-
" ever here the winds come up at eafl and north-
" eaft, 'tis fure to be checked by a contrary gale
" as foon as it reaches the ocean ; wherefore, ac-
" cording to what is made out in our fecond re-
" mark, the air mufl: needs be heaped over this
" i.Hand, and confequently the mercury muft iland
" high, as often as thefe v/inds blow. This holds
" true in this country, but is not a general rule for
" others, v/here the winds are under different cir-
" cumftances ; and I have fometimes feen the
" mercury here as low as twenty-nine inches
" upon an eafterly wind, but then it blew ex-
" ceeding hard, and fo comes to be accounted
" for, by what was obferved upon the third re-
" mark.
" 5. In calm frofty weather the mercury gene-
" rally ftands high, becaufe (as I conceive) itfel-
" dom freezes, but when the winds com.e out of
" the northern or north-eaftern quarters ; or, at
" Icafl-, unlefs thofe winds blow at no great dif-
" tance off: for the north parts of (jermany,
" Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and all that tract
" from whence the north-eaftern winds come, are
" fuhjeil: to almoft continual froft all the winter ;
" and thereby the lower air is very much conJenf-
" ed, and in that ftate is brought tliitherwards by
" thofe winds, and being accumulated by the op-
" pofition of the wefterly wind blowing in the
" Ocean, the mercury muft needs be preiled to a
" more than ordinary height ; and, as a concur-
" ring caufe', the fiirinking of the lower parts of
" the air into leffer room by cold, muft needs caufe
" a defcent of the upper part" of the atmofphere, to
" reduce the cavity made by this contraction to aa
" equilibrium.
" 6. After great ftorms, when the mercury has
" been very low, it generally rifes again very faft:
" I once obferved it to rife one inch and an half
" in lefs than fix hours, after a long-continued
4K
ftorni
cc
BAR
" florm of fouth-weft wind. The reafon is, bc-
" caufe the air being very much rarefied, by the
" great evacuations wliich fuch continued ftorms
" make thereof, the neighbouring air runs in the
" more fvviftly, to bring.it to an equilibrium; as
" we fee water runs the fafter for having a greater
" declivity.
" 7. The variations are greater in the more
" northerly places, as at Stockholm, greater than
" that at Paris (comparsd by M. Pafchal;) be-
" caufe the more northerly parts have ufually
" greater rtorms of wind than the more foutherly,
" whereby the mercury fhould iink lower in th.it
extreme; and then the northerly winds bringing-
the more denfe and ponderous air from the
" neighbourhood of the Pole, and that again bc-
" ing checked by a foutherly wind at no great dif-
" tance, and fo heaped, muft of neceffity make
" the mercury in fuch cafe Hand higher in the
" other extrem.c.
" 8. Laftly, this remark. That there is little or
" no variation near the equinoi5t:ial, docs above all
" others confirm the hypothefis of the variable
" winds being the caufe of thefe variations of
" the height of the mercury; for in the places
" above-named there is always an eafy gale of wind
" blowing nearly upon the fame point, viz. eafi:-
" north-eaft, arBarbadoes, and eaft-fouth-eaft at
*' St. Helena, fo that there being no contrary cur-
" rents of air to exhaufl: or accumulate it, the at-
" mofphere continues much in the fame ftate :
" however, upon hurricanes (the moft violent of
" ftorms) the mercury has been obferved very low,
" but this is but once in two or three years,
" and it foon recovers its fettled flate, about
*' 29 i inches."
Monfieur Leibnitz accounted for the defcent of
the mercury before rain, upon another principle,
viz. as a body fpecifically lighter than a fluid, while
it is fufpended by it, adds more weight to that fluid,
than when, by being reduced in its bulk, it becomes
fpecifically heavier, and defcends ; fo the vapour,
after it is reduced into the form of clouds, and
defcends, adds lefs weight to the air than before ;
and therefore the mercury falls. To v/hich it is
anfwercd, iftjThat when a body defcends in a fluid,
its motion in a very little time becomes uniform,
(or nearly fo) a farther acceleration of it being pre-
vented by the refiftance of the fluid ; and then, by
the third law of nature, it prefles the fluid, down-
wards, with a force equal to that whereby it tends
to be fj.rther accelerated, that is, with a force equal
to its whole weight, adly, The mercury, by its
dcfccnt, foreteJs rain a much longer time before it
comes, than the vapour, after it is condcnfed into
clouds, can be fuppofed to take up in falling.
3dly, Suppofing that as m.any vapours as fall in
rain, during the fpace of a whole year, were at
once to be condenfed into clouds, and even quite
B A Pv
ceafe to gravitate upon the air, its gravity would
fcarce be diminifhed thereby, fo much as is equi-
valent to the defcent of two inches of mercury in
the barometer. Farther, in many places between
the tropics, the rains fiill at certain feafons, in
very great quantities, and yet the barometer fiiev.'s
there very little or no alteration in the weight of
the air.
The following are Air. Patrick's obfervations
on the rifing and falling of the mercury. They
are very juft, and are to be accounted for on the
fame principles with thofe of Dr. Halley.
" I. The rifing of the mercury prefages in ge-
" neral fair v/eather; and its falling, foul weather ;
" as rain, fnow, high winds, and ftorms.
" 2. In very hot weather, the falling of the
" mercury forefhews thunder.
" 3. In winter the rifing prefages froft ; and
" in frofty v/eather, if the mercury falls three or
" four divifions, there will certainly follow a thaw.
" But in a continued frofi:, if the mercury rifes, it
" will certainly fnow.
" 4. When foul weather happens foon after the
" falling of the mercui-y, expect but little of it.
" And, on the contrary, expeft but little fair
" weather, when it proves fair fhortly after the
" mercury has rifen.
" 5. In foul weather, when the mercury rifes
" much and high, and fo continues for two or
" three days before the foul weather is quite over,
" then expecl a continuance of fair weather to
" follow.
" 6. In fair weather, when the mercury falls
" much and low, and thus continues for two or
" three days before the rain comes ; then ex-
" pefl: a greatdealof wet, and probably high winds.
" 7, 'I'he unfcttled motion of the mercury de-
*' notes uncertain and changeable weather.
" 8. You are not fo ftrictly to obferve the words
" engraven on the plates (though, for the moft
" part, it will agree with them) as the mercury's
" rifing and falling : for if it ftands at much rain,
" and then rifes up to changeable, it prefages fair
" weather, although not to continue fo long, as it
" wouldhavedone,if the mercury were higher: and
'* fo, on the contrary, if the mercury ftood at fair,
" and falls to changeable, it prefages foul wea-
" ther ; though not lo much of it, as if it had funk
" down lower."
From thefe obfervations, it appears, that it is
not fo much the height of the mercury in the
tube that indicates the weather, as the motion of
it up and down ; wherefore, in order to pafs a right
judgment of what v/eather is to be expedted, we
ought to know whether the mercury is actually
rifing or falling, to which end, the following rules
are of ufe.
I. If the furfacc of the mercury is convex, ftand-
ing higher in the middle of the tubs than at the
fides,
BAR
lide.s, it Is generally a fign that the mercury is then
rifing.
2. If the furfacc is concave, or hollow in the
middle, it is finking. And,
3. If it is plain, the mercury is ftationary, or
rather, if it is a little convex ; for mercury be-
ing put into a glafs tube, efpecially a fmall one,
will iiiiturally have its furface a little convex ; be-
caufe the particles of mercury attra£t each other
more forcibly than they are attradted by glafs.
Farther,
4. If the glafs is fmall, fhakc the tube ; and if
the air is growing heavier, the mercury will rife
about half the tenth of an inch higher than it flood
before ; if it is growing lighter, it will fink as much.
This proceeds from the mercury's iticking to the
fides of the tube, which prevents the free motion
of it, till it is difcngaged by the (hock. And there-
fore, when an obfervation is to be made with fuch
a tube, it ought ahvays to be fhaken firft, for fome-
times the mercury will not vary of its own accord,
till the weather it ought to have indicated, is
prefent.
The ufcfulnefs of knowing, whether the mer-
cury is actually rifing or falling ; and the advan-
tage that would arife from perceiving the mod mi-
nute variations in eftimating the heights of places,
have given occafion to the invention of feveral
kinds of barometers different from the Torricel-
lian, though founded on the fame principle; where-
in the fcale of variation, which in that is not
above three inches, fhould be confiderably larger.
Of which we are now to give fome account.
1 . The firft is that of Dcs Cartes, which was made
in the form reprefented, Plate XVIII. ^^. i. where
AB is a tube hermetically fealed at A, and having its
lower orifice immerged in ftagnant mercury K F,
and filled with the fame fluid to G, from tlience
to H with water, and empty from thence to the
top. Now, when the mercury rifes in this tube,
fuppofe from G to L, the water will be raifcd in
the fmall tube perhaps from H to M, viz. as many
times further, as the tube C A is fmaller than C D ;
by which means the variations become much more
fcnfible, than they are in the common barometer.
The Inconvenience of this was, that the air, in-
cluded in the water, getting loofe by degrees, filled
the void fpace at the top, and Ipoiled the ma-
chine.
2. He then contrived it thus : ABC, ( fig. 2.)
is a bent tube hermetically fealed at A, filled with
water from F to D (tinsjed with aquaregia to pre-
vent its freezing,) from D to E with mercury, and
empty from thence to the top. Then, upon the
mercury's rifing, fuppofe from E to M, and fal-
ling as much at D, the furface of the water at
F would fink fo many times farther than the fur-
face of the mercury at D, as the tube CG was
fmaller than G H, The water here is liable to eva-
BAR
poratc, though that may, in fome ineafiire, be pre-
vented, by pouring a few drops of oil of f^-eet al-
monds upon it. Others have contrived
3. The horizontal or rcdlangular barometer
[fig- 3-) hermetically fealed at A, and filled v;'.i\\
the mercury from D to E ; then as the ujipcr fur-
face of it rifes in the tube, fuppofe from E to F, the
lower will be driven from D to G, as many times
farther, as this part of the tube is Icfs than that at
E. But it often happens, that fome parts of the
mercury break off from the reft in the leir B C,
and arc left behind. This inconvenience is reme-
died in,
4. The diagonal barometer ABC { fig- ^•)
wherein the mercury, inftead of rifing from B to D
(fuppofe that fpace to correfpond to the fcale of
variation in a ftrait tube) will rife from B to A ;
for it will always ftand at the fame perpendicular
height, whatever be the inclination of the tube ;
becauie fluids prefs only according to their per-
pendicular altitude. But the tube AB muft not
be too much inclined, left the mercury breaic in it,
as in the former.
5. AB {fig- ^■) is Dr. Rook's wheel-barometer,
wherein ABD is a tube filled with mercury from
a to E ; a is an iron ball, fwimm.ing on the furface
of the mercury ; this as it fubfidcs with the furface
of the mercury, draws the little wheel m n round,
to whofe circumference it is fixed by means of the
firing a c : this wheel carries the index P Q_, which
points to the graduated edge of the circle KL,
and by its motion fliews the moft minute variations
of the mercury. When the ball a is raifed by the
mercury on v/hich it fwims, the index is drawn
the contrary way by a lefler ball l>, which hangs
on the other fide the wheel. The fridion in this
machine, unlefs it be made with great accuracy in-
deed, renders it ufelefs.
6. The pendent barometer is another contri-
vance to render the variations more fenfible. It
confiftsof a fmall conical tube, (reprefented fig. 6.)
hermetically fealed at A, and filled with mercury
from C to D, and empty from thence to A. Now,
fuppofing the gravity of the air encreafcd, it will
raife the mercury higher in the tube, and fo force
it into a narrower part ; by which means the co-
lumn becoming longer, its perpendicular prefTure
upon the air below will be proportionably en-
creafed. On the contrary, when the air becomes
lighter, the mercury defccnJs into a larger part
of the tube, and by that means has the length of its
column proportionably contracted. The incon-
venience that attends this barometer is, that the
tube muft be very (mall, otherwife the mercury
will fall out ; or the air will be .apt to get into it,
and divide the column in feveral places; and when
the tube is very fmall, the friction of the mercury
againft the fides of it, will hinder it from rifing
and falling freely.
7. Dr.
BAR
7. Dr. Hook, obferving how unfit the com-
mon barometer was to be ufed on board of fliip,
by reafon its pofition ought to be fteady, con-
trived the following one, called, from its ufe, a
marine barometer, confifling of two parts, the
one AB [fig. 7.) the common fpirit thermome-
ter, the other CD (/^. 8.) a tube filled with air
from C to E, and from thence to the end D with
tinged water. This end is immerged in the fame
fluTd contained in the velTel GF ; and having its
farface expofed to the prelTure of the external air.
Now, the laft of thefe machines will be affected
both by the warmth of the external air, and alfo
by its preffure : the former dilating the air in-
cluded in CE, and by that means driving the wa-
ter downwards ; the latter prefling it up higher in
the tube: whereas the other, viz. AB, is affected
by the warmth of the air alone. Confequently,
were thefe inftruments graduated in fuch a man-
ner, that, if the gravity of the external air fhould
always remain the fame it was when the inllru-
ments were made, their variations (then only de-
pending on its warmth) fliould exactly correfpond
with each other ; that is, when the fpirit in the
tube AB, fhould afcend to i, the water in CD,
fliould defcend to i, &c. Then, whenever their
variations fhould be obferved to differ from each
other, the difference could only be afcribed to
fome alteration in the preffure of the air upon the
furfiice of the water in the veffel G F. In propor-
tion therefore as this difference is greater, or lefs,
fo is the alteration in the gravity of the air, from
what it was when the inftruments were adjufted.
For initance, when the water ftands above the di-
vifion which correfponds to that which the (pirit
points to in the other machine, it is an indication,
that the preffure of the air is greater at that time,
than when the inftruments were graduated, and
■ vice verfd.
This machine is not only more iifeful at fea,
than the common one, as not requiring a fteady
pofition ; but may have its fcale of variation confi-
derably enlarged, by making the bore of the tube
C D very fuiall, in proportion to the capacity of
its head C.
But it is obferved, that in long keeping this in-
ftrument, the included air lofes fomewhat of its
elafticity ; whereby, in proccfs of time, the water
ftands higher than it ought, and therefore indicates
the gravity of the air to be greater than v/hat
it is.
The Compound Barometer, as invented by
Mr. Rowning, is reprefented by Plate XNlll.fi^.C).
hermetically fealed at A, and open at C, being
empty from A to D, filled with mercury from
thence to B, and from B to E, with water. Let
GBH be a horizontal line, then it is plain from
the nature of the fyphon, that all the compound
BAR
fluid'contained in the part from H to G, will be
always in equilibrio with itfelf, be the weight of
air what it v/ill ; becaufe the preffure at H and G
muft be equal : whence it is evident that the co-
lumn of mercury DH is in equilibrio with the
column of water G E, and a column of air of the
fame bafe conjointly, and will therefore vary with the
fum of the variations of each of thefe. — The great
property of this barometer is, that the fcale of va-
riation may be increafed at pleafure.
But of all the barometers above defcribed there
is none equal to the common one, which is mr.dc
in the following manner : Having filled a glafs
tube with quickfilver, and covered the orifice with
your finger and inverted it, and immerfed the fin-
ger in a veftel of quickfilver ; upon drawing the
linger from the orifice, the quickfilver will never
wholly fubfide. If the tube be long enough, it will
fubfide in part, till it refts at a certain altitude,
generally between 31 and 28 inches; but if the
tube be fhorter than that altitude called the ftan-
dard, it will not fubfide at all : due care muft be
taken in filling the tube to expel all the air-bubbles
that adhere to the inlide of the tube, which may be
done by putting a flender wire in the tube, and
ftirring it up and down ; or if the tube and quick-
filver be very clean, which they ought to be, you
may effect it by leaving about an inch or lefs of
the tube uniilled, and then putting your finger on
the orifice, and inverting it gently, that the air
in the vacant part may afcend gradually along the
tube, and fweep up the little air-bubbles along with
it ; and laftly, by inverting it gradua'ly to its former
pofition, and filiingit up with quickfilver.
In this laft method care mult be taken not to let
the large air-bubble afcend too quick, left by its
rulhing againft the crown of the tube with vio-
lence It Ihould break it. Alfo in emptyi.ng the
tube, for fear of the lame accident, take care
firft to incline it ; then to draw the orifice gently
above the furface of the ftagnant quickfilver,
and immediately immerfe it a<;ain, fo as to take
in but little air at a time. I'his is the method
of making barometers, which will be complete
when placed in a frame, having at the fide a fcale
of three inches divided into tenths, with a nonius
dividing each fiid divifion into ten more, and
placed at the height of twenty-eight inches above
the furface of the quickfilver in the bafon. The
v.'eather-glafs complete is reprefented by Plate
XVIII. Jig. 10. containing the barometer, ther-
mometer, and hygrometer. See Thermometer
and Hygrometer.
Mr. Cummins, an ingenious clock-maker in
London, has lately invented a clock-barometer, or
a clock that gives the height of the mercury in
the barometer, for a certain time paft ; whereby
v/c apprehend, that he pretends to knov/ the refifc-
/'j-ATX X\'M/.
. M'/<v//<'/IiHi'cuiirtcr.
,J^////. . 'i/jcnu'^/ur/
. ^<VJ^»' •'•' ^^
BAR
Tincc any mechanical body as a pendulum, &c.
jiiight have, in any intermediate fpace, from the
different denfities of the air. But if this is the cafe,
we are aflurcd that r.rtifts trurtiiig to this curious
machine alone, will find thcmfelves deceived ; for
the true denfity of the air cannot be difcovered
from the height of the barometer fingly, but is
compounded of the height of the barometer and
thermometer jointly'.
Doctor Bradley was very elaborate in making
obfcrvations for finding the true denfity of the air,
and, alter fome years labour, conftrutSled the fol-
lowing rule, which he found never erred, viz.
Divide tiie height' of the barometer exprefied in
tenths of inches, by 350+ the degrees of the
height of F"arenheit's thermometer, and the
quotient will give a number that will be in
proportion to the mean denfity of the air.
'I'he mean denfity of the air may be exprefled
For example ; Suppofe the height of the
barometer 30,2, and the thermometer 60°, then
xv\]\ 12ilI£ii- = ,736, &:c. exprefs the propor-
350 + 60"
tion of the denfity of the air (at the time the
barometer and thermometer have the above
altitudes of the mercury) to the mean denfity.
But again, fuppofc the height of the mercury
in the barometer the fame as before, viz. 30,2,
and the thermometer zz 30 degrees ; then
will 30X'0 + ^ -.791, &c. be the proportion
350+30°
of the denfity of the air to the mean ftatc, which
plainly fhews that the height of the barometer
fingly will not give the true denfity of the air ;
for the height of the barometer is the fame in
each example ; and yet from the variation of the
thermometer, the true denfity differs in proportion
from the mean denfity ,74, as the above numbers
,-736, &:c. and ,794, &c. differ in proportion
from the number ,74.
BARON, the next degree of nobility below a
vifcount and above a baronet.
Barons of the Excbcqun-, the four judges to
whom the adminiffration of juftice is commit-
ted, in matters relating to the revenues of the
crown.
They were formerly barons of the realm ; but
are generally of late perfons learned in the law.
They are obliged by their office to infpeiSl: the
king's accounts, and accordingly have auditors
under them.
Barons cf the Ci>:que Port!, are the members of
the houfe of commons fent by the Cinque ports.
See CiNQiTE Ports.
Baron and Feme, a term ufed in our law to
fit^nify the hufbaud in relation to his wife, who is
16
BAR
called feme. They are confidcred only as one per-
fon, fo that a hufband cannot be witnefs fir or
againft his wife, nor the wife for or againft her
hufband, except in cafes of high trcafon.
Baron and Feme, in heraldry, is when thi
coats of arms of a perfon and his wife are borne
per pale in the fame efcutcheon, the man's being
always on the dexter, and the woman's on the
finifter fide : but if the woman be an heirefs, her
coat muft be borne by the hufband on an efcutcheon
of pretence.
BARONET, a modern degree of honour, next
to a baron, created by king James I. in order to
fettle a plantation in Ulfter, for which purpofe each
was to maintain thirty foldicrs in Ireland for three
years, after the rate of eight-pence flerling per day
to each foldier.
This honour is hereditary, and they have the;
precedence of all knights, except thofe of the gar-
ter, bannerets, and privy counlellors.
]3ARONY, the honour and territory which
gives title to a baron, whether he be a layman or a
bifhop.
BAROSCOPE, the fame with barometer. See
Barometer.
The word is formed from ^stp^-, weight, and
a-KO'Z!ia, to view.
BARR. See Bar.
BARRACAN, in commerce, a fort of ffuff re-
fembling camblet, but of a coarfcr grain.
BARRACKS, or Baracks, places ere£led for
foldiers to lodge in, efpecially in garrifons.
BARRATOR, in law, a common mover or
maintaincr of fuits and quarrels, cither in courts,
or elfewhere,
Lambert derives the word fro.m the Latin, bara-
thra, or balatro, a vile knave.
BARRATRY, in the marine acceptation, im-
plies a defrauding the owners by the maffer of the
fhip.
BARREL, in commerce, a round veffel, in the_
form of a fmall tun, for holding fcveral forts of
merchandize.
Barrel alfo implies a liquid meafjire, and is of
three kinds, wine, beer, and ale. The firil: con-
tains thirty-one gallons and a half ; the fecond
thirty-fix gallons ; and the third thirty-two gal-
lons.
Barrel likcwife denotes a certain weight of
feveral merchandizes, which not onl)' differs in dif-
ferent commodities, but alfo ux different places.
A barrel of Efl'ex butter weighs one hundred and
fix pounds ; and a barrel of Suffolk butter two
hundred and fifty-fix pounds. The barrel of her-
rinrrs ought to contain thirty-two gallons wine mea-
furc, and will hold about a thoufiind herrings,
l"he barrel of falnion mufl: contain thirty two gal-
lons ; the barrel of eels the fame. The barrel of
foap muft weigh two hundred and fifty-fix pounds.
"" 4 L " Bar-
BAR
Barrel, in mechanics, a nr.me given by watch-
makers to the cylinder about wliich the fprins; is
wrapped ; and by gun-imiths to the cyhndrical
tube of a gun, piftol, Sec. through which the ball
is difcharsrcd.
Barrel, in anatomy, a pretty large cavity be-
hind the tympanum of the ear, about four or fi\e
lines deep, and five or fix wide. It is lined with a
fine membrane, on which are feveral veins and ar-
teries. See Ear.
Thundering Barrels, in military affairs, com-
mon cafks or barrels filled with powder, and rolled
upon the v/orks of an enemy, in order to fct them
on fire, and drive him from the place intended to
be attacked.
This fire-work is fometimes nothing but a barrel
' of common powder, in which a fufc is inferted,
and fired before the barrel is rolled towards the
enemy ; this fufe fires the powder in the barrel,
which by its explofion creates great dilbrder among
the troops where it takes effe£t.
BARRICADE, or Barricado, in naval ar-
chitecture, a ftrong wooden rail or beam, fupport-
ed by a range of fmall pillars or llanchions, and
extending as a fence a-crofs the fore-moil part of the
Cjuarter-deck. In a fhip of war, the vacant inter-
vals between the pillars are commonly filled with
cork, junks of old cable, or thick matts of platted
rope L and on the upper-part, about a foot above
the rail, there is a double rope-netting, fupported
by double cranes of iron : between the two parts
ot the netting, are ftufted a number of hammocks,
filled with the feamen's beddino;, to intercept and
prevent the execution of fvvivel-fhot, (fwivel is a
fort of fmall cannon) mufket-balls, &c. in the
time of engagement. See Deck, Hammock.
Barricade, in military affairs, a fence formed
h-iftily with bafkets of earth, trees, palJifadoes, or
the like, to preferve an army from the fliot or
."ffault of an enemy.
The moft ufual materials for barricades of this
kind, are pales or ftakes crofied with batoons, and
fhod with iron at the feet: they are commonly
erected in paflages or breaches.
BARREN-WORT, Epimed'ium, in botany, r.
plant having a creeping root, from which arife
many flalks about nine inches high, divided at the
top into three, which are again divided into three
fmaller ftalks : upon each of thefe ffaads a ftiff
heart-fhaped leaf ending in a point ; of a pale
green on the upper fide, but grey underneath. A
little below the firff divifion of the ffalk, comes
out the foot-ftalk of the flowers, which is near fix
inches long, dividing iato fmaller, each of thefe
luflaining three flowers, which are cruciform, and
of a reddifli colour, with yellow ftripes on their
borders. In the center of the flower anfes the ftyle
furrounded by four filaments ; the gcrmen is ob-
lojig, which afterwards turns to a flcnder pod, con-
BAR
taining man}' oblong feeds. This plant flowers in
May, and the leaves decay in autumn ; but feldom
ripens its feeds with us.
Barrier, in fortific.ition, a kind of fence
made acrofs a paffage or the entrance of a retreiich-
ment, &c.
It is compofcd of large flakes about four or five
feet high, placed eight or ten feet diftant from one
another, with tran funis, or over-thwart rafters to
flop either horfe or foot. In the middle is a
moveable bar of wood, that opens or fiiuts at plea-
fuie.
BARR.ING a Vein, in farriery, implies an opera-
tion performed on the veins of a horfe's legs, and
other parts of his body, in order to fl:op the courfe
of the blood, and leffen the quantity of malignant
humours flowing to that part. This operation, as it
is founded on a falfc theory, fo it is now never ufed
by flcilful farriers.
BARRISTER, in common law, implies a pcr-
fora qualified and impowered to defend the caufe of
clients in any of the courts of juflice.
The word is formed from the Latin, bar, larra,
the place where they {land to plead.
Barriilers are of two forts, diilinguiflied by the
epithets outer and inner. The outer-barriflcrs
are thofe v/ho plead without the bar. The ijiner-
barrifters are thofe who are allowed the privilege
of pleading within the bar. But at the Rolls, and
fome other inferior courts, ail barriffers are admit-
ted within the bar.
BARROW, in fome fiilt works, is a name given:
to wicker cafes in the form of a lugar loaf, where-
in the fait is put to drain.
BARRULEl', in heraldry,, fignifies the fourth^
part of the bar, or one half of the cloffct.
BARRULY, in heraldry, is when the field is
divided bar-ways, that is, acrofs from fide to fide,
into fevered parts.
HARRY, in heraldry, is v;hen an efcutcheon is
divided bar-\vays, that is, acrofs from fide to fide,
into an even number of partitions, coiififting of
two or more tinclures, interchangeably difpofed.
It is to be expreli'cd in the blazon by the worcf
bin ry ; and the number of pieces mufl be fpccified ;
but if die divifions be odd, the field mufl be firf^
named, and the number of bars expi-effed.
Barry-Bendy is when the efcutcheon is
divided evenly, bar and bend-wavs, by lines drawn
tranfvcrfe and diagonal, interchangeably varying
the tinctures of which it confifls.
Harry-Pily is when a coat is divided by feve-
ral lines drawn obliquely from fide to fide, where
tliey form acute angles.
BARSANIANS", in ecclefiaftical hiffory, a ka
of heretics in the fixth century, who follcAved the
eri-ors of the Cainires and Theodofians ; and were
fo called from one Barfuiius their leader.
They made their facrifices confill in taking wheat
flour
B A S
B A S
flour on the top of their finc;crs, and carrying it to
their mouths. They never eat meat with other
men ; and maintained the Holy Ghoft to be a crea-
ture.
BARTKRING, in commerce, the exch.inging
one commoditv for another, or lending a merchant
a parcel of goods,' and taking others of him in ex-
change.
The word is formed from the Spanifh, haraiar,
to deceive, or circumvent ; becaufe, perhaps, thofe
who deal this v/ay, endeavour to over-reach one
another.
BARTHOLOMITES, a religious order found-
ed at Genoa, in ilie year 1307; but the monks
leading very irregular lives, the order was fupprefil-d
by pope Innocent X. in 1650, and their cfiedts
confiCcated.
BAR.TRAMIA, in botany, a decandrious plant,
which grows naturally in both the Indies. It rifes
with a foft ftem, about four feet high, dividing into
ieveral branches at the top, which are furniflied
with roundifh angular leaves, foft, like thofe of
the mallow, and a little hoary on their under fide.
The flowers are produced at the wings of the lea\'es,
each having five fm.all yellow petals, which form a
fhort tube at their.bafe, but fpread open above the
cmpalement ; the flower is fucceeded by a globular
fruit, armed on every fide with fpines, which fplit
into four parts, each having a ftngle feed. This
plant is perennial, and propagated by its feeds ; but
being a native of the hottell: countries, it requires
a flove in this climate.
BARUCH, the name of an apocrvphal book,
fabjoined to the canon of the Old Teftament.
It has been reckoned part of Jeremiah's prophe-
cy, and is often cited by the ancient fathers as fuch.
Jofcphus tells us, that B.iruch was defcendcd from
a noble family. It is added, that he wrote the
book himfelf, while be continued at Babylon ; but
at what time is uncertain.
I'here are three copies of tliis book, one in
Greek, the other two in Syriac : one of the latter
agrees with the Greek, but the other varies from it.
In what language it was written, whether one of
thefe copies be not the original, or which of them
may be fo, is difficult to determine.
BARUTH, an Indian meafurc containing feven-
tten gantans, and ought to weigh three pounds
and an h;:lf Englifh averdupoife.
BARULES, in ccclefiadica! hiftorv, a feci of
heretics, who held that tlie Son of God had only
the phantom of a body; that fouls were created
before the world, and that they li\ed all at one
time.
BAS-RELIEVE. See Basso-Relievo.
BASALTES, in natural hiftory, a fpecies of
marble of a very fine texture, and of a deep glofiV
black colour.
The mod rcmnrkable quality cf this marble i?
its figme, being never found in rtrata, like other
marbles, but always ftanding up in form of regu-
lar angular columns, compofed of a number of
joints placed on and nicely fitted to each other, as
if formed by the hand of a fkilfu! workman. It
is remarkahly hard and heavy, y.'ill not ftrike fire
v/ith fteel, and makes a fine touchftone.
The Giants-Caufeway in Ireland, is entirely
compofed of the bafaltes ; and is, perhaps, the
mod furpri'zing natural production of this kind in
the world.
BASE, in architedure, is the loweft part or
foot of a pillar on which it {lands, or that part that
lies upon the pedellal under the body. It is likc-
wifc ufed for all the feveral ornaments or mould-
ings that reach from the apophyges, or rifing of
the fliafts of pillars, to the plinth.
Base of a Column is that part between the fhaft
and pedeftal, if there be any ; if not, between
the fliaft and plinth, orzocle: the ornam.ents of
the bafe are different in different orders.
ThcTufcan Base confifls only of a fingle tore,
befides the plinth.
The Doric Base has an aftragal, introduced by
the moderns, more than the Tufcan.
7/v lonii Base has a large tore over two flender
fcotias, feparated by two aftragals.
T/.'c Corinthian Base has two tores, two fcotias,
and tvv'o aflragals.
Thi' Ccrnpo/iie Base has two tores, two fcotias,
and one aftragal.
The Atlic Hase has two tores and a fcotia, and
is a proper bale either for the Ionic or Compofue
columns.
Ha.^e Rtidenlie, in architefture, is that which has-
its tores cut like cables.
Base, in fortification, the exterior fide o"! the
polygon, or that imaginary line which is draun
from the flanked angle of a baftion to the angle
oppofite to it.
Base of a Figure^ in geometry, denotes the
lowell part of its perimeter.
Base of a Triangl\ i> properly the lowefl fide,
or that which is parallel to the horizon, though
any fide occafionallv is called the bale.
Base of a Solid' h that fide on which it llands,
or the lowefl: part thereof.
Base of a Conic ScP.ion is a right line in the hy-
perbola and parabola, formed by the common in-
terfedlion of the fecaPit pl.uie and the bafe of the
cone.
Baje, in perfpective, the common fecfion of a
picture and the geometrical plane.
Base, in gunnery, the leaft fort of ordnance,
the diameter of whofe bore is i^ of an inch, its
weight 200 pound, length 4 feet, its fliot a pound:
and
B A S
and a half in weight, and its diametEV one inch
and one-eighth,
Base cj the Heart, in anatomy, denotes its upper
part. See Heart.
Base Ejiate, in law, implies the eftate held by a
bale tenure.
Base Tenure, the holding by villenagc, or other
cuftomary fervices.
Base Fee is to hold in fee at the will of the lord.
Base C'.uri, any court not of record.
BASEMENT, in architecture, implies a bafe
continued a ccnfiderable length, as round a houfe,
room, he.
BASHAW, a Turkifli governor of a province,
city, or other difiricl.
BASIL, Ocymum, in botany, a genus of didy-
namious plants. One of the fpecies called bufli-
bafil, has a fibrous fmall root, with a ftalk about
iix inches high, fpreading out into branches that
are a little woody, forming an orbicular head :
the leaves are like thofe of marjoram, of a pur-
plifli caft, {landing oppofite on fliort footftalks ;
the flowers are produced in whorles tov/ard the top
of the branches, of a white colour and purplifli
caft ; they confift of a labiated petal, whofe creff,
or upper-lip, is erect, roundilh, notched, and
larger than the beard of the lower lip, and cut in-
to hve parts ; the calyx is cut on the edges into
four parts, the uppermoft of which is hollow like
a fpocn, and the piftil which rifes out of it is
attended with four embryoes, which afterward be-
come as many feeds.
This and the common fort are both propagated
by feeds, which fhould be fown the beginning of
April, on moderate hot-beds; and when the plants
are up, they fhould be removed to another, ob-
ferving to water and fhade them till they have
taken root : in May they fhould be taken up with a
ball of earth to the roots, and tranfplanted either
in pots or borders. Thefe plants have a llrong
i'cent like cloves, too powerful for moft perfons,
but to iome they are very agreeable.
The leaves and feeds of bafd are cephalic, cor-
dial, and pedforal : fome powder the dried leaves,
and make them into fnufF, which they think has a
better efFeift than common fnufl". It is alfo much
ufed by fome cooks in their foups and fauces.
B.'^siL, among joiners, the floping edge of a
cbiffel, or of the iron of a plane. They ufually
make the bahl twelve degrees for foft wood, and
eighteen for hard ; it having been found by expe-
rience, that the more acute the bafil is, the better
it cuts ; and the more obtufe it is, the ftronger and
fitter for fervice.
Order of St. Basil, the moft ancient of all the
rel'gious orders, and was very famous in the Eaft
duiing ths latter part of the fourth century;
thou-n fom; doubt whether St. Bafil was really the
founder.
B A S
BASILARE O', in anatomy, the fame with cs
fphenoides. See Sphenoides.
BASILIC, in ancient architeiSture, implies a
large hall, or public room, with ifles, porticoes,
galleries, tribunals, &c. being the term applied to
thofe places where princes lat and adniiniftered
jullice in perfon.
The word is Greek, ^AtnhtM'i, and fignifies a
royal houfe, or palace.
The word is now ufed to fignifv fuch churches,
temples, &c. as far furpafs the other flrudfures of
the fame kind in grandeur and magnificence.
BASILICA, in anatomy, the interior branch
of the axillary vein, running the whole length of
the arm. See Vein.
BA SILICON, in pharmacy, an epithet given
to feveral compofitions to be found in ancient me-
dicinal writers. At prefcnt it is confined to two
officinal ointments, diflinguifhed by the epithets
black and yellow ; and formerly much uled by
lurgeons in drcfling wounds.
BASILICS, in antiquity, a body of the Ro-
man laws, tranflated into Greek. In this fyftem
is comprehended the inftitutes, digefts, code, novels,
and fome edicts publifhed by Juftinian and other
emperors.
BASILICUS, in aftronomy, a ftar of the firft
magnitude, in the conftellation Leo, called alfo
regulus, and cor leonis, or the lion's heart. See
Regulus.
BASILIDIANS, a feft of heretics in the fe-
cond century, and fo called from their leader Ba-
filides, a difciple of Menander. He flourifhed in
Egypt about the year 1 12, and there chiefly propa-
gated his herefy.
Bafilides, in the creation of things, admitted a
certain fuccefilve fcale, in which each link of be-
ings created the fucceedino-, and were thcmfelves
created by the preceding ; and confequently, that
one being only owed its exiflence to God. He alfo
taught that there were 365 heavens between the
earth and the empyrean ; and that each of thefe
heavens had a moving and creating angel affigned
to it; which angel was itfelf created by the next
angel above him.
With regard to the Chriftian religion, Bafilides
taught, that Chrifl did not really fuffer upon thecrofs;
but that Simon the Cyrenean was fubftituted in
his room ; that the promifcuous copulation of men
and women was lawful : that a Chriltian may re-
nounce the faith to avoid martyrdom ; and that the
foul alone is to be faved, and the body never to
rife from it.s ftate of corruption.
BASILISK, a fabulous kind of ferpent, faid
to be produced from a cock's egg hatched by a
ferpent, and fuppofed to kill by its breath or fight
only.
Basilisk, in military afiairs, implies a piece of
ordnance, carrying a fhot of forty-eight pounds,
and
BAS
nnd wei'^hins; about fevcn thoufand two hundied
liQunds.
BASIOGLOSSUS, in anatomy, a mufclc a-
rifiug tro:n the bale of the os hyoJJcs, and running
:dong tii2 middle of thi tongue towards its apex,
tt is afli'.lcJ by the ceratogioflus, and drawi the
tongue backwards.
Tlie word is formed from the Greek, gir/f, the
bafj or foundation, and yhar^s,, the tongue.
BASIS, the fane \v:ta bife. See Base.
Baskets of EarJi^ m the military art, figni-
fy fniail baikcts rilled with earth, and ufed in fie2;es
on the parapet of a trsneh. The French call them
arj:U es. They are gcner.ally a foot and a half
hig'i, the fame in dianeterat the top, ani eight or
ten inches at bottom j fo tliat wh;n fet together, a
fort of emhrafiires are left at their botto.iis, through
which the folaiers fire, without expofmg th;mrelves.
Bas;cet-Salt, a very fine fait, much purer,
w'.iiter, and compjf.d of fmallcr grai ;s than the
common fort.
B.\sk.et-Ten"urk, a tenure of lands by the fcr-
vicc of makinr the kinj-'s b..fk :t3.
BASON, in anatomy ; fee the article Pelvis.
Bason", in mechaiiics, a term ufed by glafs
grinJc.s ibr a difh of copper, iron, &c. in which
th:y grind convex glaff-'s, in the fame nianacr as
concave ones are ground on fphere;.
The hatters c.Jl thj iron mou'd inv/:ii;h they
form the matt-T of t'lci;- has, a ba'on ; a id they
give the fame name to the Icalen o ic for th; bri ns
of ha:s ; the latter his an ap:.tur^ in the miJ-
die big enough for the largeft bl )ck f) go th OMg i.
B.^iJN' or Foj.VfAiK, anonj garljn->rs, impies
a ref-r/oir for ho'.djig wit.r c;t ler lor the orna-
ment or ufc of the gaiden,
Th;fc refervoi's are made in di.ers form;, fo ne
round, fjm; oblsng or oval, others fquare, oc-
tingular, ^c. but the'r mofl common for n is cir-
cukir ; and if the groan 1 will permit, the larger
they are the better j and when they ex :ecd in lize,
they are called pxces of water, canals^ fifh-ponds,
pools, &c.
In making the'e, care ought to be taken to
avoid both cxtrem s, ani not to make them too
big or tco little, that a \\-ater-wor.c may not take
up the belt part of a fmall piece of ground; nor
to make too little a bafon in a large fpot. This
mull: depend entirely on the judgment of the dc-
i'lgjier of the garden.
Basox of a Did; a place where the w.iter is
prevented from running out at the tide of ebb, by
double flood-gates : its ufc is to liave fnips repaired,
cither before they go into, or after they leave the
dock.
Uason alfo fignifies fome part of a harbour,
which opens from a narrov/ channel, into a v/idc
and fpacious refervoir for {liippin:;;.
B.^soNS of ii lSal:in:\', the two fralcs or difae?
17
BAS
fadcned, by firings or chains, to the extremities
of t!ie beam ; one for liolding the weights, and
the other the commodity to be weighed.
Bass, in mufic, that part of a concert which
confifls o'f the graveft and dcepeft founds, and is
played on the largcft pipes or firings of a con.moii
I inftrument, as of an organ, lute, &c.
The bafs is the principal part of a mufical cnm-
pofition, and the foundation of harmony ; for
which reafon it is a maxim among muficians, that
when the bafs is good, the harmony is feldom bad ;
and the contrary."
Counter Bass is a fecond or double bafs, where
there are feveral in the fame concert.
Thorough Bass, or Baff Cont'muo, is the harmony
made by the bafs viols, theorbos, he. continuing
to play both while the voices fing, and the other
inftrumcnts perform their parts, and alfo filling up
the intervals when ai y of the other parts llop.
It is played by figures m.arkcd over the notes
on the organ, harpfichord, Jk"c. and frequently
fimple and without figures, on the bafs-viol and
balloon.
M. Brofiard obfcrves, that the thorough bafs
is a part of the modern mufic; and that it was in-
vented by Ludovico Viadana, an Italian, in the
year - bco.
bassoon, a mufical inflrumcnt of the wind
iort, blown v/ith a reed. It is furniihed with
eleven holes, and ufed as a bafs in a concert of
hautbovs fiute^ ecc
BAS'SO-RELIEVO, orBAss-REMEF, apiece
of fculpture, where the figures do not protuberate,
or {\. nd o :t far beyond the plane on which they
are frrmed.
1). SS-VIOL, a mufical inflrument refembling
a \iol:ii in the fhape, but ir.uch larger. It is
ilruck with a bow, like a violin, has generally the
fame numbtr of firings, and eight flops, which
a;e fubdividcd into femi-llops. Its found is grave,
and has a very noble effeft in a concert.
BASTARD, a natural child, or one born of a
woman not married.
By the laws of England, a baflard is incapable
of inheriting lands, as the heir of his father; nor
can any one inherit lands as heir to him, except
the children of his own body ; for by order of law,
a baflard has no relation, and he himfelf is ac-
counted the firfl of his family.
BASTARDY, a defect of birth, objeaed to
one born out of wedlock, and is either general or
fpecial.
General Bastardy is a certificate from the
bifliop of the diocefc to the king's jufliccs, after
cnquirv made whether the party is a baflard or not,
upon fome queilion of inheritance.
Special Bast .\RD\' is a fuit commenced in the
kin,c:'s courts againfl a pcrfcn that cai.'s anori'.cr
bnfbrd.
4 M BAS.
B A S
BASTERNA, a fort of vehicle refembling
our chariots, much ufed by the ancient Roman
ladies.
BASTION, in fortification, is among the mo-
derns what w.is formerly called a bulwark ; and
confifts of two faces and two flanks. It is ufuully
made at the angles of forts of a large heap of earth,
fometimes lined with bricks, fods, turfs, &c. but
rarely v/ith ftone.
The lines AB and CB, are the faces of the
baftion B, P;ate X. /^. 4. and the line CE, the
flank of the faid baftion B ; likewife the line GF,
GD, &c. tUe flank and faces of the baftion D.
The line EP is called the curtain, and OB and
OD, the capitals of the baftions D and B. For
the different angles of the baftion, fee Angles.
It is a general rule with engineers in conftrucl-
ing a baftion, or at lean ought to be, that every
part be feen and mr.y be defended from fome other
part of the baftion ; becaufe angles alone arc not
fufticicnt, flanks and faces being very neccfiary.
The faces fliould never be more than thirty, nor
lefs than twenty-four Rhineland perches. The
longer the flanks the better, provided they ftand at
right-angles, with, and under the line of deii:ace.
It is the different difpofitions of the flanks that have
introduced the various kinds of fortification, for on
their good or bad difpoftcion, chiefly depends the
defence. The angle at the baftion fliould never
exceed ftxty degrees ; otherwife it will be too fniall
to give room for guns, and will either render the
line of defence too long, or the flanks too ftiort : it
muft therefore be cither a right angle, or fome in-
termediate one between that and fixty degrees.
Cc7npcfed Bastion is when, two lides of the
.interior polygon are very unequal, which alio ren-
ders the gorges unequal.
C«/ Bastion is thatwhofe point is cutoff, in-
ile.id of which it lias a re-entering angle, or an
angle inwards with two points outwards ; and is
iifed either when the angle, would, without fuch a
contrivance be too acute, or when water, or fome
other impediment, prevents the baftion from being
carried to its full extent.
Dani Bastion has but one face and flank, and
is ufually before a horn-work, or crown-work.
This is called an Epaui.ement.
Deformiii Uastion is that v/hich wants one of
the demigorges, becaufe one fide of the interior
polygon is fo very fhort.
DouLle Bastion is that whicli is raifed on the
plane of another baftion, leaving twelve or eighteen
feet between the parapet of the lower, and foot of
the higher.
/"/L'i Bastion is a-.baftion built in the middle of
the curtain, when it is too long to be defended by
Jhc baftions at its extremities.
i/a//iic' Bastion is that which Is only furrounded
BAT
with a rampart and parapet, having the fpace with-
in void or empty.
Regular Bastion is that which has it true pro-
portion of faces, flanks, and gorges.
iSs/Zi Bastion is that which has the void fpace
filled up entirely, and raifed to an equal height with
the rampart.
B ASTON, in law, implies a fervant to the
warden of the Flcet-prifon, who attends the king's
courts with a red ftaff, for taking into cuftody fuch
perfons as are committed by the court.
Baston, orBATOON, in architecture, is a kind
of moulding in the bafe of a column, called alfo a
tore.
B ASTON, or Batoon, in heraldry, is a kind of
bend which has only one half of the ufual breadth.
It refemblcs a truncheon, and is the proper mark
for baftardy.
BAl", in natural hiftory, a kind of mungrel, or
amphibious fort of animal, partaking both of
the moufe and bird, and flying though without
feathers.
The bat, which the Latins called vefpcrtiiio,
feems to be a medium between the quadruped and
the feathered kinds. They lay themfelves up dur-
ing the v/inter in the drieft recefles of caverns ;
where, fixing their talons to the roof, they cover
their bodies with their wings, and in that pofition
fleep for fe\eral m.onths.
BATABLE Gio^rrl, the lands which lay be-
tween Scotland and Englaiid, when the kingdoms,
were diftiniS, and to which both nations pretended
a right.
BATCHELOR, or Bachelor, afmgieman,
who has never been married.
Batchelor was, foimerly, a title given to
thofe who had obtained the honour of knight-
hood ; but had not a fufEcient nuinber' of vaffals
to carry tlieir b.nmer beiore them in the field of
battle. ■ .• .r( '
Batchelors, in the univerfities, a^'e' perfon<;
who have attained to the haccalaureaic.,^ of taken the
firft degree in the liberal arts or fcicnces.
BAT-FOWLING, a method of catching birds
in the night by lighting large candles, or torches,
near the place where tliey are at rooft ; for, upon
beating them up, tliey fly inirned'ately to the flame,
where they are eafily caught in nets, or beat down
with bufhcs faftcned to the ends of poles.
BATH, Balneum, a fufficient quantity of water
collcdlcd in fome convenient receptacle for perfons
to wafli themfelves in, cither for health or pleafurc:
and is cither hot or cold.
Hot Baths, called by the ancients therm,T, pio-
duce the moll falutary cffcfis in a great number of
difcafes ; and owe tlieir origin partly to an admix--
ture of fulphurcous particles, while the water is
pafHng through the fubtcrraneous canals, and part-
ly
BAT
y to die fumes or vapours exhaling through the
pores of the earth, where fulpluir is found either
pure or impure, as in coals, amber, iron, nitre,
kc.
Cold Baths were held by the ancients in the
grcateiT: efteem ; and the prefent age can boait of
abundance of noble cures performed by them, and
fuch as were long attempted in vain by the moll
powerful medicines.
Jrt'/icia! Kaths are of \ariou,; kinds, and adapt-
ed to various dii'orders ; fomc are ir.ade of ce-
plialic and nervous drugs boiled in light and pure
water.
yajoiir Baths are where the vapours arifing
from burning fpirits of wine, or from herbs boiled
in v/inp, water, milk, he. have immediate ac-
ccfs to either the whole body, or fome particular
parts.
Bath, in antiquitv, a nieafure of capacity
ufed among the Jews, containing the tenth part ot
an omer, or fcven gallons and four pints as a liquid
raeafure ; or three pecks and three pints as a dry
ineafure.
Baths, in nrchite^ure, fupcrb buildings creft-
ed by the ancients for the fake of bathlne;.
Kfuzhts of the Bath, a military order in Eng-
land, inftitutcd according to fome authors by
Richaid II. who confined their number te lour \
but others fay that it was founded by Henry IV.
■in the year 1399, and their number limited to
forty-fix.
Their motto is ires in nuc, alluding to the three
theological virtues.
B.'VTH-Koi., the daughter of a voice, a name
given by the Jews to one of their oracles. It coji-
iiih of a funtallical method oi predicting future
events by the firll words they hear from any per-
(on's mouth, and which they confider as a voice
from heaven to initruct them in the matter they are
enquiring about.
Bath-Metal, a mixed met.d, confifting of
copper combined with zinc, and generally Cid'ed
prince's metal. See Prince's Metal.
BATMAN, in co.ninT.-rce, a kind of v/eight
iifed at Smyrna, containing lix okes, of four hun-
dred drams each, which amourtt to fixteen pounds,
ii,\ OLuices, aiid fifteen drams, Engliih v/eight.
BATON, or Bastom. See bvVSTO^•.
BATRACPIOMYO: lACHlA, barJe of the
fro_;s and mice, the title of an elegant burleique
poem, commonly afciibed to Homer.
Thev.'ord is compoundedof theGreek,3:tTp«.%©^5
a frog, /!;(uf. a moufc, znifj.-i.x-ii a. battle.
The caiife of this battle is the death of Pfy-
charpax, a moufe, fon to Taxartes, who being
mounted on the back of Phyfignathiis, a frog, on
a voyage to her palace, to which ilie had invited
him, was feized with ic^r, on feeing himfslf in
the middle of a pond,.fo that he tumbled off and
BAT
was drowned. The mice fufpcfling that Phyfig-
nathus had Oiaken him (.ff w:th deJign, demanded
fatisfadtion, and, by unanimous confent, declared
war agaiiid the frogs.
BATTALIA, an army drawn up in order of
b.attle.
BATTALION, a fmall body of infantry drawn
up in order of battle, and ready to engage.
A battalion ufually contains from live to eight
hundred men; but the number is not precifely de-
termined. They are divided into three companies,
one of which is grenadiers. They are ufually
drawn up with fix men in file, or one before ano-
ther. Some regiments confift of one battalion
only, while others are divided into four or five.
BATTEN, a name given by workmen to a
fcantling of wooden fluff, from two to four inches
broad, and about an inch thick ; the length is
generally very confulcrable, but undetermined.
This term is chiefly ufed in fpeaking of doers
and window-fliu!ters which are not framed with
whole deal, kc. with flyles, rails and pannels,
like wainfcot; but appear to the eye as if they
were really fuch, by means of thefe battens, bradded
on the plain board round the edges, and fometimes
acrofs them up and down, in different manners,,
according as the workman v/ould imitate this or
that different kinds of wainfcot.
Battens of the Hatches, in the marine, long
narrov/ fcajitlings of board, or the hoops of bar-
rels ; they are nailed along the edges of the tar-
pauling, which is a piece of tarred canvas of fuffi-
cieut capacity to cover the hatches at fea : the
batt-ens confine the edges of the tarpaulings clofe
down, to prevent the water, which may rufh over
the decks in a flonn, from penetrating into the
lower apartments of the fliip. See Hatchv/av.
BATTERING, in the military art, implies
the attacking a place, work, or the like, with heavy
artillery.
Ba'!'! itRiNG-PiECES are Large pieces of ord-
nr.nce proper for battering a fortification. See
CAXNOt^!.
Batteuing-Ram, a machine ufed by the an-
cients in ficgc-s, for battering the wails and towers
of a fortified place.
The life of this machine is very ancient, and
the invention of it afcribed to different people.
It v.'a3 of two kindv, flung or unflung.
The former was compofed of a large beam of
oak, reftmblinga lliip's mall, of prodigious length
and thick nefi, having the end armed with a he.ad
of iron proportioned to tlie body, and refembling
that of a ram, and thence it had its name. This
terrible machine, which according to Vitruvius
weii^iied 440000 pounds,, was fufpended, and
equally ballanced, like the beam of a piir of
fcalcr, v/ith a chain, or a large cable, which fup-
porlcd it in the air iji a UrcMig franie of timber,,
whjcli
BAT
BAT
v.'hich was pufhej forwards, on the filling vip of
the diich, to a certain diibuce from the wall, by
^neans of rollers or wheels. The frame was fe-
cured from being fet on fire by the befieged, by
ieveral coverings, with which it was then cafed
over.
The unfufpended ram dilFerod from this only in
the manner of working it : for, inflead of being
flung by a chain or cable, it moved on fmail wheels
on another large beam.
IJ.\ttering-Ram, in heraldry, is a bearing,
or coat of arms, refembling the military engine of
ilie fame name.
BATTERY, in military affairs, all places
where cannon, mortars, (?<c. are niounted, are
•t.dlcd batteries, ' whether to fire on an enemy's
4-.ocps, or to attack or dcllroy a fortification.
In an engagement cannon are fired without be-
ing covered, that is, without having any ground
thrown up to cover or defend the perfons appointed
to charge and work them. For as the pieces in
thefe cafes have no fixed fitnation, but are perpe-
tually changing place, as the general finds iiecef-
fary, the difficulty of covering them is evident,
and the hade in which thel'e kind of adlions are
performed, does not permit the ufe of that precau-
tion, which would render the iervice much lefs
dangerous. But in the attack of a place it is othcr-
ivife, as the cannon are fixed firmly, each in its
proper place, and it is abfoluttly ncceflary to their
being made vie of, that they ftiould be placed be-
hind a parapet, thick enough to refill the cannon-
Ihot of the befieged.
The conftruction of a parapet is what is pro-
perly called the cojiftru£tion of a battery ; we Ihall
give the particulars of it, as they {land in M. de V au-
ban's Memoirs.
The bed of the cannon, that is, the fpot en
which it is placed, fliould, if poiiible, be railed
iome feet above the level of the field.
The parapet ihould be three fathoms thick, and
fcvcn feet and a half high.
Thefe parapets are conflrucled of earth and
fafcines, which are a kind of faggots.
The fituation and extent of thefe batteries are
firfi marked out (fo as they may be parallel to the
^^arts of the fortification intended to bedefi:royed)
fy laying down a line, or the match-cord ; this
cone, the groimd before the battery is broke, and
r: fmall trench opened ; a bed of the earth that is
dugout, is firft laid and well beaten down; then a
layer of fafcines is placed tranfvcrftly I'pon the
earth, or fo that tlieir length fiiall reach from fide
to fide of the parapet, crofling it at right angles ;
j;nd fo alternately a bed of earth and a layer of
fafcines, the fafcines well fafitncd togctlier, and
liakes drivcji through them, fo as to make the feve-
ral layers of faicnies acd earth as it were one bodv ;
I oth iides of the pan-pet are aifc faced or lined v.ich
falcines, laid lengthways, or parallel to the para-
pet, and well falfened with it.ikcs to the infide
of it.
This parapet being raifed two feet and an half,
or three teet, the embrafures muft be marked on
the outude. Embrafures are well known to be
the opening in parapets to receive the cannon, and
the part between two cmbrrdures is called the mer-
lon ; hom the middle of one embrafure to another
ought to be eighteen feet : the embrafure ought to
be three feet wide on the infide, and nine feet c.n
the outfide of the parapet.
The embrafures being marked cut, the refi: of
the parapet, called the epaulcment of the battery,
n;u{t be raifed, leaving the fpacc marked for the
embrafures open ; that part of the parapet above
the embrafures n.uft have a proper fiope, or {helv-
ing, that the materials of the parapft, or of the
mcilons may not be beat dov\n into the cn;-
brafurcs.
That part of the parapet which reaches from the
grour.d to the bottom of the embrafures, is called
the knee of tlie battery.
The parapet being fini{hed, platforms muft be
prepared over-again{l the embrafures, to place the
cannon upon.
'i'hefe platforms are a kind of {Irong f.oors,
made to prevent the cannon from finking into the
ground, and to render the working of them more
eafy. They arc ccmpofed of joi{l:s, or pieces of
wood laid lensthwavs, t!.e whole leneth of the ii:-
tenijcd platform ; and, to keep them firm in tiie
places they are laid in, flakes rnufl be driven int»
the ground clofe to tliem on each fide; thefe joiffs
mult then be covered with very thick planks, laid
parallel to tlie parapet ; and over that part of the
laft which touches the infide of the parapet, a
kind of thick girder, or rafter, muft he placed,
called a /jeiatoi', or knccLer, becaufe when the can-
non is fired, the wheels of its carriage firft knock
or ftrlke againlt it, and immediately afterwards
recede from it, by the eilort of the powder made
againft the breech of the piece, which is the caufc
of what is called its recoil. See the article Cak-
KOiV.
As a check to this recoil, and to render it as little
as jfoflible, the ground, on which that part of the
platform is laid v.'hich is fartheft from the parapet,
ihould be raifed, as much as circurnuances will per-
mit, higher than the part neareft the parapet.
Platforms ought to be eighteen or twenty feet
long, feven and an half wide near the parspet at
their narroweft part, and thirteen at the widcft.
When the platforms are finifhed, the cannon
muft be brought to the batteries, and placed vi\\:\\
their carriasres on the feveral platforms allotted
thtm.
It is ufual to maVc little cells or cavities near
th.c batteries, and at a convenient difir.nce from
each
J^ATKXrX,
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BAT
each otiicr, in which to keep the gtin-pc.wdcr.
Thcfc cells are covered with clay, or (oincihiiig of
the like kind, to preierve them from being hred,
aiK'i are called little ma<j,aziiics of the battery. A
place is prepared at a greater dilt.nce, where a
larger quantity of powder is kept, whi' h fcives as
a magazine to the fmaller places juft mentioned.
The pov.-dcr is thus divided to prevent accidents by
fire, and thefc magazines are guarded by foldiers
fword in hand.
All that remains concerning batteries of cannon,
after what we have faid on the fubjeiit, will be feen
by the Jig. i. in Plate XIX.
F/g' !• reprcfcnts the plan of a battery, with its
platforms, and the cannon placed theieon, f.ic'.ng
the cnibrafures.
Fig. 2. fhews the profile of a battery, with a
piece of cannon, in its embrafurc, ready to be
fired.
After having treated of the batteries of cannon,
it is proper to give fome account of the batteries of
mortars; but thefe differ little from the former.
They are conftrufted in the fame manner, except
that they have no embrafures ; they have alfo plat-
forms made in the fame manner with thole of can-
non. Plate XIX. Jig. 3. exhibits the plan of one
of thofc batteries, with a profile, reprefcnting a mor-
tar at the monient of giving fire.
When the enemy is near eno'.igh to fee or com-
mand the batteries in flank, his view muft be cut
oiF, by continuing the parapet of the battery in
another angle, as rcprefented in the iigure of the
battery of cannon, referred to above.
The bullets and bombs are laid down in readi-
nefs, befide the merlons, between the embrafures.
Befides thefe, there are batteries of various
kinds, as funk, direift, fweeping, reverfe, crofs,
and rebounding batteries.
Suni Batteries have their platforms funk be-
low the Ie\'el of the field, fo as that the ground
ferves for the parapet, in which embrafures may he
made.
DireSf Batteries are thofe which batter the
fides of the work, before which they are placed al-
moft at right antjles.
too
tiiueeping Batteries, or batteries cVenJUule, are
thofe which fcour or iweep the fides of fome work
in a flraight line.
T\\<i Rcverje (^revas] are thofe which batter from
behind, that is, play on the backs of thofe ported
on the work to defend it.
CroJ's Batteries are thofe which play athwart
each other, and whofe fires, if continued after
their meeting, would almoft crofs at right angles.
Rebounding Batterie?, ('or battencs d'echarpe)
are thofe whofe ftroke make no more than an angle
of twenty degrees, with the f;ices or fides of what
they are directed againft. Thefe are alfo fome-
times called glancing baturles (de hricolc) becaufe
17
B A U
the bullet, only glancing, as it were, on the plac*?
it is direckd againfl, is thrown off to the part';
adjacent, almolt like the bricolc, or tranfvtrfe
rtroke at billiards, which falls on the cuftiion in an
oblique direftion
Battery, in Jaw, the flriking, heating, or
offering any violence to another perfon, for which
damages may be recovered : but if the plaintiff
made the firil alfault, the defendant Wv.iW be ac-
quitted, and the plaintiff amerced to the king for
his falfe fuit.
Battery is frequently confounded with affault,
though in law they are different offences ; and the
defendant rr ay be found guiltv of affault, though
acquitted cf the battery : there may therefore be au
affiiult without a battery ; but battery always im-
plies an affault. Sec Assault.
BATTEURS d'Ejlrad,; are fcouts fent out oii
horfeback before the front, and on the wings
of an army, fome miles dift-ance to make dif-
covcries.
BATTLE, a general engagement between two
armies, in a country fufiiciently open for them to
encounter in front, and for the greater part at leaft
of the line to engage. Other great aftions, though
of a longer duration, and perhaps attended with
greater flaughter, are only called fights.
Nnval Battle. See the articles Sea-fight,
Engagement, Line, Division'.
Battle is alfo ufed figuratively for a reprefen-
tation of a battle in fculpture, painting, &c.
Battle-Royal, among fportfmen, implies a
fight between three, fi\'e, or feven cocks, all en-
gaged together, fo that the cock which {lands
longelt wins the battle.
Battle-Ax, a kind of halbert formerly ufed
by the infantry, and firfl: introduced into England
by the Danes.
BATIXEMENTS, in architedlure,. are inden-
tures or notches in the top of a wall, or other
building, in the form of embrafures.
BATTOLOGY, in grammar, implies a fuper-
fluous repetition of fome words or fentences.
])ATTON, or Battoon. SeeBASTON.
BATTORY, in commerce, a name given by
the Hanfe-towns to their warehoufes in foreign
countries.
BAVINS, in the military art, are faggots of
brufh-wood, with the brufli at length.
BAUHINIA, in botany, a genus of decandri-
ous plants, the flower of which confifts of five
lanceolated petals, with attenuated and reflexed
tops; it hath ten filaments topped with ovated an-
therre ; the ffyle is filiform, and placed on an ob-
long germen, which turns to a long cylindrical
legumen, containing many roundifli compreffed
feeds.
BAUAl, MdiJ'a., in botany, a genus of didy-
1 namious plants. The common fort cultivated in
4 N gardens.
BAY
B A Z
gardens, hath along, round, fibrous, perennial root,
from which ariles a fquarc italic, which is annual,
and branched. The leaves, which are fet by pairs
at each joint, arc oblong, pointed, of a dark
green, dented at their edges, and fomewhat hairy,
in the bofoms of which come forth the flowers,
which confift of a fingle labiated petal, whole
upper-lip is roundifli, upright, and indented at the
extremity in two parts ; but the under-lip is cut
into three parts ; the piflillum is attended with four
embryos, that turn to as many feeds, joined toge-
ther, of a roundifh fhape, fitting in the calyx ;
the flowers are white, and appear in July : the
whole plant has an agreeable fcent, fomewhat like
lemons. It is propagated by planting the roots in
autumn, which may be divided into fmall pieces,
and planted in beds of common earth, at about a
foot afunder.
Baum is laid to be cordial, cephalic, and to for-
tify the ftomach ; it is taken in the manner of tea,
and is by fome greatly efteemcd for that purpofe,
and acidulated with lemon juice, as a diluter in
acute diforders.
Molucca Baum. See Moluccella.
Turkey Baum. See Dracocephalum.
Bay, a gulph or inlet of the fca-coaft, com-
prehended between two capes or points of land,
where ^■eflcls frequently ride at anchor fheltered
from the wind.
Bay, among farmers, that part of a barn where
the corn is laid up, or the mow made. Thus if a
barn confift of a floor and two heads, they call it a
barn of two bays.
Bay is alfo one of the colours of the coat of
horfes, and has, perhaps, its name from refembling
the colour of dried bay-leaves.
There are various degrees of this colour from
the lighteft bay to the dark, that approaches the
nearell: to the brown, but always more gay and
Ihining. The bright bay is an exceeding beautiful
colour, becaufe a bright bay horfe has often a red-
difh dafh vv'ith a gilded afpeiSl, his mane and tail
black, with a black or dark lift downa his back.
The middle colours of bay alfo have often the
black lift with black mane and tail ; and the dark
bays have almoft always their knees and pafterns
black, and we meet with feveral forts of bayj that
have their whole limbs black from their knees and
hocks downwards. The bays that have no lifts
down their backs, are, for the moft part, black
over their reins, which goes off by an impercepti-
ble gradation from dark to light, towards the. belly
and flanks : fome of thefe incline to a brown, and
are more or lefs dappled.
The bay is one of the beft colours, and horfes of
all the different kinds of bays are commonly good,
unlefs when accidents happen to fpoil them when
they are colts. Gibfon on Horfes.
Bay, among huntfmen, is a term applied to a
deer, which after having been hard run, turns
about, and defends himfelf with his horns againft
the dogs ; in which cafe he is laid to ftand at
bay.
Bay-Salt. See Salt.
Bay-Tree, Lawus, in botany. This plant in
hot countries grows to a confiderable height, has a
fmooth trunk without knobs, and long branches.
The leaves are long, fharp, hard, nervous, and
fmooth ; but have little juice, though they have a
fine fmell, and an acrid, bitter, aftringent tafte.
The flowers confift of a fingle petal, which is
fhapped like a funnel, and divided into four or five
fegments, and are male and female : the embryo of
the female flowers becomes a berry, inclofing a
fingle feed, v/ithin a horny fhell, which is covered
with a fkin. Bav- trees are propagated either from
the feeds, or by laying down the branches.
T"his tree, among the ancients, was accounted
a panacea ; and the leaves, berries, and baxk of
the roots, were of ufe. The leaves are heating,
refolvent, ftrengthen the ftomach, help digeftion,
and difcufs wind : for thefe purpofes the infufion
may be drank as tea, or the powder may be given
to the quantity of a dram. The berries are more
heating than the leaves, and two fcruples in infu-
fion is a dofe ; but their principal ufes in the pre-
fent medical praiSlice is in clyfters, and the leaves as
a fomentation.
'Bay, Sweet-flowering, in botany, a fpecies of the
tulip tree. See Magnolia.
BAYONET, in the military art, implies a fhort
Iroad dagger, with a hollow handle of iron, of a
circular form, fitted to the muzzle of the piece
when; it is faftcned ; fo that the foldier fires v/ith
the bayonet on the n;uzz.le of his piece, and is al-
ways ready to acf againll the horfe.
J3A YS, in commerce, a fort of open woollen ftuff^
having a long nap, fometimes frized, and fometimes
not. It is without any wale, and wrought in a
loom with two treddles like flannel.
Bays are chiefly manufactured at Colchefter and
Bocking, in Efiex. The exportation of this ftuif
was formerly more confiderable than at prefent,
the French having now learned the manufafturei
The Englifn bays are, however, ftill fent in great
quantities to Spain and Portugal, and even to Italy.
Their chief ufe is for cloathing the monks and
nuns, and for lining the foldiers cloaths. The
looking-glafs makers alfo ufe bays behind their "
glafles to preferve the tin foil.
The breadth of bays is conim^only from a yard and
a half to two yards, and the length from forty-tw»
to forty-eight.
BAZAR, or Bazaard, among the eaftern na-
tions, a market, or place defigned for trade.
BAZAT, in commerce, a long, fine cotton,
brought from Jerufalem,. and is thence often called
Jerufalem cotton.
BE A
BE A
BDELLIUM, in the materia incJica, a gummy
rcfiiious juice, flowing tioni an oriental tree of
which we have nodefcription. It is brought from
Arabia and the Eaft Indies in pieces of different
magnitudes, of a dark reddifti brown colour ex-
ternally, not unlike mjrrh ; but internally clear,
and fomething rel'enibliiig glue. It is of an
agreeable fmell, and a bitterifh flightly pungent
taftc.
This gummy refui is recommended as a cor-
roborant and attenuant in difordi^rs of the breail,
for promoting urine and the mcnfes, and exter-
nally for relolving or maturating hard tumours ;
but is at prefent little ufcd.
BEACON, a fignal ereftcd on forre hill or
eminence, for giving notice of the invafion of an
enemy.
It confifls of pitch-barrels pl.iced upon high
poles, and when the enemy appears, the barrels
are fet on fire ; fo that the flame in the night-time,
and the fmoak in the day, fpreads the alarm thro'
the whole country.
Beacon alfo fignifies a mark ere£ted as a wun-
ing to feamen againft rocks, fhelves, or fan.U.
BEACONAGE, the tax paid for maintaining
a beacon.
BEAD, in archite(5lure, a round moulding,
commonly made upon the edge of a piece of ftufF, in
the Corinthian and Compofite orders, cut or carved
in fhort emboflments, like beads in necklaces.
Sometimes a plain bead is fet on the edge of each
fafciaofan architrave, and fometimes even an af-
tragal is cut in this manner. A bead is often placed
on tlie lining board of a door-cafe, and on the up-
per edges of Ikirting-boards.
Bead-Proof, among diftillers, a f.i!Iacious me-
thod of determining the ilrength of fpirits.
It confilis in fhaking a fmall quantity of the
fpirits in a phial, when if the crown of bubbles (land
for fome time on' the furface, the goods are efteem-
ed prc.o.% that is, equal parts of reclified fpirits and
phlegm.
Bead-Tree. See Melia.
• IjEAGLE, the name of a particular kind of
hunting-dcgs, of which there are feveral forts.
BEAK, the bill or nib of a bird, from the form
and ftrufture of v;hich Linnajus divides the whole
ciafs into fix orders. See Birds.
Beak, in archite£lure, the fmall fillet left on the
head of a larmier, which forms a canal, and makes
a-kind of pendant.
Chin Beak, a moulding the fame with the quar-
t€r-round, except its fituation, which is inverted.
Beak- Head, in naval architecture, the name
given to a ftiip's head whofe fore-caftle is fquare ; a
circumftance comm.on to all veflels of war that
have two or more decks of guns. In fmaller
ftips, the fore-caftle is generally fhaped like a p:-
rabola whofe vertex lies immediately above the Item.
The ftrong projcfting pointed beaks ufcd by the
ancients in time of battle, are cntiitly difufed lince
the invention of gun-powder.
BEAKED, in heraldry, a term ufed to cxprefs
the beak or bill of a bird.' When the beak or bill
of a bird are of a different colour from that of the
body, they fay beaked and mcmbercd of fuch a
tiniture.
BEAM, in architedurc, is the largeft piece of
timber in any building lying acrofs it, and into
which the feet of the principal rafters are framed.
No building has lefs than two of thefe b>-ams, that
is, one ai each head ; and into thefe beams, the
girders of the garret-floor are framed, as well as
the teazle-tenons of the ports, if the building be of
timber.
The force and ftrength of beams has been con-
fidercd by the bell authors, both in England and
Erarce, who have given precife computations for
the refinance of each, according to its length, and
the dunenfions of the fides ; and, accordingly,
the proportion of beams near London has been
fixed by ftatute as follows : A beam of 1 7 feet
long muil have the fide of one of its fquare fides
ten inches, and the other fix ; one of fixteen
feet long muft have one eight, and the other fix;
one of fifteen feet, feven, and the other five
inchss.
Air. Parent, aFrench mathematician, has endea-
voured to prove, that if a beam in form of a paral-
leiopipedon be fixed horizontally againft a wall, its
refiftance againil breaking at the place of its infer-
tion v/ill be as the a;ea of the fection at the wall,,
and the dcptliof the beam diredtly, and the length,
mvcrfeiy.
Let R and ;• reprcfent the refiftances of two
beams, fixed as above, whofe lengths, breadths, and
depths, arc L, B, D, and /, b, d, refpedively : thea
.„„ BxD^ b-Kd"-
will K : r : : • ,
If P and p reprefent the refpeelive weights that
being appended at the extremities of their lengths,
are fufficient to break tliofe beams, we fhall
have — = r, and ■ ■■ =&; therfore F X/i=:
Bxr>'x/-|-Lx.A x^"
lTT
If the beam, be fixed at both ends, then B=i,.
and D =:<•/, whence P-J-^=:
BxD--xL + /
Lxi
, which
fhews that the forces requifire to break a beam in
different points of its length, are as the redangle
of the fegments of the length ; for B x D' X L x /
being conftantly the fame, it follows, that P+/>
is as f-—,; and, therefore, v^ihen L=!, ?-\-p will'
bj
B E A
be the lead poffible ; confequently a beam fup-
ported at both ends will require a lefs weight to
break it in the middle, than at any other point of
-its length.
Hence if the bafes of two beams be equal, tho'
both their heights and breadths be unequal, their
reiiftance will be as their heights alone ; and, by
confcquence, one and the fame beam laid on the
imilleft ilde of its bafe, will refill more than when
laid flat, in proportion as the firft: lltuation gives
it a greater height than the fecond : and thus an el-
liptic bafe will refiit more, wlien laid on its greateft:
iixis, th?.n wh?n on its fmnllsft.
Since in beams equally long, it is the bafes that
determine the proportion of their weights or foli-
-3ities, and fince their bafes being equal, their
height mav be dift'erent ; two beams of the fame
weighte may have refiftances differing to in
■finity : thus, if in the one the height of the bafe be
conceived infinitely great, and the breadth infi-
nitely iinall, while in the other the dim.enfions of
the bafe are infinite ; the refinance of the firftwill
be infinitely greater than that of the fecond, tho'
their folidity and weight be the fame. If there-
fore all required in architeifture were to have
beams capable of fupporting vafi: loads, and at
the fame time he of the Icaft weight poCible, it is
evident they muftbe cut as thin as laths, and laid
edge wile.
If the bafes of two lieams be fuppofcd unequal,
but the fum of the fides of the two bafes equal,
E. g. if they be either 12 and 12, or 1 1 and 13, or
10 and 14, &c. fo that they always make 24 ; and
farther, if they be fuppofcd to be laid cdgewife ;
purfuing the fcries, it will appear that, in the
beam of 12 and 12, the refiltance will be 1728, and
the folidity or weight 14.4; and that in the Lift, or
1 and 23, therefiitance will be 529, ajid the weight
23 : the firft therefore, which is fquare, will have
lefs than half the ftrength of the laft, with regard to
its weight.
Hence Mr. Parent remarks, that the common
pracStice of cutting the beams out of trees, as
iquare as poflible, is ill hufbandry : he hence takes
occafion to determine geometrically what dimen-
fions the bafe of a beam to be cut out of any tree
propofed fliall have, in order to its bcin^ of the
greateft poflible ftrength ; or, which is the fame
thing, a circular bafe being given, he determines
the rei£l:;ngle of the greateft refiftance that
can be infcribed ; and finds that the fides muft be
nearly as 7 to 5. To inveftigate this proportion of
the fides, put r for the radius of the given cir-
cular bafe, 2 X for the required depth ; then will
2 \/r^—x^ exprefs the required breadth, by the na-
ture of the circle ; and confequently 8 :r' X ^/T^Tp^
the refiftance, which muft be a maximum ; and
therefore its fluxion =0: hence we get A-=rx y/l"!
BE A
and the proportion of the fide as v ~2^ to 1, or 1.4
to I nearly, that is, as 7 to 5.
Hitherto the lengths of the beams have been
fuppofcd equal ; if they are unequal, the bafes will
relirt fo much the kfs as the beams are longer.
To this it may be added, that a beam fuftained
at each end, breaking by a weight fufpended from
its middle, does not only break at the middle, but
alio at each extreme ; or, if it does not adhially
break there, at l"aft immediately before the mo-
ment of the fracSlure, which is that of the equili-
brium betwecji the rciiftance and the v.'cight, its
fibres are as much ftretched at the extremes, as in
the middle. So that, of tlie weight fuftained bv
the middle, there is but one third pa/t which afl's
at the middle, to make the fraiSure ; the other two.
only adting to induce a fracture in the two ex-
tremes.
A be.am may either be fuppofcd loadcii only with
its own weight, or witli other foreign weights, ap-
plied at any diftance, or clfc only witli thofe fo-
reign weights. Since, according to M. Parent, the
weight of" a beam is not ordinarily above -'j part
of die load given it to fuftain ; it is evident that, in
confidering fcveral weights, they muft be all re-
duced by the common rules to one common cen-
ter of gravity.
Mr. Parent has calculated tables of the weights
that will be fuftained by the middle in beams of
various bafes and lengths, fitted at each end into-
walls, on a fuppoficion that a piece of oak of an
inch fquare and a foo^t long, retained horizon-
tally by the extremes, will fuftain 3151b. in its
middle, before it breaks, which it is found, by
experience, it v/ill. See Aftm. Aiad. R. Sdeiic.
an. 1708.
Beams, in naval architccbure, thick ftrong pieces
of timber, ftretching acrofs the fliip from fide t»
fide, to fupport the decks and retain the fides at
their proper diftance.
On the Be.'VM, in navigation, any diftant objeiSt
is fo called when it bears on a line with the fnip's
beams : thus, if a fliip lies north and foutli, ;,-.y
objeft on the beam muft bear eaft or weft; and
hence.
Before the Beam is an arch of the horizon includ-
ed between a line, croffing the fliip at right angles,
and the objedf feen in that fituation : thus, if a
fliip fteers north, and difcovers another t-wo points
before the ftarboard-beam, flie bears E. N. E. and
fo abaft the beam.
Beam, in heraldry, the principJ horn of a hart
or buck.
Beam, among hunters, the main ftem of a deer's
head, or that part which bears the antlers, rovals,
and tops.
Bea.m, in mechanics, the lath, or iron, of a pair
of fcules.
Bea.m
BE A
Beam Is alfo the name of a fiery meteor, in tlic
form of a pillar.
Beam, or Roller, among weavers is a long
and thicic woollen cylinder, placed Icngthv/ifo on
the back part of the loom of thnk who work
with the fhuttle. The threads of the warp are rolled
upon the beam, and unrolls as the woik proceeds.
Beam-Compass, an inftrument confilting of a
fquarc wooden or crofs-beam, having Hiding
fockcts that carry fleel or pencil points ; and ufcd
in dcfcribing large circles, where the common com-
paiks are ulelels.
Beam ofm Anchor, the fliank or longeit part of
an anchor. See Anchor.
Beam of a Plough, a name given by oiu' farmers
to the largeit piece of timber in a plough, and to
which all the parts of the plough-tail are lixeJ.
This beam is generally made of alli, is Ilraight,
and eight feet long in the common plough ; but
in the four-coultered plough, it is ten feet long,
and arched at the upper part. The head of this
beam lies on the pillow of the plough, and is raifed
higher, or funk lower, as that pillow is elevated
or deprelfed by Hiding along the crow-llaves. Near
the middle it has an iron collar, which receives the
tow chain from the box ; and the bridle-chain
from the {lake or gallows of the plough is fixed
to it a little below the collar: fome inches below
this there is a hole, in which the coulter is faften-
ed, and below that are two other fmall holes
through which the heads of the retches, or irons
that fupport both the flieat and the fhare, pafs.
Farther backward ftill is a large perforation,
through which the body of the fheat paffes ; and be-
hind that, very near the extremity, is another hole,
through which the piece called the hinder fhcat
pafles. See Plough.
BEAN, faba, in botany, the name of a genus
of plants whofe flower is of the papilionaceous kind :
the root is partly ftraight and partly creeping, with
a quadrangular ftalk that is light, and has feveral
ribs: the conjugation of the leaves are not exadt ;
for there has been fometimes three, four, five, or
more of an oblong roundifh fliape, that are flat, and
of a bluifli green, venous, and fmooth : the flowers
proceed from the hollows where the ribs join to
the ftalk ; and though feveral of them are together,
they have but one pedicle : thefe are fucceeded by
a pod, fo well known that it needs no defcript'.on.
There are feveral varieties of garden-beans, the
irroft common of which are: i. The A4agazan, or
Portugal-bean: 2.The Spanifh: ^.TheSandwich :
4.. T'he Toker : and 5. 1"he Windfor-beaii. The
fii-ft fort fnould be planted in Ocitober or No\6m-
ber, under walls, hedges, ice. and carefully e:;rth-
cd up as they grov/ : thefe, if not dellroyed by le-
vjre weather, will be fit for table the beginning
of May : though its bean is fmaller than the
other forts, yet its hardinefs,- and coming in fo
17
B E A
early before the others, makes it defcrvc notice.
The Spanifh and Windfor beans, being more ten-
der, Ihould not be planted until after Chriilmas.
The Sandwich is a plentiful bearer, and, be-
ing hardier than the Windfor, may be planted a
month fooner. The Tokcr-bean comes about the
fame time as the Sandwich, and as it is a great
bearer as well a.; that, it is now much planted. To
have a fucceifioa of VVindfor-beans, there fhould
be feveral plantations made at the diftance of about
three weeks frcm the firft fowing to the middle of
May. The Magazan-beans may alfo be raifed in
beds, fov/ing them thick, and covered with hoops
and matts in bad weather in the winter, and in
fpring planted cut ; though they will be later than
thofe which have Ifood the winter abroad, yet, if
they are cut off by the feverity of the v.'eaiher, the
tranfplanted ones make a good fupply in their
flead. All the large forts of beans (hould not be
planted lefs than three feet afunder, row from
row, and about feven or eight inches in the rows.
The horfc-bean delights in a ftrong nioift foil, and
an open expofure ; the feafon for fowing them is
from tlie latter end of February to the beginning
of April, according to the nature of the foil.
With regard to^ the nature and faculty of beans,
the comnion opinion is, that they ?re windy and
hard of digefrion, and fome doubt whether they .
nourifii much or not. The meal of dried beans is
reckoned am-ong one of the four refolvcnt meals ;
and it is ufed by fome as a cataplafm, boiled in
milk, to refolve and fuppurate tumours ; the water
dillillcd from the flowers is looked upon as a cof-
metic, and is ftill in ufe to take away fpots from
the face.
Bean French. See Phaseolus.
Bean Trefoil. See Cytisus.
Bean-Tree, Kidney, Sec Glycine.
BF.AR, Urfa, in zoology, a genus of quadru-
peds, of the order of the feric, or beafts of prey ;
diftinguiftied by having only four teats, two on the
breaft, and two on the belly.
It is a large but unfightly anim:d, and of difFe-
rent fizcs in difFercnt countries.
Bear Greater diti^ LeJJ'er, in aftronomy ; fee the
articles Ursa Majir and Minor.
Bearbind. See Convolvulus.
Bear's-Breech. See Acanthus.
Bear's-Ear. See Auricula.
Bear's-Foot. See Helleeorus.
BEARD of a Comet, in aftronomy, the rays
which the comet emits towards that jjart of the hea-
vens whither it feems to d heft its motion; andjc-
is this that diftinguifhes the beard from the tail,
whch implies thofe rays th:'.t are emitted in the ,
triuS through which it has pafTcd. -[
Bi^ard of a Horfe, that part, underneath the,!
lower jaw, between rite chin and .tlje place where
the cUrb.refts. :. 1 ,,
4 O Bhardi^d
BE A
Bearded Hujk, among florifts, implies a
hufk that appears hairy on the edges ; as that of
a rofe, hz.
BEARDING c/ /■/«/. See Wool.
BEARER, in architecture, a port, pier, or wall,
ereiSted between the two ends of a piece of timber,
tofliorten its bearing, or to prevent its whole weight
reding on the two ends only.
Bearl'R of a Bill of Exchange, the perfon in whofe
hands the bill is, in favour of whom the laft order
was made. See Bill if Bxckange.
BEARING, in navigation, an arch of the hori-
zon, comprehended between the neareft meridian
and any diftant objeft, either difcovered by the eye,
or found by the finical proportion ; as, at four
P. M. we difcovered Cape Malacha, bearing W.
64°. S. or, having the difference of latitude and
longitude given, we find the bearing and diftance
by analogy.
Bearing of a piece of Timber, among carpenters,
fignifies the ipace either between its two fixed ex-
tremes, when it has no other fupport, which they
call bearing at length, or between one extreme and
a port, brick-wall, &c. trimmed up between the
ends to fliorten its bearinc;.
Bearing Clmvs, among cock-fighters, are the
foremoft toes of a cock. If thefe are hurt or gra-
velled, he cannot fight.
BEAR-UP, or Bear-Away, in navigation, a
Jliip is faid to do fo when, having failed fome time
with a fide-wind, flie alters her courfe and fails
more before it : this is probably called bearing-up,
becaufe the helm is borne up to the wind-fide of
the fhip ; for, otherwife, it is not only abfurd, but
an abfolute contradiftion to fay a fhip bears up
when fhe goes before the wind, fince the diredtion
of the wind, as well as the current of the tide in
a river, is underftood to determine the fituation
of places within its limits ; for we always fay, up
to the windward, and down to the leeward : and
yet, abfurd and contradictory as it is to com-
mon fenfe, this phrafe is adopted in the inftruc-
tion of our navy, in the room of bear-away or bear-
tlown.
BEAST, a general appellation for all four-
footed animals, whether proper for food, labour, or
fport.
Beasts of Burden, all four-footed animals ufcd
in carrying burdens. Thefe are chiefly elephants,
camels, dromedaries, horfes, mules, alTes, and the
iheep of Mexico and Peru.
Beasts ofChace, are the buck, the doe, the fox,
the roe, and the martin.
Beasts and Fowls of the JVan-en, are the hare,
the coney, the pheafant, and the partridge.
^"EASTs of the Fore/}, are the hart, the hind, the
boar, anc) the wolf.
BE.'\TIFlCATION, an ad whereby the pope
declares a perfon beatified or blelTed. It js the
BE A
firft llep towards canonization. See Canoni-
zation.
BEATING, or Pulsation, in medicine, the
reciprocal motion, or palpitation of the heart. See
Pulse.
Beating Gold and Silver. See Gold-Beat-
ING, &c.
Beating, in navigation, the adl of making a
progrefs againft the wind, by tacking. See the
article Tacking. Beating, however, is generally
underflood to be turning to windward in a ilorm or
frefli wind.
BEATS of a JVatch or Clock, are the ftrokes made
by the fangs or pallets of the fpindle of the balance,
or of the pads in a royal pendulum. See Clock
and Watch.
BEAVER, Fiber, in natural hiftory, a creature
about four feet in length, and twelve or fifteen
inches broad. His fkin, in the northern regions,
is generally black, but it brightens into a rcddifh
tintture in the temperate climates. He is covered
with two forts of hair, one long, and the other a
foft down ; the latter, which is an inch in length,
is extremely fine and compact, and accommodates
the animal with a neceflary warmth. The long
hair prelerves the down from dirt and hu-
midity.
The beaver, whether male or female, has four
bags under his inteflines, impregnated with a re-
finous and liquid fubftance, which, when it is
ejefted, fettles into a thick confiftence. See
Castor.
His teeth are firong, and deeply riveted into his
jaws, with a long and crooked root ; with thefe he
cuts as well the wood with which he builds, as
that which furniflies him with food. His fore-
feet refemble thofe of fuch animals as hold what
they eat with their paws, as apes, for inftance, and
rats, and fquirrels ; with thefe feet he digs, foftens, ■
and works the clay, which is extremely lerviceable
to him. His hind feet are accommodated with
membranes, or large fkins, extending between his
toes, like thofe of ducks and all other water-fowl ;
this makes it evident that the Author of nature
intended thfe creature fhould be amphibious. His
t<iil is long, a little flat, entirely covered with
fcales, fupplied with mufcles, and perpetually lu-
bricated with oil or fat. This animal, who is an
architect from his nativity, ufes his tail initead of
a hod, for the conveyance of his clay or mortar,
and a trowel to fpread and form it into an incrufta-
tion ; the fcales prevent thefe inaterials from pene-
trating the tail with their coldnefs and humidity :
but would be injured bv the air and water, were it
not for the prevention of an oil, which he diflri-
butes all over them with his fnout ; the bags we
have already mentioned are undoubtedly the ma-
gazines of this fluid.
Merchants diilinguifh three forts of beavers,
6 though
BE A
though they arc all the (kins of the fame animal :
the new beaver, the dry beaver, and the coat
bea\'cr.
The new beaver, which is alfo called white bea-
ver, or Mufcovy beaver, becaufe it is commonly
kept to be fent into Mufcovy, is that which the
i'avagcs catch in their winter huntinsj. It is the
beft and the mofi: proper for making line furs, be-
caul'e it has lolt none of its hair by Ihedding.
The dry beaver, which is fometimes called lean
beaver, comes from the fummcr-hunting, which
is the time when thefe animals lofe part of their
hair.
Though this fort of beaver be much inferior to
the former, yet it may alfo be employed in fuis ;
but it is chiefly ufed in the manufacture of hats.
The French call it iummer cnltor, or bv.aver.
The coat beaver is that which has contratfed a
certain gro.s and oily humour from the fweat which
exhales from the bodies of the favages who wear it
for fome time. Though this fort be better than
the dry beaver, yet it is ufed only in the makmg
of hats.
Befides hats and furs, in which the beaver's hair
is commonly ufed, they attcn.ptcd in France, in the
year 1699, to make other nianu'achires with it ;
and accordingly they made cloths, flannels, (lock-
ings, &c. partly of beaver's hair, and partly of
Segovia wool. This manufactory, which was fet
up at Paris, in St. Anthony's fuburb, fucceeded at
firrt pretty well ; and, according to the genius of
the French, the novelty of the thing brought into
fome repute the fluffs, llockings, gloves, and cloth,
made of beaver's hair : but they went out of fafhion
of a fudden, becaufe it was found, by experience,
that they were of a very bad wear, and, befides,
that the colours faded very much : when they had
been wet, they became dry and hard, like felt,
which occafioned the mifcarriage of the manufac-
tory for that time.
When the hair has been cut off from the bea-
ver's fkin, to be ufed in the manufaChory of hats,
ihofe (kins are ftill employed by feveral workmen ;
namely, by the trunk-makers, to cover trunks and
boxes ; by the {hoe-makers, to put into flippers ;
and by turners, to make fieves for fifting grain and
feeds.
BEAUTY, a gen';ral term for whatever ex-
cites in us pleafing fenfations, or an idea of ap-
probation.
Me may therefore diftinguifli the notion annexed
to beauty into ideas and fenfations ; the former of
which poffefs the mind, the latter affedt the heart.
Thus an object may pleafe the undcritanding,
without interffing the lenfes ; and, on the other
hand, agreeable Lniat'ons may be excited by ob-
jects wliofe .deas have no claim to our appro-
bation.
In ihtfe d.fiinfitions the difficulty, or rather im-
BEE
poflibility, of fixing a general charafteriftic of
beauty confifts ; becaufe the ideas and fenfations
of different pcrfons vary, according to their diffe-
rent turns of mind and habitudes of body : and
confequently the relations of obje£ls to thofe ideas
and fenfations vary in the fame manner. Hence
arife the various opinions of beauty in women,
painting, ffatuary, &c.
Beauty, in architeflure, painting, and other
arts, is the harmony and juilnefs of the whole com-
pofition taken together.
BECAH, orBEKAH, in antiquity, a Jev/ifh coin,
worth nearly fourteen-pence of our money-
BECALMING, in navigation. Whenthewind
is interrupted in its paffage to a veffel by any conti-
guous body, as land, a high fea behind, or another
Uiip, it is called becalming her, as the fails at that
time remain in a flate of reft, and are deprived ot
their growing power.
BECA.-BUNGA, in botany, the fame with ana-
gallis. See Anagallis.
BECHICS, among phyficians, medicines adapt-
ed to the cure of coughs.
The word is formed from the Greek, Pal, pM^®',
a cough.
BED cf the Carriage of a Cannon, the thick plank
that lies under the piece, and forming, as it were,
the body of the carriage. See Cannon.
Be», in mafonry, a courfe or range of ftones.
Bed, in gardening, a fquare or oblong piece
of ground, raifed a little above the level of the ad-
joining ground, and in which feeds are fown, or
plants fet.
Hot Bed. See Hpx-BED.
Beds of Minerch, certain ftrata or layers of
matter difpofed over each other.
Lordi of the Bed-Chamber, in the Britifli cuf-
toms, ten lords, who attend in their turns each
week ; during which time they lie in the king's
bed-chamber, and wait upon him when he dines
in private.
BED-MouLDiNG is a term ufed by workmen,
for thofe members in a cornice which are placed
below the coronet, or crown, and ufually confifts
of an ogee, lift, large boultine, and under the co-
ronet another lift.
BEIl, in natural hiftory, a fmall infeCf, famous
for its induftry.
With refpcdf to form, the bee is divided by two
ligaments, into three parts or portions, the head,
the breaft, and the belly. The head is armed with
two jaws and a trunk, the former of which play
like two faws, opening and fhutting to the right
and left. 1 he trunk is long and taper, and ex-
tremely pliant and flexible, being deftined by na-
ture for the infeCt to probe to the bottom of the
flowers thiougli all the impediments of their chives
and foliage, and drain them of their treafured fweets:
but were this trunk to be always extended, it
would.
BEE
would prove incommodious, and be liable to be in-
jured by a tlvoufaiid accidents : it is therefore of
fuch a ilruchire, that, after the performance of its
nectilary fun(5lions, it may becontrafted, or rather
folded up ; and befides this, it is fortified againftall
injuries by four ftrong fcalcs, two of which clofely
Iheathe it, and the two others, whofe cavities and
dimenfions are larger, encompafs the whole. From
the middle part or breaft of the bee grow the legs,
which are fix in number : and at the extremity of
the p.iws are two little hooks, difcernible by the
microfcope, which appear like ficklcs, with their
points oppofite to each other. The wings are four,
two greater and two fmaller, which not only ferve
to tranfport them through the air, but, by the
noife they make, to give notice of their departure
and arrival, and to animate them mutually to their
feveral labours. The hairs with which the whole
body is covered, are of fingular ufe in retaining
the fmall duft that falls fiom the chives of the
flowers, of which the wax is formed, as will be
obferved hereafter. The belly of the bee confifts
of fix rhigs, which Aide over one another, and
may therefore be lengthened or contracted at plea-
fure ; and the infide of this part of the body con-
tains the inteflines, the bag of honey, the bag of
poifon, and the fting. The office of the inteflines
is the fame as in other animals. The bag of honey
is tranfparent as cryflal, containing the fweet juices
extracled from flowers, which the bee difcharges
into the cells of the magazine for the fupport of
the community in winter. The bag of poifon
hangs at the root of the fling, through the cavity
of which, as through a pipe, the bee cje6ts fome
drops of this venomous liquor into the wound, and
fo renders the pain more excclTive, The mecha-
nifm of the fling is admirable, being compofed of
two darts, inclofed within a Iheath that tapers into
a fine point, near which is an opening to let out
the poifon. The two darts are eje<Scd through
another aperture, which, heing armed with feve-
ral fharp beards like thofe of fifh-hooks, are not
eafily drawn back again by the bee ; and indeed fhe
never difengages them if the wounded party hap-
pens to ftart and put her into confufion ; but if one
can have patience to continue calm and unmoved,
flie clinches thofe lateral points round the fhaft of
the dart, by which means fhe recovers her v/ea-
pon, and gives lefs pain to the perfon flung. The
liquor which at the fame time fhe infufes into the
wound, caufes a fermentation, attended with a
fivelling, which continues feveral days ; but that
may be prevented by immediately pulling out the
fling, and enlarging the puniSlure, to let the veno-
mous matter have room to efcape.
X,et us now confider the generation, polity, and
labours of thefe infe£ls, the true knowledge of
which is very much owing to the modern Inven-
tion of gbfs-hives, through which all the fecrets of
BEE
the comnninity are laid open to a curious obfervcr.
Any perfon who carefully examines a hive at d life-
rent feafons of the year, will dlftinguifh three
forts of bets ; of which the far greater number
are the common working bees, who do all the
bufinels of the hive, and il:em to be neither male
nor female. The working bee is reprefented at C
(Plate XX. fig. I.) The fecond fort, called drones,
are the males, are fomewhat larger, (as A, fg. 2.)
have no lliiig, nor even flir from the hive, but live
upon the hcney prepared by the others. The third
fort is a much larger and longer-bodied bee, of
which there is often but one in a hive, at leafl,
but one in every fwarm or colony of young bees,
who are from time to time detached from the hive
in fearch of another habitation. This large bee is
what the ancients called the king, from the refpeifl
thoy always faw paid to it by the other bees ; but,
being the female, the moderns more properly srive
it the title of queen, or mother of the fwarm.
See Plate XX. fig. 2. B.
While the hive is fufficient to contain the bees
without inconvenience, the fociety live peaceably
together; but when their numbers are mulilplled,
fo that their habitation is too fmall, the young brood
quit the place of their nativity, and fly in quell of
a new fettlement. The fwarm that goes out con-
fifts of the common bees, under the conduit of
one female or queen ; or, if two queens come out
of the fame hive, then the body of common bees
divides Into two parts, each following one female :
both parties, however, when they alight out of
the air, ufually fettle near each other on a branch
of a tree ; and then thofe bees which form the
fmallefl fwarm go off, one by one, to the other
clufter, deferring the queen they followed, who is
at length murdered by her fubjedls. The fwarm
being thus united, and hanging down from the tree,
the countryman, who is alwaj'S vigilant on thofe
occafions, provides for their accommodation a hive
rubbed with balm, thyme, and other odoriferous
herbs, into which he gently bruilies them from the
branch, and carries them to a Hand prepared for
that purpofe. All this the bees bear very patiently,
and, after they are a little compofed, begin to think
of forming themfelves convenient apartments in
their new habitation.
When they begin this work, it is obferved they
divide themfelves into four parties, one of which is
deflined to the fields to provide materials for the
flrudure ; the fecond works upon thofe materials,
and forms them into a rough (ketch of the dimen-
fions and partitions of the cells ; the third examines
and adjufls the angles, removes the fuperfluous
wax, poliflies the work, and gives it its neceilary
perfe(5tlon ; and the fourth is employed in bringing
provlfions to the labourers.
JVI. Maraldl takes notice that the bees employed
In polifhing the combs, work longer than thofe
that
BEE
BEE
that build them, becaufe poli/hiiig is not fo labo-
rious. They begin their work at the top of the
hive, continuing downward;; to tiic bottom, and
from one fide to another ; and to make it the more
folid they ufe a fort of tempered wax, refembling
glue. The form of the cells of the honey-comb
is hexagonal, which figure, befides what is com-
mon with a fquare and equilateral triangle, hns the
advant:ige of including a greater fpace within the
fame furface. See the article Comu.
The expedition of the bees in their labour is
almoll incredible ; for, notwithltanding the ele-
gance and jufi: proportions of the work, they are
fo indefatigable, that they will, in one day, tinifh
a honey-comb, a foot long, and fix inches broad,
capable of receiving three thoufand bees.
It is not eafy to know, particularly, the man-
ner in which they employ themfelves at this work,
on account of the number of bees then in motion,
liy which means the eye can hardly diftinguifli any
thing but confufion. We have however been able
to obferve the following particulars : Some bees,
bearing in each of their talons a little piece of
wax, are feen running to the places where their
companions are at work upon the combs ; at their
arrival they faften the wax to the work by means
•of the fame talons, which they apply fometimes to
the right, and fometimes to the left. Each bee is
employed but a fhort time on this work, when
another takes its place.
While a part of the bees are at work in con-
ftrudting the cells, others are employed in perfect-
ing thofe that are newly modelled, finifhing the
angles, fides, and bafes, in fo exquifite a manner,
and with fuch remarkable delicacy, that three or
four of thcfe fides laid upon one another, are not
thicker than a leaf of common paper ; and becaufe
the entrance of the cell, which is adapted to the
fize of the bee, would, on account of this deli-
cacy, be fubject to break, they ftrengthen the en-
trance of each cell with a border of wax.
We have already obfervcd, that the bees which
'build the cells work but a little while at a time ;
but it is different with regard to thofe that polifh
them, for they work a long while, and with great
expedition, never intermitting their labour, imlefs
it be to carry out of the cell the particles of wax
taken off in the polifliing : and, to prevent this
wax from being loft, other bees ftand ready to re-
•cei've it from the polifliers, and carry it to fomc
other part in order to its being employed.
Each comb has two rows of cells oppofite to
each other, which have their common bafes. The
thicknefs of each comb is fomething lefs than an
■inch ; and, conlequently, the depth of each cell
about five lines ; but at the fame time the breadth
of each is little more than two.
All the combs are conrtrui?led with cells of this
fize, except a fmaU number of others in fome par-
•17
ticular parts of the iTive, which are larger, and ap-
propriated to the lodging eggs, that afterwards be-
come drones, or male bees.
There are alfo, in fome parts of the hive, three
or four cells bigger than the others, and con-
fi:ruifkd in a -different manner. They are of a
fphcroidical figure, open in the inferior part, and
attached to the cxucmities of the combs.
When the cells arc completed, the queen takes
pofllflion of thofe fhe likes befl to depofite her eggs'
in, and the reft arc left to be filled with honey.
She lays one egg in each cell, and fometimes more
than an hundred of thofe eggs in a day ; but what
is ftill more remarkable, fhe lays thofe eggs w^hich
are to produce common bees in cells of the com-
mon fbape and fize, thofe that are to become
drones or males, in the cells of a larger fize, and
depofites thofe which are to become females, like
herfelf, in the fphcroidical cells already defcribed.
Thefe eggs, after lying fome time in the cells,
are hatched into maggots, and fed with honey ten
or twelve days, after which the other bees clofe
up the cells with a thin piece of wax ; and under
this covering they become gradually transformed
into bees, in the fame manner as filk-worms are
into butterflies. Having undergone this change^
the young bees pierce through their waxen doors,
wipe oft" the humidity from their little wings, takft
their flight into the fields, rob the flowers of their
fweets, and are perfcftly acquainted with every ne-
ceflary circumftance of their future condudl. As
to the males or drones, which are deftined only to
propagate their fpecies, they live very comfortably
for about three months after they are hatched ; but
when that time is over, and the females are im^-
pregnated, the common bees either kill them, or
drive them from the hive, as burdcnfome to the
community, and not a drone is to be found till the
next feafon.
The method in which the bees collefl: their wax
and honey deferves to be a little explained. At the
bottom of all flowers there are certain glands which
contain more or lefs honey, that is, the moft ex-
alted particles of the fugary juices of the plant.
Thefe juices the bee fucks up with her probofcis or
trunk abovementioned, and draws it into its mouth ;
and when it has thus taken a fufficiqnt quantity
into its ftomach, it returns to the hive, and dif-
charges the honey into the common magazine.
When the, cells prepared to receive it are full,
the bees clofe up fome with wax till they have oc-
cafion for the honey ; the roft they leave open, to
which all the members of the focicty refort, and
take their repaft with a very inftru(5tive moderation.
It is an excellent obfervation of a modern au-
thor, that the hive is a fchool to which numbers ot
people ought to be fent ; prudence, induftry, bene-
volence, public fpiritednefs, etconomy, neatnefs,
and temperance, are all \ihblc among the bees.
4 P Thsfc
BEE
BEE
Thefe little animals are afluated by a locia! i'pirit,
which forms them into a body politic, intimately
united, and perfeftly happy. They all labour for
the generai advantage J they are allfubmiffive to
the laws and regulations of the community : hav-
ing no particular intereft, no diftindtion but thofe
which nature or the necefTities of their young have
introduced amcngfl: them. Vv'e never fee them dif-
iatished with their condition, or inclinable to aban-
don the hive in difguft, to find themfelves ilaves
or neceffitous : on the contrary, they think them-
felves in perfect freedom and perfect afHuence ;
and fuch indeed is their real condition. They are
free,- becaufe they only depend on the laws ; they
are happy, becaufe the concurrence of their feveral
labours inevitably produces abundance, which con-
tributes to the riches of each individual. Let us
compare human focieties with this, and they will
appear altogether nionftrous. Neceffity, reafon,
and philofophy, have eftabiifhed them for the com-
mendable purpofes of mutual aid and benefits : but
a fpirit of felfifhnefs deftroys all; and one half of
mankind, to load themfelves with fuperSuities,
leave the other deilitute of common neceiiaries.
Wax is compofed of the farina, or dull, formed
on the apices of flowers. This the bees colle6f,
and with their fore-feet and jaws, roll up into little
balls, which they convey, one at a time, to the
feet of their middle legs, and from thence to the
middle joint of their hind legs, where there is a
fmall cavity like a fpoon, to receive the burden.
When thofe bees, who are employed in coljedling
the wax, return to the hive, they are afiifted by
their companions in difcharging their load, who
by little and little pick off the wax from their legs,
and convey it to the common treafure. With this
they build their combs, obferving a wonderful fru-
gality, not the leaft grain of it being wafted or
neglected.
Confidering the advantages arifing from the la-
bours of bees, is it not ftrange that our country-
people are not more follicitous about the preferva-
tion and increafe of thefe animals ? It is certain
they would multiply prodigioufly with proper ma-
nagement ; and we might, upon a moderate com-
putation, have five thoufand times as much wax
and honey produced in this kingdom as we have
^t prefent. Some attempts of this kind have al-
ready been made in our own country, and there is
not the leaft reafon to doubt but they will, if pur-
fued, be attended with fuccefs. The fiift method
we ftiall mention of this kind is that of the Rev.
Mr. Stephen White, which he calls collateral bee-
boxes ; an invention by which part of the honey
and wax may be taken without injuring the bees.
Maimer of conJiruSiing a/i/igleBER-Box. — It may
be made of deal, or any other boards, well fea-
foned, that are not apt to warp or fplit. The
boards fliould be near an inch thick : let it be
eight inches and a half in height and breadth,
every way, meafuring within, and including the
fpace the thin boards take up at the ends, as if
there were no fuch boards : with thefe dimenfions
it will contain about a peck and one pint. The
box is in figure four I'quare. The front part muft
have a door cut in the middle of the bottom edije,
about four inches wide, and half an inch in height,
v/hich will give free liberty to the bees to pafs
through, yec not be large enough for their enemy,
the moule, to enter. In the b.ick part you muft
cut a hole with a rabbet in it, in which you are
to fix a pane of the cleareft and beft crown-glafs,'
about five inches in length, and three in breadth,
and faften it with putty. Let the top of the glafs
be placed as high as the roof within-fide, that you
may fee the upper part of the combs, where the
bees with their riches are moftly placed. You will,
by that means, be belter able to judge of their
ftatc and ftrength, than if your glai's v^'as fixed in
the middle. Such as are defirous of feeino- more of
the bees works, may make the glafs as large as the
box will admit, without weakening it too much ;
which may be prevented by nailing a little flip of
board crofs the bottom. The glafs muft be co-
vered with a thin piece of board, by way of fliutter,
which may be made to hang over the glafs, by a
piece of tape going through the upper part of the
fliutter, and faftened on the top of the box, by
thrufting both ends into a gimlet hole; and after
driving a peg pretty hard into the hole, you may
cut oft' the peg dole to the box.
As for the two other fides of the box, which,
for diftindtion fake, may be called the ends, they
are not to be wholly enclofed. A fpace is to b?
left in each end, near an inch wide at the top, and
another Ipace more than an inch wide at the botr
torn ; which fpaces are to be extended in length
the whole breadth of the box. Through thefe,
the bees are to have a communication from one box
to another. To form thefe communications, a
thin piece of flit deal muft be let into the edges of
the front and the back boards, fo as to be flufli with
the edges of thofe boards.
In the next place you are to provide a piece of
flit deal, full half an inch thick, and large enough
to cover one of the ends, but to be ufed indif-
ferently, fometimes at one end, and fometimes at
the other ; for which reafon it is not to be
nailed, but tied on, in the following manner, viz.
Take about three quarters of a yard of pretty ftrong
tape, which will be found better than packthread,
becaufe it is lefs apt to relax and flacken. Fix one
end of the tape in the front board, about fix iijches
above the mouth, and diredtly over the middle of it.
Let this end of the tape be faftened in a gimlet-hole,
with a peg drove hard in, and then cut off clofe to
the board, as was diredted for the fliutter. You
are next to bore a hole on each fide of your glafs^
fix
BEE
fix inches and a half from the bottom of the box :
into each of thefe holes drive a peg, which may
ftand out more tlian an inch from the box. Let
the pegs be made of a(h, which is a tough wood,
and let one er.d of them be flat, that you may
fcrew them out or in the more conveniently. When
this is done, take your loofc end-board, and fct it
in its proper place, fo that it may cover one of the
ends, it matters not which : then drawing your
tape as tight as you can over it, fallren the end of
it to one of the pegs by the lide of the glafs. This
will conhne your end-board, and keep the upper
part of it clofe to the box : and if the lower part
ihould gape a little, or ilart from the box, you
may keep it tight by a nail or two dro\'e fo gently
into the llool, on which the box is placed, that
you may, whenever you have occafion, draw them
out with your fingers ; or, if you like it better,
you may add another tape, with pegs as before, to
go crofs the lower part of (he end-board.
The gimlet holes need not be carried quite
through the board, and it is better they (liould not;
for if any p.irt of the firing appears within the box,
it will give oflcnce to the bees, and coft them a
great deal of pains to pull it to pieces.
You have now only to fix a flick, crofling the
box from end to end, about three inches from the
bottom, to be a (lay to the combs : and when you
have painted the whole, to make it more durable,
your box is tlniflied.
The judicious bec-mafler will here obferve, that
the form ot the box is as plain as it is poffible for it
to be. It is little more than three fquare pieces of
board nailed together : . fo that a poor cottager,
who has but ingenuity enough to faw a board into
given dimcnfions, to fquare it exaiftly, and to
drive a nail, may make his own boxes well enough,
without the help or the expence of a carpenter.
See Plate XX. fig. 3. where D is the front of a
fingle box, E the back, and F the end.
Having thus conftrudted the boxes, it will in the
next place be neceflary to defcribe the method of
driving a fwarm into them. In order to this, you
are to take a box, with one end-board tied to it
(as before directed) on your right hand, and an-
other box, with the end-board tied to it on your
left hand ; fet thefe together, leaving the commu-
nications open from one box to another : then tie
the boxes together as fafl as you can, with a firing
going five or fix times round them. The boxes
fliould not be tied till you are jufl going to ufe
them, becaiife the firing will grow (lack with
flanding, and then the boxes will be apt to Hip
one from the other, as you handle them.
Be careful to tie the fhutters clofe to the glafs,
that the light may not enter : for the bees feem to
look upon the light as a hole or breach in their
houfe, and, on that account, may not fowell like
their new habitation. But the principal thing to
BEE
be obferved, at this time, is to cover the bo.ves,
as foon as ever the bees are hived, with a linen
cloth thrown loofely over them ; and it may be
proper alio to lay fomc green boughs upon them to
protect them from the piercing r.eat of the fun.
iSoxes will admit the hsat mucli Iboner than (fraw-
hives ; and if the bees find their houfe too hot,
they will be wife enough to leave it. In all other
reipciits, they are to be hived in boxes, after the
fame manner as in common hives, which being
well known, no particular dirciStions need be given
concerning it.
When the bees are thus hived in tv/o boxes, and
placed in the evening where they are to remain,
the firing which tied the two boxes together may
be taken oft, and the ihutter of your glals being at
liberty, obferve which of the boxes the bees have
made choice of for their prefont refidence, and flop
the mouth of that box with a flip of board, fo that
they may work only out of the empty box ; for
they will fill the former with their works before
they begin in the latter. When you find they
have begun in the fecond box, it will be proper to
give them a third, which is done in this manner.
I'ake a thin knife, and cut through the refinous
fuhflance, with which the bees will now have
joined the end-board to the box ; then loofening
the tape that ties the board, thruft gently a fheet of
double tin between the box and the end-board,
taking away the latter, and placing an empty box
in the room of it : this done, draw away the tin
with a gentle hand, and thruft the new box clofe
to the other. You muft alfo remember that the
mouth of this third box muft be flopped like the
firft, that the entrance may be only in the fecond
or middle box. See Plate XX. fig. 3. where
G,G,G, are three boxes joined together. H the
tape which tics the end-boards, I the tin flopping
the communication.
About the middle of Auguft, you will eafily dif-
cover through your glafTes, which of your colonies
you may lay under contribution. Such as have
rilled three boxes will readily yield you one of
them : and it will be beft to take the box where
there are feweil bees, becaufe the queen-bee is not
likely to be there. The moft proper time is about
three or four o'clock in the afternoon ; when the
operation may be eahly performed in the following
manner : Open the mouth of the box you are
going to feize ; or, which may be better, that
half of it which is furtheft from the middle box :
then, with a thin knife, cut through the refin with
which the bees have joined this box to the middle
one, till you find you have feparated them ; after
which thruft your fheet of tin gently between the
boxes, and your work is done. The communica-
tion being thus flopped, the bees in the two boxes,
where in all probability the queen is, will be a
little dirturbed at the operation, but thofe in the
fingle
BEE
fingle box will appear diftrafted. They fcon be-
come fenfible tn..t their iovereign is not among
them ; and accordingly ilTue out at the new door
in a vifible rage and diforder : but this is quickly
over; for they foon difcover their compan.Oiis,
and fly to them with eager hafte, at the uuial
mouth of the middle box, forgetting, in the midft
of their tranfports, the lofs ot the riches they have
left behind them. You may now carry off the
prize without moleftation, placing an end-board in
the room of the box you have taken, drawing
away your tin, and faflening the board with taj-c,
as before directed. See Plate XX. fig. 3. where
K rcprefents the hole half open, and the bees
illuing out of the box to be taken away.
By this method, large quantities of wax and
honey may be colledled, without deftroying the
bees, while your flock will be every year in-
creafed by fwarms, and all your colonies well
llocked with bees.
Another invention for faving the lives of bees,
and increafing the quantity of wax and honey, has
very lately been laid before the Society for the Eii-
ccuragement of Arts, &;c. by Mr. Thorley, and
•obtained their approbation.
Defcrlptlon of Mr. Th.rh-y's BeE-Hive. This
ingenious and affiduous gentleman, having, from
near fixty years experience, found that his bee-
hives would be produdive of much greater profit
to the owners of bees, and alfo render that cruel
.and ungenerous pradlce of deflro\ing thefe ani-
mals not only unneceffary, but pernicious, prefen:-
ed a bee-hive of this conftruftion to the Society of
Arts, &c. in the Strand, who readily purchafed
another of his hives filled with honey, &c. that
they might be infpeded by the curious, and brought
-into univerfal ufe; and from this bee-hive the view
■ on Plate XX. fg. 4. was drawn. The Society,
perfuadcd that the invention would prove of the
greateft ad\antage to this country, have publilhed
a premium of two hundred pounds, in order to in-
troduce either Mr. Thorley's, or fome other me-
thod of a fimilar kind, whereby much larger quan-
tities of honey and wax might be procured, and,
at the fame time, the lives of thefe laborious and
ufeful infe<Sts preferved.
The bottom part, marked A, is an oiSanguIar
bee-box, made of deal boards, about an inch in
thicknefs, the cover of which is about 17 inches
in diameter, but the internal part only 15!, and
its height ten inches. In the middle of the cover
ot this odlanguiar box is a hole, which may be
opened or fhut at pleafure, by means of a Aider d.
In one of the pannels is a pane of glafs, covered
with a wooden door, b. Tht entrance, a, at the
bottom of the box is about three inches and
a half broad, and half an inch high. Two
flips of deal, about half an inch fquare, crofs each
K)ther in the center of the box, and arc faftcnod
6
B EE
to the pannels by means of fmall fcrews. To thefe
flips the bees fallen their combs.
In this oiElangular box the bees are hived, after
fwarming in the ufual manner, and there fufFered
to continue till they have built their combs, and
filled them with honey, which may be known from
opening the door, and viewing their works through
the glafs pane, or by the weight of the hive.
When the bee-mafter finds his laborious infefls
have filled their habitation, he is to place a ccm-
m.on bee-hive of flraw, reprefcnted at B, made
either flat at the top, or in the common form, on
the o£t.ingular box, and draw out the Aider, by
which a communication will be opei;ed between the
box and the flraw hi^ e ; the coniequence of which
will be, that thofe laborious infedts will fill this
hive alfo with the product of their labours. When
the bee-mafler finds the flrav/ hive is well filled, he
may pufh in the fiider, and take it away, placing
.' .other immediately in its room, and then draw-
ing; out the fiider. Thefe indefatigable creatures
will then fill the new hi\'e in the fair.e manner.
By jiroceeding in this method, Mr. Thorley af-
fured the Society that he had taken three fucceilive
hives, filled with honey and wax, from one fingle
hive, during the fame fummer ; and that after he
had laid his inftdls under fo large a contribution,
the food flill remaining in the octangular box was
abundantly fufficient for their fupport during the
winter. He added, that if this method was pur-
fued in every part of the kingdom, inflead of that
cruel method of putting the creatures to death, he
was perfuaded from long experience, that wax
would be collected in fuch plenty that candles might
be made with it, and fold as cheap as thofe of tal-
low are at prefent.
Mr Thoiley has alfo added another part to his
bee-hive, which cannot fail of affording the highcll
entertainment to a curious and inquifitive mind.
It confifts of a glafs receiver, reprefented at D, 18
inches in height, 8 inches in diameter at the bot-
tom, and in the greateft part 13. This receiver
has a hole at the top, about an inch in diameter,
through which a fquare piece of deal E is extended
to nearly the bottom of the veffel, having two crof
bars to which the bees fallen their combs. Whf
the bees have filled their ffraw hive, (which mu
have a hole in the center C, covered with a piece i.
tin) Mr. Thorley places the glafs-receiver upon th
top of the ftraw hive, and draws out the piece c
tin : Uie bees, now finding their habitation en
larged, purfue their labours with fuch alacrity, thai
(hey fill this glafs hive likewife with their ftores.
And as this receptacle is wholly tranfparent, the
curious obferxer may entertain himfelf v.'ith view-
ing the whole progrefs of their works. One of
the hives, now depofited at the Society's rooms is
the Strand, is filled with the produce of the labour
of thofe infedls 3 and the glafs-hive is fuppofcd t
contaii,
BEE
contain near tiiirty pounds of honey. Sec a. fur-
ther account of managing thefc ufcful creatures,
and the nature of their productions, under the ar-
ticles Swarm, Hive, Honey, Wax, &c.
Bee-Bread, a fuhltance found in the cells
of- bees, and which is thought necefl'ary to their
fubfiltence. It is nothing more tluin wax itfelf
unprepared.
BEECH, F'lgus, in botany, an amentaceous
tree, producing male and female flowers. The
male flowers are apetalous, compofcd of an em-
palement of one leaf, containing feveral ftamina,
and are collected into globular heads : the female
flowers arc alio deftitute of petals, but confill of
a fingle calyx, which contains a germen, which
afterwards becomes a roundifii capfule, opening in
three cells containing in each a triangular nut.
There is but one I'pecies of this tree at prefent
known, (except two varieties with ftriped leaves,
which are accidental) and a beech which grows in
North America ; but the plants which ha\'e arifen
from the feeds thereof, are no way dilfinguifhable
from the common fort.
This tree is propagated from its feed, (called
maftj which mult be gathered about the latter end
of September, or beginning of Oiftober, at which
time it is ripe and begins to fall ; and is the pro-
per and moft natural feafon for fowing them,
though it may be done any where between the
time of gathering and the month of February.
A fmall fpot of ground will be fufficient to raife a
great number of trees from feeds ; the beds muft be
kept clear of weeds, and managed as the afh. See
Ash.
This tree will erow to a confiderable ftature,
though the foil he Itoney and barren ; as alfo, upon
the declivities of hills and chalky mountains, where
they will refift the winds better than moft other
trees ; but then the nurferies for the young plants
ought to be one and the fame fort of foil, for if
they are raifed in a good foil, and a warm cxpofure,
and afterwards tranlplanted into a bleak barren fitu-
ation, they feldom thrive, which is the cafe in moft
other trees.
The beech is very proper to form large hedges,
to furroimd plantations, &c. and may be kept in a
regular form by clipping tv/ice a year, efpecially
if they ftioot ftrong. The fhade of this tree is
very injurious to moft fort of plants, which grow
near it, but is generally believed to be very falubri-
ous to human bodies.
This timber is of great ufe to turners for mak-
ing trenchers, difhes, trays, buckets, and like-
wife to joiners for bedfteads, flools, planes, &:c.
alfo for making rims of wheels for corn-mills,
water-engines, and divers other purpofes. The
malt, or fruit of the beech-tree, is very good to
fat fwine or deer ; it alfo affords a fv.'eet oil.
17
BEG
HtEcH-MAST, the fruit of the becch-trce, ex-
cellent for the fattening of hogs, &c.
BEER, a common and well known liquor,
made with malt and hops, and ufed in thofe
parts of Europe where vines will not grow, and
where cyder is fcarce. See the articles Malt,
Brev.-ing, &c.
It is chiefly diftinguifhed from ale by the quan-
tity of hops, which is greater in beer, and thereby
renders the liquor bitterer, and fitter to keep.
There are various differences in beers, proceed-
ing from the ways of brewing, from the difTcrent
countries or climates, from the water that is ufed,
trom the time fpent about them, from the ingre-
dients made ule of, and the proportions of thefe in-
gredients.
That beer is reckoned the beft which is clear,
and of a pale colour, of a pungent and agreeable
tafte, that fparkles upon being poured into a glafs,
and is neither too old nor too new.
j^igre Beer is ufed by callico-printers, chemifts,
lapidaries, fcarlet-dyers, vinegar-merchants, and
white-leadmen.
Beer, among weavers, a term that fignifies
nineteen eiids of yarn, running all together the
whole length of the cloth.
Beer-Measure. See Measure.
BEESTINGS, a term ufed by country people
for the firft milk taken from a cow after calving.
BEET, Bfit7, in botany. See Beta.
BEETLE, Scarobaus, in the hiftory of infecfts.
See the article Scarabjeus.
Beetle alfo denotes a wooden inftrument for
driving piles, &c.
It is likewife called a ftamper; and by paviors a
rammer.
BEGHARDI, Bfgnardl, a certain fe£t of here-
tics, ■which arofe in Germany, and in the Low-
Countries, about the end of the thirteenth century.
They made profeflion of monaftical life, without
obferving celibacy ; and maintained, if they arc
not fcandalized by the monks, that man could be-
come as perfedt in this life as he ftiail be in hea-
ven ; that every intellectual nature is of itfelf happy,
vi'ithout the fuccour of grace; and that he who is
in this ftate of perfection ought to perform no good
works, nor worftiip the hoft.
BEGLERBEG, a governor of one of the prin-
cipal governments in the Turkifli empire. There
are two forts of beglerbegs ; the one have a certain
revenue afligned upon the cities, boroughs, and
villages of their government, which they raife by
power of the commiflion granted to them by the
fultan ; the others have a certain rent paid by the
treafurer of the grand feignior. They are become
almoft independent, and have under their jurif-
didtion feveral fangiacs, or particular governments,
and bevs, as:as, and other ofKccrs who obey them.
4 Q. BE-
BEL
BEL
BEGUINS, congregations of devout young
women, who maintain themfelves by the work ot
their hands, leading a middle kind of life between
the fjcular and religious. Thefe focieties con-
fift of feveral houfes placed together in one inclo-
fure, with one or more churches, according to the
number of beguins.
There is in every houfe a priorefs, without whofe
leave they cannot ftir out. Their vow is con-
ceived in thefe terms : " I promife to be obedient
"■ and chafte, as long as I continue in this be-
" guinage." They obferve a three years noviciate,
before they take the habit, and the redior of the
parifli is the fuperior, but can do nothing without
the advice of eight beguins.
They are eftablifhed in feveral parts of Flan-
ders.
BEITEN, in pharmacy, a name appropriated
to tv/o roots, very different from one another in
ihaJe, colour, and their whole external appear-
ance, and dillinguiflied by the names of white and
red behen.
"We have them both from the Levant, and they
leem to be produced in majiy parts of the Eafl: ; but
no where in fuch plenty as about the foot of Mount
Lebanon.
The fame virtues are attributed to both kinds of
behen, but the white is fuppofed to pofTefs them
in the greateft degree ; they are faid to be great cor-
dials and reftoratives, and to be good in nervous
complaints.
BEIRAM, orBAiRAM, a Turkifh word v/hich
fignifies a folemn feaft. The Turks celebiate two
beirams : the greater, which falls on the tenth day
of the laft month of the Arabic year, which is the
month of pilgrimage ; and the leffer, which ends
the feaft of the month Rammadan, and falls on the
firftday of the month Scheval. This latter is ce-
lebrated at Conftantinople, and elfevvhere, with
great rejoicings, becauie it puts an end to their
fafting ; and for this reafon it is vulgarly called the
Eafter of the Turks.
BEL, or Belus, the fupreme god of the an-
cient Chaldeans or Babylonians. He was the
founder of the Babylonian empire, and is fuppofed
to be theNimrod of Scripture, and the fame as the
Phccnician Baal.
This god had a temple erefted to him in the
city of Babylon, on the very uppermoft range of
the famous tower of Babel, or Babylon, wherein
were many flatues of this deity, and one, among
the reft, of maiFy gold, forty feet high. The
whole furniture of this magnificent temple was of
the fame metal, and valued at eight hundred talents
of gold.
'I'his temple, with its riches, was in being till
the time of Xerxes, who, returning from his un-
fortunate expedition into Egypt, demoliihed it.
I
and carried off" the immenfe wealth contained in
it.
It was the ftatue of this god which Nebuchad-
nezzar, being returned to Babylon, after the end
of the Jevvilh war, fet up, and dedicated in the
plain of Dura; the ftoiy of which is related at
large in the third chapter of Daniel.
Bel and the Dragon, the niftory of, an apo-
cryphal, and uncanonical, book of Scripture. It
was always rejetled by the Jewifh church, and is
extant neither in the Hebrew nor the Chaldee lan-
guage ; nor is there any proof that it ever was fo.
St. Jerom gives it no better title than the Fable of
Bel and the Dragon. It is however permitted to
be read, as well as the other apocryplial writings,
for the inftruftion and improvement of manners.
BELATUCADRUS,'or Bellotucadrus, a
deity of the ancient Britons, particularly the Bri-
gantes, or inhabitants of Cumberland.
He appears to have been the fame as Mars ; and
it is probable the name might be taken from Bel,
or Baal, the great idol of the Affyrians, which,
according to Cedrenus, was the fame as Mars.
BELAYING, amongft feamen, faftening a final!
rope ; as there are other phrafes appropriated to
larger ropes, as bend, bit, ftopper, Sec.
BELEMNITES, in natural hiftory, a kind of
foffil fubftance, with regard to whofe origin natu-
ralifts are divided. It is generally called the thun-
der-bolt. See Plate XVII. _fig. 5.
The word is formed from the Greek, ^iKiiMsv,
a dart.
The fliape of the bclemnites is fometimes coni-
cal, fometimes cylindrical, and commonly confifts
of a black and horny fubftance. The inward parts
conilft of rays, and there is generally a cell at the,
large end, and a furrow that runs from the top to
the bottom. Dr. Plott informs us, that when the
belemnita; are rubbed againft each other, or are
fcraped with a knife, they have the fmell of ralped
horn, and that their texture confifts of fmall threads
running like rays from the centre, or rather from,
the axis of the ftone to the furface : when burned
they have likewife a fmell like that of horn ; and
the greateft he found was fomevvhat above four
inches in length, and about an inch and a quarter
in thick nel"s.
They are found in all forts of ftrata, in clay,,
gravel, beds of ftone, and often in loofe flints.
They are fometimes. found covered with a fparry
cruft of a different texture from the body of the
mafs.
BELENUS, the tutelar deity of the ancient in-
habitants of Aquileia in Italy, of the Gauls, and of
the Illyrians. He was the iame as Apollo, or the
Sun ; as we learn from Julius Capitolinus, who
relates, that when Maximinius in vain befieged
Aquileia, he fent arabaffadors into the town, who
had.
BEL
had almofl pcrfuaded the people to furrendcr, had
not Menophihis and his collcaoue oppolld it, tel-
ling them, that the god Rclcuus had promifcd them
the viftory over Maximiiiius. I'lic hiftorian adds,
that the foldiers of Maximiiiius afterwards gave out,
that Apollo fought againfl thcni.
BELIEF, in a general and natural fenfe, fig-
nifies a perfuafion or Ihong aflcnt of the mind to
any propofition ; hut, in a more rcflrained and
technical fenle, it imports that kind of aflent
which is founded on the authority or teftimony
of fome perfons attefting the truth of any matter
propofcd.
Belief is generally diftinguiflied into divine
and human, not with regard to the propofition be-
lieved, but with regard to the teftimony on which
we believe it. When God reveals any thing to us,
this gives iis the teftimony of divine belief. See
the article Faith.
But what man only acquaints us with, produces
onlv a human belief. See the article Evidence.
BELL, a well known machine, ranked by
muficians among the mufical inftruments of
percufllon.
The metal of which a bell is made, is a com-
pofition of tin and copper, or pewter and copper :
the proportion one to the other is about twenty
pounds of pewter, or twenty-three pounds of tin
to one hundred weight of copper.
The found of a bell confifts in a vibratory mo-
tion of its parts, much like that of a mufical chord.
The ftroke of the clapper muft necclTarily change
the figure of the bell, and of a round make it
oval ; but the metal having a great degree of elaf-
ticity, that part will return back again which the
ftroke drove farthcft off from the center, and that
even fome fmall matter nearer the center than
before ; fo that the two parts which before
were extremes of the longeft diameter, do then
become thofe of the fliorteft : and thus the external
furface of the bell undergoes .ilternate changes of
figure, and by that means gives that tremulous
motion to the air in which the found confifts.
Diving Bell. See the article Diving.
Bell-Foundery. See Foundery.
Bell-Flower, Campanula, in botany ; fee the
article Campanula.
BELLA-DONNA, in botany, a genus of the
pentandria monogynia clafs of plants, called by
Linnxus atropa. See Atropa.
BELLING of Hops denotes their opening and
expanding themfelves. See Hops.
BELLIS, Daisy, in botany. See Daisy.
BELLON, a diftemper common in countries
where they fmelt lead ore ; as alfo among plumbers
and painters.
It is attended with languor, intolerable pains
and fenfation of gripings in the belly, and generally
eoftivenefs.
BEL
Eeaft.'!, poultry, &c. us well as men, arc fubjeft
to this diforder: hence a certam fpacc round the
fnielting houfcs is called bellon-ground, becaufc
it is dangerous for an anmial to feed upon it.
Bf;LLONA, the pagan godd^ifs of war. She is
joined by Homer witii Mars, the god of war.
Bellona is called by the Greeks 'F.ii/<a, Enyo.
Some make her the mother, others the fifter, and
others the wife of Mais, who is ftjled Enyalius up-
on one or other of thofu acc.aints. Hcliod fays, file
was the daughter of Phorcys and Ceto.
As the fun, among otner names, is fuppoPiJ to
have been worihipped under that of Mar^, fo it is
probable Bellona rcprefcnted the moon.
BELLON ARil, in Roman antiquity, thepriefts
of Bellona, who, in honour of that goddefs, ufed
to make incifions in their body ; and, after
having gathered the blood in the palm of their
hand, gave it to thofe wiio were partakers of their
myfteries.
BELLONIA, in botany, a pentandrious plant
common in feveral parts of the American iflands ;
it hath a woody ftem, which rifes ten or twelve feet
high, fending out many lateral branches, v/hich
are garniftied with oval rough leaves, placed op-
pofite : the flowers come out from the wings of the
leaves in loofe panicles : thefe are wheel-lhaped, of
one plate, and divided into five pans ; the germen
is fituated under the receptacle of the flower, and
is fucceeded by an oval capfule ending in a point,
which is full of fmall round feeds. This plant is
propagated by feeds ; but, being a native oi the hot
countries, it requires a ftove in this climate to pre-
ferve it.
BELLOWING, among fportfmcn, denotes the
noife of roes in ruttin2;-time.
BELLOWS, a machine fo contrived as to agi-
tate the air with great brifknefs, expiring and in-
fpiring the air by turns, and that only from en-
larging and contrafling its capacity.
BELLY, in anatomy, the fame v/ith v/hat is
more ufually called abdomen, or rather the cavity
of the abdomen. See the article Abdomen.
BELOMANCY, a fort of divination by means
of arrows, praftifed in the Eaft, and particularly in
Arabia.
Belomancy has been performed different ways,
whereof one was this : fuppofe a parcel of arrows,
eleven or more of them, being put into a bag j
thefe were aftenvards dravv^n out, and according
as they were marked or not, they judged of fu-
ture events.
BELT, Ralteus, in the military art, a leathern
girdle for fuftaining.the arms, &c. of a foldier.
Belts, in aftronomy, two zones, or girdles,
furrounding the body of the planet of Jupiter, more
lucid than the reft, and of unequal breadth. See
Jupiter.
BELVIDERE, in the Italian architefture, he.
denotes ,
BEN
BEN
denotes either a pavilion on the top of a building,
tor an artificial eminence in a garden ; the word
•literally fignifying a fine profpedi:.
BEN, Been, or Behen. See Behen.
13ENCH, or Banc, in law; fee Banc.
Free Bench fignlfies that cftate in copyhold
lands, which the wife, being efpoiifed a virgin, has
after the deceafe of her huihand for her dov/er, ac-
cording to thecuftom of the manor. As to this free-
tench, feveral manors have feveral cuftoms; and
in the manors of Eaft and Weft Enbourne, in the
county of Berks, and other parts of England,
there is a cuftom, that when a copyhold tenant
«!ies, the widow fliall have her free-bench in all
the deceafed hufband's lands, whilft fhe lives fingle
and chafte ; but if flie commits incontinency, Ihe
fhall forfeit her eflate : neverthelefs, upon her
coming into the court of the manor riding on a
- black ram., and having his tail in her hand, and at
the fame time repeating a form of words prefcrib-
ed, the fleward is obliged, by the cuftom of the
manor, to re-admit her to her free-becnch.
IFidoivs Bench. See Widow.
BENCHERS, in our inns of court, the fenior
members of the fociety, who arc invelted v.'ith the
government thereof.
BEND, in heraldry, one of the nine honour-
able ordinaries, containing a third part of fhe field
when charged, and a fifth when plain. It is fome-
times, like other ordinaries, indented, ingrailed, &c.
and is either dexter or finifter.
Bend Dexter is formed by two lines drawn
from the upper part of the fhield on the right, to
the lower part of the left, diagonally. It is fuppofed
to rcprefent a fhoulder-belt, or a fcarf, when worn
cner the fhoulder.
Bend SiniJIer is that which comes from the
left fide of the fhield to the right ; this the French
heralds call a barre.
BENDING, amongfl: feamcn, the faftening two
ends of rope to one another ; to faflen a fail to its
yard or flay ; to fix the cable to the anchor. See
Cai^le, Clench, Sail.
BENDS, in naval architefture, the thickefi: and
ftrongeft planks in a fliip, reaching from end to
end at her extrem.e breadth : when a merchant-
fliip is laden no deeper than to bring her bends
down to the furface of the water, fhe is faid to be
in good failing order.
BENDY, in heraldry, is the field divided into
four or more parts diagonally, and varying in
metal and colour.
The general cuftom of England is to make an
even number, but in other countries they regard it
not, whether even or odd.
Counter Bendy is ufed by the French to exprefs
what we ordinarily call bendy of fix per bend
Xwiifter, counter-changed.
Barry Bendy. T g , . , 1 Barry,
Paly Bendy. \ ^^^ ^^^ ""'^'^^ \ Paly.
BENEDICiTE, among ecclefiaftical writers^
an appellation given to the Song of the three chil-
dren in the fiery furnace, on account of its be-
ginning v/ith the word Benedicite.
BENEDICTINS, in church hiftory, an order
of monks who profefs to follov/ the rules of St.
Benedict.
The Benediflins, being thofe only that are pro-
perly called monks, wear a loofe black gown, with
large wide fleeves, and a capuche, or cowl on their
heads, ending in a point behind. In the canon-
law, they are ftyled black-friars, from the colour of
their habit.
BENEDICTION, or Blessing. The Hebrews,
under this name, undeiftand the prefent ufually fent
from one friend to another, as alio the blefiing con-
ferred by the patriarchs, on their death-beds, upon
their children.
The privilege of benediflion was one of thofe
early inih'.nces of honour and refpeft paid to bi-
fliops in the primitive church. The cuftcm of
bowing the head to them, and receiving their blef-
fings, was become imiverfal. In the weftern
churches there was anciently a kind of benedicStion
which followed the Lord's prayer ; and after the
communion the people were difmifl'ed with a be-
nedicftion.
BENEFICE, Beneficium, in an ecclefiaftical
fenfe, a church endowed with a revenue for the
performance of divine fervice; or the revenue it-
felf affigned to an ecclefiaftical perfon, by way of
ftipend, for the fervice he is to do that church.
All fuch preferments, except bifhoprics, are cal-
led benefices ; and all benefices are, by the cano-
nifts, fometimes ftyled dignities: but we now ordi-
narily diftinguifh between benefice and dignity, ap-
plying dignity to bifhoprics, deaneries, archdeacon-
ries, and prebendaries ; and benefice to parfonages,
vicarages, and donatives.
Benefices are divided by the canonifts into fimple
and facerdotal ; in the firft there is no obligation
but to read prayers, fing, &c. the fecond are charg-
ed with the cure of fouls, or the direction and
guidance of conlciences ; fuch are vicarages, rec-
tories, &.'c.
The Romanifts again diftinguifh benefices into
regular and fccular.
Regular or titular benefices are thofe held by a
religious, or a regular, who has made profeffion of
fome religious order : fuch are abbies, priories,
conventuals, &c. or rather a regular benefice is
that which cannot be conferred on any but a re-
ligious, either by its foundation, by the inftitution
of fome fu perior, or by prefcription : for prefcrip-
tion, forty years pofiefTion by a religious, makes the
benefice regular.
Secular
BEN
Secular benefices are only fiich as arc to be gi\-cn
to lecular pricfts, that io, to fuch as live in the world,
and are not engaged in any monafHc order. All
benefices are reputed fecular, till the contrary is
made to appear. They are called fecular bene-
fices, becaufe held by feculars ; of which kind arc
almoll all cures.
Some benefices, regular in themfelves, have been
fecularizcd by the pope's bull.
The canoniils dilHnguifh three manners of vacat-
ting a benefice, viz. dejurc, de fai'to, and by the
fentence of a judge.
A benefice is vacated de jure, when the perfnn
enjoying it is guilty of certain crimes expreded in
thofe laws, as hercfy, fimony. Sic.
A benefice is v.icated dc fuffo, as well as dc jure,
by the naturnl death, or the refignation of the in-
cumbent; which relignatlon mav be either exprefs,
or tacir, as when he engages in a flate, &c. incon-
fiflent with it, as, among the Romanics, by mar-
rying, entering into a religious order, or the like,
A benefice becomes vacant by the fentence of a
judge, by way of punifhment for certain crimes,
as concubinage, perjury, &:c.
It is obfcrved, that anciently there were fi\'e
cafes by which benefices were acquired; by the
nominative, as in royal nomination ; by the geni-
tive, as when the children of great men, &c. are
provided of benefices by their birth ; by the dative,
as when fpeaking of a benefice, it is faid date, and
dabitur vobh ; by the accufative, as where, by vir-
tue of an accufation, either true or falfe, an in-
cumbent is difpofTeffed, and another admitted ; by
the ablative, as when benefices are taken away by
force from the poor and helplefs ; but the vo-
cative, which is the mofl juft and legitimate, is
out of ufe.
y^ Benefice in Conimmdam is that, the direiSlion
and management of which, upon a vacancy, is
given or recommended to an ecclefiaftic, for a cer-
tain time, till he may be conveniently provided
for. See the articles Regular and Secular.
BENjAiVlIN-TREP:, Benzoive, in botany, a
tree which grows naturally in North America. It
rifes to the height of eight or ten feet, dividing in-
to many branches, which are furniflied with oval
fpear-fhaped leaves, fmooth on their upper fur-
face, but with many tranlverfe veins on their under
fide : thefe leaves are deciduous, and the flowers
are herbaceous. For their generical charaflers,
fee the article Laurus, of which this plant is a
fpecies.
The gum Benjamin, or Benzoine, is the juice of
this tree, and exfudes from incifions, in form of a
thick white balfam : if collected as foon as it has
grown fomowhat folid, it proves internally white
like almonds ; anl hence is called benzocanygda-
io:dcs : if fufiered to lie long expofed to the fun
l3
B ER
and air, it changes more and more to a brownifli,
and at laft to a quits rcddifii brown colour.
This refin is moderately hard and briitle; and
yields, on being rubbed or warmed, an extremely
agreeable fwctt'fmell. It totally diflblves in fjiirit of
wine into a blood-red liquor, leaving only the im-
purities, which amount commonly to no more than
about a fcruple, upon an ounce : to water it gives
out a portion, not of gummy or mucilaginous, but
of faline matter, of a peculiar kind, volatile and
fublimable in the fire, and which indeed is moft
erieiitually feparated by dry fublimation ; and hence
called flowers of benzoine.
Some prepare the flowers from benzoine by itfelf,
reduced into grofs powder ; others mix it, in fine
powder, with an equal quantity of wafhed fr.nd.
An earthen pot or jar is filled with the matter to
one half or one fourth its height, then covered
with a conical paper cap, which, as foon as any
confiderable quantity is judged to be co!le£led, is
removed, and fupplied by another, and the procefs
continued till nothing more will fublime : the rc^-
maining benzoine, which appears of a blackifh
brown colour, may ftill be ufed, if no fand h.-is
been mixed, in compofitions for yielding an odori-
ferous fmoke, and for other like purpofes. This
method is not a little troublefome, the quantity of
flcv/ers obtained by it fmall, and the flowers them-
felves commonly tinged of a yellowifh or even a
brown colour from fome of the oil of the ben-
zoine arifing with them; for as the fand grows
continually hotter and hotter, it is fcarce poilible
to prevent' the heat increafing (o far as to elevate a
portion of the oil.
Benzoine and its flowers are employed medicinal-
ly for refolving and attenuating vifcid juices, par-
ticularly in difordcrs of the bread : but the prin-
cipal ufe of this fragrant refm is in perfumes, and
as a cofmetic, for foftening and ftnoothing the (kin.
For this laft purpofe, the "benzoine is diilblved in
fpirit of wine, with the addition fometimcs of ilo-
rax : the folution, mixed with water, forms a white
liquor called virgins milk, which on {landing flow-
ly depofites a fine white magiftery. Some add to
the tindure of benzoine, a tiniSture or folution of
litharge in vinegar ; and thus obtain a compound
virgins milk and magiilery, lefs innocent than
thoYe from benzoine alone.' A fmall quantiiy of
the oil of benzoine heightens the fmell of perfumes,
and corre<£ts rancid unguents and balfams.
BER, in botany, that fpecies of the jugube-
tree which produces the gum lacca. See Zi-
ZIPKUS.
BERAMS, a coarlc cloth, all made of cottoit
thread, which comes fiom the Eafl: Indies, and parti-
cularly from Surat. There are white plain berams,
and others flripcd with colours. The white r.re
about ele\ en yards long, and about a yard v , "
4R
BER
ilie red rax iit'tecn 3'ards long, and ibaieihing letb
than a yaid wide.
BERBERIS, the barbcrry-bufh, in botanv, a
{hrub having fibrous, yellowiflj, creeping roots,
from which many ftalks arile to the height of nine
or ten feet, whofc bark is whitifh without, and
yellow within-fide, and is befet with fbarp thorns.
Hie leaves ate fmall, oblong, narrow at the bot-
tom, but broader at the top : thefe are of a imooth
green, (lightly fcrratcd at their edges, and have an
acrid tafte. The flowers come out from the wings of
the leaves, in fmall ramofe bunches ; thefe are yel-
low and hexapetalous, and when decayed are luc-
cecded by cylindrical umbilicated berries, of a red
colour, containing in. each two oblong feeds : it
.flowers in May, and the fruit is ripe in Sep-
tember.
This plant is generally propagated from fuckers,
which it puts out in great plenty from the roots ;
but thofe plants are apt to put out a greater nimi-
ber of fuckers than is required ; to prevent which,
it is not a bad method to raife them by laying : the
bed time for this operation is in autumn, when
their leaves begin to. fall. The young fhootsof the
f.;mc year are to be preferred -, thefe by the ne.xt
autumn will be well rooted, when they may be
taken oft", and planted where they are defigned to
lemain.
The fruit of this fhrub is a mild cftringent acid,
acceptable to the llomacii, and of great medicinal
efScacy in hot bilious diforders^ and a colliquative
or putrid difpofition of the humours. Profpcr Al^-
pinus informs us, that the Egyptians employ, in
ardent and pcflilential fevers and influxes, a.diluted
juice of the berries, prei.>flred by macerating them
iji about twelve times their quantity of water,, tor
a day or a. night, with the addition of a little fen-
nel feed, or a piece of bread, and then preffing out
and {training the liquor, which is fweetened vi'ith
fugar, or lugar ot roles, or fyrup of citrons, and
given the patient plentifully to drink. Among us,
thefe berries are commonly made into jelly, by
boiling them with an equal weight of fine fugar,
over a gentle fire, to a due cimfiftence, and thea
iiraining the fluid through a woollen cloth. By
drying the berries, their acidity is abated, and
their aftringency imr)ro\cd.
The leaves of the barbcrry-bufh have liUewife a
hot, ungrateful, reltringent, acid tafte, and have
fometimcs been employed in the fame intentions as
the fruit, and as an ingreilient. in cooling falads.
The inner yellow bark, in tafte auftere and bit-
terifh, is faid to be gcntlv purgative, and to lie
fcrviceable in jaundices. Mr. Ray commends,, in
this diieafc, from his own experience, a dccoc-tion
in ale or other liquors, or rather an intufion in
white wine, of the yellow bark both of the branches
und tlie root?.
BER
BERECYNTHIA, the mother of the gods, ire.
the pagan tlieology ; fo called from Berecynthus, a
mountain in Phrygia. Anchifcs, in Virgil, coin-
pares Rome, in her future glories, to this deity.
Gregory of Tours fays there was, in his time,
an idol of Berecynthia or Cybele, worfliipped in
Gaul, which thev carried into their fields and vine-
yards in a cart, for the prefervation of the fruits of
the earth ; and that they marched in proceffion be^
fore the deitv, finging and dancing. One day this-
holy inan, touched with the impiety of thefe
idolaters, put up a prayer to heaven, and made the
fign of the crofs ; whereupon the idol immediately
fell to the ground, the cart and oxen remaining im-
moveable : the people whipped the oxt-n to make
them go forwards, but all to no puipofe. Upon,
this, four himdred of the multitude cried out, If.
fhe be a deity, let her raife up herfelf, and make
the oxen go on : but this not happening, they all
turned Chriftians. See Cybele-.
BERENGARIANS, a- religious feft of the
eleventh century, which adhered to the opinion of
Berengarius, who, even in thofe days, ftrenuoiifiy'..
aflbrted, that the bread and wine in the Lord's (up^-
per is not realiy and effentially, but only figurative-
ly, changed into the body and blood of Chrift.
His followers- were divided in opinion as to the
eucharift : they all agreed that the elements arc
not eficntiallv changed in-eiTett : others admitted a
chancre in part ; and others an entire change, witit
this rcftrii^tion, that to thofe who communicated
tinworthily, the elsments were changed bacii.
again.
BERGAMOT, the name of- a fragrant eflence.
imported from Italy.
Bf.ro.\mc)t Pear. SeePE.AR-TaEE.
BERGHMOT, an aflembly, or court, held
upon a hill in Derbyfbirc, for deciding contrcver--
fies among the miners..
BERME, in fortification, a fpace of groumlt'
left at the foot of the rampart, on the fide next the
country, defigned to receive the ruins of the ram-
part, and pi'evcnt their filling up the foffe. It is
ibmetimes palifadoed, for the more fecurity ; and
in Holland it is generally planted with a quickfet-
hedge. It is alio called liziere, rclais, foreland,,
retraite, pas de fouris, &c.
BERNARDTN MONKS, an order of reli-
gious founded by Robert Abbot of Molome : they
are properly CiftercianSj or Monks of Citeaux ;
hut their order having been enlarged and'amplified
by St. Bernard, they were from thence called Ber.^-
rardins. They follow the rule of St. Benedift,.
and are habited in white.
There are likewife Bcrnardin nuns ; concerning
whofe inflitution it is related, in the I^ite of St.
Bernard, that, in the year 11 13, which was the.
fiftieth of the foundation of the- abbey of Citeaux,.
St..
BET
BET
St. BcrnarJ, with thirty companions, devoted them-
felvcs in that convent to ;i religious life; 'and as
Teveral of the companions of this faint were mai--
ried, and their wi\es likewife had refolved to quit
the vvorld, and dedicate themfcKcs to God, a
monaftcry was founded for them, at the rcqucft of
St. Bernard, at Juilli in the diocefe of Langres.
The Bernardin nuns, as well as monks, are
luhjeiSl to tlie laws of the Ciilercians. See Cis-
tercians. ,
IIKRNICLA. See the' article Barwacle.
BERRY, Baaa, in botany ; fee Bacca.
BERYL. See AfiL'A- yJ-Zflr/'/fl.
BKS, or Bessij, in Roman antiquity, two thirds
of the as. See the article As.
Bf.s alfo denotes tv/o thirds of the jugerum.
Sec the article Jugerum.
BESANT, or Bezant-, a coin of pure gold,
ef an uncertain value, flruck at Byzantium, in
the time of the ChrilHan emperors ; from hence
the gold offered by the king at the altar, is called
bcfant, or bifant.
Besants, i« heraldry, round pieces of gold,
without any ftamp, frequently borne in coats of
arms.
BESLERIA, in botany, a genus of didyna-
mious plants, whofc flower confilts of a monophyl-
lous calyx, which contains a fingle labiated petal,
quinquehd andround ; the filaments are four in
number, two of which are longer than the others -,
!rhe flyle is awl-fhaped, and reits on a globofe ger-
men, which afterward becomes a round berry of
one ceil, containi.'jg many round fmall feeds.
Thsfe plants (of which there are three fpecies)
grow naturally in the warm parts of America,
from whence the feeds have been brought to E.urope,
and cultivated in fome curious botanical gardens.
They are fown on a hot bed in the ipring, and
kept in the fi:ove in winter.
BETA, beet, in botany, a plant producing-
sJpctalous riov\-ers : there are two forts cultivated in
our culinary gardens ; the white beet, called cicla,
and th« red beet with a turnip root. The white
beet has a round, lonj, white root, with large,
broad, fmooth, thick, fucculent leaves, fometimes
(-as the foil and culture may varv them) of a. pale,
and fometimes of a deeper green, with a. thick
hroad rib ; the ftalks are {lender, ftreaked; and
branched ; the flowers come out in fpikes at the
wings of the leaves, and each confrrts of a five-
leaved empalement, which contains^ five fubulated
filaments topped with rour.difh antherx ; the fruit
i^an unilocular capfule within the bafe of the calyx,
and contains a fir.gle feed. The red beet hath alfo
large, thick, fuccrdent leaves-, whith are for the moil
part of a darl:. red or purple colour : the roots of
this fort are large, and of a deep red colour, on
-which their goodncfs depends ; for the larger thefe
7,
roots grow, the more tender they will be, and the
deeper their colour, the more they areeftccmcd.
'j'herc are fevcral varieties of this fort, as the
common red beet, the turnip-rooted red beet, and
the green-leaved red beet. All the different kmd*
of beet are cultivated in gardens, for the ufe of the
kitchen ; but they were in greater cftcem formerly
than at prefent ; however, the red beet is riill in
ufe to garnifh difhes. They are propagated by
fowing the feeds in March, in a deep loofe foil,
and when com.e up (hould be hoed out, leaving
thofe that are to remain at about ten or twche
inches afunder : the roots will be fit for ufe in
autumn, and continue good all the winter ; but in
the fpring they will fhoot, and become hard and
ftringy. The feeds of this plant, by which only
it is propagated, ripen about the end of Augult,
or beginning of September ; to obtain them in
perfection, fome of the fincfl: roots that have beea
preferved from the frofls may be replanted in March,
in a well fhcltered place, and let run to feed.
The roots of beets have, when dry, an agreeabltr
fweetifn tafte, which is totally extracted by boiling
in redtified fpirit ; the tindlures, on Handing fome
weeks in a cool place, depofite whitifh faline con-
cretions of a faccharine fv/eetnefs : it is faid, it-
good fugar may be obtained from the frefh roots,
by the method -practifcd abroad as with the fugar
car.e.
Beets are very little ufed, unlefs in the
kitchen, and chiefly the red, which is reckoned
cooling and emollient.
BETEL, in botany, an Lidian plant, in great-
ufe and eileen-i throughout the Eaft, where itmakea
a confiderable article of commerce.
The betel bears fome rel'emblance to the pepper--
tree. Its leaves are like thofe of ivy, only fotter,
and full of a red juice, v/hich among the orientals
is reputed of wonderful virtue for preferving the
teeth, and rendering the breath fweet. The Li-
dians are continually chewing thefe leaves, which-
makes their lips fo red, and teeth black, a colour
by them vaftly preferred to the v/hitenefs affeiSted.
by the Europeans.
The conlumptien of betel lea\'es is incredible,
no perfon, rich or poor, being without their box
of betel, which they prefent to each other by way
of civility, as we do fnufF.
BETHLEHEMITES, in-church-hiftory, are--
ligious order, called allb flar-bearers, Jlellifc-ri, be-
caufii thev v.'cre diftinguifhed by a red liar with five-
ravs, -iJ/hich thev v.-ore on their bread, in memory
of the tlar that appeared to the wifemcn, .ind con-
ducted them to Bethlehem.
There is an order of Bethlehemites (till fubfifl-
ing in the Sp.mifh Weil-Indies, who are habited
like Capuchins, with this dilTerencc, that they
wear a leather girdle inllcad of a cord, and on
the
BEU
tlie right fide of their cloak an efcutcheon, repre-
fcnting the nativity of our Saviour.
BE rONICA, hetoiiy, in botany, a genus of
didynamious plants. The common or wild fort
has a thick, tranfverfe, fibrous, hairy root, from
whence proceed quadrangular knotty (talks ; fome
of the leaves proceed from the knots, by pairs
placed over-againft each other, and others lay on
the ground : thefe are oblong, villous, wrinkled,
and ot a darkifh green colour, and crewated on
tlieir edges. The flowers grow in fpikes, and are
nionopetalous, labiated, and of a purplitli colour ;
the upper-lip is fulcated and reclining backward,
but the lower confifl:s of three lobes; each flower
contains four fubulated ftamina, and the calyx is cut
into five fegments, from whence proceeds a piflil,
lixed to the hinder part of the flower, like a nail,
with tour embryoes, which change to as many
feeds.
Betony is common in woods and fhady places in
England, and flowers in June or July ; it is reck-
oned difcutient and aperient, and has been always
accounted an excellent medicine for the head ; the
leaves reduced to powder promote fneezing, for
which reafon, and for its being a cephalic, it is
always an ingredient in the herb-fnuff. Antonius
Mufa wrote a treatife about it, and commends it
much as a vulnerary, efpecially in wounds of the
head ; and fome recommend its juice boiled up to
the confluence of honey, and mixed up with a
imall quantity of the Peruvian balfam, as a great
healer. Befides the common betony, botanilts
enumerate iix other fpecies, which are natives of
foreign countries.
BETULA, the birch-tree ; fee the article
Birch.
BEVEL, among mafons, carpenters, joiners,
and bricklayers, a kind of fquare, one leg whereof
is frequently crooked, according to the fweep of an
arch or vault. It is moveable on a center, and fo
■may be fet to any angle.
Bevel-Angle, any other angle befides thofe of
ninety or forty-five degrees.
BEVILE, in heraldry, a thing broken or open-
ing like a carpenter's rule : thus we fay, he beareth
argent, a chief bevile, vert, by the name of Be-
verlis.
BEURERIA, the Carolina all-fpice, in botany,
a plant whofe root is large and fpreading, from
v.hich arifeth the ftem, divided into many flender
branches, which fpread irregularly, and the bark
is of a pale brown ; thefe are furniflied with broad
leaves ofalanceolatsovalforni, andof a lively green ;
they fland in pairs, and are placed oppofite at everv
joint : the flov/ers come out from the wings of the
leaves, and are large, elegant, and of a deep but
\ery dufky purple, compofed of two ferics of nar-
row thick petals, irregularly difpofed and waved ;
BI B
the embyro fits beneath the flower, and fupport5
five nigma : this afterward appears to have five cells,
containing the fame number of feeds.
The bark of this ihrub is brown, and has a very
ftrong aromatic fcent, from which circumftance
the inhabitants of Carolina gave it the name of
all-fpice. This plant is propagated by layers, and
in a warm fituation will bear the cold in this
climate tolerably well.
BEWITS, in falconry, pieces of leather to
which a hawk's bells are faftened, and buttoned to
his legs.
BEY, among the Turks, fignifies a governor of
a country or town. The Turks write it begb^ or
bek, but pronounce it bey.
Bey of Tiifiis, the fame with the dey of Algiers,
is the prince or king of that kingdom.
BEZANS, cotton cloths, which come from
Bengal ; fome are white, and others flriped with
feveral colours.
BEZANT, or Besant. See the article Be-
SANT.
BEZANTHER, the branch of a deer's horn,
next below the brow-antler.
BEZOAR, in natural hiftory and medicine, a
general name for certain animal fubftances, for-
merly fuppofed to be effectual in preventing the fatal
confequcnces of poifon ; but at prefent are very
little valued, their boafted virtues being found to
be merely chimerical.
BEZOARDIC, an appellation given to what-
ever partakes of the nature of bezoar ; alfo to com-
pound medicines whereof bezoar makes an in-
gredient.
BIA, in commerce, a name given by the Siamefe
to thofe fmall fhells which are caUed cowries
throughout almoft all the other parts of the Eaft-
Indies. See the article Cowries.
BIBLE, 3;|3a©', the book, a name gi\en by
Chriflians, by way of eminence, to a collection of
the facred writings, containing thofe of the Old
and New Teftament, and is juftly looked upon as
the foundation of the Jewifh as well as the Chrif-
tian religion. The Jews, it is true, acknowledge
only the Scriptures of the Old Teilament, the cor-
recting and publifhing of which is unanimoufly
afcribcd both by the Jews and Chriflians to Ezra.
Some of the ancient fathers, on no other founda-
tion th.m that fabulous and apocryphal book the
fecond of Efdras, pretend that the Scriptures were
entirely loft in the Babylonifli captivity, and that
Ezra had reftored them again by divine revelations.
What is certain is, that in the reign of Jofiah,
there were no other books of the law extant, be-
fides that found in the temple by Hilkiah ; from
which original that pious king ordered copies to be
immediately written out, and fearch made for all
the parts of the Scri])tures, by which means copies
B I B
of the whole became pretty nun-.frous among the
people, who carried them with them into captivity.
After the return of the Jews from the Babyloniih
captivity, Ezra got together as many copies as he
could of the facred writings, and out of them all
prepared a corre(5l: edition, difpofmg the feveral
books in their natural order, and fettling the canon
of the Scripture for his time, having publifhed
them, according to the opinion of moft learned
men, in the Chaldee charadler, as the Jews, upon
their return from the captivity, brought with them
the Chaldaic language, which from that time be-
came their mother-tongue, and probably gave birth
to the Chaldee tranflation of their Scriptures.
Chaldee Bible is only the glolTes, or expofitions
made by the Jews when they fpoke the Chaldee
tongue ; whence it is called Targurwtn, or para-
phrafes, as not being a llrift verfion of the Scrip-
tures.
Hebrew Bible. There is in the church of St.
Dominic, in Bononia, a copy of the Hebrew Scrip-
tures, which they pretend to be the original copy,
written by Ezra himfelf. It is written in a fair
character, upon a fort of leather, and made up in-
to a roll, after the ancient m.inner: but its having
the \-owcl points annexed, and the writing being
frefh and fair, without any decay, thefe circum-
flances prove the novelty of the Copy.
Greek Bible. It is a difpute among authors,
whether there was a Greek verfion of the Old
Teftament more ancient than that of the feventy-
two Jews employed by Ptolemy Philadeiphus to
tranflate that book : before Our Saviour's time,
there was no other verfion of the Old Teftament
befides that which went under the name of the
Septuagint. See Septuacint. But after the
cftablifhment of Chriftianity, fome authors under-
took new tranflations of the Bible, under pretence
of making them more conformable to the Hebrew
text. There have been about fix of thefe verfions,
fome whereof are charged with having corrupted
feveral prifTages of the prophets relating to Jefus
Chrift ; others have been tiiought too free in their
verfions, and others have been found fault with
for ha\ing confined themfelves too fervilely to the
letter.
Latin Bible. It is beyond difpute that the
Latin churches had, even in the firit ages, a tran-
flation of the Bible in their languasje, which being
the vulgar language, and confequently underftoou
by every body, occafioned a vaft number of Latin
verfions. Amor.g thefe there was one which was
generally recei\ed, and called by St. Jerom the
Vulgar or common tranflation. St. Auftin gives
this verfion the name of the Italic, and prefers it
to all the reft. There were feveral other tranfla-
tions of the Bible into Latin, the moft remarkable
of which are the verfions of St. Jerom, Sa.ates
i8
B I B
Pagninus, cardinal Cajetan, and Ifiodorc Ciarius,
all from the Hebrew text.
Befides thefe tranflations by Catholic authors,
there arc fome made by proteftant f ranflators of the
Hebrew; the moft eminent of their verfions are
thofe of Sebaftian Munfter, Leo Juda, Sebaftian
Caftalio, Theodore Beza, &c.
Syrian BiBLE, a very ancient tranflation of the
Scriptures into theSyriac language. Dr. Prideaux
is of opinion that it was made in the firft century
after Chrift ; that the author of it w.as (bmc Chrif-
tian of the Jewifh nation ; and that it is the beil
tranflation of the Old Teftament. This verfion Is
not always agreeable to the Hebrew text, but in
fome places more conformable to the Samaritan
Pentateuch, and in others to the verfion of the
Septuagint.
Arabic Bible. There are two forts of Arabic
verfions of the Bible ; the one performed by Chrif-
tians, the other by Jews. Among the former there
is one printed in the Polyglots of Paris and Eng-
land, but both the author and the time it was writ-
ten are unknown. Among all the Jewifh per-
formances of this kind, one only has been printed
entire, which was done by Eipenius, at Leyden, in
the year 1622.
Eihioftc Bible. This verfion of the Old Tefta-
ment was made immediately from the Greek text of
the Septuagint ; and there is a very plain agreement
between this tranflation and the Alexandrine m;ar-i-
fcript ; the order of the chapters, the infcriptions
of the Pfalms, and every thing elfe being exactly
fimilar. The Ethiopians attribute this verfion to
Frum.entlus, the ?.poftle of Ethiopia, fent thither
by Athanafius, bifhop of Alexandria.
Coptic, or Egyptian Bible, a tranflation cf the
Scriptures made imniediattlv from the Greek of the
Septuagint; and in which the Egyptian tranflator
fo religioufly followed the Greek text, that he re-
fufed to make ufe of the labours of Origcn and
others, who had taken the pains to coinpare the
Greek verfion with the Hebrew text. This verfion
is doubtkfs very ancient, though neither the
author, nor exact time of its being performed,
are known.
Perlian Bible. There are feveral verfions of
the Bible in the Perfirn language, moft of v/h'ch
are in inanufcript. "Walton, in the London Poly-
glot, has publilhed the gofpels, tranflated by 01 e
Simon, the fon of Jofeph, a Chriftian of Perfia,
who lived about the middle of the fourteenth cen-
tury.
iurki/h Bible. There are feveral manufcript
tranfl?.tions of the Eible in the Turkifh Irmguacre ;
and a verfion of the New Teftament was printed
at London in the year 1666.
jirmenian BiBLE, a very ancient tranflation of
the Scriptures into the Armenian language from the
4 S Greek
B I B
Greek of the Septuagint. Three learned Arme-
!i:ans were employed in this work, during the reign
ot Arcadius. An Armenian tranflation was alio
piinted at A.mrtcrdam, in the year i6&6, under
the direction of an Armenian bilhop. Another
was printed at Antwerp in 1670, by Theodo-
rus Patraeus ; and the New Teftamenc feparately in
1668.
French Biple. There are fcveral tranflations of
the Bible in the French language, the oldeft of
which is that of Peter de V'aux,"chief of the AVal-
denfes, who lived about the year 1160. Raoul de
Prefle tranflated the Bible into French, in the reign
pf Charles V. king of France, about the year
1380. In the year 1550, the doftors of Lou\ain
publifhed the Bible in French. There is alfo a
French verfion by Ifaac le Maitrc de Sacy, pub-
lilhed :n it-j-)., with. e.\p!anations of the literal and
fpiriiiiai meaning of the text. This work was re-
ceived yyitli the greateft applaufe, and has been
fince often reprinted.. There are alfo Bibles in the
Frencii language tranflated by Proteftant writers,
among which that publifhed at Geneva in 1535, by
Kobtrt Peter Olivetan, and fiiice often reprinted
\vrth the corrections of John Calvin and others, is
the moft valued.
Italian BlBI>E. The firft Italian translation of
the Bible,, at Icaft the firil printed tranflation, is
that of Nicolas Malerne, a Benedictine monk,
printed at Venice in 147 1. It was tranflated from
the Vulgate. The verfion of Anthony Brucioli,
juibliflied at Venice in 1532, was prohibited by
tlie council of Trent. There are alfo Italian tran-
flations of the Bible by-Calvinifts, particularly one
by Maxlmus Theophiius in 1551, aud another by
John Deodati in 1607.
Spanijh Bible. The firft Spanifti Bible was pub-
lifhed in the year 1500, according to Cyprian de
Valera ; but the autlior of it is not known. In
1569, Caffidore de Reyna, a Calvinilt, publiflied
a Spaniih tranflation of ihe Bible.
Geniwn Bible. The firft and moft .ancient tran-
flation of the Bible in the German language, is
that of Ulphilas, biihop of the Goths, about the
year 360. This biOiop left out the books of Kings,
which treat chiefly of war, left it {bould too much
encourage the martial humour of the Goths. An
imperfect manufcript of this verflon was found in
the abbey of Verden, near Cologn,. written in
letters of filver, and thence called Codex Argenieui.
This fragment was publiihed by Francis Juiiius in
1665. The oldeft printed Bible in the German
language extarvt, is that of Nuremburg, publifhed
in 1447. The author is unknown. Martin Lu-
ther, after employing eleven years in tranflating the
Old and New Teltamcnt,' publifhed the Pentateuch
in 1522, the hilbrical Ijooks and the Pfalms in
1524, the books of Solomon in 1527, Ifaiah in
B IB
1529, and the other books in 1530. The lan-
guage is pure, and the verfion clear ; it was re-
vifed by feveral perfons of quality, who were
mafters of ^U t^^e deUeacy. qf th,e CJerman lan-
g"''S'^-. ^ Jm"Ui,5 .■ :^f. r,--,;j;t-3-:
pUmiJIi Bisi,^; T-nere ^re nume?-ou5 yerfic^is of
the Bible in the Flemi(h language ; but the fail
that appeared with the author's name prefixed, was..
that of Nicolas Vinck, printed at Louvain in 154^.
The Flemifh ^erllons made ufe of by the C'al-
vinifls till the year 1637, were copied principally
from that of Ludxer. But the fynod of Dort hav-
ing in 1618, appointed a mw tranflation of
the Bible to be made, deputies were named for
that Work, which was not finifiied till the year .-
Damjli BiB.LE. The Scriptures were firft pub-
liflied in the Danifh language by Peter Palladius,
Olaus ChryfoftoiTi, and John Maccabreus, in the
year 1550, Tiiey fcUowed Luther's German ver-
fion. There is fiuce another tranflation in the ■
Danifh language, by John Paul Refenius, bifhop
of Zealand, publifhed in 1605.
Sweilijh Bible. In the year 1534, Olaus and .
Laurtnce publifhed a Swedifh tranflation of the
Bible from the German verfion of Martin Luther.
It v/;is revifed in 1617, by order of king Guftavus..
Adolphus, and afterwards almoft univerfally fol- .
lowed .
Boha/a'ffn BiBLE. The Bohemians have a Bible
tranflated by eight of their dodtors, whom they had :
fent to the fchools of Wittemberg and Bafil, on .
purpofe to ftudy the original languages. It was
printed in Moravia, in the year 1539.
Poli/h Blble. a verfion of the Bible, in the
Polifn language is faid to have been made by Hade-
wich, wife of Jagellon, duke of Lithuania, who ,
embraced Chriftianity in the year I 390. In 1591,.
a Polifh tranflation of the Bible,, by feveral divines
of that nation, was publifhed at Cracovi'. The
Proteftants publifhed a Polifh tranflation from the
German verfion of Martin Luther, in the year
1596, and dedicated it to Uladiflaus IV. king of
Poland.
Rii^ian, or Mufco'vite Bible. A Rufljan tran- -
flation of the Scriptures was publifhed in 1581.
It was tranflated from the Greek by St. Cyril, the ■
apoftle of the Sclavonians ; but this old verfion be-
ing too obfcure, Erneft Gliik, who had been car-
ried prifoner toMofcow, after the taking of Narva,
undertook a new tranflation of the Bible in the
Sclavonian language; but Gliik dying in 1705,.
Peter the Great appointed fome particular divines
to finifh the work, which has not however, we
believe, ever yet been printed.
Ens^bjh Bible. The firft verfion of any part of
the Scriptures into the language of our own coun-
try, was that of Adelm, bifhop of Sherburn, uho,
fi.ourifhed
BI B
flourifhed in the year 709. That piclate maJc an
Engliih-Saxon verfion of the Pfalms. About tlie
year 7 50, Eadfrid, or Ecbert, bifliop of Lindis-
t'erne, tranflatcd feveral of the facred books into
the fame language. Venerable Bede, who died in
735, is alfo faid to have tranflated the whole Bible
into Saxon ; but Cuthbert, Bede's difciple, in enu-
merating the works of his mafter, mentions only
his verfion of the Gofpel of St. John, without
faying any thing of the other books. Elfric, ab-
bot of Malrafbury, made an Anglo-Saxon verfion
of fe\eral books of the Bible: tliis work was af-
terwards printed at Oxford in 1699. There is al-
fo an old Anglo-Saxon vcrf;on of the four goCpels,
publifhed by Mr.tthew Parker, ,archbi(hop of Can-
terbury, in 1 57 1; but the author of it is not
known. Dr. Mill obferves, that this verfion was
taken from a Latin copy of the old Vulgate. With
regard to the Englilli tran.natiorss of the Bible, .the.
moft ancient is that of John de Trevifa, a fecular
prieft, who tranflated the Old a;;d New Teftament
into Englifh, at the requeft of Thomas lord Berk-
ley : he lived in the reign of Richard the Second,
and finiflied his tranflation in 1357. The fecond
author who undertook this work was the famous
^\'ick!iff, who lived in the reigns of Edward the
7'hird and Richard the Second. Manufcripts of
this verfion are ftill preferved in feveral libraries in
England. In the year 1534, an Engliih verfion
of the Bible, done partly by William Tindal, and
partly by Miles Coverdale, was brought into Eng-
land from Antwepp. But the bifliops finding great-
fault v/ith this verfio.n, a motion was made and
carried in convocation, for making a new tranfla-
tion of the Scriptures, to be placed in all the
churches. The tranflation was accordingly begun
immediately, and the whoie impreiHon finilhed in
three years. Fuller mentions another tranflation
of the Bible, printed in the year 1549. In the
reign of queen Elizabeth, the Bijhops Bible appear-
ed ; fo called, becaufe feveral prelates were con-
cerned in that verfion. In the fecond year of James
I. a reJolution v/as taken, at a conference held at
Hampton-Court, for a new tranflation of the Bi-
ble ; which defign was executed by forty- fcven
tranflators, in the year 1607. And this tranflation
is now read by authority in . all the Engliih
churches.
The learned Sclden, fpeaking of the Bible, fays,
" The En;,;lifh tranflation of the Bible is the beft
" tranflation in the world, and renders the fenfe of
" the original befl:,takingin,fortheEnglifh tranfla-
" tion, the Bifhops Bible, as well as King James's.
" The tranflators, in King James's time, took an
" excellent way. That part of the Bible was
" given to him who was moft: excellent in fuch a
" tongue (as the Aipocrvpha to Andrew Dowhs) ;
" and then they met together, and one read the
'^tranflation, the reft holding in their hands fome I
B I D
" Bible, either of the learned tongues, or French,
" Spanifli, Italian, &c. If they found any fault,
" they fpoke ; if not, he read on."
BIBLIOTHECA, in its original and proper
{enk, denotes a library or place for depofiting
books.
The word is Greek, ^iChiohKYi, and compound-
ed of ^iCKtov, a book, and ^tixn, a repofitory.
BiBHOTHECA, in matters of literature, denotes
a treatife giving an account of ai! the writers on a
certain fubject. Thus, we have bibliothecas of
theology, law, philofophy, &c.
BILE, or Bis e, among painters, a blue colour
prepared from the lapis armenus. Bice bears the
beft body of all bright blues ufed in common work,
as houfe-painting, &c. but it is the paleft in co- •
lour ; it works iiidiiferently well, but inclines a
little to fandy, and therefore requires good [grind-
ing. Next to ultramarine, which is too dear to
be ufed in common work, it lies beft near the eye •
of all otlier blues.
BICEPS, in anatomy, the name of feveral muf-
cles : as the
BiCEPs-HUMjERi, orCuBiTi. This is a mufcle
of the arm, and has tu o heads ; the firft of which
arifes, with a long, round tendon, from the upper
edge of the acetabulum fcapuls, running under,
the ligament of the articulation, in a ch;innel, on .
the head of the fhoulder-bone, wherein it is in-'
clcfed by a proper ligament : the other arifes withj
a fomewhat broad, flat, and long tendon, at the
extremity of the procelTus coracoides fcapulae ; in
its dcfcent it ftrictly adheres to the coracobrachia-
lis, and parting from it, both thefe heads compofe ■
a large flefliy belly, which, becoming tendinous ;
near the cubit, is inferted by a ftrong round ten-
don to the tubercle, at the upper head of the ra-
dius. When this mufcle ads, the cubit is bended.
Biceps TiBi.i'E, or Femoris, a mufele of the
leg with two heads ; the iuperior arifing with a
round tendon from the protuberance of the ifchi-
um ; and the other, being the fcorteft, from the
lower part of the os femoris ; both which join to-
gether, and are inferted by one tendon into the fu-
perior and external part of the perone.
Befides the office commonly afligned to this muf-
cle, in bending the tibia, together with the fartori-
us an.d membranofus,,it is likewife employed in,
turning the leg, together with the- foot and toes,j
outwards, when we fit with the knees bended.
BICKERN, the beak-iron of an anvil. See.
the article Anvil.
BICORNIS, in anatomy, a name for the os hy-
oides. See the article Kyoides..
BI-DENS,. water-hemp-agriniony, inibotany, a-
geniis of fyngenefious plants ; the flower is uniform,)
tubulofe, and compounded ; the difk is compofcd
of hermaphrodite florets, which are funnel-fhaped,-
and quinquefid;. the feed, 13 fmgle,. obtufe, and
crowned
BIL
crowned with two or more erect fliarp awns. Bo-
taiiirts enumerate Teven fpecics of this plant, which
are all natives of different parts of America.
JBIDON, a liquid meafure, containing about
five pints of Paris, that is, about five quarts Eng-
lifh, wine meafure. It is feldom ufed but among
fliips crews.
BIGAMY, the poffeffion of two wives at the
f.imetime. This is the interpretation of the v/ord,
iji a law pafled i Jac. I. which makes bigamy fe-
lony. Among the Romans, perfons convicted of
bigamy were branded with a note of infamy ; and
in France, they were anciently punifned with
death.
Bigamy, in the canon law, is when a perfon
-either marries two women fucceflively, or only
marries one woman who had been married before ;
both which cafes are accounted impediments to
be a clerk, or to hold a bifhopric. It is alio biga-
my when a perfon marries a woman who had beer
debauched before ; or v/hen he hath known his ow;i
wife after fhe has been debauched by another.
The Romanifts make a kind of bigamy by
terpretation ; as when a perfon in holy orders, or
that has made profelfion of fome monafbic order,-
marries. This the bifhop can dil'penfe with on
fome occafions.
Spiritual Bigamy is when a perfon holds two
incompatible benefices, as two biftioprics, two vi-
carages, 5ic.
BIGHT", in the marine, the double part of any
rope, in contradiflindtion to the end ; as, tlie bight
of his cable has fwept our anchor, that is, a part
of the cable of another (hip, in winding, has en-
tangled itfelf under the claw or flook of our anchor.
See Anchoe.
BIGNONIA, the trumpet-flower, in botany,
a plant having a rough Item, which fends out many
weak trailing branches, which are furniflied with
winged leaves at every joint, placed oppofite, and
are compofed of four pair of foliolcs, or fmall
leaves, terminated by an odd one ; thefe are fer-
rated on their edges, and end in a long (liarp
point : the flowers, which are monopetalous and
cam.panulated, are produced at the ends of the
fhoots of the fame year in large bunches ; thefe
have fwelling tubes fhaped fomev/hat like a trum-
pet, from whence they had the appellation of
trumpet-flower : they are of an orange colour, and
appear the beginning of Augull ; the fruit is a pod
with two cells and two v.ilves, containing feveral
imbricated, comprefl'ed, winged feeds. This plant
is propagated from Reds or cuttings.
BIGO T, a perfon foolifhly obftinate, and per-
verfely wedded to any opinion, but particularly an
opinion of a religious nature.
BILANDER, in the marine, a fmall merchant
veffel of two marts, having her main-yard and fail
llretching from the middle of the deck to the ftern,
3
B IL
parallel to her length, inftead of hanging acrofs,
like thole ot otiier larger fhips : the after, or hin-
der end of a bilander's main-yard is likewife peek-
ed up, fo as to form nearly an angle of forty-five
degrees with the mall on which it is fufpended.
Few veflels, hov/ever, are now equipped in this
method, probably from the obfervation of its being
attended with feveral inconveniencies.
BiLE, BiLis, a yellow bitter liquor, feparated
from the blood in the liver, colleded in the po-
rus biliarius and gall bladder, and thence difcharg-
ed by the common du£l into the duodenum.
The bile, '.\hen out of the body, is highly bit-
ter, and the moll acrid of all the animal fluids ; it
is neither of an alcaline nor an acid quality. It re-
fills accfctnce, and conveys the fame quality to
o.her lubltances with which it is mixed. It tends
v,:i.y much to putrefa^iion^ which it promotes,
wrhcsn added to other iubltances difpofed to it. It
•■■'■V foon mixes with water; and, when infpifl'a-
•,ffla'gentie:fire,,it diffolves, if expofed to the
't 'does not burn in the fire, unlefs it be pre-
• dried. It renders oil and oleaginous fub-
i'.;;iiC'.:s niifcible with water. If it be rubbed with
any tenacious fubilances,' fuch as rcfins or gums,
it rcfo'ives and aUiri:iites them. It is coagulated by
fire, alcohol of wine, acid fpirits, and extract of
galls. See Boerhadve Chym. Vol. I. and his Injiitut.
Med. Sedt. 99.
From the preceding, and a great number of other
experin;cnts made on this fluid by Baglivi, Du
Hamci, i;LC. it plainly appears, that the bile is a
humour compofed of an oil, a fait, and water. It
may therefore be confidered as a liquid animal fope,
fo that it is of an abfttrgent and refolvcnt quality.
That it is fo, the praftice of fome tradefmen is a
fufiicient proof; for dyers of cloth, in order to
take out the greafe which flicks to the wool, and
hinders the adhefion of the colour, ufe fope, or
putrid urine, after it has aflumed an alkaline na-
ture, or a lixivium of lome fixed alkali : but they
may, with equal fuccefs, ufe ox gall for the fame
intention. Painters alfo ufe the bile of animals for
mixing and diluting their colours. It difcovers irs
efficacy to be the fame in medicines, where a fapo-
naceous quality is required, or where the intention
is to abfterge, where the fluggi/h veffels are to be
flimulated, where a tenacious fubftance is to be
refolvcd, or a vifcid one attenuated. See Boerh.
Aph LXXV. 5.
BILGES, in nav.il architefture, thofe parts of
the bottom of a fliip, on either fide, that approach
nearer to an horizontal than a perpendicular direc-
tion, and on which the fhip would reft if laid on
the ground, or more particularly thofe parts on
which fhe would reft only, exclufive of the keel
which divides them.
Bilges are terminated in the fhip's fore part by
the lov/er part of the bow, and the hinder part by
the
B I L
t)ie buttock. Sec the artick-s Bow, Ki;i-:l, and
Buttock.
BILINGUIS, in a general ufe, implies a pcrfon
who [peaks two languages ; but in law is ufed to
fignit'y a jury in a trial between an Engliniman and
a foreigner, when one half arc natives, and the o-
thcr ftrangers.
BIUOUS, fomething relating to the bile, or
that partakes of its nature.
Bilious Fever. See Fever.
BILL, in mechanics, a cutting inftrument of
iron, in the form of a crefcent, ufed by huiband-
men, gardeners, he.
BiLt, in trade, fignifies an account of goods de-
livered to, or of work done lor, a perfon.
Bill of Credit, an order given by a merchant or
banker to a perfon, inipowering him to receive
money from his correfpondents in foreign coun-
tries.
Bill of Entry, an account of goods entered at
the cuftom-houfe, both inwards and outwards.
Bill of Exchange, a fliort order v/ritten on a flip
of paper, by a merchant, &:c. for paying to fuch
a perfon, or his order, and in fome countries to
the bearer, in a diftant place, a certain fum of
money.
There are three things neceffary to conftitute a
bill of exchange, i. That it be drawn in one
place upon fome perfon in another. 2. That there
be three perfons concerned, the drawer, the pre-
fenter, or perfon in whofe favour it is drawn, and
the acceptor, or him on whom it is drawn. It
inulT: alfo mention that the value which the drav/er
has received, is either in bills of exchange, in mo-
ney, merchandize, or other effects, which are to
be exprcfli-'d.
Thefe bills are made pav&ble either at Tight, or
fo many days, weeks, or months after date ; the
Ipace of a month being caikd ufance, and two or
three months after date, double or treble ufance.
Bills of exchange are alfo either inland or fo-
reign ; the former is faid to be only in the nature
of a letter ; but the latter is more regarded in law,
becaufe it is for the advantage of commerce with
other countries, and confequently renders it an ob-
iedt of public concern.
Not only the drawer, but alfo every indorfer of
a bill is liable to the payment of it 3 for an indor-
fer charges himfelf in the fame manner, as if he
had orit;inally drawn the bill : and the plaintiff, in
an action in fuch a cafe, is not obliged to prove
the drawer's hand, becaufe the indorfer becomes a
new drawer. He mufl however prove that he de-
manded the money of the drawer or drawers, or
that he made enquiry, and -could not find them in
convenient time ; for by the cuftom eflabliflied a-
mong merchants, the indorfer is to receive the mo-
ney of the firft drawer if he can ; but if he cannot,
the indorfer mull anfvver it.
18
E I L
'1 he forging a bill of exchange, or any accept-
ance, is felony.
Bill of Lading, an acknowledgemtnt figned by
the matter of the fhip, and given to a' merchant,
&;c. containing an account of the goods which the
maiter has received on board from that merchant,
&c. with a proniifc to deliver them at the intended
place for a certaiji Aim of money. Each bill of
lading muft be treble, one for the merchant who,
fliips the goods, another to be fent to the perfon to
whom they are configncd, and the third to remain
in the hands of the mailer of the fliip. It mud
however be obferved, that a bill of lading is only
ufed when the goods fent on board a fliip are but
part of the cargo ; for when a merchant loads a
veffel entirely on his own account, the deed pafled
between him and the mailer of the fhip is called
charter-party. See Charter-Party.
Bill of Partels, an account given by the feller
to the buyer, containing the particulars of all the
foits and pieces of the goods bought.
Bill of SaU is when a man, wanting a fum of
money, delivers goods as a fecurity to the lender,
to whom he gives this bill, impovvering him to fell
the goods, in cafe the fum borrowed is not repaid
with interefl at the time appointed.
Bill of Store, a licence granted at the cuftom-
houfe to merchants, by which they have libertv to
carry duty-free, all fuch flores and provifions as
the fliip's crew may have occafion for during the
voyage.
Bill of Zujf trance, a licence granted to a mer-
chant at the cullom-houfe, fuffering him to trade
from one Englifli port to another, without paying
cuftom.
Bank Bill. See Bank.
Hill, in law, a fecurity for m.oney under the
hand, and fometimes the i'eal of the debtor. It is
of two forts, a fmgle bill without or with a penal-
ty ; the latter is the fame as a bond, except its being
without a condition.
Bill alfo implies a declaration in writing, ex-
prefling either fome wrong the complainant has {vS-
fered from the defendant, or a fault committed by
the perfon complained of againll fome lav/ or fta-
tute.
This bill is fometimes exhibited to juflices at the
general affizes, by way of indiflment, or referred
to others having jurifdiiSlion ; but is more general-
ly addreffed to the lord chancellor. It contains the
fact complained of, the damage fuftained, and a
petition or proccfs againft the defendant for redrefs;
and is ufed both in criminal and ci\il cafes, la
the former, the words hiila vera are indorfed by the
grant! jury upon a prefentment, implying that they
find the fame founded on probable evidence, and
therefore worthy of further confideration.
Bill /'*; Pa''li.i>nent, fignifies a paper containing
propofuions offered to the houfc to be paffed by
4 T the.m.
B I N
B I R
! Attainder.
Apphal.
Mortality.
them, ami afterv/arJs to be prefented to the king,
in Older to receive the royal affent, and become
a law.
.Bill ef Aitair.dr, T
Bill of Apfnd^ \ See
Bill of Alouatity, \
BILLET,, in heraldry, a bearing in form of a
lung fquare. Tiiey are fuppofed to rcprefent pieces
Y)f cloth of gold or filver; but Guillim thinks
they reprefent a tetter fealed up ; and otlier authors
take them for bricks.
Billete implies that the efcutcheon is all over
!lrev/ed with billets, the number not afcer-
tuined.
BiLLET-WcoD, fmall wood for fewel, cut three
foot and four inches long, and feven inches and a
half in compafs ;. the aifize of which is to be en-
quired of by juftices.
BILL'E rlNG, in military affairs, is the quar-
tering of Icldiers in the houfcs of a town or village.
-Amona; fox-hunceis, it fignifies the ordure and dun<^
of a fox.
BILLON, in the hiflory of coins, a compofi-
tion of precious and bafe metals, where the latter
predominate : wherefore gold, under twelve carats
line, is called billon of gold ; and filver, under
fix penny-weight, billon of filver. So little
attention was paid formerly to the purity of
gold and filver, that the term billon of gold was
applied only to that which was under twenty-one
carats ; and billon of illvcr to that which was lower
than ten penny-wei2;ht.
BIMEDIAL. Tf two medial lines AB and
BC (FlateXVIIL^^. \\.) commenfurable in power
only, are compounded, and contain a rational rec-
tangle, the who!e line AC is irrational, and called
a iirft biraedial line. Barrow's Euclid. Lib. X.
Prop. 38.
BINARY Arithmetic, that wherein unity or
1 and o are only ufed.
This was the invention of Mr, Leibnitz, who
fhews it to be very expeditious in difcovering the
properties of numbers, and in conftruiSting tables :
and Mr. Dangccourt, in the Hiitory of the Royal
Academy of Sciences, gives a fpecinien of it con-
cerning arithmetic:'.l progreffionals ; where he flievvs
that, becaufe in binary arithm.etic only two cha-
raflers are ufed, therefore the lavi'S of progreffion
may be more eafily difcovcred by it than by com-
mon arithmetic.
l"he author, however, does not recommend
this method for common ufe, becaufe of the
great number ef figures required to exprefs a
number.
Binary Measure, in mufic, is a meafure
which is beaten equally, or where the time of
rifing is equal to that of falling; ufually called com-
mon time.
BIND-WEEDj Convihulus, in botany ; fee
Convolvulus.
BING, in the alum works, denotes a heap of
alum thrown together in order to drain.
BINNACLE, in the marine, a wooden cafe or
box (landing upon the quarter-deck, immediattl/
before the helm, or fteerir.g-wheel, containing
three little apartments, viz. one in the middle for
a light, and thofe on each fide for the fea-compafi'es
which direct, the fhip's courfe : the middle divifion-.
has a glafs on each fide,, whereby to throw a light
upon the compafs, that the man at the helm may
obierve it in tiie darkcfl weather. There are al-
ways two binnacles on the deck of a iliip of war ; .
one being deiigned for the man who fteers, and the
other for the officer who fuperintends the fteerage,
which is called conning. See Compass, and-
Quarter-Master.
BINOCULAR T(14:ope. See Telescope.
HINOAIIAL ii;:ii/, in algebra, is a root con-
fiding of tv.'o members connected with the fign -)-,
or — : thus i+.v, or i — .>!• are binomials coniifting
of the fums and differences of thefe quantities.
See Bittoniial Root.
BIOGRAPHY, a verv inflruaive fpecies of
hiftory, containing the lives of remarkable per-
fons.
The v/ord is formed from the Greek ^1'^, life,,
and y^ci.tc-j. to defcribe.
BIOUAC, in military affairs, a night-guard
performed by the whole army, when there is any
apprehenfion of danger from the enemy.
BIQUADRATIC, the fourth power of any
number or quantity.
Biquadratic Equation, m algebra, is an equa-
tion where the unknown quantity has four dimen-
fions ; thus, x*-i-p(ix'' +paax'^ -\-pa^x + a*zzo, is a
biquadratic equation, becaufe the unknown term .r,
is of four dimcnfions. See Biquadratic Equa-
tion.
BIQUINTILE, an afpe-fc of the planets when
they are 14+ degrees diflant from each other.
BiRCH-TREE, Bdiila, in botany, a genus of:
amentaceous plants. The common birch grows in
feveral woods in England ; it is tall, and produces
many flexible branches. The outer bark of the
trunk is thick, rough, whitifti, and full of clefts ;
that which lies next is fmooth and tranfparent ;
the wood is white, and the boughs are fo tough,
and flexible, that they are much ufed for making
hoops for cafks, and their tv/igs are commonly em-
ployed for making brooms. The leaves are fome-
what oval, ferrated, and of a deep green. The
flowers are male and female, and produced on kat-
kins, which are about an inch and a. half long,
confifting of many reddifh florets, difpofed like
fcales ; in the female flower the calyx is lightly,
divided into three fegments. The fruit is a cylindric-
cone,.,
B I R
cone, having feeds which ate ovaJ, winged, and
included in the fcalcs of the katkin.
This tree is propagated by fuckers or young
plants, from the woods where they naturally grow ;
but in places where there are no young plants near,
they may be raifed from feeds, which flioulJ be
carefully gathered wlicn the fculcs begin to open,
which is in autumn, and is the proper feafon for
lowing, obfcrving to chufe a flvady fituation, where
the plants will thrive much better than if expofed
to the full fun. Birch being much elleemed for its
wood, may be cultivated upon barren lands, where
better trees will not thrive ; for there is no ground
lb bad but this tree will thrive in it ; it will grow
in moift fpringy land, or in dry gravel or fand,
where there is little furfacf, lliefe may be tranf-
planted any time from the middle of Odobcr till
the middle of March, when the ground is not frozen.
In dry land the autumn is thebefl feafon, but where
it is n.oirt, the fpring is to be preferred : the dil-
tance they fhould be planted is fix, feet fuuare, that
they may foon cover the ground, and by Handing
clofe they will draw each other up, and thrive the
better where they are much expofed. When
young trees have been planted two years, they
Diould (if defigned for underwood) be cut down
within fix inches of the furface, which will caufe
diem to fiioot out ftrong and vigorous branches ;
but if they are defigned for large trees, it will be
better to let them rtand three years before they are
headed down, which fhould be done within three
inches of the ground, that their flems may be
ftraight and handfome, obferving when they put
out, whether they produce more than one Ihoot,
which if they do, thev muft all be cut off, except
the ftrongeft and mo& convenient fhoot, which
mufl be trained up for a ftcm.
The timber of birch, though accounted the worfl
of all others, yet is not without its various ules ;
hefides its fervice for hoops and brooms, it is ufed
for ox-yokes, in chair-making, difhes, bowls,
ladles, and for divers other purpoles. In Ruffia and
Poland they cover their houfcs with the bark of the
bjrch-tree, inflead of flate or tile.
In fome places thefe trees are tapped in the
fpring, and the fap drawn out to make birch-wine,
which is done in the following manner : In the
middle of March, cut an oblique hole, or rather a
flit, under the branch of a well fpreading birch-
tree, which keep open by a fmall wedge of wood,
or {lone put therein : to this hole or flit fix a bottle,
to receive that clear water or fap as will diftil itfelf
out of the aperture into the bottle, which mufl be
taken away when full, and ethers fixed in its place.
It is faid, that one tree will bleed a gallon or two
in a day. Having in this manner obtained a fuffi-
cient quantity of the fap or birch-water, put to
every gallon thereof a quart of honey, v/ell flirred
Bl R
up together, and boil it almoft an hour with a fev/
cloves, and a little lemon-peel, keeping it well
fcummed. When it is fufficiently boiled, and after
become cold, put to it two or three fpoonfuls of good
ale-yeaft, which will caufc it to work like beer :
when the yeaft begins to fettle, bottle it up, as is
done by other liquors, and in a competent time if
will become a moft brifk and fpirituous wine, and
a very great opener. If honey (hould be difagrec-
able, uillead thereof ufe a pound of the bell double-
refined fugar ; or it may be dulcified with the befl
Malaga raifins, which iaft will make it an exceed-
ing fine wine. This wine is very good for the
phthific, diilblvcs the Hone in the bladder, and
greatly Tnarpcns the appetite, being drank before
eating.
I'he leaves ana bark of the birch-tree have been
employed chiefly externally, as refdhents, deter-
gents, and antifeptics. With regard to the leaves,
they difcover to the touch a rc-finous unctuofity,
and to the tafte an impleafint bitternefs : being
rubbed a little, they yield a pretty ilrong, and not
difagreeable fmell. The bark has been recom-
mended in fumigations for correcting contagious
air ; the niembranes are highly inflammable, in
burning yield no particular fmell, and give out a
refinous exfudation without fmell or tafte; the brittle
part is lefs inflammabe; it emits a ftrong acid vapour,
without refin.
There arc three other fpecies of birch, one of
which is a native of the Alps, and the northern
parts of France ; and the others of North Ameri-
ca, where the Indians make canoes of their bark,
which are very light, and of long duration.
liIRD, Aius, in zoology, one of the fix general
claffes of animals, the characters of v/hich are,
that their body is covered with feathers, and that
they have two wings, two legs, and a bill of a
horny fubftance ; the females likewife are all ovi-
parous.
The knowledge of birds, of the orders and
genera into which they are fubdivided, and of their
natures, ufes, figures, Sic. conftitutes a particu-
lar fcience, under the name of ornithology. See
OrNITHOI/OGV.
B1K.D-L1ME, a vifcid fubftance, prepared after
different ways. The moft common bird-lime a-
mong us is made from holly-bark, boiled ten or
twelve hours ; when the green coat being feparated
from the bark, it is covered up a fortnight in a
moift place, then pounded into a tough pafte, fo
that no fibres of the wood are difcernible, and
waflied in a running flream till no motes ap-
pear, put up to ferment four or five davs, Ikimmed
as often as any thing arifes, and laid up for ufe.
To ufe it, a third part of nut-oil, or thin greafe,
muft be incorporated with it over the fire.
Bxrd"£-Foot, in botany; fee Ornithopus.
BIRTH,
B I S
BIRTW, Partus, in midwifery, fignifies the
fame xvith delivery. See the article Delivery.
An immature birth, or that which happens be-
fore the ufual time of pregnancy is completed,
is otherwife called an abortion. See the article
Abortion.
For the proportion of births to marriages,
burials, &:c. fee the articles MarPvIACes, Burial,
See.
.•^/fr-BlRTH. See AFTER-Birlh.
Birth, in the marine, the llation in which a
fliip rides at anchor, either alone, or in a fleet or
fquadron ; or the diftance between a fliip and any
adjacent object ; as fire lies in a good birth, i.e. is
moored in a convenient fituation, or at a proper
diftance from the fhore, and other veflels.
Birth alfo fignifies the room or apartment v/here
any particular number of the officers or crew eat
■and fleep : in a (hip of war, 'there is comrnonlyOne
of thefe between every two guns.
BIRTHWORT, in botairy; fee ArisTOLo-
GHIA.
BIS, in botany, a name given by the ancients
to two difl'erent genufes of plants, now called
inonkfhood and hemlock.
Bis ANNUAL, an appellation given to fuch plants
as do not flower till the fecond year,
BISCUTELLA, buckler-muftard, in botany,
a genus of plants producing cruciform flowers,
each confifting of four obtufe petals : in the center
is placed an orbicular comprcfled germen, fupport-
ing a fmgle premanent rtyle ; it hath fix ftamina,
tv.'o of which are fliorter than the reft ; the fruit is
a comprcfled bilocular ereft capfule, tontaining a
iingle comprcfled feed. This genus was called by
Tournefort thlafpidium, and are natives of feve-
ral parts in the fouth of Europe.
BISERRULA, in botany, an annual plant,
which grows naturally in Italy, Sicily, Spain, and
the fouth of France ; it fends forth many angular
ilalks, which trail on the ground, and are fub-
divided into many branches, which are furnifhed
with long winged leaves, compofed of many pairs
■of lobes, and terminated by an odd one : thefe are
heart-fhaped. I'oward the upper part of the branches
comes out the pedicle, which fuftains feveral papi-
lionaceous flowers, of a purple colour, collected
together ; which are fucceeded by plain pods about
an inch long, indented on both fides, and divided
in the middle by a longitudinal nerve, containing
two rows of kidney-ftiaped feeds.
This plant was called by Tournefort pelecinus.
BISHOP, a prelate, or perfon confecrated for
the fpiritual government of a diocefe.
A bifliop is the higheft ecclefiaftical dignitary,
the chief ofiicer in the hierarchy or oeconomy of
church government. The apoflles, alter our
Saviour's afccnfion, went forth preaching the gof-
3
BIS
pel in the particular prcu'inces allotted to them,
and appointed the firft converts of every place
through which they pafiod, or, as Clemens Ro-
manus exprefles it, " the firll: fruits of their
" minifl:ry," to be the bifhops and deacons of the
churches planted by them. Thus Tertullian (iiys,
Clemens was ordained bifhop of Rome by S.t.
Peter, and Polycarp bifliop of Smyrna, by- St.
John.
The earliefl: account we have of Britiih bifhops
is carried up no higher than the coiincil of Arks,
aflTembled by the emperor Conllantine, in the fourth
century ; at which were prefent the bifhops of
London, York, and Caerleon-
'Lipon the vacancy of a bifhop's fee, the king
grants a licence, or conge il'ejlhe, under the great
ieal, to the dean and chapter, to elcft the perfon
whom by his letters miflive he hath appointed j
and they are to choofe no other. The dean and
.chapter having ilnade their eleftion accordingly, cer-
tify it under their common feal to the king, and
to the archbifhbp of the province, and to the bifhop
thus elected : then the king gives his royal afTent,
under the great feal, diretteJ to the archbifhop,
commanding him to confirm and confecrate the
bifhop thus eledtcd. The archbifhop then fub-
fcribes his fiat coiifirmatlo, and grants a commiffion
to the vicar-general to perform all the acts requifite
■thereto : who thereupon ifTues out a fummons to
all perfons who may objeft to the eleiflion, to ap-
pear, &c, which citation is afiixed on the door oT
Bow-church. At the time and place appointed,
the proftor for the dean and chapter exhibits the
royal afTent, and the commilTion of the archbifhop,
which arc both read, and accepted by the vicar-
general. Then the new bifliop is prefented by the
pr-T^tor of the vicar-general ; and three proclama-
tions being made for the oppofers of the election
to appear, and none appearing, the vicar-general
confirms and ratifies the choice of the perfon eledt-
ed ; who takes the oaths of fupremacy, canonical
obedience, and that againft fimony.
Till this aft of confirmation is performed, the
bifliop eIe(Si: may be reie^'ted, becaufe there may be
reafons afligned why he fhould not be made .1
bifhop ; which is the reafon of the above-mention-
ed citations and proclamations.
A bifliop of England ii a peer of the realm, and,
as fuch, fits and votes in the houfe of lords. He
is a baron in a threefold manner, viz. feudal, in
regard of the temporalities annexed to hisbifhopric ;
by writ, as being fummoned by writ to parliament ;
and by patent and creation. Accordingly he has
the precedence of all other barons, and votes both
as baron and bifhop.
Bishop's-Court, an ecclefiafllcal court, held
in the cathedral of each dioceie by the bifhop's
chancellor, who judges by the civil and canon law;
and
B I S
mid if the dioccfe be large, he has coiDmiiTarics in
remote parts, who liold what they call confillory
courts, for matters limited to them by their com-
miflion.
BisHOP*s-REED, in botany. Sec Ammu
BISHOPING, a term among horfc-dealcrs, to
denote the feveral artifices ul'ed by them on an old
or bad horfe, to conceal his natural defeats, and
impofe upon the buyer.
BISHOPRIC, a dioccfe, or the diftrift over
which a bifliop's jurifdidtion extends.
BISKET, or Biscuit, a general name for the
bread ufed in the fea-fcrvice, efpccially in long
voyages.
Bilket, in order to be good, {hould be made fix
months before it is put on board a fliip ; it fhould
alfo be made of good wheat flour, thoroughly
cleaned from the bran.
Alamier of making SeaBifcu'it. The flour is firft:
wet in the kneading-trough, with a fufficicnt
quantity of water, andcovercd for fome time with
a cloth. It is then well kneaded with a brake,
and the dough divided into pieces of about three
ounces each. Thefe pieces are again kneaded
fingly, and laid in rows, and the baker, after fhak-
ing lome flour over them, lays another row upon
the former ; and continues kneading and placing
his pieces of dough upon the laft pieces, till the
whole batch, or quantity baked at once, is finifhed:
the pieces of dough are then flatted into cakes,
pricked with an inftrument for that purpofe, and
placed regularly in the oven, where they ffand about
half an hour, when they are taken out of the oven,
and carried to the ftore-room.
The oven is fufficiently heated while the dough
is kneading and forming into cakes, fo that there
is no lofs of time during the whole day. Five per-
fons are fufliicient for two ovens, two of which
are the mafter-bakers, which ha\e each a mate,
the fifth perfon being called the idle-man. The
mailer-bakers aflift in kneading the dough, and
flattening it into cakes, and fetting the bifkets in
the ovens. The mates alfo aflift in kneading the
dough, flattening it into cakes, heating the oven,
and tofling the cakes into it. The lail operation
they perform with great dexterity, the mafter-baker
conftantly catching the cake on his peel, and plac-
ing it regularly in the oven. The idle-man fetches
in the wood, wets and kneads the flour in the
kneading-trough, takes it thence, and kneads it
with the brake, carries it into the bake-houfc,
pricks the cakes, and carries them to a fmall table
placed at the oven's mouth, whence the mate takes
them, and tofles them into the oven.
BisKET, among confectioners, fignifies a kind
of bread made of fine flour, eggs and fugar, with
the addition of rofe or orange-flower-water. Some-
times anifeeds, carraway-leeds, preferved orange,
citron, or lemon-peel, are added, and the different
i8
B IS
coinpofitlons diftinguiflicd by different names,, as
feed-bilket, fong-biiket, roiuid-biflcct, Naples-bif-
ket, fpunge-biflcet, &c.
BIsMUTH, or Tin-Glass, in natural hiftory,
a fparkhng white fcnii-mctal, very ponderous, con-
fiderahly hard and Ibnorous, extremely brittle,
witliout any degree of malleability, falling i^^
pieces under the hammer, and reducible by triturc
into fine powder. When broke, the furface of the
fradlure appears compofed of bright plates or flakes',
larger than thofe of the other femi-metals. In its
external appearance, it has a great refemblance to
regulus of antimony and zinc, differing little other-
wife than in the largenefs of the plates, and in its
contracSling a yellowifh cad: on the furface expofed
to the air. In its intrinfic properties, it is ex-
tremely different ; melting far more eafily, not
evaporating fo readily, being differently afted upon
by acids, producing different effecSs upon other
metallic bodies, &c.
BISNOW, or BisCHN-ou, a kS: of the Bani-
ans in the Eaft-Indies, who live wholly on herbs,
pulfe, butter, and milk. They fing hymns in ho-
nour of their god, whom they call Ram-ram, and
mix their dc\-otions with dances and the founds of
mufical inflriiments.
BISSECTION, in geometry, the dividing a
line, angle, &c. into two equal parts.
BISSEXTILE, in chronology, a year confifting
of 366 days, being the fame with our leap-year :
likewife the day which, is this year added, is called
bifl'extile. The mean tropical year, or that mean
fpace of time wherein the fun or earth, after de-
parting from any point of the ecliptic, returns to
the fame again, confifis, according to Dr. Halley's
tables, of 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, 55 fe-
conds : but the year made nk of by the antient
Egyptians confilled only of 365 days, which being
5 hours, 4.8 minutes, 55 feconds too little, they
loft a day nearly every four years. Julius C.-efar,
when high-prieft among the Romans, obferving
the inconveniency, ordered that every fourth year
ihoidd have an additional or intercalary day, and
the )ear when it happened was called bifTextile ;
but this method of computation (which is called
the Julian, or Old Stile,) is erroneous; for the
equinoxes and folflices anticipate or come earlier
than the Julian account fuppofes them to do by i i'
5'' in each mean Julian year, or 44 minutes, 20 fe-
conds in every four years, or 3 days, i hour, 53
minutes, and 20 feconds, in every four hundred
Julian years.
In order to correct this error in the Julian year,
the authors of the Gregorian method of regulating
the year, v.'hen they refonn-^d the calendar in the
beginning of Oiaobcr 1582, directed that three in-
tercalary days fnould be omitted or dropped every
four hundred years, by reckoning all thofe years
whofe dates confift of a number of intlre hundreds
4 U not
BIS
not divifible by '4, fuch as 17CC', 1800, 1900,
2100, 6cc. to be only common and not biftextile,
or leap years, as they would othcrvvife have been,
and confequently omitting the intercalary days,
which, according to the Julian account, fliould
have been inferted in the month of February in
thofe years ; but, at the fame time, they ordered,
that every fourth hundredth year confiiling cf a
number of intire hundreds divifible by 4, fuch as
i6co, 2000, 2400, 28CO, &c. fhould flill be con-
iidered as biflextik or leap years ; and confequently,
that one day fhould be intercalated as ufual in thofe
years.
This corretJHon, however, did not intirely re-
move the error, for the equinoxes and folftices flill
anticipate i'' 53' 20" every four hundred Grego-
rian years ; but that difference is fo inconfiderable
as not to amount to twenty-four hours, or to one
V'hole cay, in lefs than 5082 Gregorian years.
Pope Gregory XIII. in the year 1582, finding
that the equinox had anticipated, from the above
reafons, fmce the council of Nice held in the year
325, ten whole days, ordered that thefe ten
days flioulJ that year be taken out of the calendar,
and that the iich of March fhould be called the
aift, and this niethod of computation was imme-
diately followed by moft foreign countries. Great
Britain, however, ftil! followed the old or Julian
IHle till the year 1752, during which interval one
day more was anticipated. It was therefore order-
ed by act of parliament, that eleven days fhould
that year be taken out of the calendar, and that
the natural day following tlie fecond of September,
fhould be called the fourteenth, omitting the in-
termediate eleven days, and that the new IHle fhould
for the future be obfer\ ed. By this correction, tjie
feafls and. fafts of the church are now kept accord-
ing to the original decifion of the Nicene council.
J3ISTER, or rather Bistre. See Bistre.
BISTORTA, biftort, or fnakeweed, in botany,
a genus of oftandrious plants. The common great
biflort has a thick, oblong, jointed root, about the
thicknefs of the finger, iurrounded with bufhy fi-
bres ; it is of a blackifh brov/n colour without, and
reddiih within : the leaves are oblong, broad, and
acuminated like the dock, but lefs ; they are full
of veins, and of a dark green colour above, and
bluifh underneath, {landing on long pedicles, and
forming a narrow margin on each fide : among
thefe arife round, flender, jointed, unbranched
flalks, befet with a few fmaller and narrower leaves,
which have no pedicles, bearing on the top fpikes
of a petalous flower, confifting of a turbinated cup
divided into five fegments ; the plflil turns to a
triangular acute feed of a fhining black, contained
in the calyx. The root of this plant is only iu
uff, and is faid to be balfamic, vulnerary, and
aflringent, and therefore ufcd againfl all kinds of
ifluxes, particularly in hseraorrhages, fpitting of
BIT
blood, and vomiting ; it has been fometimes given
in intermitting fe\'ers, and fometimes alfo in fmall
doles as a corroborant and antifeptic in acute and
malignant fevers ; the common dofe of biflort root
is from fifteen to twenty grains, and, in urgent
cafes, it is extended to a dram. This genus is
clafled by Dr. Linna.'us with the polygonum. It
flowers in May, and produces new fpikes until
Auguft, and grov/s v/cll in divers parts of Eng-
land.
BISTOURY, in furgery, an imlrument for
making incifions, of which there are different kinds,
fome being of the form of a lancet, others firaighr
and fixed in the handle like a knife, and others
crooked v.'ith the fharp edge on the infide.
BISTRE, among painters, fignifies the burnt
oil extracted from the foot of wood.
It is of a brown trantpa.''ent colour, having much
the fame etFedt in water-painting, where alone it
is ufed, as brown pink in oil. Though this co-
lour is extremely ferviceable in water-colours, and
much valued by thofe who know and can procure
it, yet it is not in general ufe here, perhaps on ac-
count of its not being eaiily procured cf a perfect
kind ; hardly any of it being good, except that
imported from France. Perhaps the principal rea-
foii for this is, that di7 beech-wood affords the beft
loot for making it ; and it is not eafy to procure
fuch here without mixture of the foot of green
wood, or other combuitibles that deprave it for this
purpofc ; or it is poffible that they who have pre-
tended to prepare it, have been ignorant of the pro-
per means ; there not being any recipe or directi-
ons in books that treat of thefe matters, from'
whence they could learn the proper procef,'..
Biftre may, however, be prepared with great
cafe in the following manner.
Take any quantity of foot of dry wood, but let
it be of beech whcre-ever that can be procured. Put
it into water in the proportion of two pounds to a
gallon i and boil them half an hour : then, after
the fluid has flood fome little time to fettle, but
while yet hot, pour otr the clearer part from the
earthy fediment at the bottom ; and if on (landing,
longer it forms another earthy fediment, repeat the
fame method, but this fhould be" done only while
the fluid remains hot : evaporate then the fluid" to
drynefs ; and what remains will be good biflre, if
the foot was of a proper Icind.
The goodnefs of biflre may be perceived by its
warm deep brown colour, and tranfparency when
moiilened with water.
Bri\ or BiTT, an oflential part of a bridle.
Its kindy are various : i. The mufrol, fnaffle, or
w.^Ltering-bit. 2. The canon-mouth, jointed in
the middle. 3. The canon witli a fait mouth, all
of a piece, only kneed in the middle, to form a
libertv or fpacc for the tongue ; lit for horfes too
fcnfibit, or tlckiifh, and ii.ible to be continually
bear-
BIT
bearing on the hand. 4. The c.inon-moutli, with
the liberty in form of a pigeon's neck ; proper
where a horfe has too large a tongue. 5. The
canon with a port mouth, and an upfet or mount-
ing liberty ; ufed where a horfe h;is a good mouth
but large tongue. 6. 'Ihe fcatch-mOuth, with
an upfet ; ruder but more fecure than a canon-
mouth. 7. The canon-mouth with a liberty; pro-
per for a horfe with a large tongue, and round
bars. 8. The mafticadour, or Havering bit, Sec.
The feveral parts of a fnaffle, or curb-bit, are the
mouth-piece, the cheeks and eyes, guard of the
cheek, head of the cheeks, the port, the welts,
the campanel or curb and hook, the bolles, the
bolrtcrs and rabbets, the water-chains, the fide-
bolts, bolts .ind rings, kirbles of die bit or curb,
trench, toprol, flap, and jeivc.
Bit alio denotes the iron part of a piercer, au-
gre, and the like inflrumcnts.
Bit cfa Key, the part which contains the wards.
See Wards.
Bits, in naval nrchiteflurc, flrong pieces of
fquare timber let down through, and fixed in holes
of, the decks abo\e and below, called mortlfes,
and bolted to the beams. There are feveral bits in
a fhip, the principal of which are thofe for the
cable, whofe upper parts commonly rejch about
three or four feet above tlse deck, over which the
cable paffes ; they are hipported on tlie forepart by
ftrong knees bolted to the deck, and foitihed by a
erofs-piece of equal thickncfs with thcmfcKes,
which is bolted and forelocked to the bits. 'I'hc
ends of the crofs-piece reach about two or three
feet beyond the bits, and is fixed about two feet
belov." their upper-ends ; around thefe the cable is
gradually veered away, without which it would al-
tnciR be impoffible to prevent it from rumiing out
to the end when the fhip rides a great flrain, which
is always the cafe in a llorm or in p. rapid tide. In
fliips of w.ir there are commonly two pair of ca-
ble bits ; and when they are both uf;d at once,
the cable is faid to be double-bitted. Sec F< ejhaz
the Hawse, Service.
To bit the cable is to put the double part or
bight of ft round the bits. The other bits are of
a fmaller kind for fattening the topfltil fiicets. See
Quarter-Block.
BITTER, Amarus., an epithet given to all bo-
dies of an oppofite tafte to fvveetncls.
Bitters are accounted ftoniachic and cleanfmg,
and are faid to refili putrefaction, correiS acidities,
and affifl digeftion ; though there are not v/anting
fcme who will have them to be hurtful to the flo-
Eiath, except in fo far as their aftringcncy contri-
butes to brace the fibres.
Bitter-Apple, in botnny. SceCoi.ocYi;THis;
Bitte?v-;.weet, in botany. See Solanum.'"
Bitter-Vetch, in botany. Sec Akodus.
BIX
BITTERN, in ornithology, the nameof a birtf
of tlie heron kind, called by authors, ardea ftcl-
laris ; and by fome taurus, botaurus, butorius, and
ocnus. InEnglifli, the butter-bump, and mire-drum.
It is nearly of the fizc of a common heron; its
head is fmall and narrow ; its crown is black ; and
there is alfo a black fpot on each fide, near the an-
gle of the mouth. Its throat and fides ai-e reddifh,.
variegated with black tranfverfe lines ; the neck is
covered with very long feathers, which make it ap-
pear much thicker and fhorter than it really is ; its
belly is of a dufjcy white, with a caft of browniCi
red, and its back is variegated with a pale reddifh
brcwn and black. It makes a very remarkable
noife, which it repeats either three or five times.
It is heard only in the building-time, which begins
in February. The common people, from the An-
gularity of the noife, think the bird, in order to
make it, flicks its beak in a reed, or in the mud.
It is commonly found in fcdgy and reedy plr.ces,
near the v/atcrs, and fometimes in hedges. 1 o-
' wards autumn this bird flies very high in an even-
ing after fun-fet, rifing with a fpiral afcent, till
quite out of fight ; and as the)' rife, they make an
odd nolle, not at all like their ufual note. This-
they repeat alfo very often, as they are on the
wing in the night ; and hence they are called by
feme, though improperly, the night-raven. It
builds on the ground, and lays five or fix eggs,
which are loundifh, and of a greenifli white.
When v.'ounded, and going to be taken, it ftrikes
at the perfon's eve, and ought therefore to be care-
fully guarded againll,
BiTTERK, in the falt-works, a liquor left after
the boiling and cryftallizing of the fait, of a nau-
feous bitter tafte. ' It rern.iins in the pans after the
boiling is finifhed, and is thence conveyed to a pit
without the works, and at proper feafons, with a
fmall addition of oil and vitriol, boiled into what is
improperly called Epfom ialt. The fwdtitious fal
mirabile is made at the fait works from the fait that
Ihoots fpontaneoufly from the bittern.
BIVALVULAR, or Bivalve, in botany, an
appellation given to fuch pods or caplules as confift
of two valves inclofing the feeds.
BIX.-X, in botany, aflirub which grows natural-
ly in the warm parts of America, where it rifes
with an upiight Hem to the height of eight or ten
feet, fending out many branch.f s at the top, form-
ing a reguhr head : tiiefe are furnillied v.-ich heart-
fhaped leaves ending in a point, which have long
footftalks. The flowers are produced in loofe panni-
cles at the end of the branches : thefe r.re of a pale
peach colour, having a double feries of petals, each
ferics confiding- of five, wiOi a great number of
briltly llamina, which are about h'.lf the length of
the fame colour : when the flcvver is decayed, the
germen becomes an oval heart-fliaged capfule, ;\
li;ilc
BL A
httle comprefled, covered with bri'ftles, formed of
two valves, opening at the angles, with only one
cell with an interior bivalve membrane. The feeds
are numerous and turbinated, covered with a red
]iulp or pafte, which colours the hands of thofc who
touch it, and is coUedted for the ufe -of dyers and
painters, by fteeping the feeds in hot water, and
-with the hands walhed until the feeds are clean;
then after pouring away the water they leave the
fcdiment to harden, and make it up in balls, which
are fent to Europe : it is alfo ufed by the Ameri-
car.s to dye their chocolate; and the natives ufed to
paint their bodies with it when they went to the
wars. This plaju is propagated by its feeds, but
being tender it requires a hothoufe in this climate.
BLACK, a v/ell knov.-n colour, fuppofed to be
owing to the abfence of light ; all the rays thereof
being imbibed by the black bodies. See Colour
and Light.
Black bodies are not only warmer, but more in-
flammable than others, as is proved by various ex-
periments ; for which the curious may conlult
Boyle, 'S Gravefande, and other philofophers who
have treated of this fubjeft.
Black, among dyers, one of the five fimple and
mother colours ufed in dying. It is made different-
ly, according to the fevcral qualities of the ftufts
that are to be dyed. For fluffs of a high price, as
woollen cloth, an ell and a half, or an ell and a
quarter wide, broad and narrow ratteens, fine wool-
len druggets, &c. they muff ufe a black made of
the bell woad and indigo, inclining to a bluifh
browji. The goodncfs of the compofition confifts
in there being not above fix pounds of indigo ready
prepared to each ball of woad, v/hen the latter be-
ing in the tub, begins to calt its blue flower ; and
in not being heated for ufe above twice ; after which
it muft be boifcd with alum, tartar, or aflies of
!ees of wine ; then middered with common mad-
der; and laftly, the black muft be given with gall-
nuts of Aleppo, copperas, and fumach. As for
more indifferent fluffs, fuch as fmall ratteens and
flialloons, as they cannot p.iy for the expence of
maddering, it is fufficient that they be well boiled
with woad, and afterwards blacked with gall and
copperas. There is likevvife the Jcfuits black,
which is m.ade with the fame ingredients as the
good black, but without having firfl: dyed the fluff
blue.
German Black, called by fomc Frankfort black,
js made v.'ith the lees of wine, burnt, v/aflied after-
wards in water, then ground in mills made for that
purpofe, with ivory, bones, or pcach-flones, alfo
burnt. It comes from Frankfort, Mentz, and
Strafbourg, either in lumps or pov.'der, and muft be
xrhofen moifl, without having been wetted, of a
fine fhining black, foft, friable, light, and v.'ith as
/cw fliining grains as poflible.
.S«ic-BL.\c;K is made with the bones of o.xcn,
BL A
cows, &c, and is ufed in pair t ng ; but is not fo
much efleemcd as ivory-black.
Halt's Black, that which remains in the retort
after the fpirits, volatile fait, and oil, have been
extraifled from hart's - horn. It anfwers the
purpofes of painters almoft as well as ivory-
black.
SpanlJI) Black is nothing but burnt cork ; it is
ufed in feveral works. It fhould be light, and have
as few grains of fand mixed with it as poflible.
Earth-Bh^CK,■^i iort of coals found in the ground,
which the painters and limners ufe to paint in fref-
co, after it has been well ground.
There is alio a black made with gall-nuts, cop-
peras, or vitriol, fuch as common ink : and a black
made with filver and lead, which ferves to fill up
the cavities of engraved things.
Lamp Yii. ACK. is the foot of oil colledled as it is
formed by burning. It is a brownifli black ; but
neverthelefs, being of a good texture for mixing
either with oil or water, and drying well with oil,
it is the principal black at prefent ufed in all nicer
kinds of painting : for notwithftanding ivory-black
far furpaffes this in colour, the grol's and adulterate
preparation of all that is to be now obtained has
occafioned it to be greatly rejeiEted.
The lamp-black is made by burning oil in a
number of large lamps in a confined place, from
whence no part of the fumes can efcape ; and
where the foot formed by thefe fumes, being col-
lected againft the top and fides of the room, may
be fwept together and colledfed : and this being
put into fmall barrels, is fold for ufe without any
other preparation.
The goodncfs of lamp-black lies in the fullnefs
of the colour, and the being free from dufl or other
impurities. The lightnefs of the fubflance furniflies
the means of difcovering any adulteration if to a
great degree ; as the bodies with which hirnp-black
is fubjeiSl to be fophiflicated are all heavier in acon-
fideralsle proportion.
Ivor y-^hACK. is the coal of ivory or tone, form-
ed by giving them a great heat, all accefs of air to
them being excluded. It is, when pure and genu-
inely prepared from the i\'ory, a full clear black;
and would be the moft ufeful of any, in any kind
of painting, but that it is apt to dry fomewhat too
ilowly in oil. At prefent, neverthelefs, being pre-
pared only by thofe who manufacture it from bones
in very large quantities for coarfe ufes, and fell it
at an extreme low price, it is fo grofsly levigated,
beinff ground only in hand or hon'e-mills, and a-
dulteratcd moreover copioully with charcoal dufl,
which renders it of a blue caft, that it is whol]y
exploded from all more delicate purpofes, and
lamp-black ufed in the place of it, though inferior,
with regard to the purity and clearncfs of the black
colour, to this when good. As the ivory-Wack,
has its merit in niofl kinds of
painting,
notv/ithflanding.
BL A
paiiiliiij, when its preparation is properly in.-in.iged,
particularly in wattr and varniih ; thofc who dclire
to have it may prepare it themfelvts in pirfcdHon
l>y the following means.
Take plate?, chips, or (liavings of ivory, and
foak them in hot linfecd oil ; or if idlings are to be
more eafily procured, they may be ufcd moillencd
with the hot oil : put thcni into a ve\i\\ which will
bear the lire, covering them with a fort of lid made
of clay and fand, which flioukl be dried, and the
cracks repaired before the veird be put into the fire.
Procure this vcffcl to be placed in a tobacco-pipe
maker's or potter's furnace, or any fuch fire ; and let
it remain there during one of their heats. V/hen it
flvall be taken out, the ivory will be burnt proper-
ly ; and mull be afterwards thoroughly well levi-
gated on the ftone with water ; or it fhould, indeed,
to have it perfectly good, be alfov.'afhcd over.
Thofe who have a calcining furnace, may very
commodicufly burn the ivcry in it ; and tiic fire
need not be c^.-tinued longer than while the fumes,
that arife from the veflel containing the ivory, ap-
pear to fiame. This operation may likewife be
perform.ed in a fubliming furnace, by putting the
ivory in a retort, coated with the fire-lute, and
fixing the retort ibr the fublim.ers ; and a proper
receiver being fitted to the receivers, the fumes will
be detained in it, and the fmell prevented from being
in the leaft troublefcm.c : the fire mud in this ca!e
be continued while any grofs fumes come over.
'I'he goodnefs of ivorv-black may be perceived
by its full black colour, not inclining too much to
blue ; and by its finenefs as a powder.
S/w-Fl.ack is the coal of fome kind of wood,
or other vegetable matter, burnt in a clofe heat
where the air can have no acccfs. The bell kind
is faid to be made of vine ilalks and tendrils : but
there are doubtlefs many otiier kinds of vegetable
fubilanecs from which it may be equally prepared.
It is, when good, a fine bluifh black colour, ufeful
in m.o't kinds of paintings for many purpofts ; but
is rarely to be had at prefent well prepared ; and,
therefore, much negiefted in mod nicer ca'es.
'I'hofe who defire to ha\e blue-black perfectly
good, may prepare it in the manner above directed
for tlic ivory-black, from the vine ilalks or tendrils,
or any other twigs of wood of an acid talle and
t6ugh texture ; but the foaking in oil, prefcribed
for the ivory, muft be here omitted.
The goodnefs of the blue-black confills in the
cleannefs and blue call of its black colour; and
the perfeiElnef; of its levigaticn, which flioukl be
managed as dircdted for the ivory-black.
Curr'urs Bl..\CK fignifies a teint or dye laid on
tanned leather ; of which there are ufualiy two,
the fird made of galls, four ale, and old iron ; the
fccond of galls, copperas, and gum-arabic.
Black-Bird, A^/cuh, in ornithology. Sc^r th?
arfic'e Mf.RL'tA.
18
B L A
Black L.md, in agriculture, a term by which
the liufbandmeu denote n particular fort of clayey
foil, which, however, they know more by its othcF
properties than by its colour, which is rarely any
thing like a true black, and often but a pale grey.
Thij, however pale when dry, always blackens by
means of rain ; and when plowed up at thofe fca-
fons, it ilicks to the plow Iharcs ; and the more ic
is wrought, the muddier and duflcier-cplourcd it
appears. This fort of foil always contains a large
quantity of fand, and ufualiy a great number of
fmall v/hitc floncs.
Black Flux, in minerology, a flux ufed in the
afiiying of ores, and is made as follows : — Take
one part of nitre, and two parts of common tartary ;
reduce each to powder, mix them together, and
deflagrate the whole in a crucible, by lighting the
mixture at the top ; which thus turns to a kind of
alkaline coal, that is to be pulverized and kept ia
a clofe glaff, to prevent its diflblving, as it would
do in a moid air.
This fiux is of gener.il ufe ; and to have it read},'
at hand, fiiortens the bufinefs of making alTays in
metallurgy, and renders the operation more exaift
than when crude tartar and nitre are employed ;
becaufe t'ne deflagration might t'nus carry off ibmu
part of the ore, and defraud the account : for tliii
fame reafon the mixture is here dire6led to be fired
at top, otherwife a confiderable part might be loll
in the deflagration, which would prove much more
tumultuous and violent, if the matter was throwa
into a red-hot crucible. SImzu's Chem. LeSitira.
Black Tin, in minerology, a denomination
given to the tin-ore when drefled, damped, and
wafhed ready for the melting-houfes, where it Is re-
fined into a pure metal.
It is prepared into this date by !!iean3 of beatinj
and wafhing ; and v.'hen it has pafled through fe-
veral baddies or wafliing-troughs, it is ta'sceii up ia
the form of a black powder like fine fand, called
black-tin.
Black, in heraldry, is called fable. See tho
article Sable.
Black, in horfemanfliip. Black horfes are very
beautiful, efpccially when they are of u jet fliining;
black, and well marked, and have not too much
white : for as ^a great deal of vv'hite, efpecially
when it fpreads round their eyes, and a great v/ay
up their legs, adds nothing to their- beauty, (n
neither does it add any thing to their goodnefs.
The Englifii black horfes have more white than
the black horfes of any other country. I have
known many firie Spaniui horfes, fome Arabs, and
one Egyptian, the only one I ever faw of that coun-
try, all without any white; and the Dutch anti
Danifla horfes feldom have much ; though a flar of
blaze, and fometimes a white muzzle, and one cr
more of the feet tipped with white, always looks
beautiful and lively, and is no diminution to the
4 X goci-
BLA
goodnefs of ?. horfe, but moft think an addition,
from an opinion that horfcs without any mark are
generally itubborn and ill-conditioned. Some black
horfes have brown muzzles, are brownifh on their
flanks and between their hips ; thefe are often called
black browns, as they arc not a perfccl black, but
approach near to the colour of a tawny black
hound : fome are of a lighter c9lour about their
muzzles, and are called mealy-mouthed horfcs ;
and of this fort are the pigeon-eyed horfes, which
have a white circle round their cyc-lids, and their
fundaments often white. But after all, I have
found many of the Englilh black horfes, efpecially
of the largeft breed, not fo hardy as the bays and
chefnuts, &c. Thofe that partake moft: of the
brown, are generally the ftrongeft in conftitution.
Cibfon on Horfes.
Black-Eerrv, in botany. See Rubus.
Black-Book of the Exdnquer. See the article
Exchequer.
Black-Strakes, in the marine, thofe planks
which arc fituated immediately above the bends of a
fhip (fee the article Bends) : they are always
covered with tar and a mixture of lamp-black, and
form a beautiful variety with the v.fhite bottom be-
low, and the fcraped planks, covered with turpen-
tine, or varnifh of pine, above.
BLACKNESS, the quality of a black body, or
a colour arifmg from fuch a texture and fituation
of tlic fuperlicial parts of the body, as does deaden,
or rather abforb the light falling on it, without le-
ficfting any, or very little to the eye. Sir Ifaac
Newton in his Optics (liews, that for the produc-
tion of black colours, the corpufclcs muft: be lefs
than thofe which exhibit any other colours ; be-
caufe where the fizes of the component particles
are greater, there is too much light reflected, to
conftitutc this colour : but if there be a little lefs •
than iirequinte to reflccl the white, and very faint
blue of the firll: order, they will refiecl fo little
light a.i to appear intcnfely black, and yet may per-
haps rciled it varioufty to and fio within theui fo
long till it happen to be ilif.cd and loft ; by which
means they will appear black in. all pofitions to the
eye, withct;c any tranfparency.
BLADDER, vefica urinaria, in anatomy, a kind
cf membraneous and flefhy pouch or bottle, capa-
ble of dilatation and contraction, f-tuated in the
lower part of the abdomen, iLnmediately behind
the fympliyfis of the ofTa pubis, and oppofite to the
be^innina: of the inteftinum rectum. The fio-ure
of it is nearly that of a fliort oval, It is broader
on the fore and back fides than on the the lateral
parts ; rounder above than below, when empty ;
and broader below than above, when full.
It is divided into the body, neck, and bottom ;
into an interior, poflerior, and two lateral parts.
The lijipcr p.-.rt is termed the fundus or bottorii,
B LA
and the neck Is a portion of the lower part, which
is contrafted like the gullet of fome vefleis.
The bladder is made up of feveral coats, almoft
like the flomach. That part of the external coat
which covers the upper, pofterior, and lateral fides
of the bladder, is the true lamina or membrane of
the peritoneum ; and the reft of it is furrounded
by a cellular fubftance, by the intervention of
which the periton.xum io conncflcd to the inufcular
coat.
The proper coats are three in number, one muf-
cular, one nervous, and one villous, which is the
innermoft. The inufcular coat is conipofed of
feveral ftrata of flefhy fibres, the outermoft of
which are moflly longitudinal ; the next to thefe are
more inclined toward each hand ; and the inner-
moft more and more oblique, and they become at
length almoft tranfverfe. All thefe fibres interfect
each other in \uri0u3 manners, and they are con-
nefted together by a fine cellular fubftance, and
may be feparated by inflating that fubftarxe.
The nervous coat is nearly of the fame ftru£ture
with the tunica nervcfa of the ftomach.
The internal coat is fomcthing granulated and
glandular, and a mucilaginous ferum is continually
difcharged through it, which moiftens the imicr
iurface of the bladder, and defends it againft the
acrimony of the urine. It appears Ibmetimes alto-
gether uneven on the inner fide, being full of emi-
nences and irregular ruga; when emptv, and in
its natural ftate of contraction. Thefe inequali-
ties difappear when the bladder is full, or when it
is artificially diftended by air, or by injecting any
liojuid.
The external fibres of the niufcular coat are
more numerous than the internal; and the moft.
longitudinal anterior fibres form a kind of incur-
vation round the urachus at the top of the bladder,
much like that of owz of the flefhy portions which
furround the fuperior orifice of the ftomach, and
lower extremitv of the cefophagus. This incur-
vation palfes behind the urachus.
The portion of the peritonaium which co\'crs
the pofterior convex fide of the 'bladder, forms
a very prominent tranfverfe fold, when the blad-
der is contrr.£ted, which difappears when the
bladder is extended. This fold furrounJs the
pofterior half of the bladder, and its two extremi-
ties are elongated toward each fide, by which
elongations a kind of lateral ligaments of the
body of the bladder is formed, which are more con-
fiderable in children than in adults.
The lower part of the bladder, v.-hich defervcs
the name of fundus much better than the upper
part, is perforated by three openings, one anterior
and two pofterior. The anterior opening is formed
by an elongation of all the proper coats, in form
of a gulht, turned much in the fame manner with
the
B L A
B L A
the ir.ncr orifice of the roftnim of the head of an
ulembic. 'I'hh elongation vj called the necl: cf the
bladder.
The other two openings in the true fundus of the
bladder are formed by the ureters, which, in their
I'ourfe downward, run behind the fpcrmatic \'eflels,
and then behind the lower part of the bladder, ap-
proaching near each other. Sec Uretejis.
Each ureter lies between the umbilical artery and
\ as deferens of the fame fide ; the artery lying on
the outfide of the ureter, and the vas deferens on
the infidc.
Afterwards they get between the vafa deferentia
and the bladder, croffing thcfe canals; and then,
at about a finger's breadth from each other, they
begin to pierce the coats of the bladder. They run
■.I little way between the rnufcular and nervous
coats, and open into the bladder obliquely, fome-
ihing nearer each other than when they firlt entered
its coats.
The orifices of the ureters in the bladder are
fomethiiig ova! and iwrrower than the cavity of the
ureters immediately above them. The edge of
thcfe orifices is very thin, and fcems to be formed
incrL-ly by the union of the internal coat of the
Madder with that of the ureters.
The arteries of the bladder are furnifhed by the
liypogaltricE or iliacre interns ; being rami of the
;,rteria fciatica, epigaftrica, and umbilicalis, on
: :ich fide. The ^■cins come from thofe of the fame
■-..mies with the arteries.
The nerves of the bladder come from the cru-
ralcs, and aifo from the fympathetici maximi, by
;neans of their communication with the cruralcs.
ft lias likewife fomc nerves from the plexus mefen-
tericus inferior. Winfuiv'' $ Anatomy.
The difeafes of the bladder are the {lone, in-
''.-lAmations, ulcers, hz. See the article Stone,
For the other bladders of the body, fee the ar-
ticle Vesicula.
y//V-BL.^DDER, in phvfiology. See the article
i\:rK.-Biadder.
Bladder-Nut, inlmtanv. See Stapkyljea.
Bladder Sena., in botany. See Colutha.
IjLADE, in botany, that part of the flower, or
" irfd attire of a plant, v/hich arlfts out of the
. onca\ e of the (heath, and, at the top, ufually
• i.ides into two parts, which are covered with
globules of the fame nature as thofe of the apices^
but not f3 copious.
The blade runs through the hollow of the ilieath
and bafe, and is faftencd to the convex of the feed-
cafe, having its head and fides befet with globules;
which through a glafs appear like turn'p-fecds, and
which, in fome plants, grow clofe to foot ftalks;
Thefe globules, a^ the blade fprings up from with-
in the fneath, are ftill rubbed -oiT, and fo Ihmd like
- powder on both. In fome plantSj r.s l;na;-:-weed, ,
they feem alfo to grow on the ini'ide of the fheatlr,
as appears on fplitting it with a pin. The head of
a blade is divided ufually into two ; but fometimes,
as in cichory, into three parts, which, by degrees,
curl outward, like fcorpion-grafs.
Blade, in commerce, a thin (lender piece oF
metal, either forged by the iia'nmer, or ran and ca'l
in moulds, to be afterwards fharpened to a point,
edge, or the like.
BLAFART, in commerce, a fmall coin, cur-
rent at Cologn, worth fomething more than a far-
thing of our money.
BLAIN, among farriers, a diflemper incident
to beafts, being a certain bladder grov/ing on the
root of the tongue, againft the wind-pipe, which
fwells to fuch a degree, as to ftop the breath. It
comes by great chafing and heating of the flomach,
and is perceived by the bead's gaping and holding-
out his tongue, and foaming at the mouth : to cure
it, caft the beaft, take forth his tongue, and then
flirting the bladder, wafli it. gently with vinegar and
a little fait.
BLANCHING, in general, implies the art of
bleaching or whitening. See Bleaching.
Blanxhing of copper is done various ways, fo
as to make it refemble filvcr. If it be done for fale,
it is felony, by 8 and 9 AVilliamlll. ch.xxvi.
Bl.^kckikc, in coinage, the operation perform-
ed on the planchets or pieces of filver, to give them
the requilite luftre and brightnefs. They alfo
blanch pieces of plate, when they would have thent
continue white, or ha\'e only fome parts of them,
burnifhed.
Blanching, as it is now pracbifed, is performed
by heating the pieces on a kind of peel with a
wood-fire, in the manner of a reverbcratory ; fo
th.it the flame pa.fi'^rs over the peel. The pieces be-
ing fuScientlv heated, and cooled again, are put
fi'.ccoflively to boil in tv/o pans, which are of cop-
per ; in thefe they put water, common fait, and
tartar of Mcntpelier. When they have been v/ell
drained of this water in a copper fieye, they throw
fand and frefli water over them ; and when dry,
they r.re well rubbed v/ith towels.
BLANCKiyo, among gardeners, an operation,
whereby certain plants, ice. are rendered whiter,
and more lender, than otherwifeth^y would be. One
operation is, by tying the leaves up clo.^e ; this ib
pradlifcd' on Cabbages, lettuces, f;c. in the fum-
mer, v/hich makes them fit fir ufe confidcrably
foo.ner, and particularly thofe which are not incli-
nable to turn in, or cabbage, as the gardeners term
it. Another method praftifed, in winter on cellery,
endi\e, dandelion, Sec. is by earthing them up to
their tops, w'nich not only blanches, but alfo pro-
t,zdi.% them from the frofts. The operation for fo
doing, fee under their refpefbive articles.
Bl-'^kching alfo denotes the operation of cover-
ing iron plates v,'ith a thin coat or crufl of tin.
B-LANK^
BL A
■ BLANK, 01- Blanc, properly fignihcs white.
See Whitl'.
Blank, in commerce, a void or unwritten place
■which merchants fometimcs leave in their day-
books or journal?. It is alfo a piece of pupcr, at
the bottom of which a perfon has figncd his name,
the reft being void. Thefe are commonly intruded
into the hands of arbiters, to be fitted up as they
Ihall think piooer, to terminate any difpiitc or law-
fuit.
Blank-Bar, in law, the fame with common
bar. Sec the article Bar.
Blank.-Tic.kets, in lotteries, thofe drawn
without any prize.
Blank-Verse, in the modern poetry, that
compofed of a certain number of fyllables, without
the aifilfance of rhyme. See the articles \'erse
and Rhyt/IE. .
P./'.^-Blank. See Voisr-BIatd.
BLANKET, a coverlet for a bed : a ftuff com-
monly made of white wool, and wrought in a loom
like cloth ; with this difference, tnat they are
crolTed like ferges.
When they come from the loom, they are fcnt
to the fuller ; and after they have been fulled and
well cleaned, they are napped with a fuller's
thiftle.
There are alfo blankets made with the hair
cf feveral animals, as that of goats, dogs, and
others.
The manufacture of blankets is chiefly confined
to Witney in Oxfordibire, where it is advanced
to that height, that no other place comes near it.
jSome attribute a great part of the excellency of the
Witney blankets to the abfterfive, nitrous water of
the river ^Vindrufli, wherewith they are fcoured ;
others rather think they owe it to a peculiar way of
Icofe fpinjiing, which the people have thereabouts.
Be this as it w.ll, the place has engroflcd almoil
the whole trade ot the nation for this commodity ;
infomucb that the wool fit for it centers here from
the furthermoft parts of the kingdom. There are
faki to be at Jcaft fixty blanketers in that town,
who, amongft them, have at leaft one hundred and
fifty loorr.y, and employ three thoufand perfons,
from children of eight years old, who work out
about a hundred packs of wool per week.
BLANQJJILLP2, in commerce, a fmall filver
coin, curre;it in the kingdom of Morocco, and all
that part of the coaft ,of Baibary. It is worth
about three halfpence of our money.
BLASFHENIY, an indignity or injury offered
(to the Almighty, by denying what is his due, and
.of right belonging to him ; or by attributing to the
(freature that which is due only to the Creator.
BLAST, in a general fenfc, denotes any violent
jexplofion of air, whether occafioned by gun-pow-
<lcj, or by the action of a pair of bellows.
B LE
BlASTS) am^n^ miners, the fame with damp^-
See tbe article D.\Mr.
Blast, or Blight, inhufbandiy. See Blight.
BLASTING, a term ufed by miners for the
tearing up rocks, which lis in their way, by tho
force of gunpowder.
In order to do this, a deep hole is made in the
rock, which being charged with gunpowder, they
fill it up J leaving only a touch-hole, with amalcll
to fire the chars'e.
BLAZE, a white fpot in a horfe's face.
BLAZING-STAR, the fame with comet. See
the article Comet.
^ BLAZONING, or Blazonry, in her.ildry,
tiio art of decyphering the arms of noble families.
The word originally fignifies the blowing or
winding of a horn, and was introduced into he-
raldry as a term denoting the defcription of things
borne in arms, with their proper fignifications and
intendments, from an ancient cuftom the herald;,
who were judges, had of winding an horn at jufts
and tournaments, v/hen they explained and re-
corded the atcMevements of knights.
In blazoning .i coat of arms, you mufi: always
begin with the field, and next proceed to tlic
charge ; and if there be many things borne in the
field, you muft firft name that which is immedi-
ately lying upon the field. Your expreflions mult
be very Ihort and expreffive, without any exple-
tives, needlei's repetitions, or particles. Such term:;
for the colours muft be ufed, as are agreeable to
the ftation and quality of the bearer. All perfon?
beneath the degree of a noble, nuift have their coats
blazoned by colours and metals ; noblemen by pre-
cious flones, and kings and princes bv planets.
BLEA, in the anatomy of plants, the inner rind
or bark. It may be confidered as an ailemblage of
{Iraight fibres ranged vertically and parallel to one;
another.
While the blca remains any thing foft, and re-
tains fomcwhat of the nature of bark, it may main-
tain a feeble vegetation ; but when it is grown ab-
folutcly hard and woody, it can no longer contri-
bute thereto.
BLEACHING, the art or method of whiten-
ing linens, fluffs, filks, hair, wax, &c.
This art, or rather the different proccffes in
which it confifts, being of the utmoft importance
to feveral manufadlures, the reader will not, we
prefume, be difpleafed to find it explained in a par-
ticular and intelligent manner.
The proper materials for bleaching either linen
yarn, or cloth, are wood-affies brought from Muf-
covy and Germany, and Caffoup, alfo a fort of
aihe-, imported from Dantzick. But the commoi\
wood-aihes and weed-aflics made in this kingdom,
are as good as the belt, unlefs it be for bleaching
cloth of a very high price. He that would bleacii
well,
B L E
v.-el!, nnirt be provided with a convenient blcach-
ing-yard, blcachiiig-houfe, and aJl tilings fuitable;
for fhifts in trade fail in the event. He ought to
have his bleaching-yard well watered. The nature
of the v/ater ought to be foft, fuch as will break
fope. The yard ought to be fo fituattd,- as that in
the drouglu of funinicr the trenches and pipes may
be condantly fupplied. As for tlie bltaching-
houfe, it ought to bo furniilied with good coppers
and boilers, good tubs for bucking, and alfo ftanJs
and vats for keeping t!ie feieral forts and degrees ot
lyes, and other great fi:ar.d> and vats for keeping
the milk, or acidulated liquor.
In the bleaching of vour yarn, you mud firft
open each bank, and lay it in vour bucking-tub ;
then cover your yarn with cold water, and let it
ftecp for about nine hours : therefore let go that
water by means of a cock, which ought to be fixed
near the botto^l of your tub ; and then fill it again
with water. Continue thus to fleep and' cleanfe
your yarn from its filth, till fuch time as you per-
ceive that the water is no way foul that comes
from it ; then v.'ithdrav/ your yarn out of your tub,
and rinfe it well in clean water. After rinluig it,
you mufl wring out ail the water, by wringing
three or four hanks at a time : then lay it out to
dry in your blcaching-yard ; but be fure never to
beat or beetle it. By the time your yarn is per-
fectly dry, you are to be provided with lye
proper for bucking. The firft bucking you
give your yarn, ought to be with your firongcft
l-.e. Your yarn being quite dry, you muft dip
three or four hanks at a time, and lay them in your
bucking-tub, in the moft equal and even manner
that pofiibly you can ; never prefiing them too
jnixh, to the end the lye may the better pierce
iinil penetrate them. All your yarn being thus laid
in your tub, put the remainder of your lye, in
which you dip \ our } arn, into a pot or pan, and
make a flow fire under it, taking care not to heat
your lye fo for the firft five hours, whilft you are
thus bucking, but that you may be able to endure
your hand in it. Your fire made, you muft very
1.4'rcii take out foms of your lye, and pour it upon
)our yarn in your tub ; then you muft increafe your
fire gradually and flowlv, fo as in four hours time
more to bring your lye to boil ; during all which
time, you muft continue to take your lye out of
)our copper, and put it into your tub by fmall
quantities at a time. When your lye begins to
boil, you myft let it boil oh for three hours, during
the whole time lading or pouring your lye out of
your copper into your tub; fo that you will be
twelve hours bucking your yarn. If vour lye was
r.rong and good, your yarn will be brought to a
yc'iow colour, if the improper preparint; of fome
fia.x does not hinder it : but v.'here you find your
yarn, or part of it, does not attain to this yellov/
colour, you muft repeat bucking until it anfwcrs
'0
BL E
yotn'cnds. When your yarn is fufficicntly buckfd
for Aour purpole, vou muft take it out, rinie it in
cold water, and wring it well ; taking care to
wring but three or four hanks at a tinr.e, thit it
may the better CJidurc the labour. Be lure never
to beat or beetle it, as hath been already obfcrved.
Then fpread it out in your blcaching-yard ; where
it mulT: lie expofcd to the weather for three or four
days before you turn it. When that time isovei,
turn it, and let it lie there till the fide that is un-
dermoft be as good a colour as tlic other. You
muft water yarn on the bleaching-yard as you do
cloth, that it may v.bitcn the fooncr, and lie the
ihorter time upon the green. This bleaching
which was juft nov.' prefcribed to be given to your
yarn, is not intended to make it very white, but
chicfiy to cleanfe it from the filth that is incident
to it, that your cloth mav be the thicker and
ftrongcr, and with more eafe brought to a colour
when it comes to be bleached. Wherefore bleach
your yarn for all kinds of cloth, except cambricks
and lav.'ns, the yarn whereof fhould not be bleach-
ed before it be wo\en.
Bleaching of Linen Cloth. In order to per-
form this operation, you mult begin with it as you
did with your yarn, by fteeping it in cold water
in your tub for nine hours ; then change the wa-
ter on it, till fuch time as you can perceive that the
water is no longer difcoloured ; rinfe, wring, and
lay it out to bleach, obferving conftautly to water
it fo as never to fuftcr it to be too dry. W hen it
hath lain three or four days thus on the grafs, and
is dry, you muft take hold of each piece, one af-
ter another, by the felvedge, and draw the cloth
to you, flili holding it in the moft even manner
that you can, until you come to the farther end,
with the corners of which you tie j-our cloth very
loofcly in the middle of the folds, and fo lay it in
your bucking-tub, with the two felvedges up-
wards. This you muft do until you have placed
as much cloth in your tub as will cover the bot-
tom of it, taking care not to pack the cloth iu
clofe but that your lye may penetrate to all parts
equally ; and at the fame time you muft obferic,
never, if pofTible, to buck your cloth but when it
is very dry. When you have laid the firft range
of cloth in your tub, you muft pour as much milk-
warm lye on it as will iufiiciently foak through all
all parts of your cloth. Then you muft lay ano-
ther range in the fame manner as you did the firft;
pour on more lye until that be foaked as the other
was ; and continue to do fo till your tub be fall.
That done, you muft begin to buck for twelve
hours togethcf, obll-rving the diredions, in rela-
tion to the fire, given for the former article. Your
tv-^o firft buckings ought to be of very ftrong lye ;
but afterv.ards you Ihould abate of that ftrength
in proportion as your cloth grows nearer to its
perfection of vvhitenefs, left you make it rotten
4 Y and
BLE
rnJ unferviceable by over-ftrong lye. After each
bucking you muft carry it ftraight to the bleaching-
\ ?.rd, where it ought to he forty-eight hours. This
you muft perform fucceffively as many times as you
fee occafion, according to the nature of the cloth,
from the buck to the bleaching-yard, and from the
bkaching-yard to the buck, before you begin to
ufe it with milk -, fliU giving it weaker lye after the
two hrfl buckingf, and ccnftantly obferving to
water your cloth on the grafs, fo as never to fuffer
it to be dry during thefe bleachings. It is impoffi-
ble to prcfcribe a certain rule, or to diredl the pre-
cife number of buckings that ought to be given to
cloth, becaufc that depends on the forts or kinds
you are to bleach; and therefore the experience
and iudgment of the bleacher m.uft guide him
therein. Your thin fine cloths will bleach much
fooner than your coarfe or (lift ftubborn cloths will
do : but both forts niuft be dry when you put them
into the milk ; or which v^■ill anfwcr the fame purpcfe,
a quantity of water rendered acid by oil of vitriol, in
the proportion of half an ounce of the latter to a
gallon of the former.
The milking of cloth, or laying it in an acidu-
lated liquor, was not ufed till of late ; but it is
found by experience to contribute greatly to bring
cloth to a good colour. It has been already ob-
ferved, that you muft have large tubs or vats for
the keeping of your milk. Thefe vats, which
Ihould hold a ton or two a- piece, you ought to
keep full of butter-milk, or four milk, as it is com-
monly called, Ikimmed milk, whey, and the like,
mixed icgether; tlicre to ftand and four until you
have occafion to ufe them. It is very rare that your
milk proves too four ; but if at any time it fhould,
abate its fournefs by adding cold water. When
your cloth is dry, and ready to be milked, have a
great tub with milk fet half-way in the ground.
Your cloth being well foaked therein, you muft
prefs it down with heavy planks or weights, fo as
it may not be raifed by the fermentation that will
be in your milk or acid liquor. "When the cloth
has lain a-whi!c, take care that thefe weights be
jiifficient; and that your planks be neither of new
oak or alder, for thofe woods fpoii and ftain cloth
very much, as will alfo fev-eral forts of I'ones, if
laid upon clorh either in the tubs or in the field.
Thus your cloth muft fteep for at Icaft forty-eiglit
hours; or, if you pleafe, for three days and three
nii^hts ; for it will be fo much the better for the
cloth : then fpread it on the green, and water it
well, to prcvcrtt its drying with the milk or acid in
it : when this is fufficiently done by watering, you
muft rinfe the cloth, and waih it well with a lather
cf fope. Your next bufmefs.is to buck the cloth
again juft as it comes from the fope-fuds ; and
when bucked, you muft, without further rinfing,
fpread it on the grafs in your bleaching-yard : there
it muft remain CT<pofed to the air for two days and
BLE
two nights, and be conftantly v/atered in the day-
tinie, when you lay it out to bleach, l^his opera-
tion muft be repeated fi.\, fcven, or eight times
fuccefll\ely, until you perceive your cloth is come
to the colour you defire to glie it; that is, you
muft miiic, then bleach, then wafli, then fopi-,
and buck by turns, until you attain your end ; for
it is impofliblc to propofe a certain rule, becaufc of
the great vr.ricty of cloth : only this muft be ob-
ferved, that each time vou buck, you muft fpend
twelve houif, during all which, time you ought to
be conftantly lading or pouring the lye into your
tub, according to the former directions ; fcr other-
wife you may chance to burn your clotli, efpccially
when the lye grows hot. This rule is alfo con-
ftantly to be obferved, that your cloth . be very dry
when you lay it in the milk or acid liquor, 'i'lii';
laft time you milk your cloths, you ought, inftead
of the ufual waftiing or rinfmg, to lay them in an
open ciftern ; where people with clean feet fhould
tread them very well for half an hour at leaft.
That done, wafli thenr with clean water, until
you perceive the fluid to be no way difcoloured :
then having made your bucking-tub very clean,
lay your cloths in it juft as you did at i:rft, and.
fteep them in warm water for an hour: then kt go
that water, and fleep them a fecond time in water
fom.ewhat warmer, for an hour longer: let that
water go likewife, and fteep your cloths a third
time in water yet warmer than the former ; but not
fo hot as to boil. This laft fteeping need not be
near fo long as the preceding ; half an hour is
fufHcient. I'hen take out your cloth, rinfe a.-vJ '
wring it well, that it may be cleanfed from the lye,
milk, or acid liquor, and fope, and made more
fufceptible of receiving the ftarch and blue ; which
is the next operation.
It is impofTible to prefcribe a certain rule for
preparing of ftarch to drefs your cloth, becaufe ot
the great variety of cloths which muft be made :
fjfie thin cloths require a thicker and more fubflan-
{ial ftarch than coarfer cloths do ; therefore it is
requifite that bleachers fhould have fome experience
and knowledge therein. Every laundrefs knows
how to make ftarch, and prepare it for the beauti-
fying of lier linen : but the flarch made ufe of in
this trade is much thinner than theirs. The way
to make it is this : p'ill the boiler or pan, wherein
you defign to make your flarch, about tlnxe quar-
ters full of water ; when the water boils, pour in-
to it as much ftarch difTolved in water, as will
compleatly fill your boiler; keep it ftirring perpe-
tually, left it burn, and let it boil for half an hour,
or thereabouts ; then take it oft' the fire, ftrain it
into another veftel with warm water, in propor-
tion to the cloth you defiga to drefs, taking great
care to keep it flirrihg, breaking, and difTolving
the clods of ftarch, that the whole may be of. an
equal thicknefs or confiftency. When this part of,'
tbec
B L E
the operation is finifhcJ, mix powder blue in water,
in fuch proportion as you would give your cloth a
higher or .1 lower colour, :;nd add it to your flarch
prepared as above. By this means you may make
your flaich thicker or thinner, as you think will be
bed aiiaptcd to your cloth. Take great care never
to ul'c iiidigo, or itons-blue ; becaule it gives a dull
dark colour.
When yon have thus prepared your water for
ftarching i.nd blumg, put \our cloth into it; and
when it is well Co.ikLd, take it out, wring it very
hard, and fprcad it on the grafs in your bieachin;^-
yard to dry. Ycu will geiitrally find th:;t thebluj
will fettle in fome parts of your cloth more than in
others : in which cafe you mufr, with a clean cloth
wet in water, rub fuch parts till you bring thein
down to the col ur they ought to have. Your
cJotlis being now well ilarched and blued, accord-
ing tj the circumllanccs or nature thereof, and be-
ing very dr_\', either fold them up yourfelf, or lend
them to a lapper.
BleaciiinG of Hi.ir is done by fprcading the
hair to be bleached upon the grafs, in the fame
manner as linen, after it has been finl wafted cut
in a lixivious water.
This lye, with the force of the fun and aii',
firings the hair to fo perfect a whitenefs, that the
nioft experienced perfon may be deceived therein ;
there being fcarce any way of detedting the artifice,
but by boiling and drying it ; which leaves the hair
of the colour of a dead w.ilnut-tree leaf_
Bleaching of Silk. The filk, being yet raw,
is put into a linen bag, and thrown into a veflel of
boiling river water, in which fope has been dif-
folved, and thus boiled for two or three hours ; the
bag being turned feveral times, taken out and
beaten, then w.ifncd out in cold water, and wrung
out flightly, and thrown into a veifcl of cold water,
mixed with fope and a little indigo.
The indigo gives it the bluifh cafl that is ob-
fervable in white filks.
When it has been taken out of the fecond vcffcl,
it is wrung out, and ail the water and fope fqueezed
out, Jhcok out to untwifl and feparate the threads,
and hung up in the air in a kind of (love, made on
purpofe, in which fulphur is burnt, the vapour
of which gives the laft decree of whitenefs to the
nik.
JiLE ACHING cf IVoolhn P,tuffs. There arc three
methods of whitening woollen iiuffs ; ihe iirft is
with water and fope, the fecond is with vapour of
fulphur, the third with chalk, indigo, and vapour
of fulphur.
For the firft, when the fbufFs are come from the
fulling-mill, they arc to be put into fopcd water
pretty hot, and worked afrelh by force of arms
over a bench, v/hich finifhcs the whitening
which the fulling-mill had begun; in the laft
flace they are to be waQicd out in fair water
B LE
and dried ; this i;; called the natural way of
bleacl'.ijig.
The fecond method is what is commonly called
bleaching by the flower ; the Ihift" is firft wafhcil
in river water, and then put to dry on poles, and
when it is half dry, fpread out in'a kind of ikve,
vvhi-rein fulphur is burnt, the vapour of which
difi'unng itfelf, flicks by little and littb over all the
fliifts, and gives it a fine whiteninc.
The third method is thus; After the fluffs have
been waflied, they are to be thrown into cold
water, impregnated with chalk and indigo, in
which they are well agitated : they arc wafhed
r.frefh in elder water, then half dried on poles, and
then fprcad in a flove to receive the vapour of the
ful]ihur, which flniflies the bleaching.
This is to be remembered, that when a fluff has
once received the fleam of I'ulphur, it will fcarce
receive any beautiful dye, except black and blue.
Bleachii;g 'jf JFax., the operation of changing
the colour of the ytUow into a beautiful white : it
is don2 in the following manner.
The common yellow v/ax is firfl reduced into-
fmall grains, by melting it, and throwing it whil^.--
hot into cold water, or fprcading it into very thin
cakes. The v/a;c thus granulated or flatted, is
placed in the open air on linen cloths, where it re-
mains night and day, it being neceflary that it be
expofed both to the rays of the fun, and the influ-
ence of the dew After thus lying a confiderabU^
time, it is again melted and granulated, or flat-
tened into cakes, and once more expofed to the
action of the fun end dew. Thcfe operations are
alternately performed till the wax has acquired the
requifite degree of whitenefs.
When the fun and dew have perfeiSlly bleached
the wax, it is mclied for the laft time, taken out of
the copper with a ladle, and poured, by means of .->.
double funnel, into fhallow moulds or round cavi-
ties formed in a board, the moulds being previoufly
wetted with cold water, that the wax may not ftick
to them ; .".nd in this manner the cakes of white
wax we fee in the fhops are made. Thefe cakes arc
then taken out of the moulds, and again expofed to
the a£fioii of the air, dew, and fun, for two days
and two nights, in order to dry them thoroughlv,
and render them more tranfparcnt.
BLEEDING, or Blood-Letting, the ope-
ration of taking blood from any part of the body, .
either by the lancet^ leeches, or cupping. Sec
Phlebotomy, Ct pping, he.
Dr. Pringle obfervcs, th;n bleeding is the m.oft
indifpenfableof all remedies in luTammatoryiiifeafes ;
to the delaying of which too long, or not repeating
it, are chiefly own'ng ihebadconfequencesof colds, as'
well as dangerous fevers, rheumatifms, andconfump-
tions. He obleries farther, that, in general, young
pradtitioners arc apt to be too fparing letting blood, ,
by which means many lives are loft ; for a futgeo;»-
4^ may.
' B L E
■ may be ufTureJ a fuldier will never complain of a
cough, or pains with inflammatory fymptonis,
v/hcrein bleeding is not neceffary ; and from the
fi/.incfs of the blood, and continuance of the com-
plaints, he is to judge of the neceffity of repeating
it, which, in cafe cS' a ftitch, or difficult breath-
iiig, is never to be delayed. lu inflammatory
cafes, from twelve to fifteen ounces may be taken
tor the iirll bleeding, and fomev/hat lefs for all the
reil ; and v/hen it is necrfiary to exceed this quan-
tity, it may be proper to follov/ Celfus's rule, in
mmJing the colour -^^f the blood whillt it flows, and
v/hen it is of a blackiih call:, which is always the
cafe in difficult bjeathing and great inflammations,
to let it run till it becomes moj-e florid. In all
cafes where plentiful bleeding is indicated, it is b&ft
to do it in bed, to prevent faintingj and we may
obferve, that a perfon will bear the lofs of a much
.i,reater quantity of blood, if the flream is fmall,
than by a large orifice, which fome have thought
neceHary for making a more fpeedy revulfion.
Bleeding is highly nccefiary in the phrcnitis,
ophthalmia, quinfy, rheumatifm, cough, hectic
fits, and, in general, in all inflammatory cafes.
Pringlt^'s Obferv. on the Difeafcs of the Ai my.
It is to be obfer\ed, however, that, in maI::T-
nant and putrid diforders, bleeding frequently ren-
ders them more malignant, and therefore to be
omitted, or at leall not repeated, unlefs there ap-
pear evident marks of inflammations.
Bleeding at the Nofe, an hsmorrhagc from that
organ of the body, owing to the more plentiful ap-
pulfe ot blood to the noltrils by a ftronger motion
of the heart, whereby the fmall arteries in the
pituitary coat become turgid, and too much dif-
tended, till at length they gape, and the blood
rudies out.
If the bleeding is \cry inordinate, it will be proper
to afe cooling emulfions, gentle or ftiong opiates
.to_moderate the fpaflic llrictures, as occafion fliall
■require. Camphire, mixed with nitre and calx of
antimony, will be highly neceflary, if the matter
of exanthemata or cutaneous eruptions is the ciufe
oi the ha.-morrhao;e, as is often the cafe.
A revuliion may be made from the head by bleed-
ing in the lower parts ; then by temperate pedilu-
via, .ajid putting the hands into warm water.
As there is often an acrid bilious matter lodged
in the hypochondria, the parent of v.'ind and fpal'ms,
the powder of rhubarb will be proper, mixed with
a few grains of tartar vitriolate and nitre; as alfo
emollient and carminative clyfters, with a due pro-
portion of oil.
Externally, refrigerants may be mixed with dif-
cutients, and applied to the forehead, nofe and
neck.
But it nuift be noted, that when the patient is
plethoric, the bleeding muft not be llopped haftily,
if at all J nor when the mcnfcs in women have
BL I
been fuppreflld, or the lochia, or the blee.dino-pifi.^
in men accullomed thereto; much lefs mult a
ftoppagc be attempted Vv'hen tlie bleeding itfelf is
periodical.
In perfons of a bilious conflitution, cold water
alone drank freely, has had a good eiFcft.
BLEND-METAL Ir^n,, a coarfe fort of Irm
from Staffordshire mines, ufed for making nail*
and heavy ware ; in fome places alfo for'horfc-
fhoes.
BLEYME, in farriery, an iiiflammation in a.
horfe's hoof, occafioned by blood putrified in the
inner part of the coffin towards the heel, between
the fole and the coffin-bone.
There are three forts of bleymcs ; the firfi, bred
in fpoiled wrinkled feet, with narrow heels, are
ulually fcated in the iriward or weakeft quarter ;
the fecond, befides the ufual fymptoms of the fin'},
infciSts the griille, and muft be extirpated, as in thc-
cure of a quitter bone ; the third is occafioned by
fmall ftones and gravel between the flioe and the
fole. For a cure, they pare the foot, let out the
matter, if any, and drefs the fore, like the prick
of the nail.
BLIGHT. There is nothing more common in
the beginning of fummer, than to fee the leaves of
peaches, nectarines, and cherries, curled up and
blighted, which leaves .on examination are found
covered with little infe£ts, fome blackifh, others
green, fome winged, and others without winos ;
thefe creatures bring forth their young alive and
perfeft, and if their bodies be opened, feveral per-
teift embrj'oes will be feen therein. It remains a
doubt whence, and by what means, thefe infedcs
are conveyed upon the young fprouting leaves,
which at the fame time are always covered with a
glutinous and honey-lijce moifture ; but diligent
obfervations are likely to difcovcr the fecrct. Trees
in this condition .'are vifited by multitudes of ants,
v^'hirh hurt not the trees, (as fome have crroneoufly
. conje "cured) but do them feivice, by devourini'
thefe vermin that infeft them.
It is evident that, from the great incrcafe of
thefe infects, fruit ajid other trees, with moft forts
of plants, fuftain great damage, and more efpe-
cirdly vvhen they co-operate with blights.
Some have fuppofed, that blights are ufu.illy pro-
duced by an eaftcrly wind, which brings vafl quan-
tities of infecis egc;s along v/ith it from tome diflant
place; which, beuig lodged upon the furface of the
leaves and flowers of fruit-trees, caufe them to
fhrivel up and perifli. To cure this diftemper,
they .advife the bui'ning of wet litter on the wind-
ward fide of the trees, that the fmoke tri.-iy be car-
ried to them by the wind, which they fuppofe'will
iliflc and deftroy thofe infeits, and thereby cur;
the diflcmper. Others direct the ufe of tobacco-
dufl, or to wafh the trees with water v/herein to-'
bacco-ltalks have been infufed for twelve hours,
or
B L I
or to fcattcr pcpper-duft upon ihc blollbins of
fruit trees.
But the true caufes of blights arc from a con-
tinued dry eafterly wind, for fevcial days together,
without the intervention of fliowers, or any morn-
ing dew, by which the perfpiration in the tender
bloiToms is flopped, fo that in a fhort time their
colour is changed, and they wither and decav ; and
if it fo happen, that there is a long continuance of
the fame weather, it equally afttcis the tender
leaves ; for their pcrfpiring matter is hereby thicken-
ed and rendered glutinous, clofely adhering to the
furface of the leaves ; and becomes proper nutri-
ment to thofe fmall infects, which are always found
preying upon ihe leaves and tender branches of
fruit-trees, whenever this klight happens; but it
is not thefe infects which are the hrll caufc of
blights, as hath been imagined by fome, though it
mull be allowed, that, whenever tbefe infects meet
with fuch a proper food, they multiply exceeding-
ly, and are inftrumental in promoting the diftcm-
per ; fo that many times, when the feafon proves
favourable to them, and no proper care has been
taken to pre\ent the mifchief, it is furprifmg to
think how whole walls of trees have fuffered by
this infeilion.
The beft rem.edy, yet known, for this diflemper,
is, gently to wafh and fprinkle over the trees, from
time to time, with common water (that is, fuch
as had not any thing fteeped in it) ; and the fooner
this is performed (whenever we apprehend danger)
the better, alfo to water well the roots (particular-
ly in dry lands); and if the young and tender
fhoots feem to be much infedted, wafti them with
a woollen cloth, [o as to clear them, if poflible,
from all this glutinous matter, that their refpira-
tion and perfpiration may not be obftructed ; and
if we place fome broad flat pans or tubs of water
near the trees, that the vapours exhaled from it
may be recei\ed by the trees, it will keep their
tender parts in a duftile Itate, and greatly help
them. This fhould be done early in the day, that
the moiflure may be exhaled before the cold of the
night comes on, efpecially if the nights are frofty ;
nor ihould it be done when the fun thines very hot
upon the wall, which might fcorch up the tender
blofibms.
But there is another fort of blight, that fome -
times happens in April or IVIay, and is often very
deftruitive to gardens, orchards, and open planta-
tions, and againft which we know of no remedy.
This is what is called a firc-blall, which, in a few
hours, not only deftro)S the fruit and leaves, but,
many times, parts of trees, and fometimes intire
trees have been killed by it.
This is fuppofed to be efFc£ted by volumes of
tranfparent flying vapours, which, arnong the many
forms they revolve into, miy fometimes approach fo
near to an hemifphere, or hemicylinder, either Jn :
'9
BLI
tJieir upper or lower furfaces, as thereby to make
the beams of the fun converge enough to fcorch
the plants or trees they fall upon, in propor-
tion to the greater or lefs convergency of the fun's
rays.
Boerhaavc obfcrves, that thofe white clouds,
which appear in fummer-time, are, as it were, fo
many mirrors, and occafion exceflive heat : thefc-
cloudy mirrors are fometim.es round, fometimes
concave, polygonous, &c. When the face of the
heavens is covered with fuch white clouds, the fim,
fliining among them, muft produce a vehement
heat; fmce many of his rays, which would other-
wife, perhaps, never touch our earth, are hereby
refledled to us : thus, if the fun be on one fide,
and the clouds on the oppofite, they will be perfect
burning-glafl'es : and hence the phasnomenon of
thunder.
I have fometimes, continues he, obferved a kind
of hollow clouds, full of hail and fnow, during
which the heat was extreme ; fmce, by fuch con-
denlation, they were enabled to refleft much more
ftrongly : after this came a fharp cold, and then
the clouds difcharged their hail in great quantities,
to which fucceeded a moderate warmth, f'rozen
concave clouds therefore, by their great refledtions,
produce a \igorous heat ; and the fame, when re-
folved, exceifive cold.
Whence, as Dr. Hales obferves, we fee, that
blafts may be occafioned by the reflexions of the
clouds, as well as by the above-mentioned refrac-
tion of denfe tranfparent vapours.
There is no other remedy againft this evil, but
to make choice of clear healthy fituations, that the
air may pafs freely between the trees, to diffipate
thofe vapours before they are formed into fuch
volumes. For blights more frequently happen in
clofe plantations, (where the ftagnating vapours
from the earth, and the plentiful perfpirations from
the trees, are pent in for want of a free air to dilll-
pate and difpel them, which are often obferved in
ftill v/eather, to afcend in fo plentiful a manner, as
to be feen by the naked eye, but efpecially with
refleiSting telcfcopes, fo as to make a clear and dif-
tindt object become dim and tremulous) than in
thofe that arc planted at a greater diftance, or are
not furrounded with hills or woods ; this directs us
in the firft planting of orchards, &c. that wc
{hould allow a greater diftance between the tress,
that the air may more freely pafs, alfo the fruits
which are produced in this clearer air, will be much
better tafted, than thofe that are furrounded with a
thick rancid air ; for as fruits arc often in a refpir-
ing ft?te, fo they confcquentlv, by imbibing a part
of thefe vapours, are rendered crude and ill-taftcd,
which is often the cafe with great part of our fruits
in England.
BLIND, deprived of the ienfe of fight. See
the article Blindness.
^ Z Blind
BLI
Blikd is alfo ufed in fpeaking of veffels which
are not perforated.
Thus the chemifts fay, a bhnd'alembic ; that is,
one which has no aperture. A tube is faid to be a
blind one, when it is clofed at top.
Pore-BtiNT), or Pur-BtiND, is faid of a perfon
who is very {hort-fighted.
tWoot-Blind, denotes horfes that lofe their fight
at certain times of the moon •, to cure which, take
half an ounce of lapis calaminaris ; heat it red-hot,
and quench it in a quarter of a pint of pkntain-
water, or white-wine : to this add half a dram of
aloes, and a fpoonful of camphor, in powder ; and
letting them diflblve, drop part of it into the horfe's
eye.
Bund, among traders, a kind of f.>ife light
which they have in their warehoufes and /hops, to
prevent too great a light fromdiniinifhing the lullre
of their linens and ftuffs.
Blikd, or Blinde, among mineralifts, a kind
of lead marcafite ; by our miners calkd mock-ore,
mock-lead, and wild-lead.
It is a mineral mafs, flaky, glolTy, and break-
ing in angles, much like the potters lead-ore, only
of a colour more duiky, and approaching to black.
In it are veins of a yellov/fhining marcafite, with
a little white fparj and on one fide a greenifh
seruginous matter. On a trial by the fire, it yield-
ed a very little copper, lefs lead, and no tin. It is
very obltinate, fcveral attempts having been made
with the alkaline fluxes to run it, in vain.
BLINDNESS, a total privation of fight-, arifing
from an obftrudiion of the functions of the
organs of fight, or from an entire deprivation of
them.
The caufes of blindnefs are various, proceeding
from catarads, gutta ferenas, &c. There are aUo
periodical blindnefs, as a defeat of fight in fome to-
wards night, in others only in the d.iy ; the former
of which is termed ny£1:alopia, the latter hemera-
lopia. See the articles Nyctalopia, &c.
Blindness, in farriery. See the article Eye.
BLINDS, in military affairs, are a kind of
frames, compofed of four pieces of wood, two of
which are five or fix feet in length ; the longeft are
pointed at both ends, and the two others arc faftened
towards the extremities of the former, at about
iifteen inches from their points, the whole formii:g
a redangular paj-allelogram, the long fides of which
projefl: or jut out beyond the other about fifteen
inches.
The blinds are fupported againfl the banks of
the trenches, and are fo placed as that thsir longer
fides are in a vertical pofition. Their points at the
bottom ferve to fix them, in the earth, snd thofe at
the top to hold the fafcines that arc placed upon
them ; they are placed along both fides of the
banks of the trenches, and others arc alfo laid
B LO
horizontally on the top of them ; the latter beinpj
alfo covered with fafcines, fo as that the trench is-
formed into a kind of covered gallery. This dif-
pofition is made when the works are far advanced,'
and in places where the grenadoes of the befieged
too much annoy the foldiers in the trenches.
The term blind is alfo ufed to exprefs a kind of
hurdle, made of the branches of trees, behind
which the foldiers may- carry oji- tlieir works with-
out being feen by thq enemy.
BLITE, Blitum, in botany, a genus of monan-
crious plants ; the flower is apetalous, but the em-
paiement, which is tripartite, and premanent, be-
comes an oval cotnprclTed capfule, containing a
feed nearly the f;<me fize. The diflerentfpecies of
this plant are n.itives of foreign countries, one of
which grows naturally in Spain andPortugal. It is
annual, and hath leaves refembling fpinach. The ■
ftalk rifes about a foot and a half high, the lower
part of which is furniflied with leaves of the fame
form with thofe at bottom, but fmaller ; the upper
part of the flalk hath flowers coming out in fm.all
heads at every joint, and is terminated by a fmall
cluflcr of the fame. When the flowers are decayed,
the little heads fwell to the fize of wood-ftraw-
berries, and when ripe have the fame appearance ;
they are very fuceu^ent, and full of a purple juice,
which flains the hands of thofe who bruife ihem,-
of a deep purple colour. All the forts of blite are
raifed with little care; for if the feeds are permitted
to fhed, they will come up in the fpring, and make
a pretty appearance in the fucceeding furnmer.
Blite, on account of its cooling and emollient-
qualities, is recommended in dyfcnteries and fpit- ■
ting of blood.-
BLOCKS, in the marine, littlewooden machines
artfully difpofed amongft the ringing of a fhip, fo'
as to give additional power to the ropes that com- .
mand the necefTary mechanifm aloft ; fuch as ex-
tending, contraifting, or traverfing the iails, by
hauling in certain cords on the deck.
It would be difficult to defcribe the figure of a
block, as they are of fuch various fizes, (hapes,
and powers, fingle, double, and even fix and
feven-fold, io denominated from the number of
flieaves they contain. A com.mon fingle block ap-.
preaches neareff to the figure of a long fpheroid,
fomewhat flatted in the middle, and is hollowed
parallel with the flat part, fo as to receive a little cy-
lindrical- wheel, formed of lignum vita, or other
hard wood, called a flieave, which has fufScient
room to turn in the block ; a pin is then fixed in
the center of the block, upon which t!ie fheave
turns as upon an axis : blocks are thus prepared
before they come abroad ; they are afterwards
faftened by ropes made like a ring, and fitted to a
notch in their outfide, and fufpended amongfl' the
mails and fhrouds ; thofe of five or fix {heaves are
nearer
T^.att:xk:
/•acitu; JJIoc'k.
^^
•XZediff 1^^
B L O
nearer the form of a cylinder, and are only ufed for
lifting weighty bodies, as great mafls, pieces of
marble, &c.
Plate XX. Jig. 5. reprefents a fingle block ;
Jig. 6. and 7. double and treble ; 8. a cat-bloclc ;
9. a fwivcl iron-bound block. ; 10. a top-blotk, and
II. a clue-garnet block.
The cat-block is for drawing the anchor up to
the cat-head.
The fwivcl in the iron-bound block is to turn
it, that the parts of the purchafe affixed to it,
called the taicle, may not be twifled round each
Other, which would greatly diminifh its force.
The top-block, Jig. 10. is to hoi ft up or lower
the top-malts, and is hooked ia a bolt driven in the
cap. See the article Cap.
The clue-garnet blocks, yfj, i r. are fixed to the
clews or lower corners of the fails, and arc for
drawing them up to the yard, when the fail is to
be contrafted or furled. See Clue-garnet.
BLOCKADING, in military affairs, is to fur-
round a place with different bodies of troops, who
Ihut up all the avenues on every fide, and permit
nothing to go in. or out of the place.
The defign of the blockade is to oblige thofe
who are fhut up in the town to confume all their
provifions, and compel them to furrender for want
of fubfiftence.
By this it appears that a blockade muff lad a
long time, when the place is well provided with
neceffaries ; for which reafon this method of re-
ducing a town is feldom taken, but when there is
reafon to believe the magazines are unprovided, or
rather when the nature or fituation of the place
permit not the approaches to be m.ade, which are
neceffary to attack it in the ufual way.
Maritime towns which have a port, are in much
the lame cafe as other towns, when their port can
be blocked up, and the befiegers are mafters of the
fea, and can prevent fuccours from being conveyed
that way into the place. If the fea be open, or if
only a fev^ veffels can find means now and then to
enter the port fec-etly and by ftealth, the place be-
ing continu.dly relieved with frefli troops and pro-
vihon5, may fuflain a very long fiegc. Oftend,
when beheged by the Spaniards, held out above
three years. : the fuccours which it continually re-
ceived by fea, furniflied it with the means of mak-
ing this long defence.
The fiege of fuch places therefore ought never
to be undertaken, but when the befiegers have it
in their power to prevent the place fro.m receiving
any fuccour by fea.
It is not fufficient to have a numerous fleetbefore
the port, bccaufe the enemy mav find means to
caufe fome fmall barks laden with provifions to flip
the. fleet in the night. The mofl: effectual method
of intercepting thefe fuccours, if the fituation per-
mits, is to conilruct a bank, or ftaccado, as was
ELO
contrived by cardinal Richlieu, for entirely block-
ing up the port of Rochelle. There are, indeed,,
but ic-w fituations which admit of this expedient ;
and bcfides, the execution of it is fodiflicult, and
takes up fo much time, that it cannot be piopofed
as a method to be pradtifcd in the attack of all r.iari-
time towns. All that can be fubftitutcd inllead o£
this tedious and laborious work, is a careful and.
diligent watch aboard the fleet, to prevent as much
as poflible, any bark or veffel from entering the port
of the town. This diredtion being well obfcrved,
the attacks on the land are carried on as ufual, the
neighbourhood of the fea caufing no alteration
therein : on the contrary, the feveral works of the;
fortification may be cannonaded from the fliips, in
order to favour the progrefs of the attack.
BLOMARY, or Bloomary, in metallurgy,,
the firft forge through .which iron paffcs, after it is
melted out of the ore,
BLOOD, Sanguis, a red liquor circulating-
through the arteries, veins, and other veilels of
animal bodies ; and feriing for the fupport of life,
and nourifliment of all their parts.
Blood is the great fource from whence all the.
other liquors of the body are derived ; for the origin
of which fee the article Sanguification.
Recent blood is equably fluid, and in tafte fome-
vvhat lalinc. Viewed by a microfcope, it appears
compofed of numerous red globules fwimming in a
traniparent fluid.
On {landing for a little time, it feparates into a
thick craffamentum, and fluid ferum. By agita-,
tion, it continues fluid : a confiftent polypous mat-
ter adheres to the ftiner, which, by repeated ablu-
tion v/ith water, becomes white.
Received from the vein in warm water, it de-
pofites a quantity of tranfparent filamentous matter,
the red portion continuing diffolved in the water.
On evaporating the fluid, a red powdery fubfrance
is left.
It congeals by frofl, and becomes fluid again by
warmth : after the liquefa(Sl!on it quickly putrefies.
Fluid and florid blood, expofed to a temperate air,
putrefies fooner than in fuch as is more denfe.
Infpiffated to drynefs, it leaves a dark-coloured
mafs, amounting at a medium to about one fourth
the weight of the blood, of a dark colour, and a
bitter faline tafte, eafily inflammable, burning with
a hluifli flame. The exficcated blood is not diffo-
l.uble in acid or in all<.T.line liquors, but gives fome
tinfture to water and to fpirit of wine, and is more
powerfully a£ted upon by dulcified fpirit of nitre.
Recent blood is coagulated by the mineral acids,
and by moft of the combinations of them with
earthy rnd metallic bodies. With vegetable acids,
and with folutions of neutral falts, it mingles equa-
bly without coagulation. Alkalies, both fixed and
volatile, render it more fluid, and preferve it from
coagulating.
The.
BLO
The ferum of blood is more faline than the craf-
famentum, and does not fo fpeedily putrefy. It
freezes with fomewhat more difficulty than pure
water, and its aqueous part evaporates, by a gentle
warmth, fomewhat more readily, leaving about 'one
iwellth the weight of the ferum of a folid yellowifh
pellucid matter Expofed to a heat a little greater
than that of the human body, it coagulates into a
folid mafs, without any confiderable evaporation.
Both this coagulum, and the infpilTated ferum, are
readily inflammable in the fire, not difToluble in
water, or in fpirit of wine, in acid, or in alkaline
liquors.
Blood, in medicine, claims the mofi: attentive
regard of phyficians. An excefs of its quantity
produces a plethora, lethargy, &c. Fevers are the
confequence of its too rapid motion, and obflruc-
tions, of its vifcidity and languor.
The too great heat and vifcidity of tiie blood
are its prevailing diforders in a country like this,
where people live high, and drink hot inflammable
liquors. Befides temperance, and ufing water as
beverage, the milder preparations of mercury con-
tribute greatly to eool and dilute the blood : fuch
are tethiops and cinnabar, if given in moderate
dofes, ,fo as not to afFe£t the flomach, or excite a
falivation.
Thicknefs of the blood is another dillempera-
ture, proceeding from a plethora, and diminution
of its motion ; from whence arife obftructions,
ilagnations, hypochondriac and hyfteric affections,
&c. The incubus, or night-mare, is alfo owing
,to the fame caufe.
Spitting of Blood is cured by copious bleeding
every third day, to the fourth time. Gentle purg-
ing is likewife recommended ; and for appealing the
cominotion of the blood, fpirit of vitriol, but more
efpecially the tindture of rofes made therewith. A
jiiilk diet is alfo preferable to any other ; and after
the cure is completed, it will be neceffary, by way
Toi prevention, to bleed once in fix months for feve-
ral years together.
Blood, in farriery, a difteinper in the backs Of
cattle, which will make a bcaft go as if he drew
his head afide, or after him. In order to cure it,
you fhould flit the length of two joints under his
tail, and fo let him bleed well ; but if he bleeds
too much, knit his tail next the body, and then
bind fait and nettles bruifed unto it.
Blood of Chrij], the name of a military order
inftituted at Mantua in 1608. The number of
knights was refrridled to twenty, befides the grand-
mailer. Their device was, Do?nine ^robajti mc, or
Nilrl, hoc, trijh, rccepta.
Blood of Chrijl'\s alfo the name of a congrega-
tion of nuns at Paris.
Blood-Flower, in botany. See H^man-
,THUS.
Blood-Spavin. Sec the article Spavin.
B LO
Blood- Stone. See Haematites.
Bloody-Flux. See the articles Flux and
Dysentery.
Bloody-Hand is when a trefpafter is appre-
hended in a foreib with his hands or other parts
bloody; which is a circumftance of his having-
killed the deer, though he be not found chafinj or
1-1 °
hunting tncm.
BLOOM, a mafs of iion after having under-
gone the hrlf hammering, called blomary. See the
article Blomary.
BLOSSOM, or Bloom, denotes the flowers of
plants, and particularly thofe of fruit-trees.
Blossom, or Peach-Coloured, in the ma-
nege, a term applied to a horfe that has his hair
white, but intermixed all over with forrel and bay
hairs. Such horfes are fo infenfible, and hard both
in the mouth and the flanks, that they are fcarce
valued ; befides, they are apr to turn blind.
BLOW-PIPE, among jewellers and other arti-
ficers, is a glafs tube, of a length and thicknefs
at difcretion, wherewith they quicken the flame of
their lamp, by blowing through it with their mouth.
It is ufed in Vv'orks of quicker difpatch, which do
not need the bellows.
BLOWING of a Fhivcr, among florifts, fig-
nifics the care thev have taken to produce their
flowers in the highefc perfection, and in particular
for auriculas and carnations. The ufual method
(refpecSting carnations) is, when the Hower flems
begin to put forth, (or as the florifts call it to
fpind'ej to place by each plant a ftruight ftick, four
feet long, and tie the fpindles to it as they fhoot.
When the flower-buds appear, there fliould be
gathered oft' all the fmall buds, referving only a
few of the largeft to bioflom ; thefe are frequently
apt to burft, whereby the beauty of the flower is
confiderabiy diminilhed, to prevent which the pod
fhould be flightly tied round the middle. When the
bloffoms begin. to expand, they fliould be fhaded
by a board failened to the top of the flick, in order
to preferve their beauty the longer ; though with
fome blofibms, it is neceffary to place glafl'es over
them, in order to draw out the interior petals,
fo as to form the whole flower as nearly hemifpheri-
cal as poffible.
Blowing of Glafs, one of the methods of form-
ing the divers kinds of works in the glafs nianu-
fadfure.
7 he workman dips his blowing pipe into the
melting-pot, and by turning it a' out, the metal
flicks to the iron more firir.-ly than turpentine.
This he repeats three times, which is called gather-
ing ; he then rolls the end of his inflrument with
the hot metal thereon, on a piece of polillied iron,
and the workman perceiving there is metal enough
on the pipe," claps his mouth immediately to the
other end of it, and blows gently through the iron
tt;be, till the metal lengthens fike a bladder about a
foot :
B LO
foot : then he rolls it on a marble ftonc a little while
to polifli it, and blows a fccond time, by which
means he brings it into the form of a globe, of
about eigluccn or twenty inches in circumference.
This globe may be flattened by returning it to the
furnace, and brought into any form by ilamp-irons,
which are always ready.
AVhen the glafs is thus blown, it is cut ofF at
the collet or neck, which is the narrow part that
ftuck, to the iron. The method of performing this
is as follows : The pipe is refted on an iron bar,
clofc to the collet; then a drop of cold water being
laid on the collet, it will crack about a quarter of
an inch, which with a flight blow, or cut with the
fhears, will immediately fcparate the collet.
After this is done, the operator dips tlie iron-rod
into the melting-pot, by which he extraiils as much
metal as ferves to attradl the glafs he has made, to
which he now fixes this rod at the bottom of his
work, oppoiite to the opening made by the break-
ing of the collet. In this polition the glafs is car-
ried to the great bocca, or mouth of the oven, to
.be heated, by \vhich means it is again put into fuch
,a foft ilate, that by the help of an iron inftrument
it can be pierced, opefied, and widened, without
breaking. But the veflel is not finifhed till it is re-
turned to the great bocca, where it being again
heated thoroughly, and turned quickly about with
a circular motion, it will open to any llze, by the
means of the heut and motion : and by this means
we come to learn the cauie why the edges of all
bowls and glaiTes, Sec. are thicker than the other
parts of the fame glaffes ; becaufe, in the turning
it about in the heat, the edge thickens, and the
glafs being as it were doubled in that part, the
circumference appears like a felvedge. If there re
main anv fuperfluities, they are cut ofF with the
fliears ; for, till the glafs is cool, it remains in a
foft flexible iLitc. It is therefore taken from the
bocca, and carried to an earthen bench covered v\'ith
brands, wliich are coals extinguiihed, keeping it
■ turning ; becaufe that motion prevents its fettling,
and preferves an evennefs in the face of the glafs ;
where as it cools, it comes to its confiftencv, being
firil cleared from the iron-rod, by a flight ilroke
with the hand of the workman.
If the vellcl conceived in the workman's mind,
and whole body is already made, requires a foot, or
a handle, or any other member, or decoration, he
makes it feparate, and now efl!ays to join them with
the help of the hot metal, which he takes out of
the pot with his iron-rod : but the glafs is not
brought to its true hardnefs, till it has palled the
leer or annealing oven.
Blov.'ING of Croivii Glnfs. The aboie method
is applicable to the working of crown glafs, till the
blov/ing-iron or pipe has been dipped the third
time ; for then, inllead of rounding it, the work-
man blows, and at the fame time rolls or kneads
J9
B L U
the metal upon the iron plate, into the form of a
cylinder. This cylinder is put again to the fire,
and blown a fecond time, and is thus repeated, till
it is extended to the dimenfions required ; the fide
to which the pipe is fixed diniinifhing gradually,
till it ends in a conical form. While the glafs is
thus flexible, a fmall piece of metal is added in the
center, ojipofitc to the pipe fixed to an iron-rod,
and with a drop of cold water and a flight blow is
knocked olF from the pipe.
The cylinder, being now open at one end, is
carried back to the flafliing furnace, where the
mouth or aperture of the cylinder is put to warm at
the nofe hole, adjoining to the flafhing furnace,
and when at a proper degree of heat is opened on
an inftrument for that purpofe in a circular form
of about four or five inches diameter. This
done, it is carried to the flafhing furnace, where a
briflc fire is continually kept, and by turning it
quickly about in the fire in a circular motion, im-
mediately opens and forms itfelf into a table glafs,
and by the afllllance of a pair of fliears, is cut off
from the iron rod, which caufes the knot or knob
in the middle : this done, it is carried upon forks,
and put into the annealing furnace, where it re-
mains for thirty hours. In this furnace upwards of
an hundred tables of glafs may lie at a time with-
out any injury to each other, by feparating them
inta tens, with an iron fhiver between, which
diniinilhes the v^eight by dividing it, and keeps the
tables flat and even.
This was the method formerly made ufe of for
making large plate glafs, looking-glaflTes, &c.
But the workmen by this method could never ex-
ceed fifty inches in length, and a proportional
breadth ; becaufe what were larger were always
found to warp, which prevented them from regu-
larly reflecting the objcds, and wanted fubftance to
bear the necefl"ary grinding. Thefe imperfections
have been removed by an invention of the Sieur
Abraham Thevart, a Frenchman, about the year
1688, of calling or running large plates of glafs.
See CaJ}'nig of Glass.
For the manner of founding glafs, and the
materials of which it is compofed ; fee the article
Glass.
Blowing of Tin denotes the melting its ore,
after being firft burned to deftroy the mundic.
BLUBBER denotes the fat of whales, and other
large fea animals, whereof is made train oil. See
the article Oil.
BLUE, otherwife called Azure, is one of the
primitive colours of the rays of light.
In oil and miniature, they alio ufe indigo pre-
pared ; as alfo a fictitious ultramarine. See the
articles Ultramarine and Indigo.
Turnfok Blue is ufed in painting on wood, and
is made of the feed of that plant. The way of
preparing it is, to boil four ounces of turnfole in a
5 A pint
BLU
pint and a half of water, in which lime has been
flacked.
Dyers Blue is one of their Ample or mother
colours, ufed in the compofition of others. It is
made of woad, indigo, and a paftel brought from
Normandy. Some dyers heighten their blue by
adding brazil and other woods. Sec Woad and
Indigo.
A Blue for painting or fiaining af Glafs. Take
fine white fand twelve ounces, zaffer, and minium,
of each three ounces ; reduce them to a fine pow-
der in a bell-metal mortar ; then patting the pow-
der into a very flrong crucible, cover it and lute it
well, and being dry, calcine it over a quick fire
for an hour : take out the matter and pound it ;
then to fixteen ounces of this powder, add fourteen
of nitre powder ; mix them well together, and
put them into the crucible again ; cover and lute
it, and calcine for two hours on a very flrong
fire.
Prujftan Blue. This blue is next to ultra-
marine for beaut)% if it be ufed in oil. This
colour does not grind well in water. Sec Prus-
SIAN-SA^f.
Blue Bice is a colour of good brightnefs, next
to Pruffian blue, and alfo a colour of a body,'Mnd
will flow pretty well in the pencil.
Saunders Blue is alfo of very good ufe, and may
ferve as a fhade to ultramarine or the blue bice,
•yvhere the fhades are not required to be very deep,
and is of itfelf a pleafant blue, to be laid between
the light and fliades of fuch a flower as is of a
niazarine blue.
Lacmus, or Litmus Blue. This is a beautiful
blue, and will run in a pen as free as ink. It is
made of lacmus, and prepared thus : Take an
ounce of lacmus, and boil it in a pint of imall
beer wort, till the colour is as flrong as you would
have it ; then pour it off the liquor into a gallipot,
and let it cool for ufe. This affords a beautiful
colour, has extraordinary effefts, and is a holding
colour ; if it be touched with aqua-fortis, it im-
mediately changes to a fine crimfon, little inferior
to carmine.
Blue Japan, Take gum-water, what quantity
you pleafe, and white lead a fufficient quantity,
grind them well upon porphyry ; then take ifin-
glafs fize, what quantity you pleafe, of the finell
and befl fmalt a fufficient quantity, mix them well ;
to which add of your white lead, before ground,
fo much as may give it a fufficient body ; mix all
thefe together to the confidence of a paint.
Blueing of Metals is performed by heating
them in the fire, till they affume a blue colour ;
particularly praiElifed by the gilders, who blue
tfieir metals before they apply the gold and filver
leaf.
BLUE-BOTTLE, in botany. See Cektau-
REA.
BOA
Blue-mantle in heraldry, the title of a pur-
fuivant at arms.
BLUENESS, the quality which denominates 3.
body blue ; or it is fuch a fize and texture of the
parts which compofe the furface of a body, as dif-
pofe them to refledt the blue, or azure rays of
light, and thofe only to the eye.
BLUNDERBUSS, a ftiort fire-arm with a wide
bore, capable of holding a number of bullets at
once.
BLUSHING, a fuffufion, or rednefs of the
cheeks, excited by a fenfe of fhame, on account of
a confcioufnefs of fome failing or imperfedtion.
BMI, in mufic, the third note in the modern
fcale. See the article Scale.
BOARD, a long piece of timber, fawed thin
for building and feveral other purpofes. See the
article Timber.
Board is alfo ufed for an office under the go-
vernment. Thus we fay, the board of trade and
plantations, the board of works, ordnance, &;c.
BOARDING, in a naval engagement, a def-
perate and furious affault made by one fhip on ano-
ther to defeat her, by entering aboard her in bat-
tle, either becaufe the common methods of can-
nonading and firing mufquetry had failed of fuc-
cefs, or becaufe flie may have a greater number of
men, and be better equipped for this attack than
the enemy who defends herfelf againft it.
An ofiicer fhould confider well the dangerous
confequences that attend boarding a fhip of war,
before he attempts it ; and be pretty certain that
his adverfary is thin of men ; for, perhaps, he
wi/hes to be boarded; if fo, great flaughter mud enfue.
Before boarding, the officer fhould alfo judge of
his own llrength as well as that of the enemy ;
the fea mufl likewifc be confidered, left it may run
fo high as to endanger both fhips going to the bot-
tom. Ships of equal force ought not to be fond
of this mode of fighting, and when they do at-
tempt it, it may be more advifeable to lay the ene-
my's fhip aboard on the lee-fide, efpecially if there
be any fvvcll or fea, as the water is there the
I'mootheft : befides, in laying a fhip aboard to lee-
ward, if you find too warm a reception, you can
better get clear and ftand off from the enemy ; this
appears, however, to be the only advantage of be-
ing to leeward ; but as the weather-fliip can, at
mod: times, be to leeward when fhe pleafes, it is,
perhaps, more eligible to be to windward, finceftie
will have it in her power, as fhe paffes under the
lee of her antagonift, to rake her in croffing
athwart the Hern, (i.e. firing her broadfide in at
the other's dern, fo that the fliot will rake the
whole length of the fliip, which is probably the
mod fatal event that can happen in a fea-engage-
ment. ) This if {he can once effeftually perform,,
fhe mud in all likelihood conquer her adverfary,
and the fame, if file can lay him athwart hawfe,
which
BOA
which both will endeavour to avoid, if cither fees
the other attempt it. See Athwart.
Boarding may be performed in dift'erent places of
the fhip according to the circumftances, prepara-
tion, and pofition of both ; the aflailant having
previoufly ieledted a number of men armed with
piftols and cutlafles, and occafionally provided with
powder-flafks ; thefe are flight bottles filled with
gun-powder, and fitted with a fufe, which is lighted
immediately before the affault : when the (hips are
laid dole to each other, the powder-flafks are tiirown
amongft the crew of the fhip intended to be board-
ed ; thefe inftantly break, are fired by the fufes,
and cover the deck with horror, fmoke, and con-
fufion; add to this, that they who put this attempt
in execution have generally an earthen {hell lul-
pended from their yard-arms, or bowfprit-end, called
a ftink-pot ; this machine is likewife charged with
powder, together with certain fufFocating and in-
flammable materials, with a lighted fufe at the
aperture : this alfo is let fall at the fame time with
the powder-flafks upon the deck of the defendant,
and at once burfts, catches fire, and fills the deck
with intolerable ftench and diftraftion : amidft the
confufion produced by this infernal apparatus, the
detachment provided rufh aboard, fword in hand,
under cover of the fmoke on their antagonifi:,
who ftands in the fame fituation with a citadel
ftormed by the befiegers, and is eafily overpowered
unlefs he has clofe-quarters, to where he can
retreat. See Bowsprit, Close Quarters.
This ftratagem is rarely however put in execution
by his majefty's fhips, which moft commonly de-
cide the battle by cannonading, and feldom grapple
with their enemies : it is chiefly praiSifed by pri-
vateers on the ftouteft merchant-fliips, &c.
" To prevent boarding, if the fhip is boarded on
the quarter, the detachment of marine forces fliould
keep in clofe order, fire a volley on the enemy as
they attempt to board, charge them at oncewith bay-
onets, and never give them time to get any footing.
" If the fliip is boarded on the bow, or in the
waift, (i. e. fore-part or middle) and it fhould be
thought necefiary to order feme marines thither
from the poop or quarter-deck, the front rank mufl
face at once to the right, or left, run to the place
direftcd, and charge the enemy in an inflant ; if
the rear rank is wanted, the fame diretStions arc to
be obferved.
" When marines have been long enough at fea to
get the proper ufe of their hands and legs, I can
fee no reafon why they fhould not be employed in
boarding the enemy, as well as the feamen, when
fuch fervice is intended. I would therefore pro-
pofe, that a marine officer fhould take the choice
of the detachment, arm them with piftols and cut-
1-afies, and board with them in conjunflion with
a fea-officer and the party of failors : rhe marines,
who enter voluntarily on this fervice, fhould have
BOA
feme reward, be particularly refpcfled, and re-
commended to be made corporals asibon aspoffible."
The three laft paragraphs we have quoted from
Mr. Macintire's Treaiife on the Difciplitie of Marine
Forces; to which we may fubjoin, that.
To prevent boarding, a high rope-netting ex-
tended by the (hrouds from one end of the fhip to
the other, has been frequently ufcd ; and we may
add, as our own opinion, that if fome fmall taicles
were ready to be hooked to the bottom of this net-
ting, which is to hang loofe over the fhip's fide,
being then more diflicult to furmount, as it fwings
in and out by the fhip's rolling, thefe taicles being
hooked on the outfide inftantly on the attempt to
board, which might eafily be done, and then the
lower part of the netting hoifted up, while the
boarders are climbing on it, would exhibit a very
extraordinary and fomewhat ridiculous fpeflacle,
by entangling and fufpending a fwarm of the board-
ers, as a mark for the mufquetry of the marines at
their leifure.
BOAl^ is a fmall open vell'el, conduced on
the water by rowing or failing. The conftruftion,
machinery, and even the names of boats are very
different, according to the various purpofes for
which they are calculated, and the places where
they are to be, employed.
i'hus they are occafionally fharp, or flat-bot-
tomed ; flight, or ftrong ; open, or decked ; plain,
or ornamented, as they may be defigned for deep
or fhallower bottoms ; for fwiftnefs or burthen ; for
failing in a harbour or at fea ; and for convenience
or pleafure.
The largeft boat ufed by a fhip of war is the
long-boat, which is commonly furnifhed with a
maft and fails, and can be occafionally decked,
armed, and equipped, for cruifing fhort diftances
againft the enemy, or fmugglers, or impreffing of.
feamen, &:c.
The barges are next in order, which are long,,
flighter, and narrower, and are employed to row
admirals, and captains of men of war ; thefe are
very unfit for fea. See the article Barge, in the.-
fecond p.aragraph.
Pinnaces exa<SIy refemble barges, only that they
are fomewhat fmaller, and never row more th.aii
eight oars, where;is a barge properly never rows
lefs than ten ; thefe are for the ufe of the lieute--
nants, &c.
Cutters of a fhip are broader, deeper, and fhorter
than the barge and p;nn:Kes ; they are fitter for
failing, and are commonly employed for carrying
ftores, paffengers, &:c. to and from the fhip to ■
which they belong. In the ftruiSture of thefe fort
of cutters, the lower edge of every plank in the
fide overlays the next below it.
Yawls are fomething lefs than the cutters, near-
ly of the lame form, and ufed for fimilar fervices.
The above particularly belong to men of war ; .
mcr- ■
BOB
merchant-fhips have feldom more than two, or '
three at mod, viz. long-boat and yawl ; they may
occafionally have a fmall pinnace or (kiff befides.
Merchant-fhips which ufe the Mediterranean
navigation, commonly have, and always ought to
have°a lanch in the place of a long-boat ; which
is longer, more flat-bottomed, and better calculated
every way for the harbours of that fea than a long-
boat.
Wherries are light, fharp, boats, ufed in a river
or harbour for carrying paiTengers to and fro.
Punts are a fort of oblong, flat-bottomed boats,
nearly refembling floating itages ; they are ufed by
fliipwrights and caulkers for breaming, caulking,
or repairing a fliip's bottom.
A Mofes is a very flat broad boat, ufed by mer-
chant-fhips amongft the Caribbee-Iflands, to bring
oit hogflieads of fugar from the fea-beech.
A felucca is a light boat fomevvhat refembling
a wherry, employed in the Mediterranean for paf-
fage : the natives of Barbary alfo call a fmall cruiiing
galley felucca.
For the larger forts of boats, fee the articles
Craft, Cutter, Shallop, Periagua.
Of all the fmall boats, a Norway yawl feems to
be the beft calculated for fea, as they will often
appear out on the coaft of that country, when a
flout (hip can hardiv carry any fail.
BOATSWAIN 'of a fhip,'the officer who has
the boats, fails, rigging, colours, anchors, and
cables committed to his charge.
It is likewife his office to fummon the crew to
their duty, and affift, with his mates, in relieving
the watch, to fee that the men attend the ne-
ceflary bufmefs of the fhip upon deck, and per-
form it with as little noife as poffible.
The boatfwain, partly from a perpetual bellow-
ing, and partly from a bear-like fympathy, and
favage affectation to imitate his brethren of the
ratan, acquires a tone of voice fo very harfh and
terrible, that in the opinion of a celebrated Mile-
fian mufical doflor, this inharmonious llrain very
nearly refembles the braying of an afs. Indeed, it
is fo difficult to diftinguifh their voices from one
another at a diftance, that while two officers of
different fliips v/ere lately divided in their opinions
about a boatfv.'ain whom they heard not far off,
each afferting him to belong to his own fhip ; the
man aftually proved to be a different perfon, being
only a deputy, or fubaltern-boatfwain, who had
anticipated his rank, and was already perfectly
qualified in the modifying his voice to that dread-
ful found.
The boatfwain is moreover appointed to execute
the fame offices at fea which the hangman does on
fhore ; fuch as fcourging, or otherwife punifliing
offenders.
BOB, a term ufed for the ball of a fhort pen-
dulum.
BO C
BOBBIN, a fmall piece of wood turned in the
form of a cylinder, with a little border jutting out
at each end, bored through to receive a fmall iron
pivot. It ferves to fpin with the fpinning-wheel,
or to wind thread, worfled, hair, cotton, filk, gold,
and filver.
There are bobbins of feveral lengths and fizes,
according to the materials which are to be fpun or
wound. Thofe ufed by the filk dealer and the
manufafturers in gold and filver, are thick fhort
bobbins ; and fo are thofe ufed by the woollen naa-
nufaiTturers.
BOB-STAY, in the marine, a rope inferted
through a fliip's prow, or ftem, and having both
parts of it reach up, after the Infertion, to the
middle of the bowfprit, where the ends are fpliced
together, till it becomes like one of the links of a
chain : after this, it is drawn extremely tight by
the application of mechanical powers.
The ufe of the bob-flay is to draw down and
keep fteddy the bow-fprit, and counteract the ftrain
of the flays, which draw it upwards : the bow-
fprit is alfo fortified by fhrouds on each fide, which
are all very neceffary, as the foremaft and the up-
per-part of the main-maft are flayed, and greatly
fupported by the bowfprit. See Bowsprit, Mast,
Stay. For this reaibn, the bob-flay is the firll
flay fet up, that is, drawn tight, in a fhip ; to
perform which tafk more effectually, it is common
to fufpend a boat, or fome other weighty body, at
the bowfprit end to prefs it downwards.
BOCARDO, among the logicians, the fifth
mode of the third figure of fyllogifms, in which
the middle propofition is an univerfal affirmative,
and the firit and lafl particular negatives ; thus :
B o Some fickly perfons are not ftudentsj
CAR Every fickly perfon is pale ;
D o. Therefore fome perfons are pale that are
not fludents.
BOCCONIA, in botany, a dodecandrious
plant, whofe flower confifts of four narrow petals
with ten fhort filaments ; the fruit is oval, con-
tracted on each fide, long and comprefl'ed, con-
taining a cell filled with pulp, including a fingle
round feed. This plant is common in Jamaica and
feveral other parts of America, where it grows to
the height of ten or twelve feet, having a flraight
trunk as large as a man's- arm, covered with a
white fniooth bark. At the top it divides into feve-
ral branches, on which the leaves are placed alter-
nately ; thefe leaves are eight or nine inches long,
and five or fix broad, deeply finuated, fometimes
alniofl to the midrib, and are of a fine glaucous
colour. The whole plant abounds with a yellow
•uice like the greater celandine, which is of an
acrid nature, fo that it is ufed by the inhabitants
of America to take off warts and fpots from the
eyes. It is propagated by feeds, but being very
ten-
BOD
tcniicr, niuft be kept conftantly in a hot-haufc to
j»rtfcrvc ill tiiis climate.
BOCK-LAND, in the Saxons time, is what
we now call freehold lands, held by the better fort
of perfons by charter or deed in writing, by which
name it was diflinguifhtd from folkland, or copy-
hold land, holden by the common people without
writing.
BODY, in philofophv, a folid, extended, pal-
pable fuhftance ; of itfelf merely paffivc, and indif-
ferent either to motion or reit, but capable of any
fort of motion, and of all figures and forms. Body
is compofed, according to the Peripatetics, of mat-
ter, form, and privation ; according to the Epicu-
reans andCorpufcularians,ofan afl'cmblage of hook-
ed heavy atoms ; according to the Cartefians, of
a certain quantity of extenfion ; according to the
Newtonians, of a fvftcni or alTociation of folid,
maflv, hard, impenetrable, immo\eable particles,
ranged or difpofed in this or that manner ; whence
refult bodies of this or that form, diftinguifhed by
this or that name.
That all bodies agree in one common matter,
the fchoolmen themlelves allow ; making what
they call the materia prima to be the bafis of them
all ; and their fpecihc differences to fpring from
their particular forms ; and fince the true notion of
body confirts either alone in its extenfion, or in
that and impenetrability together, it will follow,
that the ditFerences, which make the varieties of
iXidies we fee, niuft not proceed from the nature
of mere matter, of which we have but one uni-
form conception ; but from certain attributes, luch
as motion, fize, pofition, &c. which we call me-
chanical affeiflions.
" Wc are as far, fays Mr. Locke, from the
" idea of fubftance of body, by the complex idea
" of extended, figured, coloured, and all other
" fenfible qualities, which is all we know of it,
*' as if we knew nothing at all ; nor after all the
" acquaintance and familiarity, .which we imagine
" we have with matter, and the many qualities
" men afl'ure themfelves they perceive and know
" in bodies, will it, perhaps, upon examination,
" be found, that they have any more or clearer
" primary ideas belonging to body, than they ha\e
" belonging to immaterial fpirit. The primary
" ideas we ha\'e .peculiar to body, as contradiftin-
■" guifVicd to fpirit, are, the cohefion of folid, and
*' conlequcntly feparable parts ; and a power of
" communicating motion by impulfe. Thefe are
'" .the original ideas proper and. peculiar to body ;
" for figure is but the confequence of finite extc-n-
" fion." After which he goes on, and clearly
proves the idea of the fubflance of fpirit and body,
equally clear and known to us.
BoDV, among painters, as to bear a body, a
term fignifying that the colours are of fuch a na-
ture, as to be capable of being ground fo fine, and
^9
BOD
mixing wh'n the oil fo entirely, as to fecm only a
very thick oil of the fame colour.
But fuch colours as are faid not to bear a body,
will readily part with the oil w hen laid on the work ;
fo that when the colour fliall be laid on a piece
of work, there will be a fcparation ; the colour in
fome parts, and the oil in others, except they are
tempered extraordinary thick.
Body, in the art of war, a number of force,'',
horfe and foot, united and marching under one
commander.
Jilciin Body cf an Army, the troops encamped
in the center between the two v/ings, ai-.d gene-
nerally infantry ; the ether two bodie<; are the van-
guard and the rear-guard : thefe being the three
into which an army, ranged in form oi battle, is-
divided.
Body of Rrfavc. Sec Reserve.
Body, in Geometry, is that which has three di-
menfions ; length, bieadth, and thicknefs ; and is
generated by the motion of a fuperficies. See Solid.
BUERHAVIA, in botany, a genus of monan-
drious plants, whofe flower confiils of a finglc
campanulated petal, crecf, and of a quintangular
form ; it hath in fome fpecies one, and in others
two filaments, which are fhort, and topped with
double globofe anthers ; the germen is placed be-
low the receptacle, fupporting a fhort filiform ftile,
and becomes afterward a finsle oblong feed. The
inhabitants of the Weit-Indies, where thefe plants
are natives, give them the name of hog-weed, and
afcribe to them many excellent virtues. In this
climate they are raifed from feeds, and require a
hot-houfc to preferve them.
BOG properly fignifies a quagmire, covered in-
deed with grafs, "but not folid enough to fupport
the weight of the body ; in wliich fenfe it differ?
only from marfhes or fons, as a part from the
whole ; fome even rcftrain the term bog to quag-
mires pent up between two hills ; whereas fens lie
in champaign and low countries, where the defcenl
is very fmall.
To drain boggy lands, a goo3 method is,' to
make trenches of a fufficicnt depth to carry ofF the
moilfure; and if thefe are partly filled up witK
rough ffones, an.i thc-.i coi.ered with thorn-bufhes
and llraw to keep the earth from filling up the in-
terfttces, a ffratum of good earth and turf may be
laid over all ; the cavities among the flones will
give pafl'age to the water, and the turf will grow
at top, as if nothing had been done. See the ar-
ticle Fen'.
BOGOMILI, orBoGARMiT^, in church hif-
tory, 3 feet of heretics, which Sprung up about
the year i 179. They thought that but leven books
of the Scripture are to l)e received ; that the ufe
of churches, of the facramcnt of the Lord's fuppcr,
and all prayer, exccept the Lord's prayer, ought
to be a'boliflied 3 that the baptifm cf Catholics is
5 B im-
BO I
irrpcrfei^ ; that the perfons of the Tiinit)* arc iin-
equal ; and that they oftentimes made thcmfelves
vifible to thofe of their fedt. They faid, that the
devils dv/elt in ihs churches ; and that Satan had
refided in the temple of Solomon from the de-
ftruflion of Jerufaltm to their own time.
BOIGUACU, the largeft cf all ferpents, being
frtim twenty-four to forty feet long, and thick in
proportion. It is found in the Eaft and Weft-In-
dies, where the Europeans, as well as the natives,
are extremely fond of it as food.
BOILING, or Ebullition, in phyfics, the
agitation of a fluid body, arifmg from the applica-
tion of fire, ^c. The pharnomena of boiling
may be thus accounted for: the minute particles
of the fuel, beinc; detached from each other, and
impelled in orb,m with a great velocity; that is,
being converted into fire, pafs the pores of the
containing vefi^el, and mix with the fluid. By the
refiflance they here meet, their motion isdeflroyed ;
that is, thev communicate it wholly to the quief-
ccnt water : hence arifes, at firft, a fmall inteftine
motion in the water, and from the continued ac-
tion of the firfl: caufe, the efteiSl is increafed, and
the motion of the water continually accelerated ;
fo that, by degrees, it becomes fcnfibly agitated :
but now the particles of fire, {licking on thofe in
(he lovvcft furface of the water, will not only give
them an impulfe upwards, contrary to the laws of
equilibrium, but will likewife render them fpecifi-
cally lighter than before, fo as to determine them
to afcend according to the lav/s of equilibrium ;
and this, cither by inflating them into little vefi-
clcs, by the attrailion of the particles of water
around them, or by breaking and feparating the
little fpherules of water, and fo increafing the ratio
of their furface to their folid content. There
■will be, therefore, a conftant flux of water, from
the bottom to the top of the veirel, and confe-
quently a reciprocal flux from the top to the bot-
tom ; that is, the upper and under water will
change places : and hence we have the reafon of
that phenomena of the water being hot at top,
fooner than at bottom.
Again, an intenfe heat will diininifh the fpccific
gravity of water, fo as not only to make it mount
in water, but alfo in air: whence arife the ph?e-
nomena of vapour and fmoke, though the air, in-
clofcd in the intcrfticcs of the water, muft be al-
lov;ed a gocd fliarc in this appearance ; for that air,
being dil.ated, and its fpring flrengthened by the
attion of the fire, breaks its prifon, and afccnds
through the water into the air, carrying with it of
the contiguous fpherules of water, fo many as ftiall
hang in its villi, or as can adhere immediately
to it.
The particles of the air, in the feveral intcr-
fticcs of the fluid mafs thus expanded and moving
BOL
upwards, will meet and coalefce in their paflafe ; '
by which means great quantities of the water will
be heaved up and letdown alternately, as the air
rifes up, and again pafles from the water ; for the
air, after coalition, though it inay buoy up a great
heap of water by its elafticity, while in the water,
yet cannot carry it up with itfelf into the atmo-
fphere ; fince, when once got free from the upper
furface of the water in the veflel, it will unbend
itfclf in the atmofphcre, and fo its fpring and force
become juft equal to that of the comtnon unheated
air : and hence we fee the reafon of the principal
pha'nomena of boiling, viz. the fluftuating of the
iurfacc of the water.
The ingenious Mr. Amenton has fliewn, that
water heated to a degree of boiling, will not con-
cei\e any further heat, how much foever the fire be
increafed : yet this excellent difcovery may receive
a confiderable improvement from what Mr. Fahren-
heit has obfcrved, vi-z. that the heat of the fame
boiling water is alvvavs regularly greater, by hov/
much the weight of the atmofphere is greater which
prefles upon its furface : and again, that the fame
heat of the boiling water diminiflies, as the weight
of the incumbent atniolpherc grows lefs. Hence,
in marking the degree of heat in boiling water, it
will be necefl'ary to note the weight of the atmo-
fphere at the fame time by the barometer ; other-
wife no certain meafure will be expreflcd. In the
mean time, however, it muft be allowed, that ^o
long as the preffure of the atmofphere continues
the fame, boiling water will not grow hotter by
any incrcafeof fire whatever ; and with this limita-
tion, Mr. Amenton's rule will for ever hold true.
When the difference of the weight of the atmo-
fphere is three ounces, the greateft degree of heat
in boiling water, under thcfe different weights,
will be eight or nine degrees : from v^hence the
author evidently deduces, that by how much the
particles of water are more comprefTed to each
other, upon increafing the incumbent weight, by
fo much the more fire is required to make them
recede from each other, wherein ebullition confifts.
Hence alfo he concluded, that a thermometer ap-
plied in boiling water, would mark, by the degree
of heat it exprcfies, the gravity of the atmofphere
at that time.
BOLES, a genus of earths, moderately cohe-
rent, ponderous, foft, and not ftiff and vifcid j
compofed of fine particles, fmooth to the touch,
eafily breaking between the fingers, readily diffu-
fible in water, and freely and eafily fubfiding from
it.
Bole Armmk is of a pale colour, between red
and yellow, fmooth and flippery to the touch,
foinewhat gloffy, pure from fand or any perceptible Jl'
gritty matter. It readily crumbles betwixt the f
fingers, am! adheres to the tongue. Softened with
water.
BOL
water, It forms a fmooth pafte : diluted with a
larger quantity of water, it remaiiii (or a tonfidcr-
ablc time fufpcndcd.
This earth is employed medicinally as a {lyptic,
both internally and externally ; a virtue which
fecins to ]irocecd from its ferrugineous impregna-
tion : to tlie anti-peililcntial and alcxiphaiinic qua-
lities, for which it has long been celebrated, it has
no ]>retence ; and fevcral experiments have fuffi-
ciently evinced, that the abfoi bent ones, which
fome afcribc to it, have no juit foundation. It is
prepared or purified by wafhing it over with water ;
the pure bole remaining fufpended a confiderable
time, fo as to be poured off with the liquor, whiHl
the fandy or other groflcr matter remains behind :
after the bole has fettled from the water, it is
moderately dried, formed into rolls or cakes, and
afterwards further exficcated for ufc.
^fii/BoLE. The common fort of this earth is
coarfer than the Armenian, and participates more
largely of iron : hence it is never given internally,
unlefs to cattle.
ff^iiie Boi.E is brought to us ready waflicd, and
formed into large rolls or cylindric globes, not of
a chalky whitenefs, but rather of an afh-colour.
Formerly it came only from Tufcany, or the Ifland
Elva : at prefent it is fupplicd chiefly from Norway,
the Ifland Bornholm, or places nearer home, it
differs from the two preceding in containing no
manifeft irony matter, and conlequently in want-
ing their aftringency. It has betn recommended
as an abforbent; but experiments made upon it
with acids, fhew that it little defer\ es that charac-
ter, any more than the other holes. Some have a
method of recovering the luftre of pearls, efpecial-
iy the Scotch ones, by warming them a little over
the fire, and rubbing them with powdered white
bole.
BOLLITO, a name by which the Italians call
a fea-green colour in artificial cryltal. 'i'o pre-
pare this colour, you muft have in the furnace a
pot filled with forty pound of good cryftal, full
carefully ftcinimed, boiled, and purified, without
any maganefe : then you muft have twelve ounces
of the powder of fmall leaves of copper, thrice
calcined, half an ounce of zaffer in powder : mix
them together, and put them at four times into the
pot, that they may the better mix with the glafs,
llirring them well each time of putting in the pow-
der, foi fear that it fliould fwell too much and run
over.
BOLONIAN, in general, fomething belong-
ing to Bologna. Hence
BoLONiAN Slone is a fulphureous kind of ftone,
about the bignefs of a walnut, found near Bo-
logna ; which, when duly prepared by calcina-
tion, makes a fpecies of phofphorus. See Phos-
PHORirS.
BOLSTERS, in the marine, a fort of fmall
BOM
cufliion:, or bags filled with tarred canra?, laid
between the collars of the flays, and the edge of
fome piece of wood on which they lie; they are
ufed to prt\ent the flays from being chaffed or
galled by friiftion, as the fhip locks or pitches :it
fea.
Bolsters of a ScMli\ thofe parts of a great
faddle which are raifed upon the bows, both before
and behind, to hold the rider's thigh, and keep him
in a right poflure.
BOLT, among builders, an iron faftening fixed
to doors and windows. They arc generally diflin-
guiflied into three kinds, viz. plate, round, and
<pring bolts.
Bolts, in gunnery, are of feveral forts, as i.
Tranfum-bolts, that go between the checks of a
gun-carriage, to fitengthtn the tranfums. 2. Prife-
bolts, the large knobs of iron on the cheeks of a
carriage, which keep the handfpike from Aiding,
when it is poizing up the breech of a piece. 3.
Travcrfe-boks, the two fhort bolts that being put
one in each end of a mortar-carriage, ferve to tra-
verfe her. 4. Bracket-bolts, the bolts that gf>
through the cheeks of a mortar, and by the help of
quoins keep her fixed at the given elevation. And
5. Bed-bolts, the four bolts that fallen the brackets
of a mortar to the bed.
Bolt of Canvas, in commerce, vhe quantity of
twenty-eight ells.
Bolt-Rope, in the marine, a rope paffing all-
round the edges of the fails, to which they are
fewcd, to flrengthen the fails, and prevent thenv
from rending : thofe parts of it which are on the
perpendicular or (loping fides, are called the leeches ;
that part at the bottom, the foot-rope ; and if the
fail be fquare or oblong, the upper part is called
the head-rope.
BOLTERS, or Boulters, a kind of fic\Ts for
meal, having t!ie bottoms m.ide of woollen, hair,,
or even wire.
BOLTING, or Boulting, the a^ of feparat-
ing the flour from the bran, by means of a ficve or
bolter.
BoLTiNC-Mii.i., a verfiiile engine for fifting
with more eafe and expedition. The cloth laund
this is called the boulter.
BOLUS, an extemporaneous form of a medi-
cine, foft, coherent, a little thicker than honey,
the quantity of which Is a little morfel or mouth-
ful ; for which reafon it is by fome called buc-
cella.
BOLZAS, a foit of ticking which comes from
the Eall Indies.
BOMB, in millt.iry aftairs, a large orbicular fhell
of caft-Iron, having a touch-hole, or aperture,
through which a fule ii inferted, and a quantity ol
gun- powder pound in to charge it. The fule ot
the bomb is a little kind of fruOimi of a cone,
concave within, made of willow linden, or fome
1 other
BOM
■Other \'ery dry wood, filled with a compofition of
"'the belt powder, fulphur, and falt-pctre. The
bomb being charged, this fufe is thruft in the
cavity through the touch-hole, and when fired,
conmiunicatci the fire to the powder with which
the bomb is charged ; the wood of the fufe, before
'it is filled, is called the ampoulctle.
The fufes for bombs are charged v/ith great care,
that notliing may prevent their < ommunicating the
fire to the powder in the center of the bomb, to
the fize of which they are to be exactly propor-
tioned ; they are driven and fixed into tlie bomb,
■ i'o that only about an inch and an half conies out
beyond the touch-hole.
Thefe bombs produce two dangerous efFciSs, viz.
that of ruining the moll fubftantial buildings by
their weight, and of creating great confufion by
their fplinters ; for when the powder they are
charged with takes fire, its effort breaks or burfis
the bomb, and explodes the fplinters on every fide
Wth great violence. Lc Blond, EUm. IVar.
Experience fliows, that fifteen pounds of pov^'-
tler ought to be put into a bomb of twelve inches,
which weighs when charged one hundred and forty-
five pounds ; that a bomb of eight inches requires
.four pounds, weighing when charged about forty
pounds ; that one of fix inches requires three
"{jounds, and weighs when charged a little more
than twenty-three pounds : and laftly, that thirty
<pounds of powder arc required for a bomb of feven-
teen inches ten lines diameter, which weighs,
v/hcn charged, about fi\e hundred and twenty
-pounds. M. Bdiilor Bombard. Franc,
But later experiments prove, that tlie fame bombs
.(barged with a much lefs quantity of powder, will
pioduce the fame effccft. M. Belidor himfelf has
reduced this quantity to two pounds and a half
'i'or a bomb of twelve inches, and one pound to a
bomb of eight.
It is evident that the dcfign of the powder with
which a bomb is charged, is to make it burit ; and
-that if it burfls with a quantity of powder lefs tlun
it is commonly charged with, that quantity is fuffi-
■<:ient, and that all above is abfolutely loft.
There is one particular, however, to be ob-
ferved, which is, that when bombs are intended to
■fire the buildings on which they are thrown, the
Jargcr the charge, the better they fucceed ; but on
all otlier occaiions, the quantity of powder more
than fufficient to burlT: th.c bomb, cannot produce
any advantageous efi'cft. See Mortar, Pro-
jectile. '
The fufes of bombs are charged long before
there is any occafion to ufe them ; and that the com-
pofition they are filled with may not fall out, or
I'poil by growing damp or wet, the two ends are
covered with a compofition of tallow, mixed either
with bees-wax or pitch. When the fufe is to be
.put into the bomb, care is taken to open the little
BOM
end, or cut it off; as to the great end, it is never
opened till the bomb i-: in the mortar, and juft go-
ing to be fired. Le FJhjtd. Elan. IFar.
The figure A, (Plate XXI. Z^. i.) fhews a bomb
as it appears to the eye ; the fecond, B, reprefent?
the fedtion or profile, and confequently fhows its
thicknefs ; the parts d and c of the bomb A, are its
handles, or the parts by v.'hich it is lifted up; ^ is
the touch-hole through which the powder is poured
to charge it.
It appears by fig, B. that the lower part of the
bomb is thickeli, v/hich is contrived that the bomb
being hea\ ier on that fide, may be fure to fall upon
it, and never upon the fufe fig; this heavy under
part is called the breech of the bomb. The diame-
ter of a bomb ought, at leaft, to be five or fix lines
lefs than the bore of the mortar from which it is
to be difcharged.
Bom3-Battery. See Battery of Mortars.
Bowb-Chest. See the article Caisson.
Bomb-Vessels, in the marine, fmall (hips par-
ticularly calculated for throwing bombs into a for-
trefs : they are faid to be invented by M. Reyneau,
and to have been firft put in aclion at the bombard-
ment of Algiers ; till then, it had been judged im-
practicable to bombard a place from the fea. See
the article Bomb-Ketch.
BOMBARD, a piece of ordnance, antiently in
ufe, very fhort and thick, with an extreme large
bore. There have been bombards which have
thrown a ball of three hundred weight : they made
ufe of cranes to load them. There are ftill fome
of thefe in ufe amongft the Turks.
BOMBARDIER, the perfon employed in
charging the bomb, fixing and driving in the fufe,
and loading and firing the mortar, under the direc-
tion of the engineers : he is alfo employed in other
military fire-works.
BOMBARDING, the aft of affaulting a city
or fortrcfs, by throwing bombs into it, in order to
fct fire to, and ruin the houfes, magazines, &:c.
and to do other mifchief.
As one of the effects of the bomb refults from its
weight, it is never difcharged as a ball from a can-
non, that is, by pointing or directing it at a certain
objeiSt ; but the mortar is a little inclined from the
horizon, fo that the bomb being thrown up
obliquely, much in the fame direction as a tennis-
ball llruck by the racket, may fall upon the place
intended ; from whence it appears, that a mortar
has no point-blank range, or at Icaft that no uk is
made of it. See Mortar, Projectile, Range.
If the fufe fets fire to the bomb before it falls on
the place intended, the bomb will burft in the air,
and may do as much mifchief amongft thofe who
fired the mortar, as thole againft whom it was dif-
charged. l^o prevent this inconvenience it is fo
contrived, that the fufe (the time of its burning
out being pretty cxadly known) ftiall not fire the
■bomt
BOM
BON
bomb, till the moment of its fall on the place
againft which it is thrown. To cflvcl this (as the
full will hill, at Ic.irt, as long as the homh is in go-
ing its grcatcll pofiible range) when a bomb is
thrown to a great diltancc, the Aife and the mortars
arc fired at the fame time, and v/hen the bomb has
not far to go, part of tlie fufc is fiifl'ered to burn
out before the mortar is difchargcd.
BOMBARDO, a mufical inftrument of the
wind kii;d, much the fame as the baflbon, and
ufed a« a bafs to the hautboy.
BOMI-ASINE, in commerce, a kind of filk-
fiulF manufactured at Milan, and thence fent into
France and other countries.
BOMBAST, in matters of literature, a high
ftyie made up of hard words, with little meaning,
and lefs fenfe.
BOMBAX, in botany, a genus of trees which
are natives of the Well-Indies ; they generally grow
with very ftraight ftems, and arrive to a great mag-
nitude, being fome of the talleft trees in thofe
countries. They feldom put out any .Ide branches
till they arrive to a confiderahle height ; the branches
towards the top are furniflied with leaves, compofed
cf fi\c, fc\en, or nine oblong fmcoth little leaves,
which are fpear-fhaped, and join to one center at
their bafe, where they adhere to a long foot-flalk :
thefe fall off every year, fo that for fome time the
trees are naked, and before the new leaves come
out, the flower-buds appear at the end of the
branches, and foon after the flowers expand, which
are compofed of five oblong purple petals, with a
great many fuhulated (lamina in the center- When
thcfe decay, they are fucceeded by large oval fruit,
having a thick ligneous co\er, which when ripe
opens in fue parts, and is full of a dark fhort cot-
ton, inclofing many roundifli feeds. 'Ihe down
which is inclofed in thefe feed-veffcls is feldom
iifed, except by the poorer inhabitants to {lufT pil-
lows or chairs. The wood is very light, but not
much \aliied, e>;cept for making canoes, which is
the chief ufe made of it.
BOMBUS, in ir.edicine, a rcfounding and ring-
ing noifc in the ear, which is accounted hy Hippo-
crates a mortal fymptom in acute difcafcs.
BOMBYLIUS, in natural hifto«y, the nam.c of
the comn.on humble-bee, of which we have a great
\arietvof fpecies, many of them ^'ery beautiful.
BOMBYLOPHAGES, in the hiftory of in-
fers, humble-bee-eater, the name of a fly of the
tipula kind, w^hich is larger and ftronger than the
common kinds ; and loving honey, without know-
ing how to extract it from the flouers, it feizes on
ihe humble-bees, and dcftroys them, in order to
get the bag of honey which tliey contain. It is of
a blackifh colour in the body ; its head is of a
bright red, and the eyes very large and prominent.
It is chiefly found in n'.ountainous places.
£OA10NiCI, in Grecian ;uuii-iuity, young men
19
of Laced.xmon, who contended at the facrificcs of
Diana, which of them was able to endure moil:
lalhes ; being fcourged before the altar of this
goddefs.
BONA-FIDES, or Bona-Fide, among law-
yers, is as much as to fay, fuch a thin" was
done re.illy, w-ithout either fraud or deceit.
BoNA-Mc;:.iLiA, the fome with moveable goods
or cfle(£ts.
BoNA-NoTARiLiA, aro fuch goods as a pcrfun
dying has in another diocefe than that wherein he
dies, amounting to the \alue of fnc pounds at
leaft : in which cafe the will of the dcceafed mud
be pro\'ed, or adminillration granted in the court
of the archbifliop of the province, unlefs by com-
pofition, or cuftom, any diocefes are authorifcd to
do it, v.'hen rated at a greater fum.
Bona-Patria, an aflize of countrymen, or
good neighbours, where twelve or more are chofen
out of the country to pafs upon an aflize, being
fvvorn judicially in the prefence of the party.
EONANA, in botany, a genus of plants,
otherwife called mufa. See MusA.
BONASUS, in zoology, a fpecies of wild ox,
very thick and bulky, and furnifhcd with a mane
like a horfe.
BOND, a deed, by which a perfon obliges him-
felf to perform certain aL'ts ; fuch as to pay a cer-
tain fum, or to anfwcr for another, or to ili-rve an
apprenticefliip with a mafter.
In England, a bond is a deed or obligatory in-
ftrument in writing, whereby a perfon binds him-
felf to another, to pay a fum of money, or to do
fome other adf, as to make a relcafe, furrender an
eflate, for quiet enjoyment ; to ftand to an award,
fave harmlefs, perform a will, &c. It contains
an obligation with a penalty annexed, and a con-
dition which exprefsly mentions what money is to
be paid, or what other things are to be performed,
and the limited time for the performance there-
of, for which the obligation is peremptorily bind-
ing-
It maybe made upon parchment or paper, tliough
it is ufually on paper, and be cither in the firft i>r.
third perfon ; and the condition may be either in
the fiime deed or in another ; and fometime.s in-j
dorfed upon the obligation ; but it is commonly ar
the foot of the obligation.
B(J)NE, in anatomy, a hard, brittle, infenfible
part of the body, afrording form and liipport to the
whole machine.
BONIS Ko^- .A,MovEN-Dii;, in law, is a writ
diredfed to the flieriffs of London, Sic. charging
them, that a perfon agauilt whom judgnient is
obtained, and profocuting a writ of error, be not
fuHcred to rtmoNC his goods ujitil tlic error is
determined.
BONITO, a beautiful fea-fifli of the ttinnv-
kind ; it has a Jojig., broad, and thick body, al-
5 C molt
BON
mod free from fcales, large eyes and gills, with a
hroad, gold-coloured ftreak running along the
Hiiddle of each fide from the gills to the tail ; it is
of a greenifh colour on the back and fides ; of a
falvery whitenefs, and very bright on the belly :
there are vaft fljoals of thefe hill in many parts of
tlie Atlantic-ocean.
BONNET, In the marine, an additional part
to be occafionally laced on, or faftencd to, the bot-
tom of certain fails in gentle breezes of wind, and
taken off again when the fize of the fail is to be
reduced in frcflier gales or ftorms.
BoN'NET, in fortiiication, is a fmall work raifcd
beyond the countcrfcarp, having two faces which
form a faliant angle, and as it were a fmall ravelin
without any trench. The height of this fortifi-
cation is commonly three feet, and is environ-
ed with a double row of palifadoes, ten or twelve
paces from each other. It has likcwife a parapet
three feet high, and is like a little advanced corps
de gard.
iJoNNET A'Pretre, or Prieji's BoNNET, in
fortification, is an out-work, having at the head
three faliant angles, and two inwards; and differs from
the double tenaille in this, that its fides, inftead of
being parallel, are like a fwallow's tail, that is,
narrowing or drawing clofe at the gorge, and open-
ing at the head.
BONNY, in minerology, a name given by our
miners to a bed of ore found in many places in
hills, not forming a vein, nor communicating
with any other \eiri, nor terminating in Itrings,
as the true veins do. It is a bed of ore of five or
fix fathom deep, and tv/o, or fomewliat lefs than
that, in thickncfs, in the largeft fort ; but there
are fmallcr, to thofe of a foot long. They have
their trains of fiioad-floues from them, and often
deceive the miners with the expe£tation of a rich
lead vein. They difier from the fquats only in be-
ing round beds of ore, whereas the fquats are flat.
Sec Squat.
BONZES, Indian priefls, who, in order to di-
flinguiih themfelves from the laity, wear a chaplet
round their necks, confifling of an hundred beads,
and carry a ftaff, at the end of which is a wooden
bird ; they live upon the alms of the people, and
yet are very charitably difpofed, maintaining feve-
ral orphans and widows out of their own collec-
tions. The Tonquinefc have a pagod, or temple,
in each town, ;.nd every pagod has at Icafi: two
bonzes belonging to it; fome ha\'c thirty or forty.
The bonzes of Cliijia are the prief^s of the Fohiits,
or feifts of Fohi ; and it is one of their eflablifiied
tenets, that there are rewards allotted for the righ-
teous, and punifhments for the wicked, in the
cither world ; and that there are various raanfions,
in which the fouls of men will refide, according
to their Jiltercnl degices of merit. The bonzes of
BOO
Pegu are, generally, gentlemen of the higheft ejc-
tra£tion.
BOOBY, a heavy fiupid bird, fomething refem-
bling a gull, or fea-mew, common about Hilpa-
niola, Jamaica, or Cuba. It is furniflied with fo
fmall a portion of the faf_acity which didfates felf-
prefervation to almofl: all the feathered tribe, that
it will fuffcr any body to take it in the evening or
night, when it lights on a fliip in her paflage ; and
will neither, on this occafion, refiff, or attempt to
efcape, but make a continual clamour : it generally
lives upon fifii.
BOOK, Liher, the compofition of a man of
wit or learning, defigned to communicate iomc-
what he has invented, experienced, or collected,
to the public, and thence to polferity ; being withal
of a competent length to make a volume.
In this fcnfe, a book is diftinguilhed from a
pamphlet, by its greater length ; and from a tome,
or volume, by its containing the whole writing.
According to the ancients, a book differed from au
epiftle, not only in bulk, but in that the latter was
folded, and the former rolled up ; not but that there
are divers ancient books now extant, under the
name of cpi files.
Oiigin of Books. — We have nothing that is
clear on that fubjcdl. The books of Mofes are
doubtlefs the oldelf books now extant ; but there
were books before thofe of Mofes, fince he cites
feveral. Scipio Sgambati, and others, even talk of
books before the Deluge, written by the patriarchs
Adam, Seth, Enos, Cainan, Enoch, Methufeiah,
Lamech, Noah and his wife ; alfo by Ham, Japhet
and his wife ; hefides others, by daemons or angels ;
of all which fome moderns have found enough to
fill an Antediluvian library : but they appear all
either the dreams of idle writers, or the impoftures
of fraudulent ones. A book of Enoch is even
cited in the Epiftle of Jude, ver. lo. and 15. from
which fome endeavour to prove the reality of the
Antediluvian writings ; but the book cited by that
apofile is generally allowed, both by ancient and
modern writers, to be fpurious.
Of profane bocks, the oldefi- extant are Homer's
poems, which were fo, even in the rime of Sixtus
Empiricus; though wc find mention in Greek wri-
ters of feveral others prior to Hom.er, as Hermes,
Orpheus, Daphne, Horus, Linus, Mufseus, Pala-
medes, Zoroafier, b^c. but of the greater part of
thel'e there is notthclcaft fragment remaining; and
of others, the pieces which go imder their names arc
generally held, by the learned, to be fuppofititious..
F. Hardouin goes farther, charging all the ancient
books, both Greek and Latin, except Cicero, Pliny>
Virgil's Georgics, Horace's Satires and Epiflks,.
Herodotus, and Homer, to be fpurious, and forged
in the Xlllth century, by a club of peribns, under
the direction of one Severus ArchoiUius. Among
the
BOO
BOO
the Greeks, it is to be obfcr\'cd, the oldcft books
were in vcrfir, which was prior to profe. Hcro-
dotiii's hiftory is the oldell book extant of the pro-
faic kind.
Alateriah of BooKS. — Several forts of materials
were iifed formerly in making books : plates of lea J
and copper, the bark of trees, bricks, flone, and
wood, were the firft materials employed to engrave
fiich thi.'v^s upon, as men were willing to have
tranfmittcd to poflerity. Jofcphus fpeaksof two co-
liunns, the one of fcone, the other of brick, on
which ii\e children of Scth wrote their inventions
and agronomical difcoverics. Porphyry makes men-
tion of fome pillars, preferved in Crete, on which
the ceiemonies praiSlifed by the Corybantes in their
facrifices, were recorded. Hcfiod's works were ori-
ginally written upon tables of lead, and depofited
in the cciiiple of the Mufes, in Boeotia. The ten
commandments, delivered to Mofes, were written
upon flone; and Solon's laws upon wooden planks.
Tables of wood, box, and ivory, were common
among the ancients : when of wood, they were
frequently covered with wax, that people might
write on them with more eafe, or blot out what
they had written. The leaves of the palm-tree
were afterwards ufed iniVead of wooden planks, and
die fineft and thinneft part of the bark of fuch trees,
as the lime, the alh, the maple, and the elm ; from
hence comes the word liber ^ which fignifies the in-
ner bark of trees ; and as thefe barks v/ere rolled
up, in order to be removed with greater eafe, thefe
rolls were called volumen, a volume; a name after-
wards, given to the like rolls of paper, or parch-
ment. •
Thus we find books were firft written on ftoncs,
witnefs the Decalogue given to Ixlofes : then on the
parts of plants, as leaves chiefly of the palm-tree ;
the rind and barks, efpecially of the tilia, or phil-
lyrea, and the Egyptian papyrus. By degrees wax,
then leather, were introduced, efpecially the fkins
of goati and flieep, of which at length parchment
v.-as prepared: then lead came into ufe; alio linen,
filk, horn, and laftly, paper itfelf.
Form of Books. — The firfl books were ia the
form of blocks and tables: but as flexible matter
came to be wrote upon, they fouiixl it more con-
venient to make their books in the form of rolls:
thefe were compofed of feveral {heets, fattened to
each other, and rolled upon a flick, or umbilicus ;
the whole, making a kind of column, or cylinder,
which was to be managed by the umbilicus as a
handle, it being reputed a crime to take hold of the
roll itfelf: the outfide of the volume was called
from ; the ends of the umbilicus, corr.ua, horns,
which were ufually carved, and adorned with lilver,
ivory, or even gold and precious ftoncs : the title,
ci.hKaC^, was Itruck on the outfidc ; the whole vo-
lume when extended, might make a yard and a half
V'ide, ?iiJ fifty long. The form which obtains a-
inoiig lib ii tilt l"i]uare, compofed of feveral Icave-s ;
which was alfo known, though little ufed, by the
ancierits.
To the form of books belongs alfo the internal
ojconoiriy, as the order and arrangement of points
and letters into lines and pages, with margins and
other appurtenants. This has undergone many
varieties ; at firft the letters were only divided into
lines, then into feparate words, which, bv decrees,
were noted with accents, and diftribiited,'by points
and ftops, into periods, paragraphs, chapters, and
other divifions. in fome countries, as amono' the
Orientals, the lines began from the right, and ran
towards the left ; in others, as the northern and
weftern nations, from left to right ; others, as the
Greeks, followed both direftions, alternately going
in the one, and returning in the other, called boul-
trophedon : in molt countries the lines run from ons.
lide to the other : in fome, particularly the Chinefe,
from top to bottom. Again, in fome the page is
entire and uniform ; in others, divided into co-
lumns j in otliers, dilfinguifhed into texts and
notes, either marginal, or at the bottom ; ufually it-
is furnifhcd with fignatures and catch-words i.
fometimcs alfo with a rcgifter, to difco\'cr whether
the book is coinplete. To tlicfe are added the ap-
paratus of fummaries, or fide notes, the embcllilh-
ments of red, gold, or initial letters, head-pieces,
tail-pieces, effigies, fchemes, maps, and the like.
The end of the book, now denoted by Finis, was
anciently marked with this character <, called corr-
nis : there alfo occur certain formulas at the begins
nings and endings of books ; the one to exhort the.
reader to be courageous, and proceed to the follow-
ing books ; the others were concluGons, often,
guarded with icnprecations againfi: fuch as Ihould
f.Ufify tiiem.
BOOK-BINDING is the art of gathering aiiJ
fallening together the fheets of a book, and cover-^
ing it with a back.
The anticnt art of binding of books, when firit
the fe\era! fliccts of writings of authors were colr-
leflcd together, vvas not attended with great diffi-
culties ; for the leaves were only glued togethe.^
and rolled on round pieces f)r cylinders of wood ;
which, manner of book-binding, whofe in\entioi»
is attributed to the Egyptians, was- continued ti!!-
long after the age of Aiigullus, and is ftill re-
tained by the Jewifh fvnagogucs, wiicre they con-
tinue to write the books of the law on vellum*
fewed together, making, as- it were, only one lono-
page, with two rollers, having, clafps of gold os
filver at their extremities, the whole bookTieing
wrapped up in a piece of filk, which fcrves as rv
cover to it.
But as this manner of binding. boi.ks is attend-
ed with many inconveniencies, one of the .'\ttal',
kings of Pergamus, invented the form now in ufe^
of fquare binding, or of fewing feveral quires oi\«
ovsn
BOO
ovei aiiothci, p.f more commodious to the reader,
who can open and fhut his book in an inftant,
without the lead difficulty, and without the leaves
lieins expofcd to wear out i"o loon as when rolled
up, efpecially of books written or printed on pa-
per. It is performed in the following manner :
The leaves are iirft folded with a thin piece of
ivory called a folding-rtick, and laid over each
ether in ihe order of the ilgiiatures ; then beaten
on a ftonc with a hammer to make them Imooth
and open well, and afterwards preffed. They are
then fcwed upon bands, which are pieces of cord
or packthread, fix bands to a folio-book, five to a
jjuarto, &c. which is done by drawing a thread
ihrou^li the middle of each flieet, and giving it a
turn round each hand, beginning with the niit,
and proceeding to the lali:.
i'he French book-binders apply a facet of parch-
ment the length of the bo;>k, on the infide of each
pafteboard, fo, however, as that, being cut or in-
dented in the places agaii^tl the bands, it comes
nut between the edge of the pafle-board and the
leaves of the book, to cover the back ; they call
this indoifmg, and they are obliged to do it, on
the penalty of thirty livres, and the re-binding of
the book. ' It is done in the prefs, where the back
being grated with an iron inftrument, with teeth to
make the pafte-board hold, wherewith the parch-
ment is firil faftencd, they afterv/ards add ftrong
glue to fortify it. After this the books are glued,
and the bands opened and fcraped for the better fix-
ing the palte-boards ; tlie back is turned with a
hammer, and the book fixed in a prefs between two
boards, called backing-boards, in order for mak-
ing a groove for fixing the pafte-boards ; which
lieing applied, holes are made tor fixing them to
the book, which is prefied a third time : then the
book is put at Lul to the cutting-prefs, betwixt
two boards, the one lying even with the prefs, for
the knife to run upon ; the other above it, for the
knife to cut againfl ; after which the palle-boards
«re fquared with a pair of fnears.
The next operation is fprinkling the leaves of the
hook, .hich i.s done by dipping a brufh made of
how's briftlcs irto \-ermilicn and lap-grccn, hold-
jnsi the brufn in one hand, and fpreading the hair
v/uh the other ; by whicli motion the edges of the
kaves are fprinkied in a regular manner, without
;.ny fpots being bigger than the others, at lealf fo
far as to be dilagreeable to the eye.
Then remain the covers, which are either of
calf-fkin, or {heep-fkin. Anciently books were
always bound in parchment, and moft of our va-
lurble books, even fir.ce the in\'ention of printing,
liave no other binding ; but this prac'tice has been
]on_3- difufed. The bell binding at prefent is in
cal^
The calf or flieep-fk'ji, being moiftened in wa-
ter, is cut out to the fize of the book with a knife,
BOO
then fmcared over with pafte, made of wheat flotn',
and afterwards ftrctclied over the paffe-board on
the out-fide ; and doubled over the edges within-
fide, after having firft taken off the four angles,
and indented and plaited it at the head-band; which
done, the book is corded or bound firmly between
two bands, with a kind of whipcord, to make the
cover itick the ilronger to the pafte-board and the
back, as alfo to form the bands or ncr\'es more ac-
curately ; then let to dry, and, when dry, uncord-
ed, and the leaves at each end opened. Afterwards,
the book is waflied o\er with a little palle and wa-
ter, and then fprinkied fine with a brufli, by flrik-
ing it either againrt the hand, or a ftick, unlefs it
fhould be m.arbled ; for then the fpots are to be
made larger, by mixing the ink with vitriol. Then
the cover is glazed twice with the white of an
egg beaten, as painters do their pidtures when they
arefinifhed, andat laft poliftied withapolifhing-iron
palled hot over the glazed cover.
Thus the binding of a hook, properly fo called,
is finifhed, unlefs it fhould be lettered ; for then a
piece of red Morocco is paftcd on the back, be-
tween the firll and fecond bands, to receive the
title in gold letters, and fometimes a fecond be-
twixt the next hiuids underneath, to receive the
number of the volume. In France, they feldom
bind any book without both, if the work confifls
of fcveral volumes ; which done, the book-binder
fends his books to the gilder, which in that king-
dom is a profeffion apart, or fcparate from book-
binding.
The gilder makes the letters on the back, and
the roles, ftars, ^'c. between the bands, with
puncheons engraven in relievo, which they prefs
fiat down, and the lines, embroideries, &c. with
little cylinders of brafs, rolled along by an iron
roller, by means of a double branch ; in the middle
whereof they are fitted on an iron ftay, or axis,
th.at pafi'es the middle of their diameter. Before
thev apply any of thcfe tools, they glaze thofc
pints of the leather whereon they are to be applied,
lightly over with a pencil, or Iponge ; and when
half dry, lay over them pieces of leaf gold, cut
out near the fize ; and on thefe ftamp the punche-
ons, which are beat down with a mallet, or ham-
mer, if the figures be large, and require a great ic-
lievo, as arms, &c. or roll the cylinders, both the
one and the other, reafonably hot. 'I"he gilding
thus finifhed, they rub otF the fupcrfluous gold
with a hare's foot, leaving nothing covered with
gold, but the places whereon the hot tools have
left their impreffions.
Book-Keeping, commonly called merchants
accounts, is the art or method of difpofing a man's
dealings or tranfadtions in luch a manner as will
enable him to dilcern by his books the true ftate of
his affairs, not only in refpeft of what is due to
and from himfelf, but alfo the quantity of every
par-
BOO
particular kind of goods he has in his ware-houfc,
either on his own account or for others, together
with the particulars of the purchafe or difpofal,
gain or lofs, attending each feparate fpecies.
'Ihcre are three principal boolcs for conducing
this ufeful invention, viz. a VVaftc-Book, Journal,
and Ledger, which arc abfclutcly nccci'ary. Bc-
fidcs thefe, there are other fubfidiary books, fuch
as the Letter-Book, Ship's-Book, Rcceipt-
Book, Bill-Book, Invoice-Book, Sales-Book,
Book of Accounts Current, Warehoufc-Book,
Book of Expenccs," and the Cafh-Book ; but thefe
fubfervicnt or auxiliary books are more or lefs in
number according to the nature of the trade, quan-
tity of bufinefs, or method of keeping the accounts ;
and he is reckoned the moft expert accomptant,
who makes ufc of the feweft auxiliary books.
The IVafle-EooK. contains all the tranfixdions
which arc done every day, which ought to be fet
down, together witii all the particulars relating
thereto, iji a plain, eafy, and familiar flile, ferving
only to give a defcripiion of the afHiir that hath
■been negotiated, jull in the manner it happened,
and according to the time they fucceed each other ;
and it is the foundation on which both the Journal
and Ledger depend, or from which they are eredted.
This book opens with an inventory of the mer-
chant's ready money and cfteiSs, the debts due to
him, and what he owes to others ; after which fol-
lows a minute and accurate record of every tranf-
aclion, with all the necelTary circumftances of date,
fums, conditions, (quantity, quality, price, and
every other particular, that may help to render
the entries fatisfaftory to the prefent and all fuc-
cecding book-keepers. Upon this book you may
obferve four lines are drawn (as in the following
examples) through the length of it ; three of which,
namely, thofe on the right-hand liJe of the leaf,
are put to ferve for columns in which the pounds,
fliillings, and pence, relating to the article tranf-
afted is to be writ down; and the other column at
the left-hand and in the margin, ferves for the put-
ting a mark therci!!, to fignify th'at the faid article
is journalized, or pofted from, thence into the Jour-
nal ; it is ufuallv thus /. The follov/ing is an e.v-
aiTtple of opening a Walle-Book, and the manner of
writing the tranfadtions of the day.
V/ A S T E - B O O K.
London, 'Jar.uury i, 1765.
An Inventory of the Money, Goods,
Debts, ts'c. belonging to me James
Hendy, taken this Day, viz.
In ready money - - - _ _ -
7 Pipes of red-port, at 25I. per pipe -
J. Hammond owes me a note on demand
/ oiu; as follows :
To Phil. Hendy, per note due the 7
9th inftant - - - - - - i
20
£■■
J.
Soc
00
,178
!C
20c
?0
IOC
1
00
d.
00
00
00
00
BOO
London, yanuary 3, 1 765.
/ I Bought of James Hervcy, 3 pipes T
of Malaga wine, at 25I. los. per V
pipe, for which I paid - - - J
Sold Jofeph Berwick, a piece of)
broad-cloth, upon truft, for - - j
9
! Paid Phil. Hendy in full - - -
l.\s.\d.
76 1000
16 10
100 00,
00
CO
The Journal is a kind of preparatory for the
Ledger ; for it is in this book that all tranfadlion.o
recorded in the Wafte-Book are digefted, their pro-
per Debtors and Creditors afcertained ; it is alfo of
excellent ufe, both to prevent errors in the Ledger,
and to correct them when made; for without it the
balancing a fet of books, in cafe of any millake,
would be extremely difficult and tedious.
Upon this book you niuil draw five lines, (as in
the follov/ing examples) three of which, namely,
thofe on the right-fide of the leaf, are put to ferve
for columns in which the pounds, fhillings, and
pence, relating to the article tranfacted are to be
writ ; in like manner as upon the Wafte-Book ;
and the other column at the left-hand ferves to fet
dov/n the folios of the Ledger on which all the ac-
counts that are faid in the Journal to be Debtors
and Creditors ftand : the folio of that account which
is Debtor being always uppermoft, and that of the
Creditor under it, parted one from the other by a
line in form of a vulgar fradion, thus |. It muft
alfo be remarked, that the titles of the feveral ac-
counts in the Journal which arc made Debtors and
Creditor.s, in entering tranfactions of affairs there-
in, muft be wrote in charafters larger than any of
the reft of the writing relating to it, and contained
in one line if pra6licable. Under this line you
muft exprefs the reafon why fuch a perfon, account,
or defign, is made debtor, with the particular con-
ditions of the negotiation ; likewife the weight,
meafure, &c. of each particular parcel, or pack-
age, which is received in, or delivered out, at the
price agreed upon, with the fum total in the money
columns. In thofe entries where there arc fundry
Debtors to one Creditor, or feveral Creditors to
one Debtor, the feveralDcbtors, or Creditors, are
entered in the firft line, after the date, under the
title of Sundries, orSundry Accounts, and each par-
ticular Deb;or and Creditor afterwa-ds expreffcd
below, with the refpeftive fums fnort-carried.
The grcateft- difficulty that chiefly arifcs to young
fiudents in the art of book-keeping, is finding the
jjropcr Debtor and Creditor to each article in the
Wafte-Book, or more properly to Journalize.
The authors that have lately written on this fub-
je£l, have given fuch a multiplicity of rules, that
we apprehend they rather hinder, perplex, and
puzzle, than facilitate or explain this point ; ntfr do
W'e think there is occafion for any other rule than
5 D what
BOO
what Mr. Webfier haa.given, viz. "That wh.it-
" ever we receive, or the pyfofi. receiving is Debtor,
" or whatever you deliver, or the perfon delivering
" is Creditor." Whatever money, goods, and
debts, a merchant is poffefied of, compofe his
ftock, which in order to difpofe properly for trade,
each feparate article muft at the beginning be
charged Debtor to Stock ; as on the other hand,
Stock muft be made Debtor to the feveral perfons
to whom you are indebted. The following ex-
ample, which is taken from the foregoing example
of the Wafle-Book, will illuftrate the above
rule.
JOURNAL.
London., fanuary i, 1705.
B O O
Sundries D". to Stock.
/.
s.
d.
I- s. d.
Cafli in ready money - - 500 00 00
Red-port, for 7 pipes at 7 „
' ■ ( 178 10 00
25 . lOs. per pipe -J /" *^ ^'^
Tames Hammond owes }
per note on demand J 2°° °° ^°
878
10 00
Stock D'. to Sundries.
To Phil. Hendy, due per note - -
100
00
00
MALAGAWINED^toCASH 761.IOS..
Bought 3 pipes at 25I. los. per pips -
A
76
lO
00
Joseph Berwick D'. to Broad-
Cloth, 16I. JOS.
Sold him one piece upon truft
16
10
00
Phil. Hendy D\ to Cash lool.
Paid him in full - - - _ _ _
100
00
CO
The Ledger is. the grand and principal book ot
accounts, wherein the feveral articles belonging to
the lame fubjecl, are collecSled together, and ranged
in their natural order of Debtor and Creditor, on
the oppofite fides of their refpeflive accounts.
When this book is duly polled, the various tranf-
aflions and dealings of a merchant with refpect to
men, mone)', and merchandize, are fo regulated
and difpofed under their proper heads, that they
afford a comprehenfive view of all his negociations,
from which a compleat balance of his traffic being
made, he may at any time fee the true ftate of each
branch of his bufmefi;, and know tlic amount of
his prefent ftock, or what he is worth at that time.
Upon this book you may obferve, as in the fol-
lowing example, that there are two leaves of paper
allowed for each account, facing each other : like-
wife that the title of the account with the letters
D\ are wrote on the left-hand leaf or folio in large
characters ; and the words Per Contra, with the
letters C'. in the fame manner on the right-liand leaf.
You muft likewifc obferve, that on each of the
leaves of every account, there are fix lines ruled
or drawn at length, four of which are on the right
hand of each leaf, and two on the left, forming as
many columns. . The three columns to the right-
hand are for the pounds, {hillings, and pence,
and the fourth for the folio. The two columns to
'the left-hand are one for the year and month, and
the other for the dav of the month. Befide which
feme draw, or make another column to the left,
foi; references to the Journal page ; and others to
the right, for the quantity and weight of goods,
foreign money, &c. as the nature of the account
requires.
See the following example of the article Malaga
wine, in the foregoing Journal, pofted.
THE LEDGER.
J765.
( 2 )
CASH D'.
F.
L
i.
d.
1765.
( 2 )
PER CONTRA C^
F.
r.
i.
d.
Jan'''.
3
By Malaga wine, at 25I. 7
I OS. for 3 pipes - - )
6
;6
10
00
1765.
( 6 )
( 6 )
Jan>'.
3
MALAGA WINE D^
ToCafli, at 25I. los. fori
3 pipes - - - - J
2
76
10
00
PER CONTRA C'.
The firft thing to be done in pofting or tranf-
ferring accounts from the Journal to the Ledger, is
to title the Ledger ; that is to write it in a large
fair hand, at the top of the folio, and at fuch dif-
tances below as your judgment ihall direft, the
■feveral j\amQ« cpfitajned in the firft lines pf your
Journal entries, except where the word Sundries is
mentioned, when, inftead of which, thofe names
at tlie beginning of the fubfequent lines are to be
wrote, taking care not to make two titles alike,
which may be avoided by keeping an alphabet c\i
the different accounts, with the folios on w'..ich
they
BOO
B OO
chey arc entered in the Ledger, and having frequent
recourfe to that.
Secondly, as all entries in the Ledger are double,
you nnid be carelul never to make a Debtor with-
out a Creditor ; that is, as in the furegoing example,
if Malaga Wine be Debtor to Cafli, Calli mult be
Creditor to Malaga Wine. Or if any other ac-
count be Debtor to Sundries, which flgnifics two or
more particulars, thofe feveral accounts muil each
feparatcly be made Creditors for the" I'um which
that particular account v^as Debtor.
The method of tranfpofing accompts from one
folio of the Ledger to another ; how to prove the
truth of your polling by a trial balance; tlie
inethod of examining the book, and corredting the
errors ; how the real balance is drawn out, and a
new fct of books r pened from it, &c. take as given
in a treatife on tliis fvibjedf, by Mr. John Cook,
niafter of the academy in Charles-ftreet, St. James's-
fquare, viz.
*' The method of tranfpofing Accompts from
one folio in the Ledger to another.
" If at any time the fpace allotted for an Ac-
compt lliould be fo filled with articles as to make
it neccfiary to remove it to another folio in the
Ledger, it may be done by one or other of the fol-
lowing methods, viz.
" ill. If it be an Accompt, where the diffe-
rence between the Debtor and Creditor, with re-
fpeft to money, is only confidered, as is the cafe in
all Accompts of Perfons, Calh, Profit and Lofs,
Sec. add up both fides, and make the new Ac-
cqmpt Debtor to the cid, for the Balance or dif-
ference, if the Debtor fide be heavieft ; but, if the
Creditor fide be heavieft, make the old Accompt
Debtor to the new.
" 2ndiy, If it be an Accompt of Goods, &c.
add up the fides, and make the new Accompt
Debtor to the old, for the whole quantity and price
of the Goods bought ; and the old Accompt
Debtor to the new, for the total quantity and
price of thofe fold ; by which means the old Ac-
compt will be balanced, and on the new one will
appear both the quantity of goods bought, with
the fum paid for them, and thofe which have been
lold, with the money received, as was before on
the old Accompt.
" How to pr'-.vc thejruth of your Porting, by
making a Trial balance.
" 'I he way to make a Trial balance is, to add
5\p all the money on the Debtor fides, through-
out the whole Ledger, into one fum, and all on
the Creditor fides into another ; if both totals come
alike, you may conclude )our Pofting is right;
for, as I ha\e already obferved, every entry in the
Ledger is double, that is, no accompt is ever
chai-ged Debtor, but fome other is, or ought to
be. Credited with the like fum, by which it is
plain, there are juft as many Creditors as there
arc Debtors ; and confcqucntly (if the accompts
loth fid
agree.
have been properly polled) both fides mufl exactly
" The method of examining the books and cor-
refting errors.
" If upon making the Balance above-mentioned,
there iliould be a difagreemcnt in the totals, you
may then reafonably conclude (provided no mif-
take is made in the adding) that you have omitted
either the Debtor or Creditor, or charged them
with difl-ercnt fums, or elfe entered fome parcel
in both accompts, either on the Debtor or Credi-
tor fide, any of which errors will be difcovered by
pricking over your Ledger; that is, beginning at
the firft accompt, which is Stock Debtor to Cafli,
and againft: the fum make a dot thus (.), then turn
to the Creditor folio, and mark that in like man-
ner, proceeding thus with every entry throughout
the book ; and having by this means difcovered the
milfake, reiSify it by one of the following me-
thods, viz.
" If the Debtor or Creditor is omitted, it is cor-
refted by charging which ever of them is in its
proper accompt.
" If the Debtor or Creditor be charged witii
different fums, it is reclifisd (if either of them be
charged too much) by making the oppofite fide
Debtor to, or Creditor by error for the excefs ; if
too little, by charging it again Debtor to, or Cre-
ditor by its counterpart for the deficiency.
" When a parcel is entered in both accompts on
the fame fide, it is adjufted, by making the oppo-
fite fide Debtor to, cr Creditor by error, for the
film of the article wrong placed ; then, enter the
article in its proper place, by vvhich means the mif-
take will be Balanced, and the Accompt left pro-
perly ftated. After this manner are all errors in
Book-keeping corrected, and not by cancelling or
erafing, which Merchants never admit of.
" How the real Balance is drawn out, and a new
fet of books opened from it.
" Balancing the Ledger, is • adding up the
Debtor and Creditor fides of the feveral accompts
feparately ; the difference of which being polled
on the defeilivc, or lightell fide, will make both
even ; and, confequently, the accompt become
Halanced. In doing which the follovving rules
muft be obferved.
" In the firfl; place, ereiSl in the Ledger an ac-
compt of Balance, to which the difference between
the Debtors and Creditors in the accompt of Cafli,
and alfo in accompts of men, together with the
quantity and prime cofts of all goods remaining in
your hands, mufl be carried ; as for example. Let
it be fuppofed, that the Debtor fide of Cafh con-
tains 15, cool, and the Creditor 10, cool, the diffe-
rence then being 5000I. (which is the money you
have by you) it muft be entered on the Creditor
fide, in order to talance the accompt, by making
6 Cafii
BOO
Cafli creditor by Balance 5000I. and confequently,
Balance will Itand Debtor to Cafli 5COCI. So in
the Accompts of men, if tlie Debtor be the heavieft,
the difference is the money due to you; which, in
order to make the Accompt even, mult be brought
on the Creditor fide; therefore Balance will again
be charged Debtor for the like fum, and vice verfa.
I have already mentioned, that whatever goods re-
main unfold arc carried to Ba'ancc ; but, as Ac-
compts of goods admit of three varieties, I fiiall
treat of each feparately.
" The firft then is, when none are fold.
" In this cafe, the Accompt is made even, by
being Credited by Balance, for the whole quantity
at prime cofl.
" The fecond is, when all are fold.
" In which cafe the Accompt is balanced by
Profit and Lofs only, by being charged Debtor to,
or Creditor, by that accompt, for the gain or lofs
arifing from the fale of the goods.
" The third is, when only part of the Goods
are fold. .
■" And here, both the accompts of Balance and
Profit and Lofs are concerned ; for, in the firfb
place, the Goods muft be Credited by Balance,
ia-^ thofc remaining at prime cofl: ; and afterv;aids
made Debtor to, or Creditor by Profit and Lofs,
for the Gain or Lofs on thofc that are fold.
" The other accompts, fuch as Charges of
merchandize, Houfe-expences, &c. as they are dif-
burfements from which no return can be expelled,
are all balanced by Profit and Lofs, which, toge-
ther with Stock and Balance, {land open 'till the
laft ; and, in order to Balance them, begin with
Profit and Lofs, and make it Debtor to, or Cre-
ditor by Stock, for the difference of the fides,
which is your whole Gain or Lofs by trade ; then
p.dd up the accompt of Stock, and c'lofe it by car-
rying the difference, which is your neat eftate, to
Balance ; by which means the faid accompt of
Balance v/ill become evened ; the Debtor fide of
which will prefent you with a diirinft account of
all the Money, Goods, and Debts you are poffeffed
of; and the Creditor fide with an account of what-
ever is due from you to others ; and confequently,
contains, or rather is, an inventory of your effeiSts,
vi'ith which a new fet of books arc opened ; for
the better unJerflanding of Vv'hich, compare the
Balance of the firff fet with the In\entory of the
Iccond ,
" I iliall now in the lafl: place examine the
methods made ufe of in keeping Company ac-
compts.
" There is no part of Book-keeping that ad-
mits of greater variety, or is fo extenfivcly ufeful,
as that which is called Compimy accompts, there
being fev/ Merchants, who have any confiderable
dealings, but what are concerned in P'artnerlhip ;
BOO
notvvithflanJing which, it has been treated of by
the majority of writers upon this fubieft, in the
mod fuperficial manner, and they are dill divided
in the method of Journalizing thofe cafes relating
to Goods in compa.ny being fold upon truil ; fome
chufing to make the buyer Debtor to the Goods
in company ; and then the Partner's a.ccompt com-
pany Debtor to his accompt current, for his half
fliareof the money due; by which method, it is
evident, your Partner's accompt current (which is
what fhould particularly flicw the money due, either
from, or to the perfon) becomes Credited for a fum
you, at prefent, do not owe him, by reafon of your
not having received it ; and, if never paid, are
not accountable for. There is alfo another ob-
vious objection, which naturally arifes to this me-
thod : and that is, when Goods are paid for at dif-
ferent times, in order to knov/ what money is due
to your Partner, recourfe mufl: be had to the Pur-
chai'er's accompt ; and if fold, for part money,
part time, both the Goods in company, and Pur-
cha'er's accompt, muft be referred to, as it is im-
pofiible, am.idft a multiplicity of bufinefs, to charge
the memory with things of this nature, neither
would it be proper fo to do.
" By the other method made ufe of (which is
that I ihall purfue), all the aboVe objections are re-
moved ; for as here no notice is taken of money
due to your Partner, 'till fuch time as it is received,
the Accompt company will remain open ; and, as
the payments are made, be charged Debtor to the
current for your partner's fhare of the fum, by
which means he v/ill be Credited for his part of
v/hatever money has been received ; and confe-
quently, his Accompt current v/ill plainly fliew
what he has a right to demand of you. If any ob-
jed:, that, when the Goods are fold, the accompt
company, as it fhews your partner's fliare in them,
ought to be clofed ; I anfwer : the Goods in com-
pany is .the proper accompt to have recburfe to for
their difpofol, that the Accompt company then an-
fwers the purpofe of an Accom.pt at time, and may
be balanced in the fame manner, as it fhews what
money is due at Time toj'our Partner."
Bookseller, one who trades in books, v/he-
ther he prints thein himfelf, or gives them to be
printed by others.
BOOM, in the fortification of a harbour, a
ffrong chain or cable, on which are faftened a num-
ber of poles, t^c. extending athwart the entrance
of an harbour or river, to prevent the enemies
fhips of war from coming in : it may occafionally
be lunk, or drawn up to the furface of the water,
by capfterns and other mechanical powers.
Captain Park, in his Defenfi\c War by Sea,
publilhed anno 1704, will fiirnifh the reader,
who is curious to underftand the coiiftrudfion of
theie machines, with a particular account of their
beLng
BOO
BOO
being prcpnrcJ and fixed, which is alio quoted into
the Seaman's Vade-Mecum ; but as they have not
been much ul'ed of late, we lliall fay no more of
them ourfclvcs, and far Jefs exhauft our reader's
patience with fo clumfy and laborious a detail.
Booms, in the marine, long poles run out from
dit+erent places in a (liip, to extend the bottom of
certain tails : of thefe there aie fcveral forts, as t!ie
jib-boom, lludding-fail booms, main-boom, and
/quare-fail boom ; thefe two lafl are only appro-
priated to fmall veflels.
liooM is likcwife a general name for all mafts
and yards.
BOOPHTHALMUS, a kind of agate with
laigc circles in it, bearing fome refemblance to an
ox's eye. from w-bence it has got this name.
BOOT, a well-known cover for the leg, made
of leather.
Boot-Tree, or Boot-La-gt, an inilrument
ufed by fhoe-makers to widen the leg of a boot.
It is a wooden cylinder flit into two pmts, between
which, when it is put into the boot, they drive by
main force a wedge or quoin.
Boot-topping, in the marine. When either
from the want of a dock, or other convenient fitu-
ation, or through the hurry of her voyage, a Ihip
cannot get her whole bottom properly trimmed and
clcanfed of the filth which adheres to it in the
coMtle of a fea-voyage ; they ufually make her lean
or heel firil to one iide, and then to the other, as
much as they may do it without danger of over-
turning her, in order to fcrub off the gr.ifs, flime,
(hells, or other excrement ; which having perform-
ed, they cover all that part of the bottom which
is elevated above the furface of tbe water on one
fide, as the fliip heels, with a mafs of fulphur,
tallow, and other materials, and afterwards per-
form the fame on the other fide, both to preferve it
from the worm, and to make the flup Hide i'moother
through the water. See Careen, Dock.
BOO I ES, in ailronomy, a conftellation of the
northern hcmifphere, conurting of fifty-four ftars
in the Britifh catalogue, twenty-eight in Tycho's,
twenty-three according to Ptolemy, thirty-four in
Bayer's, and fifty-two in Hevclius's.
According to fabulous hiftory, this Bootes is
fuppofed to be Areas, the fon of Calillo, daughter
to Lvcaon, king of Arcadia. The poetical ftory is
thus : Lycaon receiving Jupiter into his houfe as a
gueft, took Areas, his daughter's fon, cut him into
pieces, and placed him before Jupiter to eat, think-
ing by that means to prove whether his vifitor was
a god, which he had pretended to be. Jupiter per-
ceiving the heinous faiSt, overturned the table,
fired ti e houle with lightning, and transformed
Lycaon into a wolf ; after which he gathered up
the limbs of Areas, put them together, and com-
nutted him to a nympli of Etolia, to be taken care
20
of. When Areas, Bootes, or Artophilax, was come
to man's cllate, and was hunting in the woods, he by
chance met with his mother Califto, whom Juno
had turned int'o the fhape of a bear, and purfued
her into the temple of Jupiter Lyc;fus, which, by
the law of tiie Arcadians, v. as death for any man
to enter ; therefore Jupiter, fearing left both
fhould be flain, Califlo by her fon, and Arcis by
the law, out of pity tranflated them both into hea-
ven.
There is only one unformed flar in this conftel-
lation, which is between Bootes' legs, and by the
Grecians is called ArtSurus, becauie of all the ilars
near the Bear, named Arctos, this flar is firft (cen
near her tail in the e\ening ; the poetical invention
concerning which is thus : Icarus, the father of
Erigone, having received of the god Bacchus a
flagon of wine, to declare how good it was for
mortal men, took it along with him into the terri-
tories of Athens, where caroufing with it among
certain Ihepherds, who being delighted with the
pleafantnels of the wine, which was a new kind of
liquor to them, drank very freely, and were quick-
ly glad to lay their heads to reft : but coming to
themfelves again after fome time, and finding their
heads fcarce in good temper, they killed Icarus,
fuppofing that he had either poifoned them, or given
them fomething to intoxicate their brain. Erigone
was ready to die for grief; but Jupiter, to allay her
forrow, placed her father in hea\en between the
legs of Bootes.
Bootes by fome is called the Waggoner, bccaufc
he is iuppofed to drive Charles's-wain, which is
drawn bv three oxen. Others call him Artophilax,
and fuppofe him to be the keeper of the bear,
or that the care of the bear is committed to
him.
In the following Catalogue you have the right
afcenfions and declinations fettled to the year 1 7 70 ;
likewifc the annua! variation in right afcenfion and
declination in feconds and tenths.
Right
Afcenfion
1-
^
I
-a
Name.
c
s
1
6
2
6
3
6
4
4
5
4
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BOOTY, whate-.'er is taken from an enemy In
time of war.
BOQUINIANS, in church hiaory, afeft of
heretics, fo called from lloquinus their founder,
who taught that Chrift did not die for all man-
kind, but only for the faithful, and confequently
was only a particular Saviour.
BORAGO, borage, in botany, a pentandrious
plant, whofc root is thick, fibrous, and white,
from which fpring forth feveral broad, roundifli,
rough, wrinkled leaves, of adarkifli green colour,
B O R
which lie on the ground ; the flalk is hairy, round,
hollow, branched, and furniflicd \j\ih lefler
leaves, which are placed alternately ; the flowers,
which grow on the tops of the branches, are ge-
nerally blue, though fometimes reddifli, or of a
whitifti colour ; thefe are monopetalous, each hav-
ing a fhorttube, and divided into fne fharp-pointed
fegments ; in the center are placed four germen,
and a fingle flile, furrounded by five fubulated fila-
ments, which are joined together ; the germen af-
terward becomes fo many rough, roundifh feeds :
this plant is annual, and grows wild in many parts
of England. The leaves of borage are accounted
cordial, and good in removing faintnefs, for which
reafon the tops are frequently put into wine and
cool tankards. Boerhaave recommends the e.x-
prcli'ed juice in all inflammatory difeafes ; the only
ofhcinal preparation is the conferve of the flowers.
BORAX, a fabulous animal, laid to be of a
middle nature, betv/een an afs and a mule, and to
have carried Mahomet in his aerial journies from
Jerufalem into Heaven.
Borax, a faline fubftance", of which neither the
origin, or tlie component parts areas yet known. It
comes from the Ealt-Indies in little cryllalline
maflcs, fomewhat refcmbling fmall cryftals of fal
gem, mi.xed with earth and other impurities.
It is commonly iaid, that borax is prepared in
the eaflern countries, from a green faline liquor,
which runs from certain hills, and is received in.
pits lined with clay, and fuftered to evaporate by
tlie fun's heat ; that a bluifh mud, which the li-
quor brings along with it, is frequently flirted up,
and a bitumincub matter which floats upon the fur-
face taken c.fF; that when the whole is reduced to
a thick confiftencc, fome melted fat is mixed, the
matter covered with dry vegetable fubftances, and
a thin coat of clay ; and that when the fait has
cryflallized, it is fcparated from the earth by a
ficve.
In the fame countries is found. In confiderable
quantities, a native mineral alkaline fait on the
furface of the earth, fometimes tolerably pure,
more commonly blended with heterogeneous mat-
ters of various colours ; the nitrum or natron of
the ancients, the bai:rach of the Arabians. This
alkali appears to be the fame with the bafis of the
fea-falt, and with the lixivial fait of kali or kelp,
and fome otlier maritime plants. It diflers from
the common vegetable alkalies, in being milder and
lefs acrid .in tafle, afTuming a cryftalline appear-
ance, not deliquiating in the air, or very flowly ;
forming with the marine acid a perfect fea-falt,
v^ith the nitrous quadrangular nitre, and with the
vitriolic, a fal mirabile.
Mr. Pott received from Tranquebar, (where the
greatcfl quantities of borax arc made) a fand, un-
der the n.ime of ore of borax, with an aocount that
cer-
BOR
certain acrid vegetable matters were added in the
preparation of the borax. The ore yielded, on
elixation, only the mineral alkali, with a little fta-
lalt.
The mineral alkali appears, from experiment,
to be a principal ingredient in borax. On treat-
ing borax with acids, about one fourth its weight
of a peculiar falinc fubilance, called fedative fait,
is feparated, and the refiduum proves a combina-
tion of the alkali, with the acid employed : thus,
when the marine acid is ufed, a genuine fea-falt
remains ; when the nitrous, a quadrangular nitre ;
and when the vitriolic, a fa! mirabilc. The fub-
Itance feparated, ioined to the mineral alkali, to
the bafis of fea-falt, or to the fait of kali, recom-
pofes borax again.
The properties of this fubftance, fo far as they
are known, are thefe : It is of a bright fnowy
whitenefs, extremely light, compofed of fine plates
or fcales, foft, and as it were un(3:uous to the
touch, of no fmell, of a bitterifli tafte, accompa-
nied with a flight imprcfiion of coldnefs. It dif-
folves difficultly in boiling water, and on the li-
quor's cooling, crvftalliiies on its furface into thin
plates, which uniting and becoming larger, fall to
the bottom. It likewife diilolves, by the affiilance
of heat, in reftified fpirit of wine : the folution
fet on fire burns with a green flame. Moiftened
2nd cxpcfed to a confiderable heat, it in part fub-
limes ; by repeated humeiSlations the whole may
be elevated : whilft dry, it pro\ cs perfectly fixed ;
it melts, emits aqueous vapours, an.d runs into a
A itreous fubflance, difioluble again as at firft : nei-
ther the glafs nor the fait itfclf are afTeiSted by the
air. It makes no change in the colour of blue
flowers. It unites with the common alkaline falts,
in feme degree neutralizes, and renders them ca-
pable of cryftallization. It is faid to expel from
alcalies every acid except the vitriolic, though ex-
pelled itfelf by every acid from the alcaline bafis
of the borax.
Thus we find borax compofed of two princi-
ples, one every where plentiful, another which has
not hitherto been obtained but from borax itfelf;
the lafl in the fmalleft proportion. How far this
peculiar fubllance is natural or artificial, of mine-
ral or of \'egetab!e origin, is wholly unknown.
With regard to the refining of borax, the rough
fait is faid by fome to be difiblved in lime-water, by
others in a lixivium of cauftic alkali, and by others
in alum-water. This much is certain, that borax
difiblved in common water, and cryftallized in the
common manner, forms extremely fmall cryltals :
that thefe differ in feveral refpecSs from the refined
borax of the fhops, infomnch that Cramer calls
the latter not a purified but adulterated borax ; that
borax fhoots into larger cryllals when difiblved in
lime-water, than in common water ; and when the
vefTcl is covered, and a gentle warmth continued
BOR
during the cryftallization, than in other circulr.-
ftances.
It is obfervable, that borax, during its difiblu-
tion, appears tenacious, and adheres in part to the
bottom of the veflel : from this glutinous quality,
peculiar to borax among the -falts, it is employed
by the dyers for giving a glofs to filks. It is alfo
of the greatefl: ufe in foldering metals. Sec SoL-
D£RIN(;.
BORBONIA, in botany, a genus of diadelphi-
ous plants, the flower of which is pentapelous and
papilionaceous ; the fruit is a round pointed pod,
with one cell, containing a kidney fh;.ped i'ctd.
One of the iptcie-s of borbonia grows naturalJv at
the Cape of Good-Hope, where it rifes to the
height of ten or twelve feet, having flender flems
dividing into feveral branches, which are furniflied
with ftitf leaves, placed alternately, and are nar-
row, long, and acuminated ; the flowers come out
from between the leaves at the ends of the branches,
and are yellow, much refembling thofe of broom.
BOR'BORITES, Bnlwita, in church hiltory,
a feci of Gnoftics in the fecond century, who,
befides embracing the errors of thefe heretics, de-
nied the laft judgment.
Their name comes from gopfo^'o?, filth, on ac-
count of a cuftom they had of daubing their faces
and bodies with dfrt aiid filth.
BORDAT, in commerce, a fmall narrow flufl^,
which is manufactured in fome parts of Egypt,
particularly at Cairo, at Alexandria, and atlDa-
mieta.
BORDERS, in gardening, are of four forts :
thofe are the mofl common that are continued
about parterres without any interruption, and
wrought with a o-entle rifina in the middle, like
an als s back, and planted with low (hrubs and
flowers.
'I he fecond fort of borders are fuch as are cut
into compartments, at convenient dillances, by
fmall pafiages, and being alfo raifed in the middle,
as before-mentioned, are likewife fet off with
fhrubs.
The third fort are fuch as a.-e laid e\en and flat,
without flowers, having only a verge of grafs in
the middle, being edged with two fmall paths,
raked fmooth and fanded. Thefe are fometimes
garnifhed with flowering flirubs, and flowers, of
large growth ; or with vales and flower-pots placed
regularly along the middle of the verge of grafs.
The fourth fort are quite plain, and are only
fanded, as in the parterres of orangery ; and arc
filled with cafes ranged in a regular order along
thofe borders, which are edged with box on the
fides next the walks ; and on the other, with verges
and grafs-work next the parterre. Sometimes a
•yew is planted between each cafe, which makes
the border appear richer, and the parterres hand-
fomer. during the winte^ ftafon.
Bor-
B O R
BorJcrs are either made {Iraight, circular, or in
cants ; and are turned into knots, fcrolls, volutes,
and other compartments.
Florifts alfo make borders, either in long walks,
or detached ; and in thefe they raifs their iineft and
choiceft flowers. Thefe are frequently encom-
pafTed with border-boards painted green, which
makes thera look exceeding neat.
But in large parterres, this is not to be expe£l:-
cd ; fmce if they be flocked with flowers, fuc-
ceeding one another in their feveral feaibns, it
is fufficicnt, fo that nothing appears bare and
naked.
It is ufual to difcontinue the borders at the ends
next to the houfe, that the embroidery and rife of
the parterre may -not be hidden by the {hrubs and
flowering plants, and that the defign may be bet-
ter judged of.
Andfometimes there are branched out of it fo-
liage, palm-leaves, and (hells fporting among the
fands.
As the modern tafte of parterres, fcroll borders,
and fret-work in box, has k>;en juftly baniflied our
gardens : fo I have only mentioned them here, to
expofe the tafte of thofe architcft-gardeners, who
have no idea of the noble fmiplicity of an open
lawn of grafs, properly bounded by plantations ;
hut inftead of this, divide that part of the garden,
near the houfe, into various forms of horders edged
with box, and fand or gravel-walks leading about
them ; by which the ground is cut into many an-
gles, fcrolls, &c. which is very hurtful to the eye
of a judicious perfon ; therefore, where flov.'ers are
defired, there may he borders continued round the
extent of the lawn, immediately before the planta-
tions of flirubs i which, if properly planted with
hardy flowers to fuccced each other, will afford a
much more pleafnig profpccl than the ftiff borders
jnade in fcrolls and compartments, after the French
manner, can pofliblv do.
'I'hefe borders may be made fix or eight feet
v/ide, in proportion to the extent of the garden,
and fize of the lawn : for a fmall lawn fhould not
have very broad borders ; nor ought a large lawn
to be bounded fcy fmall borders ; fo that a due pro-
portion fhould be always obferved in the laying out
of gardens. AliUc's Gardsncr's Didionary,
J50R.D-FREE. See the article Free.
Rord-Halfpennv, a fm.all roll, by cuftom
paid to the lord of the town for fetting up boards,
tables, booths, &c. in fairs and markets.
Rord-Lands, the demefnes which lords keep
in their hands for the maintenance of their board
or table.
BoRD-LoDE, a fervice required of tenants to
carry timber out of the woods of the lord to hi.«;
houfe. It is alfo itfed to fignify the quantity of
provificn which the bordarii or bordmen pa.d tor
their bord-lands.
5
BO R
Bord-Service, the tenure of borJ-lands, by
which fome lands in certain places are held of the
bifliop of London, and the tenants now pay fix-
pence per acre, in lieu of finding provifion anci-
ently for their lord's table.
BORDURE, in heraldry, a cutting off from
within the efcutchson all round it, about one fifth
of the field, ferving as a difterence in a coat of
arms, to dnlinguilli families of the fame name, or
perfons bearing the fame coat. If the line con-
fiituting the b')rdure be ftraight, and the bordure
be plain, then in blazoning you muft only oamc
the colour of the bordure.
Bordures are fometimes ingrailed, gobonated, in-
vited, &c. See the articles Ingrailed, &c.
If the bordure be charged with any part of plants
or flowers, the term is verdoy of trefoils, or what-
ever flower it be. If it confifls of ermins, vairy,
or any of the furs, they fay purflew of ermins, &c.
If the bordure be charged with martlets, the word
is charged v/ith an enalyron of martlets, &c.
Bordures are fymbols of protection, favour, and
reward, and as fuch, kings beltow them on thofe
thev have a value for.
BORE, among engineers, denotes the diameter
of the barrel of a gun, or cannon, or rather its
whole cavity.
Square BoRE, among mechanics, a fquare piece
of well-tempered fteel, fitted into a handle, ferv-
ing to widen holes, and making them perfectly
round.
BOREAL, in a general fenfe, fomething relat-
ing to the north. Thus,
BoREAi, SIGNS, in aftronomy, are thofe fix
figns on the northern fide of tlie equinoctial, or
the firfi: fix figns of the Zodiac, viz. Aries, Tau-
rus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, and Virgo.
y/?('»r«-BoREAtis. See Aurora.
BOREAS, a Greek name, now in common
ufe for the north-wind.
Pezron obfer\es, that anciently Boreas fignified
the north eaft wind, blowing at the time of the
fummer folliice. Boreas is reprefented, in paint-
ing, like an old man with a horrible look, his hair
and beard covered with fnow or hoar-froft, with
the feet ani tail of a ferpent.
BORECOLE, brfijjica, in botany, a fpecies of
the cabbage. Sec C.\beage.
BORING, in a general fenfe, the art of per-
forating or making a hole through any folid body.
Boring of JVater Pipes. See Pipes.
Boring, in farriery, an operation in ufe for the
cure of wrenched fnoulders in horfes. It is this :
having cut a hole in the fkin, over the part affeifed,
they blow it up with a tobacco-pipe, as a butcher
doc's a (houlder of veal ; after which they thruft a
cold flat iroii, like the point of a fword blade, if he
or ten inches up between the fhaulder-blade and
the ribs : this they call boring.
Bor-
B O R
Boring, in mineralogy, a method of piercing
the earth with fcooping-ircns, which, being: drawn
bacic at proper times, bring up with thtm ianiplcs of
the difi'erent ihatu thro' which they have palled ; by
the examination of v/hich the (kiUul mineralirt will
be able to guefs whereabouts a vein of ore may
lie, cr whether it will be worth while to open a
mine there or no.
BOROUGH, Burhouch, Borow, or Burgh,
a corporation, or town, which is not a city. The
word, in its original hgnification, meant a com-
pany, confdling of ten families, which were
bound together as each other's pledge. Afterwards
borough came to fignify a town having a wall or
fome kind of enclofure round it : and all places
that in old time had the name of borough, it is
faid, were fortified or fenced in fome fhape or other.
Borough is a place of fafety and privilege : and
fome are called free burghs, and the tradefmen in
them free burgefies, from a freedom they had grant-
ed to them originally, to buy and fell without dif-
turbance, and exempt from toll.
Borough is now particularly appropriated to
fuch towns or villages as fend burgelfes or repre-
fentatives to parliament, whether they be incorpo-
rated or not.
They are diftinguiflied into thofe by charter or
flatute, and thofe by prcfcriptir.a or cullom : the
number in England is 149, fome of which fend
one, but the moit of them two reprefentatives.
ivaj'i?/ B0E.0UCHS, in Scotland, are corporations
made for the advantage of trade, bv charters grant-
ed by feveral of their Icings, having the privilege of
fending commiflioners to rcprefent thern in parlia-
ment, befides other peculiar imn:un;tie3. They
form a body of themfelves, and fend commiflioners
each to an annual convention at Edinburgh, to
confult the benefit of trade, and their general in-
terelf.
Borouh-En'glish, a cuftomary defcent of lands
or tenements, in certain places, by v.'hich theyde-
fcend to the youngefl inilead of the eldell: fon ; or
if the owner have no ifi'ue, to the younger inftead
of the elder brother. This cuilo.m goes with the
land, although there be a devife or feoffment at t!ie
common law to the contrary. The reafon of this
cuftom, fays Littleton, is hccaufe the youngeft is
prefumed, inlaw, to be the leail able to provide
for himftlf.
Borough-Head, cr Headbcxough, called
•ilfo borough -holder, or burihoidcr, the chief man
of the decenni, or hundred, chofen to fpeak and
atl in behalf of the reft.
Hcadborough alfo fignifies a kind of head con-
ftable, where there are feveral chofen as his affift-
ants, to ferve warrants, &:c. See the article Con-
iTABLE.
BORRELLISTSj in church hilkry, a Chrif-
20
B OS
tian f^'iS in Holland. They arc a kind of anabap-
tifts ; but they have fome very particular opinions.
They reject the ufe of churches, of the facra-
ments, public prayer, and all other external acis
of worftiip. They afiert, that all tlic Chriftiaii
churches of the world have degenerated from the
pure apoftolical doflrines, bccaufc they have fufFered
the word of God, which is infallible, to be ex-
pounded, or rather corrupted, by doctors, who arc
not infallible. They lead a very auflerc life, and
employ a great part of their goods in alms.
BOS, tiie ox, in zoology, a genus of quadru-
peds, of the order of the pccora, the characters of
which are, that the horns are hollov/ and turned
forward, bent lilce crefcents, and fmooth on the
furfacc.
Of this genus, authors enumerate the five fol-
lowing fpecies, viz. i. The common tame kind.
2. The bonufus. 3. The bifon. 4. The buba-
lus. 5. The urus.
BOSCAGE, the fame with a grove, or thicket.
Boscage, in a law fenfe, is that food which
trees yield to cattle, as niaft. Sec. Eut Manvvood
fays, to be quit of bofcage, is to be difcharged of
paying any duty for wind-fall wood in the foreft.
Boscage, an:ong painters, denotes a landfchape
reprefenting much v/ood and trees.
BOSEA, in botany, a genus of pentandrious
plants, whofe flower is apetalous ; the fruit is a
globofe berry of one cell, containing a fingle round-
illi acuminated Ceed.
BOSPHORUS, in geography, is a long, nar-
row fca, running in betvv-een two lands, by vvhicli
two coiuinents arc feparatcd, and by which way a
gulf and a fea, or two fea?, have a commu-^
nication one with the other; as the Thracian
Hofphorus, now called the Streights of Confbnti--
nople.
BOSQUETS, in gardening, groves fo called,,
from hoJJHtto, an Italian word, which fignifies a
little wood ; they are compartments in gardens
formed by the branches of trees, difpofed either
regularly in rows, or wildly and irregular, ac-
cording to the fancy of the owner. A bofquet is
either inclofed with palifadoes, or hedges of lime,,
elm, hornbeam, or beech, which fiiould be kept
well fhcared, and not fuftered to rife too much,
that the heads of the trees may be fully feen over
them, and the ftems only hid from the fight. The
ground fhould be kept fmooth, or elfe covered with
grafs. In planting bofqueti, care fimuld be taken
to mix the trees vvhich produce their leaves of a
diiierent fliape, and various fhades of green, hoary,
and mealy leaves, fo as to afiFord an agreeable prof-
pect-, but it is improper to mix evergreens v/ith de-
ciduous trees, for befides the ill ertect it hath to the
fight (cfpccially in winter) they feicom thrive well
together. Bofquets are only proper for fpacious
5 F £'''-
EOT
gardens, anJ require a great expcnce in their firft
making, as alio in keeping them up.
BQSSAGE, in architt'cbure, a term ufed for any
ftone that has a projefture, and is laid rough in a
huiiding, to be afterwards carved into mouldings,
^rapitals, coats of arms, &:c.
BossAGE is alfo that which is otherwifc called
ruftic work, and confifts of ftones which advance
beyond the naked, or level, of the building, by
reafon of indentures or channels left in the joinings.
Thefc are chiefly ufcd in the corners of edifices,
and thence called ruftic quoins. The cavities or
indentures are fometirr.cs round, fometimes chain-
framed, or bevelled, fometimes in a diamond form,
.and fometimes inclofed with a--caveti0, and fome-
times with a liftel.
BOSTANCjIS, in the Turkifli affliirs, perfons
employed in the garden of the feraglio, out of
whofe number are collejled thofe who are to row
in the grand feignior's barges, when he has a mind
to divert himfelf with fifliing, or take the air upon
the canal. They who row on the left hand are
only capable of mean employments in the ga"dens ;
but they who row on the right-hand may be pro-
moted to the charge of bollangibachi, who has
the general intendancy over all the grand feignior's
gardens, and commands above ten thoufand bof-
tangis.
BO TALE FoRANtF.x, in anatomy, a name giv-
en to the foramen ovale, from Bot:;ll, phyfician to
Charles IX. to whom the diCcovery of it is afcribed.
See the articles EIe art and Foramen' Ovale.
BOTANIST, a pcrfon fkilkd in botany, and
confequcntlv, by fyftcmatic rules, capdble of af-
figning to every plant its proper chara(5lers and
name.
BOTANY, the fcicnce which treats of plants,
their levcral kinds, their forms, virtues, and ufes.
The word is Greek, 3:T2ti'H, an herb, which is de-
rived from Pea, to feed ; becaufe moft animals feed
pn vegetables.
Bctanifts diyide the vegetable world into genera
and fpecies, though they have not all agreed from
what fonflderation. Tournefort, a late and good
writer on botany, af'er a long and accurate difcuf-
fion, chofe, in imitation of Gefncr and Columna,
to clafs and regulate plants by the fiowers and
fruit, confidcrcd together ; fo that all plants which
bear a refcmblance in thofe two refpedts, arc of the
fame genus ; i. e. that they all agree in fome one
common charaiSer, in refpef): of the ftruclure of
certain parts, whereby they arc diftinguifhed from
all other plants which are of the iame family ; af-
ter which, tlie refpciftive difFerenccs as to root,
llcm, and leaves, inakes th; different fpecies or
fubJivifions. He afterts, that he never hitherto met
but with twenty-two diifferent figvres of flowers,
which are to,regul itc c;uirely tlie genus or clafs of
p!,in*s ; and which is all that is to be reiaincd in
EOT
the memory, to be capable to defcend to near fc-
\cn hundred genera, comprehending upwards of
two thoufand fpecies of plants. Accorduig, the.'-e-
fore, to Tournefort's fyllcm of botany, all plants
are ranged under one or other of the followins;
claffes ; I. Plants with monopetalous, campani-
form, or bcll-fliaped flowers. 2. 'I'hofe with mo-
nopetalous, infundibuliform, or funnel-fhapeu flow-
ers. 3. Plants with anomalous monopetalous
flowers. 4. Plants with polypctalous labiated
flowers. 5. Plants with polypetalous cruciform
flowers. 6. Plants with polypctalous rofaceoun
flowers. 7. Plants with polypetfilous, rofacccus, and
umbellated flowers 8. Plants v/ith caryophillous,
or pink-like flowers. 9. Plants with liliaceous, cr
lily-like flowers. 10. Plants with polypctalous
papilionaceous flowers. 1 1. Plants with polvpe-
talous anomalous flowers. 12. Plants with flofcu-
lous fiowers. 13. Plants with femiflofcuicnis
flowers. 14 Plants with radiated flowers, i^.
Plants with ftamineous flov.-ers. 16. Plants with-
out flowers, but having vifible feeds. 17. Pha.nt'i
with neither vifible flowers nor feeds. 18. Trees
with apctalous fiowers. 19. Trees with apetalcu:;
amentaceous flowers. 20. Trees with monopeta-
lous fiowers. 21. Trees v/ith rofaceous flowers.
22. Trees with papilionaceous flowers : the de-
fcription of each fee under their refpeclivs arti-
cles, Monopetalous, Campakiform, &c. See
alfo plate XXI. fig. 2. and Tournefort'j ^yjlcm.
This fyflem was generally approved of till lately;
when Dr. Linnreus, profcflor of botany and mecii-,
cine at the uni\'erfity of Upfal in Sv/eden, founded
a new fyftem called the Sexual, on a difcovcry
that there is in \'Cgctables, as well as in anim.als,
a diftin<51ion of the fexes. This was not wholly un-
known to the ancients, but their knowledge of i;
was very imperfeit ; for the' the generality cf \c-
getables prcJuce hermaphrodite flowers, contain-
ing within tliem the characters of both fexes ; yet
in the clnfics of monoecia and dioecia, the fexes
are parted and allotted to diiTcrcnt flowers ; and
particularly in the clafs dioecia, the fexes are even
on difrerent plants, the male growing on one hand,
the female fiowers on the other. Now this laft cir-
cumftnnce the nnticnts had obferved : indeed, it
could hardly efcapc their notice ; for the palm- tree,
whofe fruit was in eileem, beiiig of ths clafs dioe-
cia, a very little obfcrvation was .""equihte to te.ich
them, that in thefe trees the flowers of the male
were neceflary to ripen the fruit of the female.
Accordingly we find, in the account given by Hero-
dotus, (in his firft book) of ths country about Ba-
bylon, where the trees were in plenty, that it wa»
a cufl:om witli the natives, in the culture of thi?
plant, to afTiLi the op.^rations of nature, by grther-
in'' the flowers of ih; m.ale-treos, and carrying
them to tie female: hy this means they fecure i
the ripauing of the fruit, which might clfe^^ from
un-.
^
N5-
.-.?<» i'^^?*?
*a<^
f^V;
N^kVt^
<
I
BOT
BOT
\(ii favourable feafonG, or the v.'.mt of a proper iii-
tcmjixtuie or the trees of t:iv:h fc?;, have provcil
precarioi.s, or at lealf, not to ha\'e been cxpeffed
in equal i;iuntities. It fccms fomcv;hat cxtraorcli-
nnry tn.ii t!iis ilifcovery fhould not have led the
antients to dcvelope the whole proccfs of nature in
the propagation of the various fpecics of vegeta-
bles ; and yet it docs not appear, by any of their
writings that are handed down to us, that they
went t.;riher than this obvious remark upon the
palni-tiec, and fome fimilar notions concerning the
fig. Tiuy liad indeed, from what they fav/ in thcfc
plants, formed a notion that all others were ir.ale
and female likcwife ; but this notion was falfe, the
far yreitcr part having hermaphrodite flowers ; and
fervcs to convirvce us, that what they difcovcrcd of
ihi palm or fig, was only a right gucfs, and net
^bunded on any knowledge of the anatomy of ilow-
crs, cither in thofc trees or any others.
In this dark (late, the doif^trinc of the fcxes of
vegetables remained not only through all the ages
of antiquity, but almofl: to the end of the laft cen-
t-.ny ; the moderns feeing no more of this dodlrine
than the antients had done before them ; and hence
wc have to this hour in ufe the falfe diitinJlions of
male and female fpecies of corr.u^, peony, ciftus,
and many others, which have all liermaphrodite
flowers, the diftindfion, in thcfe cafes, being ground-
ed en nothing m.orc than fome difference in the
habit of the two fpecics, with which the fexcs are
no ways concerned. The honour of having firif
fuggeik'd the true fexual diflin<flions in plants, ap-
p.eais to be due to our own countryman St Tho-
mas Millington, from whofe hints Dr Grew, as
the doiRor himklf acknowledges, was led to the
ohfcrvations he has given on this fubjciSt in his Ana-
tomy of Plants, p. 171. After this, Camerarius,
Moreland, Geoftroi, Vaillant, Blair, Juflieu, and
Bradley, purfucd their enquiries and experiments
(o far as to remove all doubt concerning thefe dif-
covcrics; and laflly, Linnreus founded thereon a
new fyffcm of botaiiy, which we will explain from
the Ratio (Jpnis, affixed to his Gcmra Plcntarum,
printed anno 1764. This celebrated botanifl favs,
'' Whatever knovvlecre we arc able to acquire of
things, depends on a true irethod of arranging
them, by which v/c diftinguifli their fimilitudcs and
ilifferenccs ; the more natural dilfim^ticns fuch
ir.ethod comprehends, tha clearer are our ideas of
objefls ; the more things our conceptions are cm-
jiloyed upon, the greater is the difficulty, and,
indeed, the necefllty of methodizing them. Our
great Creator has no where afforded the fenfes of
mankind fo many objeils of contemplation as in
the vegetable kingdom, which covers and fills the
whole of that globe we inhabit ; if a true m.cihod
therefore is any where of confequence, it certainly
muft be here, if we hope to acquire a clear notJon
of vegetables. This ir.r.Je Csrialpine fay, ' that
' unkfs plants, like an army encamped, wCrc rc-
' duced into orders and claft'cs, there could be no-
' thing but confufion and uncertainty.' He un-
dcrftands vegct.ibks who knows how to join fuch
as refemble each other, and to fiparate thofe that
do not. He is a botanill who can give like names
unto like, and diftind nam.cs to diflind vegetables,
fo as any pcrfon may underftand them. 1 he
names of plants arc according to their genus, and
alfo, where there arc many fpecies, fpecific ; and
ought to be certain and fixed, not \ague, mutable,
or luch as ar-ay be varicufly applied. New in order
to make them fuch, they mult be afcribed to de-
termined, not ur.ccrtain, figns ; for where the
latter are vague and indiftitK^i:, their names mud be
fo liktwife, and confequently, the ideas of the bo-
taniil: confufed.
" There are as many fpecies as Infinite Being
has produced diverfified and regular forms in the
globe; which forms, according to the conftant
laws cf generatioji, produce more in their own
likenefs : there arc, therefore, as many fpecies a;
there are at this day different foims or (Irudures of
plants, taking no notice cf fuch little varieties
which place or chance now and then exhibit. 1 here
are as m.any genera as there arc common and rela-
tive attributes belonging to the difterent fpecies at
firfl created ; revelation, difcovcrics, and obferva-
tion, confir.m this : hence ail genera are natural,.
The limits therefore of each genus are to be clofelj
and diligently obfervcd, hcv.-cvcr great or diificulc
the tafk ; for, as Cafalpine fays, ' when the genera
' are confounded, every thing elfc muft be (o too.'
" That it plcafed Infinite Wifdt.m to diftinguifh
the genera of plants from their fruftification, was
the difcovery cf the lall age ; and of Co.nradus
Gefncr firit of all, the ornainent of his time, as
is evident from his poflhumous letters, publifhed
from the originals by Camerarius ; but the firft
who brought this dilcovcry into ufe was Andrew
Cxfalpinus, which yet would foon have expired,
had it not been revived by the care of Robert Mor-
rifon, and cultivated by Pitt and Tourneforr, ac-
cording to clear rnd fyllcmatic rules, and laflly,
fully ellablifhtd by f.ll who have fince approved
ihemfclves maficrs in the art,
" This foundation being fettled, perfons quali-
fied for labours of this kind began to avail them-
felves tliercof, and raife thereon their feveral fyf-
tcms, all indeed with the fame alacrity, and for the
fame end, but with very unequal fuccefs ; to fcv/
only was the fundamental principle rightly uiuler-
flood. He who propofcs to tcr.ch an art mufl de-
fcend from generals to particulars ; en the contrary,
the in venter muft afcend fiom particulars to gene-
rals. Diflcrcnt writers have laid down different parts
of frucTiif cation for a leading principle, from v. hence
they dcfcended, according to the ufunl method oi
divifion, from clailcs fi. it to orders, till they came
r ' l«
B O T
to rpcclcs, and thus with hypothetic and arbitrary
principles, broke and tore in pieces the natural
genera, and did a violence to nature. For example,
one dt-nies from the fruit, that the peach and al-
mond-tree can be of the Jame genus ; another,
from the regularity of the petals, denies the fame
with valerian and valerianoides ; while a third, from
the number of the petals, afcribes to different ge-
nera the flax and olive. Another, f/om the fex,
denies, that the linum and radiola, the hermaphro-
dite nettle and dioica, ^'c. can poifibly be united
together under the fame genus ; they further fay,
that they cannot even be joined in clafs, much lefs
in genus : but the misfortune is, thefs writers do
not obfcrve, that the dalles, fuch as they be, are
of their own conftruction, while the Creator him-
felf has formed the genera ; and from this error
arife fo many erroneous genera, fo many contro-
verfics among authors, lo many improper names,
and fo mueh confufion, that they h;ive at length
really brought things into fuch a fituation, that as
often as a new fyftem-writer ftarts up, the whole
botanical world is alarmed ; and to fpeak the truth,
I really am at a lofs to know, whether thefe fyf-
tem-writers have done mod good or harm. This is
a misfortune which phyficians, apothecaries, and
gardiners, long lamented, and I muil: own, not
without rcafcn. Their theory would have been the
beil, if it had pleafed the great Creator to have pro-
duced all the fructifications of the fame genus
equally refembling each other, as the individuals of
the lame fpecies do ; which not being the cafe,
there is nothing left for us to do, but, as we can-
not be ourfelves the lords of nature, and cannot
create every plant over again according to our
own conceptions, to fubmit ourfelves to the
laws of nature, and with a clofe and vigilant
application, accuftom ourfelves to read the cha-
radters infcribed on plants. If it be granted,.
that each different mark of fruflification is fuffici-
ent to dillinguifh the genus, why fhould v/e he-
fitate a moment to pronounce that there are almoft
as many genera as fpecies ? for there are hardly any
flowers of the two fpecies known to us fo like each
other, but there is feme difl'srence in their parts ;
therefore, I would advife all fenfible botanifts to
acknowledge, if they would wifh to obtain any
certainty in the art, that all the genera and fpecies
are natural, without which fundamental point v/e
cannot proceed with any degree of certainty. We
will fuppofe the great Creator of all things, from
the beginning, to have created only one fpecies of
each genus ; we will alfo fuppofe thefe firlb fpecies
afterwards, either in the beginning or procefs of
time, to have been fecundated by fpecies of other
genera; from thence it would follow, that new fpe-
cies would arife, while thefe, in fome meafure,
would, in the form of the flower, refemble the fc-
BO T
male, but the plant be like the male." See Amtnu
Acad. vi. p. 279.
" This poilulatum being granted, let each pro-
ceed according to his own method, and divide thele
genera into orders and claflt's. Casfalpinus, Her-
man, Ray, &c. take it from the fruit ; Tourne-
fort, from the form of the corolla ; Rivinus, from
tlie number and equality of the petals ; Magnol,
from the calyx or cup ; and none of thefe methods
are bad ; for it is of little fignilication by what me-
thod we come at the genera, provided it is an eafy
one. That is to be preferred which leads the fur-
ell to it, and is the moft unlverfal ; for it is fcarcely
to be believed, there are any perfons born with la
perfect a memory, as, without a fyflem, to retain
all the genera ; for orders are only fubaltern claiTes,
and none will deny but it is eafier to diflinguifh a
few genera, than all : it is an eafy matter to refer
the- greateft part of the known genera to their pro-
per natural clalfes, but it is therefore more dilKcuk
with regard to the reft ; nor is it to be expected,
that our age will be able to fee any natural lyliem,
or hardly our defcendants, for a long time to come i
yet, as we ftudy to know plants, we muft, in the
mean tim.c, make ufe of artificial and fuccedaneous
claffes. The natural clafTes would pleale every body,
provided any one could find out their characlers ;
but to retain thefe without a character comprehend-
ing the proper genera, and rejctiting others, would
be the fame thing as rejecting every method. The
antients, in the time of the Bauhines, ftuck clofclyr
to the natural clafTes ; but a character was wanting,
from their not having, rightly difcovered the paria
of fructification, when Tournefort del'cended with
the bright light of fructification to the generaj till:
then oblcure. For example, the melianthus, epime-r
djum, hypcccum, tumaria, inipaticns, occ. muft
necefiariiy agree in tlie natural order ; but who will,
from any part of the fruftification, undertake to
give a combining and diftingmflijng charadter ?
Compcfite flowers comprehend the corymbus with
a fingle flowered cup, the erigeron with four fila-
ments, the kuhnia with diftinct anthera;, the
flrunipua with berried fruit : now who could ever
give a character applicable to thefe and not to
others ? Taking then the natural genera, and treat-
ing properly on them, two things are required,.
viz.. That tlje true fpecies, and no other, be re-
ferred to their genera ; and that every particular "ge-
nera be circumfcribed within its true bounds and
limits, which we denominate generical characters.
" In looking over writers, I find none of thefe
characters fixed and certain before Tournefort ;
therefore, to him I ought to afcribe, not without
reafon, the honour of the invention refpecting the
genera. Other fyftematic writers, of different ine-
thods, have alfo delivered them ; but I underftand
none of them except Tournefort 3 and thofe who
have
BOT
have followed him ; as Plumicr, Petit, Bocrhaave,
Vaillaiii, Dillcniiis, Ruppius, Poiitedera, Bux-
haum, Mitchci, and a few others ; molt of whom,
although they devir.ted from the claiTei and orders,
or the method of Tournefort, neverthelefs, were
his followers in the genera.
" Touintfort aflun:ed the petals and fruit for
the diagnoftic marks of the genera, and no other
parts ; and his followers, in general, did the
iamc : but writers of a later date, overpowered
with an abundance of new and lately difcovered
genera, found out that thefe parts alone were in-
fufficitiit to diftinguifii all the genera ; and, on that
accoTJnt, thought themfelves obliged to have rc-
courfc to the look, and appearance of the plants ;
fuch as, the leaves, the htuation of the flower, the
llulk, the root, &c. that is, they deviated from the
very fundamental of fructification, and fell into the
original barbarifm. However, it mult be con-
felled, that the parts dcfcribed by Tournefort are
not fufficient ; for if only the petals and fruits are
to be taken account of, 1 will deny the whole myf-
tery of frutftification : but I would alk. Whether
reafon ever told us that the marks are to be drawn
from thefe alone? What revelation, or what argu-
ments drawnapriori, or a pofteriori ? Certainly none.
Does there not plainly appear many more parts in
fructification ? Why are feme to be taken notice
of, and others negleiStcd ? Were they not all created
alike by the fame hand ? Are they not all necefl'ary
parts ? We can difcern in the calvx, i. The invo-
luciuni; 2. The fpatha ; 3. 1"he pcrianihium ;
4. Tlie imeritum ; 5. The glume ; 6. The cahp-
tra. Ill the corolla, 7. The tube or claws ; 8. Ihe
border; 9. The nedtarium. In the ftamina, 10.
The filaments; n. The antherse. In the pillil-
him, 12. Thegermen; 13. The ftylc ; 14. The
iligma. In the pericarpium, 15. "The capfule ;
]6. The pod ; 17. The legumen ; 18. The nut ;
19. The drupe;- 20. The berry ; 21. The apple.
In the feed, 22, 23. its corona. In the recep-
tacle, 24. Of its frudiincation ; 25. Of the
ilower ; 26. The fruit. Here are more parts,
more charaders, than in the alphabets of languages ;
all thefe marks ferve us as fo many letters of ve-
getables, in reading of which we learn the cha-
I alters of plnnts : they were wrote by their Maker,
and it is our hufinefs to read them.
" Tourncfort, with his characters, did wonders ;
but as there are fince fo many new genera difcover-
ed, I fliall adhere to his principles, but fliall en-
large them with new difcoveries, as the fcience en-
creafcs.
" I do not approve of drav/ings alone in deter-
mining the genera, Hefore the uie of letters, it was
receflarv to exprefs things by pitlurefque reprefen^
tatioiis, where it could not be done by words ; but,
by the in\ tntion of letters, we ha\ c a more cerain
and ^.Sf method of communicating our ideas :
20
B OT
fo it is in bot.^.ny, before the difcovcry of letter,',
thefe figures were of the grcatelt utility, but theic
ha\e afforded a much fhortcr way.
" Characters of the geiuia arc obtained in a
threefold manner, fadtitioiir-, cfi'ential, and natural.
Padtitious characters has fixed afingle mark en the
genus, by which it diftinguilhes one from the relt
belonging to the fame order, but not from others.
A character of this fort may be cafily underftood by
anyone, and is inftituted by means of fynoptic ta-
bles, as it is delivered by Ray, in the firil edition
of his Synopfis ; alfo by Knautius and Kramerus.
Certainly, if there were never any doubts railed
concerning the clafs or order, and all the genera
exifting in nature were difcovered, this would be
the eaiiell method : but as this neither is, or can
be, the cafe, the character is deceptive ; for when
any new genus is difcovered, the neareft charac-
ters, and (uch as arife from the branch to which
they fliould be annexed, become fallacious.
" The elTential character gives the moft certain
mark to the genus it is applied to, and recom-
mends itfelf for its brevity and cxr.6tnefs. As for
example, in the parnaffia, nigella, hellebore, ra-
nunculus, Sic. it is very readily perceived by the
ne£tarium alone ; but it is doubtful, whether this
chr.raiSter can be obtained in all the genera ; and 1
would fain fee the effenri.-.l character in the umbel-
liferous flower; and others.
" I therefore lay down thofc for natural charac-
ters, which exhibit all the marks of fruiSification
obvious and common. The ufe and prerogatives of
natural charafters are as follow : one of this kind
is applicable to all methods, if the fyftem is raifed
on that never-failing foundation, the fructification.
Let any one take a method from the calyx, or the
corolla, or the ftamina, or the piftillum, or the
fruit ; we (Iiall ftill have the fame natural charac-
ter where there is the fame genus. Formerly, it
was neceflary to compofe ss many charaflers of all
the genera as there v.'ere fvltems ; but in this it is
not fo : if even a thoufand new genera were dif-
co\ered, it would not, on that account, be neccf-
fary to add or take away a fingle mark from the
neareft natural genus, as was neceflary in all the
reft.
" This character, or definition of genus, might
be diftinifty treated of without method, and might
be eafily retained ami underftood in any book.
While it ferved under its proper ch'.fs, it exprelTes
the fame idea. Were the names changed a thoufand
times, you perceive more marks than is necefl'ary to
diftinguifh the fubject genus by from others ; tiiefe
are a proof that you have a true genus, and no other :
whether any of thefe marks would be fupcrfiuous
if all the gensra were difcovered, time only can
determ.ine.
" In defcribing the difierent parts of fn:Cti!ica-
tion, I ha-.c felcdeJ fuch maiks as ars certain and
5 G real.
B OT
real, not vague and loofc. Some have afilimed the
Wade, fmcll, colour, and a!fo the fize, without r.jiy
proportional ftandard : you will not fee me af-
J'anie thele ; but the following four certain and
fixed mechanical principles only ; the number, the
iigurc, the fite, and the proportion. Thefe four
xittrlbutes, with the twenty-fix characiers before-
jnentloned, diflinguifli the genera from each other
wiih fo much exadinefs, that nothing cm excel it :
Aconfidering only thefe marks, nothing will be wanting
to determine the genera, and the other marks will
be fupcrfluous 5 nor is there anv occaficn to have
jecourfe to the habit or appearance of plants.
" In forming a character of this fort, we mufl:
take all the fpecics that are known. The four ob-
vious marks abovementioncd are to be well defcribed
jn all the parts of frudbification, and thofe which do
not agree with all the fpecies ar.e to be excluded ;
,r,nd thofe only which do agree therewith to be re-
tained. As it is impoffiblc for any one perfon to fee
.all the fpecies, he who fees the moll, and obfcr\'es
in them fuch marks as are not fimilar, fnould ex-
clude the fame in forming a characSter, that pofic-
rity hereafter may fee a complete work,"
Having thus given, as far as it feems neceflary,
the new principles upon which the reformation of
the former vicious fyftems .of botany have been un-
dertaken, we come to fliew the method introduced
by Linnxus.
Vegetables, accoiding to him, are prim.arily di-
yifible into three parts; i. The root; 2. The
herb, or plant itfelf ; 3. The frudihcation : and
in this order thefe parts might have been treat-
ed, were it not on account of the fexual fvf-
flem ; it therefore became necefTary to give up the
order of the parts of the vegetable, and follow th;'.t
of the fvflem.
The i'yftem is di\'ided, i. Ifito claiFes ; 2. -or-
A^-s > 3- genera, 4. fpecics ; 5. varieties.
From the number, fituaticn, and proportion of
the rtamina, this curious botanift has arranged the
whole family of plants under tv/entv-four clafles,
viz.
I. Monandria. 2. Diandria, ;^. Triandria.
^. Tetrandria. 5. Pentandiia. 6. Hcxandria. 7.
Hcptandria. 8. OiStandria. g. Enneandria. 10.
Decandria. 11. Dodecandria. 12. Icofandria.
J 3. Polyandria. 14. Didynamia. 15. Tetrady-
jiamia. t6. A'lonadelphia. 1 7. Diadelphia, 18.
Polyadelphia. 19. Syngenefia. 20. Gynandria.
21. Monoecia. 22. Dioecia. 23. Polygamia.
24. Cryptogamia. See them explained under tlu-ir
refpciTtive articles. See alfo LiNNAiis's S)Jh?ti.
Thefe are the genera) claffes of plants elhiblifli-
cd by that excellent botanift, who farther fubdi-
vides them into orders, which he denominates mo-
jiogynia, digynia, "cc, from the number of [li'lils,
|t)r female paits of generation, found in each jdant.
See the q,rtick-s McNocYKi.A, Digynia, ^-c.
B OU
For a fartlirr accsunt of the botanical works of
this celebrated author, we would refer the curious
reader to his Genera Plantcrnjn, Species Plantarum,
Pliiiofophica Botanka, and Amsemtalcs Acad. Vol.
III. in v/hich hfl he will find the hiftory of bo-
tany divided into four cpoch;is, viz. 1. Epocha
Patrum; 2. Funiatorum \ 3. Syjicmatkarum \ and,
4. Refor.matoruin. He will likewife find the prin-
cipal works of botanifts, both antient and mo-
dem, mentioned ; and their progrels in the fcience.
BO FE, Eota, in our old law books, fignifies re-
compence or amends ; thus a man-bote is a com-
pcnfation for a man flain.
There are likewife houfc-bote and plough-bote,
privileges to tenants, of cutting wood for mak-
ing ploughs, repairing tenements, and likewife for
fewel.
BOTRYS, in botany, a fpecies of the chcno-
podium. See Chenopodium.
BOTTLE-FLOWER, in botany ; fee the ar-
ticle Cektaurea.
BO FTOM, in the marine, is ufed either to
denote the bottom of a fhip, or the bottom of the
water; thus, in the former fenfe, we fay, a cle.in
or a foul bottom, a Britifh, French, or Dutch
bottom ; and in the latter {'iw^c, a rocky, fandy,
or oozy bottom.
BO'ITOMRY, in marine commerce, a con-
trad: for borrowing money on the keel or bottom
of a fhip ; fo that the commander binds the fhlp
herfelf, that if the money be not paid at the tin;e
appointed, the creditor fnall have the fliip.
Bottomry is alfo where a perfon lends money
to a merciiant or adventurer, who wants it in traf-
fic, and the lender is to be paid a much greater fum
at the return of the fhlp, fcanding to the hazard of
the voyage : on which account, though the inte-
reft be greater than the law commonly allows, yet
is it not ukiry, becaufe the money being fupplicd
at the lender's hazard, if the fhip periflics, he fnarcs
in the lofs.
BOTTONY. A crofs bottony, in heraldry,
terminates at each end in three buds, knots, or
buttons, refembling, in fome meafure, the three-
leaved grafs ; on which account, Segoing, in his
Trefor Heraldique, term.s it croix trefHee. ■ It is
the badge of the order of St. Maurice.
BOULDER-WALL, a kind of wall built of
round flints or pebbles, laid in a ftrong mortar, and
ufed where the fca has a beach cait up, or wliere
there are plenty of flints.
BOUL'flNE, in architecture, is the work-
men's term for a convex moulding, whofe convexity
is juft one fourth of a circle; this is placed next
below the plinth in the Tufcan and Doric capital.
BOUN'FY, in commerce, a premium paid by
the government to the exporters of certain Britifli
commodities, as fail cloth, gold and fiber lace, filit
flockir.gs, fifh, corii, <kc,
EOUR.
B O W
BOX
BOURDONEE, in heraldry, the fame with
pomcc. See the article Pomee.
BOURIGNONISTS, the name of a fc^ among
the Low-Country protefl.mts, being fuch as follow
the cloiitrine of Antoinette Bourignon, a n.itive
of Lifle, and npoftate of the Roman catholic re-
ligion.
.The principles of this fc6l hear a very near re-
femblance with thofc of the quietifts, quakers, or
fanatics. They condudt themfelves by pretended
rcvcbtions.
BOUTANT, or Arch-Boutant, in archi-
tcchtrc, a flat arch or part of an arch, abutting
ogainft the reins of a vault, to prevent its gi\'ing
\'/ay.
A Pillar BoUTANT 13 a large chain or pile of
{lone, made to fupport a wall, terrace, or vault.
BOUTS-RiMEZ, in French poetry, a term fig-
«ifyir,g certain rhymes ditpofed in order, and given
to a poet, together with a fubjeft, to be filled up
with \'erfes ending in the fam.e vv'ord and fame or-
der. In choofmg the rhymes, it is ulual to fix on
fuch as feem the remoteft, arid have the leaft con-
iiedlion. Some authors fancy, that thefe rhymes
are, cf all others, theeafi-:ft; that they aflilt the
invention, and furnifli new thoughts.
BOW, Arciis, a weapon of offence made of
fteei, wood, horn, or other eladic matter, which,
after being bent by means of a firing f.iftcned to its
two ends, in returning to its natural Ib.tc, throws
cut an arrow with prodigious force.
Bow, a mathematical iniirument ufed formerly
It fca, for taking the fun's altitude. It confifted of
an arch containing ninety degrees, a ftaff, a fhade-
van?, a fight-vane, and aji horizon-vane.
.Bow, in naval architee'lure, the rounding part
Oi a ihip's fide forward, begijiiiijig at where the
planks arch inwards, aiid terminated where they
cjofe at the prow or ftem : it is proved by experi-
ence, that a fliip with a narrow bov/ is much tetter
calculated for fwiftnefs of failing, than one with a
broad bow, but not fo well for a high fea, into
which fhc always plunges or pitches her fore part
very deep, for the want of fufficient breadih to re-
jiel the volume of water, which (he io ealily divides
in her fall.
The former of thefe is called by feamcn a leaji,
and the latter a bluff- how.
Oh the Bov/, in navigation, an arch of the hori-
7/On comprcliended between the point of the com-
pafs which is right a-head, or to which a {hip's
item is directed, and fome object feen or difcovered
by trigonometry ; as. We faw a fleet to the wind-
v/ard, three points on the bow ; that is, three
points froin that part of the horizon which the
fliip items. Alfo having found thi diftance of any
pjace by calculation, it is occafionally faid to be
on the \io\N.
When a fliip fails with a fide-wind, the bow
next to the wind is called the weather-bow, "and
the other the lee-bow ; any cbjed dillant from ths
latter is not faid to be on, but mirier the lee-bow.
Bow, among builders, is a beam of wood or
brafo, with three long fcrews that govern or bend
a lath of wood or (Icel to any arch, and is of ufe
for drawing arches that have large radii, &c. which
cannot be ilruck with cornpafles.
Bow, in mufic, a fmall machine, which, being
drav/n o\cr the Ttrings of a mufical inftrument,
makes it refound. It is compofed of a fmall lUck,
to which are faftened eighty or nn hundred horfe-
hairs, and a fcrew, v/hich ferves to give the.l; hairs
the proper tenfion. In order that the bow rnay
touch the Ifrings briflcly, it is ufual to rub the hairs
v/ith rofin.
Bow, among artificers, an inllrumcr.t fo called
from its figure; in ufe among gunfmithc, lock-
fmiths, watchmakers, &c. for making a drill go.
Among turners, it is the name of that pole fixed
to the cieiing, to which thev faflcn the cord that
whirls rou.nd the piece to be turned.
Bows of a Saddle are two pieces of wood laid
archwife to receive the upper-part of a liorfe's
back, to give the faddle its due form, and to keep
it tight.
BOWER, in gardening, a place under the cover
of trees ; it differs from an arbour by its form, it
being generally of a round or fquarc fhapc, where-
as arbors are built long and arched.
BO^VLINt.', in the marine, a rope faRcncd to
the leech or perpendicular edge of the fquare-fails,
in three or four parts called briftles ; they are only
ufed on the weather-fide, or the fide of the fail
next the wind, to keep that part of it tight for-
v.'ard, and prevent it from fhivering, which would
always be the cafe, as the fhip fails on a fcant fidc-
v/ind. See this mcie particularly explained under
the articles Bridle and Close-H.'Vwling.
BOWLING-CAREEN, in gardening, a kind of
lav.ii, laid with fi.ne turf, and defigned for the
excrcife of bowling. Bowling-greens are gene-
rally of a fquarc form, and fliould be made nearly.
le\'e!, particularly the fides, the middle being rather
the higheff. '
BOWSING, in the marine, drawing on any
body with the powers of a taicle ; or ufing a taiclc
in a method where it does not fufpend the body-
drawn upon, whi.h is then called hoifting.
BOWSPRIT, in naval affairs, a large boom or
maft which projeils over the flem, to carry fail on,
and govern the fore-part of the fliip to covinter-
ballance the fail carried behind, or in the after-
parts ; and likewile to fupport the forc-maft, by
ropes llretched from the mafl-head to the outer-
end of the bcwiprit, called flays. Sec Boom and
Stavs.
liOX, iii its moff common acceptation, de-
notes a fmall ch:fl or pcffer for hplding thul^:•.
5 " " Box
BRA
Box of a Ploug/:, the crofs piece in tiie head of a
plough, which iupports the two crow-ltaves. See
Plough.
Box, in zoology, the fame with boops. See
the article Boops.
• Box-Tree, in botany ; fee the article Buxus.
Box-Thorn, in botany ; iee the article Ly-
CIUM.
Box-Hawi.inc, or Vaux-Hawling, in navi-
gation I fee the article Hawi.ing.
BOXING, in navigation, arranging the head-
fails of" a fhip aback, when, by the negleiit of the
fteerfman, file had made fonie declination from the
line of her courle, and had inclined her motion
nearer to the direction of the wind, than the fails
would ftajid full fide- ways. See Aback.
The ufe of boxing at that time is to ait with
greater impulfe on the Ihip's fore-part than ufual,
till the force imprefled compels her to change her
pofition, veer farther from the courfe of the wind,
and return into the line of motion from which
fhe had deviated.
BUYAU, in fortification, is a particular ditch
fep.irated from the main trench, which in winding
about enclofes different fpaces of ground, and runs
parallel with the works and fences of the body of
the place ; fo that when two attacks are made at
once, near one to the other, the boyau makes a
communication between the trenches, and ferves
us a line of contravallation, not only to hinder the
fallics of the befiegcd, but alfo to fecure the miners.
But when it is a particular cut that runs from the
trenches to cover feme fpct of ground, it is then
drawn parallel to the works of the place, that it
may not be enfiladed, or that the fliot from the
town may not fcour it.
BOYES, idolatrous pricfls among the favagcs of
Florida.
Every prieft attends a particular idol, and the
natives addrefs themfelvcs to the prieft of that idol
to which they intend to pay their devotion.
The idol is invoked in hymns, and his ufual of-
fering is the fmoke of tobacco.
BOYLE's Lectures, a courfe of fermons fet
on foot, in London, by the honourable Robert
Boyle in i6gi ; the defign of which is to prove
the truth of the Chriftian religion againft infidels,
without defcending to any controverfies among
Chriilians.
BRABEUTES, or Brabeuta, 3pk^-:i;7>k', in
antiquity, an officer among the Greeks, who pre-
fided at the public games, and decided controver-
fies that happened among the antagonifts in the
gymnical exercifes. The number of brabcutae v/as
not fixed ; fometimes there was only one, but more
commonly they amounted to nine or ten.
BRABEJUA-T, the African almond, in botany,
a tetrandrious plant, which rifes with an upright
foft ftem, full of pith within, and covered with a
BRA
b.-ownbark ; from the ftem iffues forth feveral hori-
zontal branches on every fide, and at every joint,
the lower ones being the longeft, and every tier
diminifhing to the top, fo as to form a kind of py-
ramid. The leaves come out all round the branches
at each joint, which arc from four to five inches
long, and half an inch broad at the middle : thefe
are of a deep-green on their upper-fide, and pale
underneath, indented on their edges, and Handing
on veryfliort foot-ffalks. The flowers are produced
toward the end of the Ihoots, and come out from
between the leaves quite round the branches ; thtfc
are of a pale colour, inclining to white, and are
compofcd of four narrow obtufe petals, in the
lower part ereft, forming a kind of tube, and in
the upper turned backward. In the bottom of the
petals are inferted four capillary filaments, topped
with fmall anthers; ; in the center is placed a fmall
villofe germen, which afterwards becomes a hairy
drupe, of the drier kind, of an oval figure, con-
taining a kernel of the fame fhape.
This plant is a native of the country about the
Cape of Good-Hope ; and in this climate mufl be
flieltered in a green-houfe in winter.
BRACE is commonly taken for a couple or pair,
and applied by huntfmcn to feveral hearts of game,
as a brace of bucks, foxes, hares. Sec.
Brace, or Brasse, is alfo a foreign meafure,
anfwering to our fathom. See Fathom.
Brace', in architecluie, is a piece of timber
framed in with bevel-joints, and is ufed to keel the
building from fwerving either way. It is called a
llrut, when it is framed into the kindiefies and prin-
cipal rafters.
Braces, in the m.arine, the ropes faftened to all
the A'ard-arms or yard-ends in a ihip, except the
mizen-yard : their uk is to v.'hesl or traverfe the
fail-yards about the mafts, in a direiffion par.tUel to
the horizon, as the fails are to be fhifted to the
variation of the wind.
BRACED, in hcr.ddry, a term for the inter-
mingling three cheoronels.
BRACELET, an ornament worn on the wriir,
much ufed among the ancients. It was made of
different materials, and in different iafliions, ac-
cording to the age and quality of the wearer.
BRACHIj'EUS, in anatomy, an oblong, thick,
and broad mufclc, lying immediately on the ante-
rior part of the lower half of the os humeri. The
upper part of it is forked or floped, and at the-
bending of the joint of the elbow, the lower part
contracts.
It is fixed fo the furface of the os humeri by a
great num.ber of flcfliy fibres, from the lower in-
fertion of the deltoides, almofl dov/n to the twr>
foflae at the lower extremity of the bone, and from
one edge of the fore fide of this lower extremity to
the other. The fibres arc for the mofl: part longi-
tudinal, thofc neareft the furface_of the mufcle be-
ing
BRA
BRA
Itw loii'icft, the more internal ;n-o\vinc; <ir;idualh^
Ihortcr.
The Literal fibres are a little oblique, anil this
obliquity incrcufes in thofc that lie luwelL Thefe
lateral nbrcs are partly fixed in the internuifeular
ligaments of the os humeri, of" which ligaments,
that which lies toward the internal condyle is
longer and broader than that toward the external
condyle. 'i"he lowed of" theCe fibres are very
oblique, and form on each fide a kind of fmail fc-
psrate fafciculus.
In pafTing over the joint, all thefe fibres con-
tract in breadth, and afterwards end in a llrong
flat tendon inferred in the mafcular jmprefTion,
which is diredtlv below the coronoide apophyfis of
the ulna. This mufcle adheres \'ery Itronglv to
the caplular ligament, and fome of its flefhy fibres
terminate therein.
The floped or forked fuperior extremity of this
mufcle embraces the large tendon of the deltoides.
The internal point of the fork n-.ects the inferior
infertion of the coraco-brachialis ; and the torc-
iide of the whole mufcle is cc\cred by the two
fiefhy bodies of the biceps.
BIIACHIUM, Arm, in anatomy, one of the
fuperior extremities of the human body, comprc-
4ieiiding the fcapula, the os humeri, the cubit,
and the hand. See the articles Scapula, Arm, &:c.
BRACHIVIANS, a Tea of Indian philofophers,
knov/n to the ancient Greeks by the name of
GymnofophiltSv The ancient Brachmans lived
upon herbs and. pulfe, and abftained from every
thing that had life in it. 'I'hey lived in folitudc,
without matrimony, and without property ; and
they wifhed ardently for death, confidcring life only
as a burden. The modern Brachmans make up
one of the cafls or tribes of the Banians. They
are the priefts of that people, and perform their
office of praying and reading the law with feveral
mimical gefturcs, and a kind of quavering voice.
They believe that, in the beginning, nothing but
God and the water exided ; and that the Supreme
Being, defirous to create the world, caufed the
leaf of a tree, in the fhape of a child playing with
its great toe in its mouth, to fio.it on the water :
from its navel there iffucd out .i flower, whciice
Brama drew his original, v/ho was intruftcd by
God with the creation of the world, and prefides
©ver it with an abfolute fway. They make no dif-
tindHon between the fouls of men and brutes, but
fay the dignity of the human foul confifts in be-
ing placi-d in a better body, and having mo.'e room
to Jifplay its faculties. They allow of lewards
and punifhments after this life; ?nd have fo great
a veneration for cows, that they lock on themfelves
as bleffcd, if they can but die with the tail of one
of them in their hand. They have preurved feme
noble fragments of the knoN\!e'!gc of the anc:ent
,20
Brachmans. They are fkilful arithmetician', and
calculate, with great cxadnefs, eclijjfes of the fun
and moon. They arc remarkable for their religi-
ous aulterities. One of them has been known to
make a vow, to wear about his neck a heavy collar
of iron for a confiderable time : another to chain
himfelf by the foot to a tree, with a firm rcfolutioii
to die in that place ; and another to walk in wooden
flipes fluck full of nails on the infide. Their
divine vvorfhip confifts chiefly of procelfions, made
in honour of their deities. They have a college at
Banara, a city feated on the Ganges.
BRACHYGRAPHY, the aVt of fliort-hand
writing.
The word is compounded of the Greek lip:t'X,vi,
fliort, and ;)-paj«, to write.
BRACK fc-T, among carpenters, &:c. a kind of
wooden ff-ay, ferving to fupport fliclves, and the
like.
Brackets, in naval architecture, fhort crooked
timbers, fomewhat refembling knees : they are
fixed under the frame of a fhip's-head, to fupport
the gratings.
Bk-.^ckkts, in gunnery, are the cheeks of the
carriage of a mortar : they are made of flrong
planks of wood, nearly of a femi-circular figure,
and bound round with thick iron plates, v/hich are
fixed to the bed by four bolts, rifing up on each
fide the mortar, ferving to keep her at any eleva-
tion, bv means of fome ftrono; iron bolts, which
go through thefe cheeks or brackets-
BRACTKA, in natural hiftorv, denotes a fpan-
gle, or thin flake of any fubilance.
Bractea, in bot.any, denotes the floral leaf.
See the article Floral Leaf.
BRACTEARIA, in natural hiftory, a genus of
talcs, compofed of fmall plates in form of fpangFes,
each plate being either \ery thin, or divihble into
very thin ones.
BR.'\DS, among artificers, a kind of nails ufed
in building, which have no fpreading heads, as
other nails have. They are diflinguiflied, by iron-
mongers, by fix names, as joiners-brads, flooring-
brads, batten-brads, bill-brads, or quarter-heads,
(kc. Joiners brads are for hard wainfcot, batten-
br^'.ds for foft wainfcot ; bill-brads are uled when a
f.oor is laid in hafte, or for fhallow joilts fubject to
warp. See the article Nail.
BRADYPUS, in zoology, a genus of quadru-
peds, of the order of the anthropomorpha of Lin-
naeus, otherwife called ignavu:-, and in En;,iifh, the
floath ; the characters of which are, that its feet
have no great toe, and are made for climbing.
See the article A>:thropomgrpha.
Of this genus there are tv/o fpecies. i. The
American floath, with a ffaort tail, . iuU only three
toes on each foot. n. 1 he Ceylon floath, wfth
only two toes on each foot, and no tail.
5 H BRAG-
BRA
BRAGGET, s. kind cf drink madi: of malt,
honev, nnd fpicss, much iifed in Wales.
BRAILS, in the marine/ rgpes faftoned in
different places on the hinder, or after-ridg,e of the
1-iizen, to gather it up to the maft in-order for fur-
ling, when it is not required. to be ufcJ.
Erails arc lihcwife a general name given to all
the ropes which haul up, or coikcl: to their yards,
the bottoms, edges, and lo-.vcr-corners of the other
great fails, for the more ready furling 'them : and
this drawing together is called brailirig them up, or
h;;uling them up in the brails. Plate XXII. f;^. i.
in the lov.-er part reprefcnts feme part of the fail B,
hauled up in-thc brails.
BRAIN, in anatomy, a name given to all that
iiiafs vv'hich fills the cavity of the cranium, and
which is immediately furrounded by two mem-
branes, called meninges by the Greeks, and matres
by other ancients, becaufe they were commonly of
opinion that thefc membranes were the origin, and,
as it were, the mother of all the other membranes
of the body.
This general mafs is divided into three particular
portions ; the cerebrum, or brain, properly fo
called ; the cerebellum, and medulla oblongata.
To thefe three parts contained within the cranium,
a fourth is added, which nils the great canal of the
fpina dorfi by the name of medulla fpinalis, being
a continuation of the medulla oblongata.
The meninges, or membranes, are two in num-
ber, one of which is very Itrong, and lies contigu-
ous to the_ cranium; the other is \cry thin, and
immediately touches the brain. The firft is named
dura mater ; the fecond pia mater, which is again
divided into two, the external lamina beinc; termed
arachnoides, and the Lutcrnal regaining the common
name of pia mater. Sec the articles D«rrt Mater
and Pia Mater.
The cerebrum, properly fo called, is a kind of
medullary mafs, of a moderate confiilencc, and of
a greyilh colour on the outer furfacc, filling all the
fupcrior portion of the cavity of the cranium, or
that portion which lies above the tranfverfe feptuni.
The upper part of the cerebrum is of an oval figure,
like half an egg cut lengthwife, or rather like two
quarters of an egg cut lengthwife, and parted
a little from each ot.^cr. It is flatter on the lov.^er
■part, each lateral half of which is di\ided into three
eminences, called lobes, one anterior, one middle,
^Ai\d one pofterior.
The fubflance of the cerebrum is of two kinds,
diftinguifhed by two different colours ; one part of
it, which is the fofter, being of a grcyifli or afn-
-colour; the other, which is mere folid, very white.
The afh-colourcd fubftancc lies chiefly on the outer-
part of the cerebrum, like a k'nd of cortex ; from
whence it has been named fubitantia corticalis or
.cinerea. The white fubftance occupies the inner
pa-.t, and is named fubflantia meduljaris, or fimply
{uhitiLitb. albi-, ^ 5
BRA
The cerebrum is divided into two lateral por-
tions, feparated by the falx, or great longitudinal
feptum of the dura mater. They are generally
termed 'hcmiipheres ; but they are more like quar-
ters of an oblong fpheroid. Each of thefe por-
tions is divided into two extremiti.-s, one anterior,
and one pofi:erior, v/hich are termed the lobes of
the c<Trebrum, between which there is a large infe-
rior protuberance v.'hich gees by the fame nan;e ;
fo that in each hemifphere there are three lobes, one
anterior, one middle, and one .pofterior.
The anterior lobes lie upon thofe parts of the cs
frontis which contribute to the formation of the
orbits ami of the frontal finufes, commonly called
the anterior foUne of the bafis cranii. 1 he pofte-
rior lobes lie on the tr.-'.nfveife feptum ; and the
middle lobes in the middle or lateral foff.c of the
hafis cranii.
Each lateral portion of the cerebrum has three
ifides, one fuperior, which is convex ; one inferior,
.which is uneven ; and one lateral, v/hich is flat ;
and turned to the falx. Through the whole fur-
face of thefe three fides we fee inequalities or v/ind-
ings like the circumvolutions of the inteftines.,
formed by wa\ing ftreaks or furrows very deep and
narrow, into which the fepta, or duplicatures of
the pia mater, infinuate thcmfelves, and thereby fe-
parate thefe circumvolutions from each other.
Near the furface of the cerebrum, thefe circum-
volutions are at fome diltance from each other, rc-
prefenting ferpentioe ridges ; and in the interftices
between them, the fuperficial veins of the cerebrum
are lodged, betv.'een the two lamina: of the piit
mater, by an infinite number of very fine vafculcr
filaments, as may be fecn by pulling the circumvc-
lutions a little afunder with the fingers.
When they are cut tranfverfly, v/e obferve that
the fubftantia alba lies in the middle of each cir-
cumvolution ; fo that there is the fame number of
internal medullary circumvolutions as of external
cortical ones; the firft reprefcnting white lamin.'i;
in\efted by others of an afh-colour^, but the corti-
cal fubftance is in many places thicker than the
medullary.
The anterior and middle lobes of the cerebrum
on each fide are parted by a deep iTarrow fulcu..>,
which afcends obliquely backv.Mrd, from the tem-
poral ala of the os fpbenoides to near the middle of
the OS parietale ; and the two fides of this divifion
have each their particular ridges and circumvolu-
tions, which gives a very great extent to the
cortical fubftance. This fulcus is termed fiffura^
magna filvii, or fimply fifi'ura cerebri.
'rhe corpus cillofutn is a white convex body,
being a middle portion of the medullary fub-
ftance, whofe furface is covered by the pi;i
'mater. Along the middle of its furfacc, from
one end to another, there is a kind of raphae
formed by a particular intertcxture of fibres, v.'hicji
crofs
BRA
crofs each other. After Its uniting with the cor-
tical fubdancc, a medullary arch or vault of an
ovul figure is formed.
Under this arch arc two lateral and flullow
caviti'.'b', feparated by a tr;uifparc;i: mcduilary kp-
tum ; and generally called the anterior fupcrior
ventricles of the cerebrum,
'I"he above tranfparent partition is generally cal-
led the foptum lucidum, and lies directly under the
raphe or I'uturc of the corpus callofum, of which it
is a continuation.
The fcptum lucidum is imited bv its lower part
to the anterior portion of that medullary body im-
properly called the fornix, with three pillars ; be-
caiifc it is thought to bear fome refemblancc to the
arches of ancient vaults.
The fornix being cut ofF and inverted, or quite
removed, v/e full perceive a vafcular web, called
plexus choroides, and feveral eminences more orlefs
covered by the cxpani'ion of that plexus. There
are four pairs of eminences, which follow each
other very regularly, two l.irge and tv/o fmall. The
firft pair of larger eminences are named corporal
ftriata, from their having a great number of white
and afii-coloured fireaks alternately difpofed thro'
their fubftance ; and the fecond pair, thalami ner-
vorum opticorum, bccaufe thefe nerves ariie chiefly
from them. The four fmall eminences are clofel)-
linitcd together, the anterior being called nates,
and the pofterior tefces ; though it would be
better to call them fun ply, anterior and pofterior
tubercles.
Immediately before thefe tubercles, there is a
fmgle eminence called glandula pinealis, a fmall,
foft, greyiOi body, about the fize of an ordinary
pea, irregularly round, and fometimcs of the fia;ure
of a pine apple. This gland, v/hich Des Cartes
will have to be tlie feat of the foul, has been often
found to contain gravel.
Between the balls of the anterior pillar of the
fornix, and the anterior part of the union of the
optic thalami, lies a cavity or foiTula, called infun-
dibulum. It runs down towards the bafis of the
cerebrum, contracting gradually, and terminates by
^ membraneous canal in a foftilh body, fituated in
the fella fphenoidalis, named glandula pituitaria.
The infundibulum opens above, immediately be-
fore the optic thalami, by an oval hole, called fora-
men commune anterius, and confequently commu-
nicates with the lateral -lentricles.
The cerebellum is contained under the tranfverfc
fcptum of the dura mater. It is broader laterally
than on the fore or back-fidcs, flatted on the up-
per fide, and gently inclined both ways, anfwerable
to the feptum, which ferves it as a kind of tent or
ceiling. On the lower-fide it is rounder, and on
the bacl:-fiiie divided into two lobes, feparated by
the occipital feptum of the duranialer.
BRA
It is made up, like the cerebrum, of two fub-
fiances; but it has no circumvolutions on its fui-
face. Its fulci arc pretty deep, and diipofed in
fucli a manner as to form that flat ftrata, more or
kfs horizontal, between which the internal lainin.'s
of the pia mater infinuates itfelf by a number of
fcpta, equal to that of the ftrata. .
Under the tranfverfc fcptum, it is covered by a
vafcular texture, which communicates "with the
plexus choroides. It has two middle eminences
called appendices vermiformcs, one anterior and
fuperior v-hich is turned forward, the ot'r.cr pofte-
rior and inferior which goes backward. There arc
likev/ife two lateral appendices, both turned out-
ward. They are termed vermiformes, from theic
refemblance to a large portion of an earth-worm.
Bcfides the divifion of the cerebellum into late-
ral portions, or into two lobes, each of thefe lobes
feems to me likewife fubdivided into three protu-
berances, one anterior, one middle or lateral, and
one pofterior ; but they are not in all fubjecls
equally diftinguifhed either by their convexity or
hmits ; but they may always be diftinguifhed by
the diredtion of their ftrata, thofe of the middle
and anterior protuberances being Icfs tranfverfc than
in the pofterior.
When v/e fcparate the two lateral portions or
lobes, having firft made a pretty deep incifion, we
difcover firft of a'l the pofterior portion of the me-
dulla oblongata ; and in the pofterior furface of
this portion, from the tubcrcula quadrigemina, all
the way to the pofterior notch of the body of the
cerebellum, we obfervc an oblong cavity, which
terminates backward, like the point of a writing
pen. This cavity is called the fourth ventricle.
The medulla oblongata is a medullary iubftance,
iituated from before bv;ckward, in the middle pare
of the bafis of the cerebrum and cerebellum, with-
out any difcontinuation, between the lateral parts
of both thefe bafes ; and therefore it may be look-
ed upon as one middle medullary bafis, common fio
both cerebrum and cerebellum, by the reciprocal
continuity of their medullary fubftances, through
the great notch in the tranfverfc feptum of the
dura mater, which common bafis lies immediately
on that portion of the dura mater which lines the
bafis of the cranium. The medulla oblongata is
therefore juflly efteemed to be a third general part
of the whole mafs of the brain, or as the common
produifticn or united elongation of the whole me-
dullary fubftance of the cerebrum and cerebel-
lum.
The lower fide of the medulla oblongata, in an
inverted fituation, prefents to our view feveral
parts, which are in general either medullary pro-
duftions, trunks of nerves, or trunks of blood-
vcfiel'^.
The chief medullary produiSlions are thefp :
the
BRA
the large or anterior branches of the medullary
oblongata, which have likcwife beeji named crura
antcriora, femora and brachia medulla; oblongata:,
p.nd pedimculi cerebri ; the tranfverfe protuberance,
called alfo proceffus annularis or pons varolii ; the
fmall or pofterior branches, called pedunculus ce-
rcbelli, or crura porteriora mcdullae oblongata; ;
the extremity or cauda of the medulla oblongata,
with two pairs of tubercles, one of which is named
corpora oli\'aria, the other corpora pyramidalia :
and to all thefe produdions v/e mull add a produc-
tion of the infundibulum and two m.edullary papiU.t;.
Wc mufl: obferve in general concerning the emi-
nences of the medulla oblongata, that thofe which
are m.edullary on their outfides or furfaccs, arc in-
teriorly either entirely cortical, or partly cortical
and partly medullary, or formed by a fmgular mix-
ture of thefe two uibftances.
From this common portion of the cerebrum and
cerebellum, arife almolt all the nerves which go
out of the cranium through the different foramina
by which its bafis is perforated. It likewife pro-
duces the medulla fpiualis, which is no more than
a common elongation of the cerebrum and cere-
bellum, and of their different fubibnccs ; and there-
fore the medulla oblongata may be juftly faid to
be the firlf origin or primitive of all the nerves
which go out through the fpina dorfi, and confe-
quently of all the nerves of the human body. See
the articles Medulla Spin.Jis, and Nerve'. fFui-
Jhio's Anatoniy.
BRAKE, in the marine, the handle or l.-aver of
a common pum.p, by which it is wrought : it is
fitted to go between two ears at the upper part of
the pump, through both of which, and a hole in
the brake, is thrufl an iron pin, upon which the
leaver refts, as it draws up the water through the
tube. See the article Pump.
Brakes, a name by vv-hich the fern is called in
feveral parts of England. See the article Fern.
BRAMBLE, in'botany ; fee the article Rubus.
Bramble-Net, otherv/ife called hallier, is a
net to catch birds in, of fe\'eral fizes j. the great
meflies mull be four inches fquare ; thofe of the
leaft fize are three or four inches fquare ; and thofe
of the bigijefl: five. In the depth, they fliould not
be above three or four inches \ but as for the length,
they may be enlarged at pleafure ; the fliorteft be-
ing eighteen feet long.
BRnMlNS, the name of the priefts among the
idolatrous Indians, the fucceiibrs of the ancient
Btachmans. See the article Erachmans.
BRAN, the fkins or hufks of corn, efpecially
wheat ground, fcparated from the flour by a fic\e
or boulter.
BRANCA Ursina, bears-beech, in botany.
See the article Acanthus.
BRANCH, in botany, an arm of a tree, or a
part which, iproutinj out from the trunk, helps
BRA
to form the head or crown thereof. The branches
of a tree bear a refemblance to the exterior mem-
bers or limbs of animals, and are of the fiime na-
ture with the trunk ; for their inward parts con-
fift of a multitude of tubes, which are alfo pro-
vided with a number of fmall glands, veins, and
mufcles, interfperfed here and there, where the fap
coming from the firft canal is rendered much more
delicate : often branches rife without order and in
confulion from the trunk, as in the elm, oak, and
others. With fome plants they are more elegant
and regularly placed, as in the fir-trees, &c.
Branches are diflingulflied into various kinds :
I If, Wood branches, which arc thofe that form
the fhape of the tree : adly. Fruit branches, which
are flenderer than the wood branches, and have
their eyes near to each other, and large, by which
the fruit buds are formed : 3dly, Luxuriant branches,
which are fuch as fhoot out from the large wood
branches : 4thly, Irregular branches, fuch as are
fmall and coni'ufed : 5thly, Spurious wood branches,
fuch as come contrary to the order of nature. The
diftinguifliing marks of good branches are, that the
eyes in the whole extent be thick, well-fed, and
clofe to each other. The good ftrong branches are
employed iji producing yearly on their extremities
other new branches, iome ftrong and others weak.
'I'he good weak branches are fuch as are well placed,
and being of a mean thicknefs and length, m.ay
be able to produce fpeedily beautiful and good fruit.
The diftinguifliing marks of bad branches are,-
whcn the lower part of the eyes are flat, ill fed,
and hardly formed, and at a large diilance from
each other. For the method of managing branches,,
fee the article J-'run'ing.
Branch, in fortification. See Boyau.
Branch* is likewife a term ufed in genealogy
and anatomy. Thus we fay, the branch of a fa-
mily, the branch of an artery, the branch of a
vein.
Branches of a Biid':, in the manege, are two
pieces of iron bended, which in the interval, be-
tween the one and the other, bear the bit-mouth,
the crofs-chains, and the curb ; fo that on one end
they anfwer to the head-ftall, and on the other to
the reins, in order to keep the horfe's head in fub-
jeifion.
Branches of Ogives, in a.-chitefture, are the
arches of Gothic vaults. I'hefc arches traverfmg
from one angle to another diagonal wife, form a
crofs betv/een the other arches, which make the
fides of the fquare, of which the arches are dia-
gonals.
Yiv^A^c^ of a Trench. See BoYAU.
Branchij/' a Mine. See Gall-^ry.
Branch-Stand, with falconers, a term ufed
to fignify the making a hawk leap from tree to
tree, till the dog fprings the game.
BRANCIIER, among 'fportfmcn, a young
hawk.
BRA
hawk, newly taken out of the neft, that can hop
from bough to bough.
BRANCHERY, in the anatomy of plants, de-
notes the ramifications of the fucciferous vcfll-ls
difperfed through the parenchyma, or pulpy parts of
fruits.
The iriain branches are ufually twenty in num-
ber ; one half, or fifteen, being diftributed over
the parenchyma, and the reft, running from the
flaik in a flraight line, meet the former at the cork
or (hoot of the flower : to thefe laft the coats of the
kernels are faftened. „
BRANCHI.(E, GiLts, in the anatomy of fifhes,
the parts correfponding to the lungs of land-
animals, by which fiflies take in and throw out
again a certain quantity of water, impregnated with
air. All fifhes, except the cetaceous ones and the
petromyzon, are furnifhcd with thefe organs of
relpiration ; which are always eight in number,
four on each fide the throat ; that next the heart is
always the leaft, the reft increafing in order as they
ftand near the head of the fifh.
Each of thefe gills is compofed of a bony lamina,
in form of a femicircle, for the moft part ; and on
its convex fide ftand the leaves or lamellae, like fo
many fickles. The whole convex part of the
lamellae is befet with hairs, which are longeft near
the bafe, and decreafe gradually as they approach
towards the point. There are alio hairs on the
concave fide of the lamella;, but fhorter than the
others, and continued only to its middle.
The convex fide of one lamina is fitted into the
■concave fide of the next fuperior one ; and all of
them are connected together by means of a mem-
brane, which reaches from their bafe half way their
height, where it grows thicker, and in fome mea-
fure refembles a rope. The reft of the lamina
is free, and terminates in a very fine and flexible
point.
As to the ufe of thefe gills, they fcem to be de-
figned to receive the blood protruded from the heart
into the aorta, and convey it into the extremities
of the lamells ; from whence being returned by
veins, it is diftributed over the body of the fifli.
BRANCHIARUM FoRAMlt.-A, Apertures of
the Gills. In moft fifhes there is only one aperture ;
in the cartilaginous ones, thefe apertures are ten in
number, five on each fide ; and in the petromyzon
or lamprey, there are no Icfs than fourteen of thefe
apertures, feven on each fide.
As to the cetaceous fifhes, they have no aper-
ture of this kind ; and the reafon feems to be, be-
caufe they are furniflied with lungs.
BRANCHID./E, in Grecian antiquity, priefts
of the temple of Apollo, which was at Didymus
in Ionia, a province of Leffer Afia, towards the
/Egean fea, upon the frontiers of Caria. They
opened to Xerxes the temple of Apollo, the riches
-whereof he took away : after which, thmking it
21
BRA
unfafe to ftay in Greece, they fled to Sagdiana, on
the other fide of the Cafpian fea, upon the fron-
tiers of Perfia, where they built a city, called by
their own name : but they did not efcape the punifti-
mcnt of their crime ; for Alexander the Great, hav-
ing conquered Darius, king of Perfia, and being
informed of their treachery, put them all to the
fword, and razed their city ; thus puniftiing the
impiety of the fathers in the pofterity.
Brandy, a fpirituous and inflammable liquor,
extracted from wine and other liquors by diftilla-
tion, which is moft generally performed by the
common alembic ; but fometimes alfo in balneum
maris. See Distill.a.tion.
The chief ufe of brandy is as a drink, particu-
larly in the northern countries, among the negroes
of Guinea, who will fell one another for fome
bottles of brandy, and among the fuvages of Cana-
da, who are extremely fond of it. Brandy is alfo
ufed in medicine, to ftrengthen the nerves ; and in
dying, reiflified fpirits of wine being reckoned by
the dyers among the non-colouring drugs.
Method of cdowlng Brandy. All brandies,
when firft made, are as clear as water, and grow
higher coloured by long keeping : however, they
aie artfully made of any colour feveral ways. To
make a light ftravv-colour, ufe turmeric, or a little
treacle : but the beft way is to give it a colour or
tinifture with a little burnt fugar, made to a con-
fiftcnce ; or fyrup of elder-berries may be ufed,
which gives an admirable colour, and may be
made deeper or lighter, according to the quantity
you put in.
Befides the brandy made of wine, there is fome alfo
made of beer, cyder, fyrups, fugar, molafles, fruit,
grain, &c. however, thefe are not properly called
brandy ; but go under the general denomination of
fpirits. See the articles Rum, Arrack., &c.
Wine brandy made in France, is efteemed the
beft in Europe. They m.ake it where\'er they
make wine ; and for that purpofr, ufe wine that is
pricked, rather than good wine.
BRASIDIA, an anniverfary folemnity at Spar-
ta, in memory of Brafidas, a Lacedemonian cap-
tain, famous for his atchievements at Methone,
Pylos, and Amphipolis. It was celebrated with
facrifices and games, wherein none were permitted
to contend, but free-born Spartans. Whoever
neglected to be prefent at the folemnity, was
fined.
Brasil, or Brazil, in natural hiftory, is a red
wood, brought from the province of that name in
South-America. There are different forts of it,
diftinguiflied by the names of Fernambouc, St.
Martha, &c. What differences there are in the
trees we know not : the woods, brought to us,
differ little otherwife than as different parts of
one log, fome pieces being richer in colour than
othersr
5 I This
BRA
This wood is called, by Cafpr.r Pauhipe, badard
red-faunders,' Pfcudojant alum ruhrum five arbor Bra-
silia. Alany have confounded it with the true red-
faur.ders : the college of Bruflijls, in their account
of that wood, have plainly miflaken the Brazil for
it : however the two trees may be allied in their
botanic charaiSlcrs, the woods, chemically confi-
dered, are very obvioufly different ; Brazil wood
readily giving out its red colour to water, whilfl
faunders gives no red tinge to any aqueous liquor.
The watery tincfture of Brazil, however, is not
quite fo deep as that made in rectified fpirit of wine,
or in volatile alkaline fpirit?.
The fpirituous tiniSlure flains warm marble of a
purplifh red, which, ujjon increafing the heat, be-
comes violet. Mr. du Fay informs us, in a paper
upon this fubject in the French Memoirs, that if
the flained marble.be covered with wax, and con-
fiderably heated, it chancres through all the {hades
of brown, and fixes at laiT: in a chocolate colour.
The colour of the v/atery decoction is heighten-
ed by alum, and inclined to a crimfon. A de-
codion made with alum, in the proportion of about
one part of the fait to four of the wood, yields
upon adding alkaline ley or volatile fpirits, a kind
of crimfon lake verging a little to violet.
Solution of tin in aqua-fortis, added to the de-
codtion, throws down a much finer coloured pre-
cipitate, little inferior in beauty to carmine. This
experiment, firft communicated in the Aiia Natura
Curioforum^ has been feveral times repeated with
fuccefs. The quantiy of lake is largeft when alum
is ufed in making the dccoftion ; but the colour is
much finer without it.
BRASS, or, as the French call it, Yellow-
CorPER, is a fadlitious metal, made of copper and
lapis calaminaris.
The method of preparing it is as follows : The
lapis, having been calcined and ground fine as flour,
is mixed with fine charcoal, and incorporated, by
ir.eans of water, into a mafs : this being done,
about feven pounds of Lapis calaminaris is put into
2 melting pot that will contain about a gallon, and
over that about five pounds of copper ; this pot is
let down into a wind furnace, where it remains for
eleven hours, in which time it is converted into
brafs. The metal then is call, either into plates
or lumps ; forty-five pounds of crude lapis calami-
naris will produce thirty pounds when calcined or
burned. Sometimes brafs-flirufl:' is ufed infl:cad of
copper ; but that is not always to be procured in
quantities fufficient, it being no other than u col-
lecSiion of old brafs.
' Pure brafs is not malleable, unlefs when it is hot ;
for when it is cold it will break; and after it has
been miclted twice, it will be no longer in a condi-
tion to bear the hamn;er at all : but in order to ren-
tier it cap;;ble of being wrought, they pu{ feven
BRA
pounds of lead to an hundred weight of brafs, which
renders it more foft and pliable.
The beft proportion for brafs-guns is faid to be a
thoufand pounds of copper, nine hundred pounds of
tin, and fix hundred pounds of brafs, in eleven or
twelve thoufand weight of metal.
The heft brafs guns are made of malleable metal,
not of pure copper and calamine alone ; but worfer
metals are ufed to make it run clofer and founder,
as lead and pot-metal. See Cannon.
Brafs may be cleanfed, firft, by rubbing it with
a cloth dipped in equal quantities of aqua-fortis and
common water ; then with an oily cloth, and laftly,
with a dry one dipped in lapis calaminaris.
Brafs is tinged of a gold colour, firft, by burn-
ing, then difTolving it in aqua-fortis, and laftly,
reducing it to its metalline ftate. It may be
whitened by heating it red-hot, and quenching it
in water diftilled from fal ammoniac and egg-fhells.
It is filvered, or coloured fuperficially white, by
rubbing it with balls made of filver diliolved in
aqua-fortis, with powder of white tartar, fufficient
to abforb all the moifture thereof.
Corinthian Brass has been famous in antiquity,
and is a m.ixture of gold, filver, and copper.
L. Mummius having facked and burned the city of
Corinth, 146 years before Chrift, it is faid this
metal was formed from the immenfe quantities
of gold, filver, and copper, wherewith that city
abounded, thus melted and run together by the
violence of the conflagration.
Brass-Colour, one prepared by the braziers
and colourmen to imitate brafs. There are two
forts of it, the red brafs, or bronze, and the yel-
low or gilt brafs ; the latter is made only of copper-
filings, the fmalleft and brighteft that can be
found ; with the former they mix fome red ochre,
finely pulverized : they are both ufed with varnifh.
BRASSICA, in botaiiy ; fee the article Cab-
bage.
BRASSICAVIT, or BRACHtcAviT, in the
manege, is a horfe whofe fore legs are naturally
bended archv/il'e : being fo called by way of dif-
tinction from an arched horfe, whofe legs are bowed
by hard labour.
BRAULS, Indian cloths with blue and white
ftripes. They are otherwife called turbans, be-
caufe they ferve to cover thofe ornaments of the
head, particularly on the coaft of Africa.
BRAURONIA, in Grecian antiquity, a feftivaL
in honour of Diana, furnamcd Brauronia, from
its having been obferved at Brauron, an Athenian-
borough.
BRAWN, the fltHi of a boar foufed or pickled ;
for which end the bor.r fhould be old, becaufe the.
older he is, the more horny will the brawn be.
The method of preparing brawn is as follows :
The boar being kiUedj it is the flitches only, with-
1 out
BR E
out the legs, that are made brawn ; the bones of
which are to be taken out, and tlien the fleflj
fprinklcJ with fait, and laid in a tray, that the
blood may drain oft": thtn it is to be faltcd a little,
and rolled up as hard as pofTible. I'hc length ot
the collar of brawn fliould be as much as one fide
of tiie boar will bear ; fo that when rolled up, it
will be nine or ten inches diameter.
The collar being thus rolled up, is to be boiled
in a copper, or large kettle, till it is fo tender that
you can run a ftraw through it ; then fet it by, till
it is thorough cold, and put it into the following
pickle. To every gallon of water, put a handful
or two of fiilt, and as much wheat bran : boil them
together, then drain the bran as clear as you can
from the liquor; and when the liquor is quite
cold, put the brawn into it.
BRAZING, the foldering or joining two pieces
of iron together, by means of thin plates of brafs,
melted between the pieces that are to be joined.
If the work be very fine, as when two leaves of a
broken faw are to be brazed together, they cover
it with pulverized borax, melted with water, that
it may incorporate with the brafs powder, which is
added to it : the piece is then expofed to the fire
without touching the coals, and heated till the brafs
is feen to run.
Brazing is alfo the joining two pieces of iron
together by heating them hot, the one upon
the other, which is ufed for large pieces by far-
riers. Sec.
BREACH, I'n fortification, a gap made in any
part of the works of a town by the cannon or
mines of the befiegers, in order to make an attack
upon the place.
A pra£^ical breach is that where men may mount,
and make a lodgment, and ought to be fifteen or
twenty feet wide.
Breach, in a legal fenfe, is where a perfon
breaks through the conditions of a bond or cove-
nant, on an adion upon which the breach mufi: be
aflijrned : nor mull the affignnient be general ; it
muft be particular; as in an action of covenant
for repairing houles, it ought to be affigned partic\i-
larly what the want of reparation really is ; and in
fuch certain manner that the defendant may take an
iflue.
BREAD, P.iH/s, a mafs of dough kneaded and
baked in an oven.
We find bread fometimes made of rye, of oats,
and of barley ; but that prepared from wheat is by
far the moft wholefome. In feveral parts of Afia,
Africa, and America, they make bread of maize,
or Indian corn ; and in fome parts the Americans
make bread of the cafiava-root. See Cassava.
BREADTH, in geometry, one of the three di-
menfions of bodies, and which, multiplied into
the length, produces a iiirface.
BREAKERS, -x name given by failors to the
BR E
wave?, which breaking violently over rocks imme-
diately under the furfacc of the water, cover that
part of the fca with foam : thcv arc otherwife to be
diftinguiflied by a hoarfe and terrible roaring, con-
tinueil with a found very different from what they
have in the offing, or at a diftance from the land.
When a fhip is unhappily driven amongft thefe,
it is hardly poflible fhe can be fined, as every bil-
low that heaves her upwards, dalhcs her down with'
additional force, when it breaks amnngfi: the rocks
or fands : v/e have ourfelves fetn the furges break
over the mafl: head in fuch a fituation, whither the
remainder of an unfortunate crew had fought a lallr
refuge.
BREAKING-BUf,}^, in the m.arine, unload-
ing the firfl: part of a {hip's cargo.
BREAK-WATER, the hull or lower frame of
fome old fliip or veffel, funk at the entrance of a
fmall harbour, to break of}" the force of the waves
from the vefleb which a,-e moored within it.
Break-Water is likewife a fmall buoy faften-
ed to a large one in the water, when the buoy-rope
of the latter is not long enough to reach from the
anchor at the bottom to the furface of the water ;
the ufe of this break-water is to fliew where the
buoy fwims. See the article Buoy.
BREAM, Brarna, in ichthyology, the name of
a fifh, of which there are two forts, one found in
the frcfli, and the other in the fair water. The
former is the cyprimus, and has all its fins black ;
and the latter the reddifli fparu's, having eleven
parallel and gold coloured lines on each fide.
BREA»x*/IiNG, in the marine, the act of burn-
ing ofF the filth, fuch as grafs, ooze, or fliells,
from a fhip's bottom, that h.ad gathered to it in a
voyage, or by lying long in a harbour.
Breaming is performed by holding kindled
furze or faggots to the fnip's bottom: the flame im-
mediately incorporating with the pitch, fulphur,
iic. that had formerly covered the bottom, diredlly
loofens and throws off whatever excrement may
have adhered to it : afi:erthis cleanfmg, it is cover-
ed a-new with a compofition of tallow, fulphur,
turpentine, &c. and this not only makes the bot-
tom fmooth- and flippery, fo that it more readily
divides the fluid, but greatly contributes to poifon
the worms that eat through a fliip's planks, as long
it remains there. See Careen, Dock. .
BREAST, Fi'.^us, in anatomy, the fore-part of
the thorax. See Thorax.
Breasts, Mamma; in anatomy; fee the article
Mammv^.
Breast-Fast, in the marine, a hawfer, or
large rope that confines a fliip to a wharf, or otlrcr
place fideways.
BREAST-Hooks, in naval architefture, ftror.g
crooked pieces of timber fayed a-crofs the infi.ie
of a fliip's bows, or fore-part, and bolted to the ftrin
and forcmofl timbers, SeeCANT-TiMBEftS5ST:t«.
Tuf;
BRE
The breaft-hooks are the principal fupport of
the Ihip forward, as they bear all the fhock of re-
fiftance which fhe receives in dividing the fluid.
Breast-Plate, in antiquity, a piece of ar-
mour worn to defend the breaft, originally believed
to be made of hides, or hemp twifted into fmall
cords ; but afterwards made of brafs, iron, or
other metals, which were fometimes fo exquifitely
hardened, as to be proof againft the greateft force.
Breast-Plate, in the manege, the flrap of
leather that runs from one fide of the faddie to the
other, over the horfe's breafl, in order to keep the
faddie tight, and hinder it from Aiding backwards.
Breast-Plough, one fo fafhioned that a man
may fiiove it before him.
Breast-Work, the fame with parapet. See
the article Parapet.
BRfcECH of a great Gun, or Cannon, the end
next the touch-hole.
BREECHING, in the marine, a thick rope
ufed to fccure the cannon of a fhip of war, and
prevent them from recoiling too much in the time
of battle.
It is fixed by faftening the middle part of it to.
the cafcabel, or hindmofl knob of the cannon,
called by feamen the pomiglion ; afterwards the
two ends of it are inferted through two flrong iron
rings in the outfides of the carriage, and faliened
to eye-bolts in the fhip's fide : the breeching is of
i'ufiicicnt length to let the muzzle of the cannon
come within the {hip's fide.
BREEZE, a fliifting wind that blows from fea
or land for fome certain hours in the day or night ;
common in Africa, and fome parts of the Eaft and
Weft-Indies.
The fea-breeze is only fenfible near the coafls ;
it commonly rifcs in the morning, about nine, pro-
ceeding flowly in a fine fmall black curl on the
water, towards the fliore ; it increafes gradually till
twelve, and dies about five. Upon its ceafing, the
land-breeze commences, which increafes till twelve
at night, and is iucceeded in the morning by the
fea-breeze again.
Breeze, in brick-making, fmall afhes and cin-
ders, fometimes made ul'e of inftead of coals, for
the burning of bricks : but as this does not fo well
anfwer the end, the ufe of it is prohibited by 12
Geo. I. cap. xxxv.
BREGMA, in anatomy, the fame with finclput.
See Sinciput.
The bregma confifts of two bones, which are
bones of the cranium, called offa parittalia.
BRENT-GOOSE, a fpecies of goofe with a
black neck and a white collar round ; ufually con-
founded with the barnacle, though in reality a dif-
tinft fpecies.
It is a little larger than the common duck, and
is defcribed by authors under the name of anas
torquala.
BRE
BREST, or Breast, in architeflure, a term
fometimes ufed for the member of a column, more
ufually called torus. See the article Torus.
Brest-Summers, in timber buildings, arc
pieces in the outward parts thereof, into which
the girders are framed : this in the ground-floor ia
called a cill ; and in the garret-floor a beam.
As to their fize, it is the fame with that of gir-
ders. See the article Girders.
BREVE, in law, is any writ diredted to the
chancellor, judges, fheriffs, or other officets,
whereby a perfon is fummoned, or attached, to an-
fwer in the king's courts, &c.
Breve Perquirere, the purchafing of a writ
or licence for trial in the king's courts : whence
comes the prefent ufage of paying fix {hillings and
eight-pence fine to the king in fuit, for money due
on bond, where the debt is forty pounds, and of
ten {hillings where it is a hundred pounds, &c.
Breve De Recto is a writ of right, or licence,
for a perfon ejected to fue for the pofleflion of the
cftate detained from him.
Breve, in mufic, a note or charadier of time,
in the form of a diamond, or fquare, without any
tail, and equivalent to two mealures, or femi-
breves,
Bkeve, or Brevis, in grammar: fyllables are
dillinguifheJ into longs and breves, according as
they are pronounced quicker or more flow.
Brevier, among printers, a fmall kind of
type, or letter, between nonpareil and bourgeois.
BREVIS, in anatomy, an a])pellation given to
feveral mufcles, on account of their fhortnefs. Thus,
Brevis Cuisiti, in anatomy, is a mufcle that
rifes from the fuperior and pofterior part of the hu-
merus, and by joining its flefhy fibres with the bra-
chixus externus and longus, and becoming tendi-
nous, covers the elbow, and is inferted into the ole-
cranium, to extend the arm.
Brevis Radii, a mufcle which comes from the
external and upper part of the ulna, and pafling
round the radius, is inferted into its upper and fore
part, below the tendon of the biceps : this and the
longus radii are called the fupinators, their oflice
being to turn the palm upwards.
Brevis Palmaris lies under the aponcurofis of
the palmaris, and arifes from the hone of the me-
tacarpus that fuftains the little finger, and from
that bone of the carpus which lies above the refb :
it goes tranfverfly, and is inferted into the eighth
bone of the carpus : it aflifts in making the palm
of the hand concave.
BREVITY, in matters of ftile, is a perfection
of difcourfe, v/hereby all fuperfluous words are re-
je£led,and only fuch as are abfokitely neceflary ufed.
However, as brevity is apt to degenerate into obfcu-
rity, it is a lefs fault to fay too much than too little.
BREW-HOUSE, a building adapted to the
brewing, &c. of malt liquors.
In
BRE
B RI
In order to ercfl: a large or public brew-houfc to
the bcft advantage, feveral circumilaiiccs {hould be
carefully obfcrvcd. i. That three fides in four of
the upper-part, or fccond floor, be built with
v.'oodcJi battons about three inches broad, and two
thick, that a iufticiciit quantity of air may be a<.l-
mitted to the backs or coolers. 2. That the cop-
pers be erected of a proper height above the niafh-
ing-ilage, that the hot water may be conveyed
by means of cocks into the mafli-tuns, and the
v/orts into the coolers. 3. That the fire-places" of
the coppers be very near each other, that one fto-
ker, or pcrfon wlio looks after the fire, may attend
all. 4. That the yard for coals be as near as poflible
to the fire-places of the copper. 5. That the
malt be ground near the mafli-tims, and the mill
creifted high enough that the malt may be con-
ve)cd from the mill irr.mediately into the mafh tuns,
by means of a fquarc wooden fpout or gutter. 6.
That the upper backs be not eretScd above thirty-
three feet above the refer\oir of water, that being
the greateft height water can be raifed by means of
a common fiiiglc pump. 7. That the pumps which
jaife the water, or liquor, as the brewers call it,
out of the refcrvoir into the water-backs, and alfo
thole which raife the worts out of the jack-back
into the coppers, he placed fo that they may be
worked by the horfe-mi!l which grinds the malt.
BREWING, the operation of preparing ale, or
beer, from malt. The ui'ual procefs of brewing is
as follows : the ingredients being ready, the water
muft be made to boil very fpcedily, and while
boiling with the greateft violence the fire muft be
immediately damped, or put out ; when the height
of the fteam is over, the water is put into the mafli-
ing-tun to wet the malt ; then fo much being
poured outas tomakc it of aconfiftence ftitf enough
to be rowed up, let it ftand thus a quarter of an
hour, after which another quantity of the water is
added, and rowed up as before ; at I aft the full
quantity of water is pouied upon it, and that in
proportion as the liquor is intended to be ftrong or
weak : this part of the operation is called mafiiing.
/'Afterwards the whole may be left to ftand two or
three hours, more or lefs, according to the ftrength
of the wort, or the difference of the weather ;
then let it run into the receiver, an.l mafti again
for a fecond wort in the fame manner as for the
firft, only the water muft be cooler, and muft not
ftand above half the time.
The two worts being mixed together, the quan-
tity of hops that is dtfigned may be added thereto,
,and the liquor put into the copper, which being
clofely covered up, let it boil gently for the fpacc
of an hour or two ; then let the liquor into the
receiver, and the hops ftrained from it into the
coolers.
When cool, the yeaft is applied ; which done,
21
it IE left to work or ferment, till it be fit to turt
up.
For finall beer there muft be a third mafliing ;
the water muft be near cold, and to ftand not above
three quarters of an hour ; to be hopped and boiled
at difcretion.
For double ale, or beer, the two liquors com-
ing from the two firft maftiings muft be ufed jli
liquor for a third maihing of frefli malt. For fine
ale, the liquor thus brewed is farther prepared
with molafies : inftead of yeaft, or baum, fonie
ufe Caftile foap, others flour and eggs, others an
clfcntial oil of barley, others a quintelTence of
malt, others of wine, and others the fai pana-
riftus.
In ordering vefixds for the prefervation of betr^
they muft not at one time be fcalded, and at ano-
ther waftied with cold water : fome rub the veflcls
with hop-leaves, that come out of the wort, and
lo rinfe them again ; then being dried in the air-,
and headed, they take a long piece of canvas, and
dipping it in brimftone make matches thereof, and
with a few coriander-feeds fet fire thereto : others
opening the bimg let the match burn in the veflel,
keeping in as much as they can of the fulphureou."!
fume, by laying the bung lightly on, and when
the match is burnt, they ftop all clofe for a little
time ; then being opened, and coming to the air,
the calk is found to be as fweet as a violet.
Brewing, in the fea-languagc, the appearance
of a colleft ion of black and gloomy clouds gradu-
ally arifing from a particular part of the herr^i-
fphere, as the fore-runner of a fquall or ftorm.
BREYNIA, in botany, a genus of polyandri-
ous plants, clafled by Linnreus with the capparic.
There arc two fpecies in this genus, which are both
natives of the warm parts of America ; but being
impatient of co'.d, they muft be kept in a hot-houfe
in this clim.ate to preferve them. For their generi-
cnl chara£lers, fee the article Ca?paris.
BRIAR, in botany, a fpecies of the rofe. See
the article Rose.
BRIBERY, in common law, is when a pcrfon
in judicial places, takes a gift or reward of any
perfon who has bufinefs before him, for his doing
his office, or by colour of his office, except the
king only, unleis it be meat and drink.
BRICK, a fat reddifh earth, formed into long
fquarcs, four inches broad, and eight or nine long,
by means of a wooden mould, and then baked or
burnt in a kiln, to ferve the purpofes of building.
Among us thev are various, according to their
various forms, dinienfions, ufes, method of mak-
ing, &c. the principal of which are, compafs
bricks, of a circular form, ufed in ftaining of walls:
concave, or hollow bricks, on one fide flat like a
common brick, on the other hollowed, and ufed
for conveyance of water: feather-edged bricks,
5 K which
BR I
which are like common ftatute bricks, only thinner
on one edge than the other, and ufed for pcnnin"
up the brick pannels in timber buildings : cogging
bricks are ufed for making the indented workb un-
der the coping of walls built with great bricks :
coping bricks, formed on purpofe for coping of
walls : Dutch or Flemifh bricks, ufed to pave
yards, or llables, and for foap-boilers vaults and
cifterns : clinkers, fuch bricks as are glazed by the
heat of the fire in making : fandal or faniel bricks
are fuch as lie outmoft in a kiln, or clamp, and
confcquently are foft and ufelefs, as not being
thoroughly burnt : great bricks are thofe twelve
inches long, fix broad, and three thick, ufed to
build fence walls : plaifler or buttrefs bricks have
a notch at one end, half the breadth of the brick ;
their ufe is to bind the work which is built of great
bricks : ftatute bricks, or fmall common bricks,
ought, when burnt, to be nine inches long, four
and a quarter broad, and two and a half'thick ;
they are commonly ufed in, paving cellars, finks,
hearths, kc.
The Aidhod of Luniiiig^ Bricks. — Bricks arc burnt
either in a kiln or clamp. Thofe that are burnt in
a kiln are firfr fct or placed in it, and then the
kiln being covered with pieces of bricks, they put
in fome wood, to dry them with a gentle fire ; and
this they continue till the bricks are pretty dry,
which is known by the fmoke's turning from a'dark-
j(h colour to a tranfparent fmoke : they then leave
oft putting in wood, and proceed to make ready
for burning, which is performed by putting in
brufli, furze, fpray, heath, brake, or fern faggots ;
but before they put in any faggots, they dam up
the mouth or mouths of the kiln with pieces of
bricks, which they call {liinlog, piled one upon
another, and clofe it up with v.et brick-earth, in-
llead of mortar.
The fhinlog they make fo high, that there is but
juft room above it to thrufb in a faggot ; they then
proceed to put in more faggots, till the kiln and its
arches look white, and the fire appears at the top
of the kiln ; upon which they flackeu the fire for
an hour, and let all cool by degrees. This they
continue to do alternately, heating and flacking,
till the ware be thoroughly burnt, Avhich is ufualty
eifedled in forty eight hours.
About London they chiefly burn in clamps,
built of the bricks theinfelvcs, after the manner of
firchcs in kilns, with a vacancy between each
brick, for the fire to play through ; but with this
chftere.nce, that inftead of arching, they fpan it
over by making the bricks projedt one over ano-
ther, on both fides of the place, for the wood and
coals to lie in till they m^eet, and are bounded by
the bricks at the top, which clofe all up. The
place for the fuel is carried up firaight on both
fides, till about three feet high ; then tbey almofl
B RI
fill it up vi'ithwood, and over that lay a covcrmg
of fea-coal, and then overfpan the arch ; but they
ftrew fea-coal alfo over the clamp betwixt all the
rows of bricks ; laftly, they kindle the wood which
gives fire to the coal, and when all is burnt, they
then conclude the bricks arc fufBciently burjit.
Oil of Bricks, oli\e oil imbibed by heated
bricks, which are afterwards broken, put into a re-
tort, and the oil again extrad\ed from them by an
open fire.
BRICKLAYER, a perfon who lays bricks in
the building of walls, houfes, &c.
Tilers and bricklajers were incorporated lo
Eliz. under the name of mafier and wardens of
the fociety of freemen of the myftery and art of
tilers and bricklayers.
BRIDGE, a building cither of ftone or timber,,
confining of one or more arches, erected over a ri-
ver, canal, or the like, for the conveniency of
pafling the fame.
The parts of a bridge are the piers, the arches,
the pavement, or way over for carriages, the foot-
way on each fide for foot-pafibngers, the rail or.
parapet which enclofcs the whole, and the hut-
ments or end of the bridge on the banks. The
building of bridges over rivers is very difficult, op.
account of the great inconvcniency in laying the
foundation or building under water.
The requifites that are thought neceiTary by ar-
chitects, in bridges, arc, that they be well defigned,
commodious, durable, and fuitably decorated.
The piers of ftone bridges fliould be equal in num-.
her, that there may be one arch in the middle,
where conimonly the current is ftrongeftt their,
thicknefs is not to be lefs than a fixth part of "the-
fpan of the arch, nor more than a fourth. They
are commonly guarded in front with an angular
fterling, w fpur, to break the force of the cur-
rcr.t, though this defence is fometimcs turned fcmi-
circular. in the ancient bridges i: is always a right
angle, which has the advantage of beiiig more
ftrong and durable than acute ones.
An-.ong the bridges of antiquity, that built by
the emperor Trajan over the Danube was the nioit
m.^.gnificent of all the works of this kind,. It was
crcfled for die conveniency of fending fuccours to
the Roman legions on the otlier fi.de the Danube^
in cafe they inould he fuddenJy attacked by tl:c
Daci ; but demolifncd by the next fucccllor Ha-
drian, for fear the barbarians, overpowering the
guards fet to defend it, flipuld, by means of it,
pour into Maefia, and cutoff" the garrifons there;
or rather, as fome think, out of envy, as defpair-
ing ever to do any thing like it himfelf. The ruins .
of it are ftill feen in the middle of the Danube, .
near the city Warhel in Hungary. It ccnfified of
twenty arches, each one hundred and fifty feet,
from pier to pier, and one Irandred and fifty feet
bighj.
ri^rrr.joar
F/artntf J5rutgo
t/'<a./. C^ rt}/^,\
<y. c^.^«/i/^.
i
BR I
liigh, and the piers fifty fc^t thick ; its whole
length was Ceven furlongs, which is more than
four times the length of London-bridge.
In France, the Pont dc Gariie is a very bold
\vork, the piers being only thirteen feet thick, yet
fcrving to fupport nn inimcnfc weight of a tri-
plicated arcade. It joins two mount.iins, and
confifls of three bridges one over ariother, the up-
pcrmoft of which is an aqueduilll.
The bridge at Avignon was begun in the year
1176, and Hniflicd in 1188, confiding of eighteen
arches, meafuring 1340 paces in length, or about
500 lathoms : di\eis of its arches have fincc been
(Icmolifhed by the ice, &c. fo that only part of it
DOW fubfifts.
The bridge of St. Efprit is the fincfl: in all
France, confifting of nineteen great arches, bc-
fides fcven fnialler ones, the apertures of the arches
being from fifteen to twenty fathoms, which makes
the length of the bridge upward.s of four hundred
fathoms. In the two lad mentioned bridges there
is this remarkable, that thev are not ftraight, but
bent, having an angle, whofe convexity is turned
towards the ftrcam, to break the force thereof.
The Pont St. Efprit, Dr. Robinfon obfcrves, is
bowed in many places, making unequal angles,
efpecially in thofe parts where the ilrcam is ftrong-
eft. The great pier in London -bridge, it is faid,
was intended to ferve for a Head', i;vg to the who'e
machine, inllead of making an angle, as in the
abovemcntioned bridges.
The T.rajan bridge at. Salamanca, over the river
Formus, popularly attributed to the giants, and by
!"ome to Hercules, appears rather to be a Roman
■work, though when and by whom ersiStcd, is not
known ; but it was repaired by Trajan, whofe de-
liominaticn it flill bears. It is 1500 feet lon^,.
confiiis of twontv-fix arches, each feven ty-two
feet wide ; the piers that fuftain them being twenty-
three feet thick, and tvi'o hundred feet high.
The famous bridge of Venice called the Rialto
confifts but of one arch, and that a flat er low one,.
pafiing for a mafrer-piece of art, bi;ing built in
] 591, after the defign of Michael Angelo : the fpan
of the arch is ninct)--eight feet and a half, and its
height above the water only twenty-three feet.
Poulet alfo mentions a bridge of a fingle arch in
the city of iMunftcr in Bothnia, much bolder than
that of the Rialto at Venice.
But thefe are nothing to a bridge in China buiit
from one mountain to another, confifting of one
fingle arch 400 cubits long, and 50a cubits high,
whence it is called the flying bridge ; a figure of it
is given in the Philofophical TranfacSions. Kir-
cher alfo fpeaks of a bridge in the fame country
360 perches long, without any arch, fupported
only by 300 pillars.
The longelt bridge in England is that over the
Trent at Burton, built by Bernard, abbot of Bur-
B R I
(on, in the twelfth century j it is al) of Ajuared
free ftone, and lofty, 1545 feet in length, and
confifting of 34 arches : yet this comes far fhcrt of
the wooden bridge over the Drave, which, accord-
ing to Dr. Brown, is at leaft five miks long.
Rochcfter-bridge is built after the fame method
as London, only better, in that the arches are
wider: it is 550 feet long, and confifts of eleven
arches, the biggeft of which is more than fifty
feet- 'i"hc bridge at Berwick is an admirable
work, begun under queen Elizabeth ; it confifts of
fc\'cnteen arches, the largeft upwards of eighty feet.
London-bridge formerly confifted of twenty
arclvcs ; it is 900 feet long, iixty high, and fe-
vcnty-four broad, had a draw-briJge in the mid-
dle, and almoft twenty feet aperture in each arch.
It was fupported by eighteen piers, from thirty-
four to twenty-five feet thick, fo that the greateft
water-way, when the tide was above the fterling,
was 450 feet, fcarce half the width of the river,
and below the fterling was r.o more than 194 feet.
'Fhus a river goo feet wide was forced through a
channel of 194 feet ; which caufed the fiftl of water
to be fo great as to render the paflage of boats and
other veflcls very dangerous ; nor is it much bet-
ter at prefent, though lately two arches have been
thrown into one.
Among modern bridges that of Weftminfier,
buiit over the ri;cr Thame?, may be accounted
one of the fineft in the world : it is forty-four feet
\vide, a commodious foot-way being allowed for
paffengers, on each fide, of about feven feet broad,
railed above the road allowed for carriages, and
paved witli broad moor-ftones, while the fpace left
between them is fufHcient to admit three carriages
and tu-o horfes to go a-breaft, without any danger.
Its extent from wharf to wharf is 1220 or 1223
feet, being full -;co feet longer than London-bridge.
i ne free water-way under the arches of this bridge
is 870 feet, being four times as much as the free wa-
ter-way left betv/een the fterlings of London-bridge;
this difpofition, together with the gentlenefs of the
ftrcam, are the chief reafons why no fenfible fall
of water can e\'cr ftop, or, in the leaft, endanger
the fmalleft boats, in their paflage through the
arches.
It confifts of thirteen large and two fmall arches, ,
together \vith fourteen intermediate piers.
Each pier terminates with a faliant right angle
againft either flream : the two middle piers are
each feventeen feet wide at the fpringing of the
arch, and contain 3CO0 cubic feet, or near 200
tons of folid ftone ; and the others decreafe in.
width equally on each fide by one foot.
All the arches of this bridge are femicircular ;
they all fpring from about two feet .above low-
water mark ; the middle arch is feventy-fix feet
wide, and the others decreafe in breadth equally on:
each fide by four feet,
This.
B R I
This bridge is built of the beft materials, and
the fize and difpofuions of thefe materials are fucli,
that there is no falfe bearing, or ib miich as a falfe
joint in the whole ftru6hire ; befides that, it is
built in a neat and elegant tarte, and with fuch
limplicity and grandeur, that, whether viev/ed
from the water, 'or by the paiTengers who wallc
over it, it fills the mind with an agreeable fur-
prize. The femiodlangular towers, which form
the rccefics of the foot-way, the manner of plac-
ing the lamps, and the heisht of the baluftrade,
arc at once the moll: beautiful, and, in every otlier
rcfpecl, the befl contrived.
Blackfriars-britige, by all appearance at pre-
fent, will be the mod complete and noble Irruc-
ture of the kind that ever yet has been ercfkd.
The firflr pile of this bridge was driven June the
7th, 1760, and the firfl flone was laid Oclober
31, 176c, by Sir Thomas Chitty, Knt. Loril-
]\Iayor, attended by the bridge-committee, with
great ceremony.
With regard to the flrcngth of arches, much
has lately been faid by many able mathematicians.
Mr. Simpfon tells us, that to obtain a proper idea
of the ll:rength of any propofed arch, there are
two things that ought principally to be attended
to ; the one refpc(5ting the arch itfelf, arifmg from
the length and difpofition of the voufToirs, or arch-
ilones, and the otiier with regard to the thicknefs
and ftrength of the piers proper for the fupport of
fuch an arch. For with refpe<£t to the former of
■thefe confiderations, it isinanifcfl, that flioukl the
vouflbirs happen to be fo ill-adapted to the natuie
of the curve, and the fpan of the arch, as to have
a tendency ro open and flip out of their places
-v/ith a force greater than can be balanced, or taken
away by the roughnefs of the ftone, ainlted by the
cement, &c. ufed on thofe occafions, which is far
from being impoflible ; fisch an arch, on flriking
the centers, mull: unavoidably fall, however Itrong
its abutments may be. (Jn the other hand, how-
ever well an arch m:iv be contrived and propor-
tioned in itfelf, its ruin will be equally certain and
inevitable, if the piers on which it is placed ibould
not have a fufncient degree of ftrength to refill the
lateral preflure.
When the vouflbirs arc all fuppofed of an equal
Lnigth, it is well known that the catenarian arch
is that, wherein all the arch-llones will {land in
equilibrium among themfelves, without any the
kail affiftance from their roughnefs or adhefion.
But arches of this kind (not to infill here on the
difficultv of forming the ceiUers necellary to their
conftrucJion) are not altogether proper for bridges
over navigable rivers, becaufe their fpring is not at
right angles to the horizon, but confiderably in-
clined, fo as todiminifh the quantity of the water-
way, and to obflrudt the paflage of vellels under
the bridge, efpcciaily near the time of high-water.
BR I
Arches that take their fpring from low-water mark,
in a direfcidn perpendicular to the hoiizon, are, be-
yond all doubt, the beft adapted to the purpofes of
navigation: but in arches of this fort, (and fuch
are the femi-circular and femi-clliptical) the arch-
flones about the haunches have a ftrong tendency
to quit their places, and forre their way outward.-v
from the lateral prefTure of the upper-part of the
arch. A part of this effort is indeed taken awav
or balanced by the weight of the materials laid
upon the arch, in order to the forming the road
over the bridge; but to have an exact equilibrium
ol the arch-ilones in thefe cafes, their lengths
from the key downwards ought to be increafed in ;j
certain proportion dependingon the particular na'ure
of the propoted extradofes of every tv/o contiguous
arches, that they may meet each other above the
center of the piers, fo as to render the fpandrals
iiitiiely folid quite up to high-water mark : and it
is cenam that an arch Co conilru(Sted, whether femi-
circular or femi-elliptical, will not only be llronger
In itfelf, but alfo a£t lefs forcibly againft the piers,
than another arch of the fame figure, fpan, and
quantity of materials, whole vouflbirs are every
where of an equal length, throughout the whole
extent of the aich ; befides, the piers by this means
being rendered intire folid flone up to high-water
mark, they will be lefs liable to be damaged by the
water forcing a way into them ; a circumfiance
worthy notice.
But though it is eafy to demonflrate that this is
the bell kind of conflruclion for arches that fpring
at right angles to the horizon, yet to know the
exaft proportion in v/hich the vouflbirs ought to be
increafcd from the key downwards, and whatbrer.dth
ought to be given to the piers ncecfiary to fupport
them, are matters of much difiicuhy, and can onlv
be afcertained from calculations founded on me-
chanics, and the particular properties of the figure
propofed.
The theory of bridges will be rendered very
clear by the folutions to the four following
problems, which we fliail prefent to our readers, as
they are given by a very ingenious mathematician.
pROELEM I. To find the nature of the extra-
dos V PX (Plate XXII. fg. 2.) of the propofed
circular arch AdY, fuch that the parts thereof
fliall be in equilibrio by the v/eights of the vouflbirs
alone, without the help of any wall or counterfort,
provided only that the abutments be of fuflicient
llrength to bear the weight of tlie whole arch.
Solution. Let B be the center of the circular
arch AdY, A B its vertical radius, B K the hori-
zontal one, at right angles to each other ; and fup-
pok gdm fi, (vvhofe joints ^^c/, ?/;;?, being produced,
would pafs through the center B) one of the vouf-
foirs, whofe extrados g n is required. Pi-oduce B A
to O, fo that the axis of the key-ftone Q? V Z
may be of the given length j draw ;m indefinite
4 tan-
BR I
tangent, as CAT to the point A, tlic vertex of
the arch. From the points </,»:, (IlijipoleJ iiide-
Jinitelv near each other) let fall upon A B t!ic per-
pcnilicui.irs c/F, n E ; and alfo i/G pcipendicular
to mE. On B, as center v/ith the radius Hg, de-
fcribe the arch ^' z'*, interftcting B w w in p ; let R
and T be the jjoints in wliich the joints Bg and
]5 n, interfecl: the horizontal line A 'F. i'he angles
F^n, ARB or A'J'15 are equal, bccaufe of ihs
parallels A R, F <!, and the indefinitely fmall arcii (/rn ;
moreover, the angles Fa'G, Bc/«/, being right
ones, the triangles B F c/, m (.1 d, will be Iniiilar.
Put AH=i7, nF = ?v, Fr/=v,</G=FE=:w,G/,'i — V,
\1g = s, and BO=f; then BF:Brt::MG: m d ;
; i' : -^ ■=. m d, and as-ain BF : F d ::
u
whence A R. = — , vvhofe fluxion
it
= R T. Now, becaufe ti'^ -\- y'^ian, we
have -(=1 — -'-■, kt this value of u be fubftituted in
th.it is, 11 : a
B A : A R ;
any — nyii
-y y
It
the above expreffion for RT, it becomes
a' y
It appears by Corol. •5. Problem XLI. of Clark's
Mechanics, that if TR be multiplied by fome con-
stant qifantity as /', the produtt will ejcpound the
weight with which the votiffoir dn mufl: be charged,
in order to preferve the equilibrium of the arch.
Now as the folid part of the arch is comprifed be-
tween two vertical planes, it is evident, that the
faces of the vouflbirs, which are the trapezia fc/w n,
ovrd/np, may fer\'e to expound the weights of the
■xoufToirs ; therefore gd mp will always be equal to
But by reafon of the fimilar fL-dors B dm,
Bgp, we have B d («•) : B _^ — B ,/ (ss—n^i) : ". Bd??:
( ^ X — ) -.dgptn [si—iia X -- ) iicncc 7^
\ u 7. ' \ 2 :iJ
2 u "'
r^et^ = Tx's/2"''-' + "^
-a' X
ana s s — a t?— ;— , from whence we
s, when «rzi7, becomes
/T= 2a/'+ rt^, confequently Z- =:-^ — — : let this
vslue of 6 be fubftitutcd in the equation s r=
•j-\/2fli-l---r,iit becomes .r = -^ X s/f'—a^' + u--)
draw the ordinate ^I to the axis OB; then will
III be a fourth proportional loBa', BF, BG, and
letice this
IS therefore equal to ^/Jf—a^-^^,t'■,^
cor^flruflion :
Take the kcy-ilone Q.P V Z Q_ at pleafure, the
lines V Z, P Q., tending to the center B. From
A, draw the horizontal Imc C A T ; and from the
21
BR I
center B, with BO, as radius, defcribe the circir-
lar arch O C, meeting TAC in C; take anv
point at pleafure, as d, upon the intrados, and
make AH equal to the perpendicular difhnce of ^Z
from the radius B K. Draw C H, make B I
= HC; and from I, draw I^, meeting Bd pro-
duced in ^, which u-ill be one point in the requirtJ
cxtrados ; in the fame manner other points may
be found, by which the extrados O^X my be flc^
tei mined.
If AD (Plate XXII. fg. 3.) be a tjivcn arch,
whole extrados is ?'F N, axis A .6, femifpan bn^
and Ap the given height of the vertex of the re-
quired extrados from that of the arch ; and from A,
a right line A l\l P be drawn parallel to the hori-
zontal line irt ; alfo through any point M, a right
line parallel to A i ; then will T ({Aba bciiig a
quadrant of a circle), the height of the extrados
above the point ^ of the propofed arch, be inverfel\<
as the cube of the right fine ed. But if Aca lie
(he arch of an cllipfis ; then having iv:([ multiplied
the fquare of e d, by the fquare of the femi-tranf-
veri'c b cj, and the fquare of the horizontal dilbncc.
A M, by the fquare of the femi-cor.jugate A b, and
fubtradled one produdt from the other, the height
eT of the required extrados v."!]! be directly as that
difference, and inverfely as the cube of s d.'
If the propofed arch be the curve of an hyper-
bola ; then having multiplied the fquare of the de's
by that of the femiordinate Z-j, and the fquare of
the horizontal diftances A M, by the correfpondintr-
part Ah of the axis, and taken the fum of thole
produfts, the ratio of the heights eT will be com-
pounded of the circa ratio of thofe fums, a-d in-
verfe ratio^ of the cubes of the heights dc. M. Pa-
rent's E>f:iis o R,-jcl:irches de li'hihematiqu:, *\-ol. 3;
p. 168.
Prceleai. II. To determine the thickncfs of
the piers neceflary to fiiftain in equilibrio the part
of a propofed femi-circular archj
S CO. UTioN. Let S Z (Plate XXII. fig. 4..) be
one of the required piers of the femi-circular arch,
whofe half is rcprefented by B E D G. Through
L, the the middle of F C, drav/ MK parallel lo
Z A, and produce P Z to M. Let fell L V per-
pendicular upon A B ; and from L draw L 6 at
right angles to LA, meeting the perpendicular
P O in O. From Q_, the center of gravity of
the vouffoir C E, let fall Q_R perpendicular upon
the bafe SP of the pier, bifeft PS in T;
call LK or KA, a, LA, /-, B V, c, ZP, d,
Z Bor R S, g, P S, y-; then will ML or M N be
equal toc-\-y,2.nd.M?=a-\-di confequently NP =
a + d—c—y. Put a-\- d- c ~f, thai N P z=:f- y,
and PR^=;.-^r. If for the furface of the vouY-
<oir C G, or its equal C E, v.-e put «% then v.ill
— exprefs the force of the vouflbir in the dircc-
tio.i L O. By fimilar the triangles L K .A, NOP,
BR I
we have LA (i) : L K (a) :: N P (f-y) : P O
equal to tLZlfJ, vvhich being multiplied by — »
givfes n- f~-n^ y for the force a£ling at right angles
upon the arm P O of the lever^R P O, whofe
center of motion is P ; therefore, by the well
BR I
known properties of the lever, ?r X y—g and
izl,
are the rcfpcftive forces afting at the points T, R,
in a direction perpendicular to the horizon ; and
confequently nnf—n)tyz:i --\-n^y—n^g- From
this equation, by compleating the fquare and pro-
per reduaion, we get ;= /.^"Y+^^ jg
" d '
When the cxtrados of the arch BDH (Plate
XXll.fig-S-) '5 terminated by a horizontal line
Q_X; then, having taken FC=DG, and drawn
L O perpendicular to F C, in the middle point L
as before, and other things remaining ftill the fame,
put MP=/, then by the fimilar triangles LK A,
PON, we have L A : LK : : PN : P O, whence
PO= tLzlLZ-^ Now the abfolute weight of
b
the vouflbir C WG D, here fuppofed = n% is to
the force thereof, a£ling in the diredtion LO, as
LK : L A by the nature of bodies refting upon
inclined planes, and is therefore equal to — j
which, being multiplied by PO, becomes /« ?; —
cnn — iry : and this product mud, by the nature of
the lever, be equal to the weight of the pier P Q_RS,
multiplied by P T ; hence this equation, fyi' — c
dV , "* ""
li^—n-yz::^, from whence we E'^'^ >' = 'J-~7 +
y.
2 /"'i" — 2cn
1
have AK: KL:: LM:MN; whence M N=:
av-\-od , , -KTn sb — ad — nv ,
J-L — , and thence NP = i i: and again,.
b u
by the fimilar triangles LKO, NOP, wc get
PO -itzfJ^H,
c
Now the abfolute weight of the voufToirL FG Dj
is to its prellure upon F L, as L K to L A j
confequently!^ xi—Hf-^ZfJ, expreffes the force
a c
acling upon the point O, in the direflion LO.
On the other hand, the refiftance of the pier S Z
will beexpreffed by-'-A +«/ (P T being equal to
2
T S, and P confidered as the center of motion of
the lever OPT ) : hence, by making the force
and refiftance equal, we {hall have '^ — dn^ —
a
2
+ ;r y ; and confequently y =
V^ili-l'
■zdn"-
- +
4«'
Problem III. To drtcrmine the thicknefs of
the piers neceliiiry to fuftain in. equilibrio the parts
of a propofcd femi-elliptical ruch.
Solution. Let SZ (Plate XXIL /<r. 6.) be
one of the required piers of the femi-elhptical arch,
whofc half is reprefented by BE GO. From the
middle of the arch B D, drawLO a tangent to
that point, and erc<ft the perpendicular LA, v.'hich
produce to A. From L, let fall PO perpendicu-
lar upon LO ; and through L, draw M LK paral-
lel to the femi-tranfvcrfe axis BH. PutLKrzrt,
KA = A,LA=r,BV=^, BS=/; MP = ?, «Mor
the furface of the vouflbir C G, nearly equal toFB,
^3=;-. By the fimilar triangles L K A, L MN, we
cf f ' f^- f'
Problem IV. To determine the thicknefs of
the piers necelTary to fupport in equilibrio the pro-
pofcd vouffoirs, when ranged in a right line.
Solution. Upon LF {Jig. 7.) the gi\'en dif-
tance between the piers defcribe an equilateral tri-
ansj;lc LAF ; and divide its bafe LF, into as many
equal parts as there are vouffoirs. From A, draw
through thofe points of divifion right lines termi-
natint; in the indefinite right line G I (drawn paral-
lel toL F, at a given diilance therefrom) in the
points E, C, D, he. From L draw L O at right
angles to AD, and from P let fall P O perpendi-
cular thereon. Produce K L to M, and draw
A K C perpendicular to L F. Put K L = ('KA = /',
MP=/, LM=_)', and «^ for the area of LDCK.
The triangles AKL, LMN, and NOP, are
fimilar; hence K A (Z-j: KL («) ;: LA1()'):MN
fb — ay .
— ' ., ±. Agam,
(tl); and confequently N P =
AL(2«) : AK (i) :: NP
P
(■Cl'~"^
'-)-^
p o
-"Y
The abfolute wcic^ht of LDCK is to
2 a
its force upon the pier S M, as L K to LA; but
L A is double to L K. Therefore the force aiSling
upon O in the direction L O may be expounded
bv 2 n 1, which being multiplied by P O, giv^s
j" — "- J- ; for the force ading upon P at the
a
diftance P O, which, by the property of the lever,
muft be equal to the force ailing upon the point .
BRI
D, at the diftance of half PS therefrom. But
this is expounded by -— hence LULU— n n y ~
2 it ■'
■Cll ; and confequently y - v^CZZZTi^D
f
Bridge, in gunnery, the two pieces of timber
which go between the two tranfums of a gun-car-
riage, on v/hich the bed relb.
Bridce, in mufic, a term for that part of ftring-
ed inlhuinents over which the firings are ftretched.
The bridge of a violin is about one inch and a quar-
ter higii, and ne;ir an inch and half long.
Bripues, in artillery, machines of various con-
ftruiStions for crofling a river, the nioft confider-
ab!e of which are called bridges of boats.
Thefe bridges are made with boats, which are
placed at fmall diftancesfrom each other, the whole
width of the river, parallel to their lengths, and
covered v.'ith planks, which reft on pieces of wood,
called poutrciles or joifts, firmly fixed to the boats.
There are bridges of boats of ninny forts ; fome
are conftruiSed with copper-boats, which in ar-
tillery are called pontons^ and thefe are carried with
an army on carts or drays, made for that purpofe ;
others are conftructed with the common boats
found on the rivers which are to be palled.
To conftruiSl a bridge of boats, the boats are
bound together with ftrong ropes reaching diago-
nally acrofs their dilLinces, from the head of one
to the rtern of the other, as is reprefented in Plate
XXIII. fg. I, and 2. Acrofs thefe boats are
laid the poutrclla., and upon them ftrong planks
of deal, which are firmly nailed on ; fir-planks are
preferred, bccaufc that wood is lighter and lefs
brittle than oak.
When the river over which the biidgc is to he
laid is very r.'ipid, anchors are let down -froin the
cord or cable to which all the boats arc faftened ;
thefe anchors are firft caft into the river, and the
cord is then drawn as tight as poilible by capfterns
on each bank, that the boats may be more (ecurc-
ly fixed ; thefe cords or cables are called, in artil-
lery, cinpioh'Hei, and are generally one inch and an
half in diameter, and an hundred fathoms long.
The boats have alfo anchors, by means of which
their fituution is rendered more fteaiy and fecure,
and capable of making a ftronger refiilance to the
tide or motion of vhc water.
Fig. I. in Plate XXIII. fhews part of a bridge of
boats which is not entirely covered with planks,
that the arrangement and diftance of the poutrciles
may appear. The fame method is obfcrved in the
bridge of boats reprefented hy Jig. 2. in the fame
Plate. . This bridge is only for paffing fmall .
rivers,.
BRI.
I /'S-.'i- '" Plate XXIII. (hows a ponton mount-
1 ed on its carriage or cart.
j M. dc St. Remy obferves in his Memoirs, that
the pontons which were in ufe before the lime of
the Marquis dc la Frezelierc, lieutenant-general of
the artillery, (which port he filled with great dif-
tinftion) not being capable of tranfporting twenty-
four pounders over large rivers, without danger of
finknig, becaufe they lay fo near the watcr's^dge,
contrived others longer and higher, which were ca-
pable of tranfpoiting the heavieft pieces of artil-
lery over any river, without danger of the like in-
conveniency. The principal dimenfions of thefe
boats, according to this author, are as follow :
Their height is 2 feet 9 inches.
Their width 5 feet 6 inches.
Their length 18 feet 6 inches.
The poutrelles, which are fir, as well as the-
planks with which they are covered, are 22 feet
long, four feet and an half wide, and of a propor-
tionable thicknefs.
The planks are 14 feet long, 1 3 inches wide, and ■
2 inches thick.
'J"he diftance between each boat, or ponton,
ought to be g feet.
Befides the bridges already mentioned, which
are moft common, there are yet others called
ponti volants or flying hritiges. Thefe are fometimcs
boats, joined together by ftrong ropes, and fre-
quently with chains, upon which a fufficient num-
ber of madricrs, or planks, are difpofed, fo as to
make a platform proper to receive cannon, and on
which they may be fired, either to oppofe or fa\oui
the paflage of a river. An epaulement, or fide-
work of defence, is alfo made mufket-proof to co-
\er the men v/ho occupy this bridge and play the
cannon.
The/>»«/ vokvii is alfo fomctimes a bridge made of
one great boat, or feveral fmailerboats, which floating,
is drawn acrofs a river, by means of fome machines 01
cords which communicate with the oppofite fide.
Sometimes the pout volans is compofed of two
boats joined together by a flooring of poutrelles or
madriers, and furrounded with a rail or baluflrade,
having alfo one or more marts, for fupporting a
cr.ble, one end of which is faftened to a roller, or
wi.adlafs, fixed in the middle between the two boats ■
fterns : the other end of the cable is faftened to an
anchor, funk at a confiderahle diftance higher up the
river : the cable after pafling betv/een two parallel
beams, reaching from one maft-head to the other,
is fupported at proper diftances, by boats, to pre-
vent it from finking : by this contrivance the bridge
becomes moveable from one fide of the river to the
other, lilce a pendulum, without any other help
than the rudder : for as foon as the boats heads are
directed obliquely acrofs the ftream, the force of the
current
B R I
curreiU continually imprcfies that part of the
bridge, and urges it towards the other fhore. Thefc
bridt^es confill alfo fometimes of two ftories, for
the quicker paflage of a great number of men ; or,
that the cavalry and infantry may pafs at the fame
time.
A bridge is alfo called a font v:hiit, which is
made over fmall rivulets four or five fathoms wide,
and compofed of two bridges, one laid on th.-
other, in fiich manner as tliat the upper one may
be thrown forward by means of cords and pulli<;s
properly difpofed in t!ie lower. Thefe bridges can
never be large, becaufc the weight of the upper-
bridge, when it runs out, or is thrown forward,
would, if not very fmall, break all its faftening to
the under-bridge, and fo the whole machine wouM
be rendered ufelcfs ; and for this resfon they are
never ufed but for paffing ditches, fofies, or rivu-
lets not wider than four or five fathom.
Befides thefe, there is yet another fort of pont vo- .
hmt, made ufe of in war on feveral occanons, cal-
led a rafi or Jloat. This is mads of many rafters,
or pieces of timber, which together form a kiiid of
iloor ; thefe are covered with planks, or flrong
madriers, and a certain number of empty cafics are
made fail to the ends of the rafters, the better to
fupport the float, and whatever is placed upon it.
Thefe floats are ufed to tranfport troops, cannon,
&c. over rivers.
BRIDLE, in the manege, a contrivance made
of llraps or thongs of leather and pieces of
iron, in order to keep a horfc in fubjecSion and
obedience.
BRiDLE-/f;7';i is the horfcman's left hand, the
right hand being the fpear or fword-hand.
To fwallovj the Bridle, is faid of a horfe that
has too wideam.oulh, and too fmall a bit-mouth.
Bridle, Franuv:-, in anatomy. See the article
FRiENUM.
Bridles, in the marine, the upper pMt of the
moorinc;s laid in the king's harbours, to ride fhips
or \-efieIs of war. See the article Moorin'Gs.
i?flw//«c-BRinL):s. We have explained under the
article Bowline, that the ufe of that rope is to bind
the weather-edge, or the edge next the wind, tight
forward, when a fliip has her fails properly trnai-
med for a contrary wind ; for as the current ot air
at this time is nearly parallel to the furfacc, the
ridge of the fail into which the wind or current of
air enters, muft of neceflity be fhaken by it, unlels
it is faftened to prevent it: but as a iingle rope
has been found not fo convenient for this pur-
jiofe, as acling only upon one part of the ridge of
the fail, bridles were therefore applied, i.e. two or
three additional parts, reprefented in Plate XXII.
fig. 1. where A is pait of the weather-fide of a top-
fail, a a the upper-briJle, lb the middle, and ^ t"
the lower-bridle, //part of the bowline, into which
they are united, drav.'n tight.
BR I
BRIEF, in common law, a writ whereby a mail
is lummoned or attached to anfwer anyadtion.
It is called brief becaufe it is couched in a few
words, without anv preamble.
Brief is alfo ufed for a writing ifl'ued out of
any of the king's courts of record at We'lminller,
v,h.-rcby fomething is commanded to be done, in
;' !cr to juftice, or the execution of the king's
i.:i;and.
iJRiEF is alfo taken for a letter-patent, grantini'^,
a licence to a fubject to make c'oUettion for any
public or private lofs, as briefs for lofs by fire, to
be read by miniilers in churches, &c.
• Brief is likewife an abridgement of a client's
cafej -wrote out for the inilrudtion of counfel, oii
a trial at law.
Apojlolical BriKFS, letters which tlie pope dif-
patches to princes, -r other magiffratcs, relating to
any public iiffair.
BRIG, or BiiiCAN'TixE, in the marine, a mer-
chant-lhip of two inaics. The term brigantine is
not univerfally confined to vefTcls of a particular
conftruilion, but is varioufiy applied by the mari-
ners of different European nations to a j)cculiar fort
of f!;ip of their own marine.
AmongftEnglifh failors, -this ve.Tel is didlnguifli-
ed by having her mainfail f;t fore and aft, or
lengthways ; whei'eas the mainfails of larger fhips
are hung athv/art, or at right angles with h'.r
length, and faftened to a yard that liangs parallel
to the deck ; but here the foremofl edge of the .
mainfail is fallened in different places to ho^ps that
go round the mainmaft, and Aide up and down on
it, as the iail is to be lioifled or loofened ; it is ex-
tended by a gatF above and a boom below. See the
articles iJooM and Gaff.
BRIG'VDE, in the military art, a party or di\i-
fion of a body of foldiers, v/hether horfe or foot,
under t!ie command, of a brigadier.
Brigade-Major is an o.'Rcer appointed by
the brigadier, to affift him in the management and
ordering of his brigade.
BRIGADIER, "in military affairs, the ofiiecr
whofe degree is the next above that of a colonel.
There are brigadiers of infantry, cavalry, and
dragoons. The duty or office of the brigadier is to
command a corps confining of feveral regiments,
called a brigade.
The brigades of infantry comm.only confifl of
four or five battalions, and ibmctimcs fix ; and
the brigades of cavalry of eight or ten fquadrons.
The brigadiers are on duty each one day fiic-
ceffively, and by turns : their fervice confifis in af-
fiftinfr the sreneral ofKccrs, who are in a rank above
them, in whatever concerns the order and fecurit,'
of the camp poffefled by the army, and to cxeciitc
the orders they receive concerning thefe affair^.
The brigadier is iwt a general oincer, but ap-
pointed to command only his own particular bri-
jrade.
B R I
piis, and not any other diftant corps of the
army.
BRILLIANT, in a general fonfe, foniclhing
that has a lucid and bright appearance.
Brilliant Dia?nmdi. See the article Dia-
mond.
BRIMSTONE, in natural hiltory, the fame
with fulphur. See Sulphur.
Brimstone wort, in botany. See Peuce-
DAKUM.
BRINE, water replete with faline particles ; or
pickle. See Salt.
BRINGING-TO, in navigation, the ad of
flopping a flip in her progrefs at fca or near the
land.
It is done by difpofuig the fails in fuch a man-
ner to the direction of the wind, as to counter-
ad each other ; fo that while fome of them impel
the fliip forward, the reft force her to retreat.
The ufe of bringing-to is either to fpeak with
fome other fliip at a diftance, which is advancing,
to found, or to wait for day-light, or clear v/ea-
ther, in cafe of running on land, rocks, fliallows,
iic. fuppofed to be near.
Brikging-by-the-Lee, in navigation. See
the article Broachikg-to.
BRISTOL-WATER. Thefc waters are the
fourth in degree amongft the waters which are
citecmed warm. The w.Ucrs of Bath are the firft,
Buxton the fecond, and Matlock the third.
The difeafcs in which Briflol waters are proper-
ly prefcribed, are internal hemorrhages and in-
flammations, blood-fpitting, dyfcntery, an immo-
derate flux of the menfes, and purulent ulcers of the
vifcera : hence in confumptions, the dropfy, Icurvy
with heat, ftone, gravel, ftrangury, the habitual
gout, fcorbutic rheumatifm, diabetes, flow fevers,
atrophy, venereal difeafe, cancer, eleets in both
fexes, king's evil, &c. in all thefe difordtrs. Bath-
waters are not only improper, but hurtful ; they
roufe the too languid, and quicken the too lazy-
circulation ; they allay the heat, and reftrain the
too rapid motion of the blood. 'I'h.e. former attem-
perate the choleric, and the latter impregnate the
phlegmatic. In fliort, Bath-water feems to be
adapted to the maladies of the ftomach, guts, and
nerves ; Briftol, to thofe of the lungs, kidneys,
and bladder : again, Bath-waters are at variance
wi'kh a milk courfe ; and the Briftol can ne\er be
judicioufly directed, but when they may be joined
with reafon and fuccefs.
The Briftol-waters are taken medicinally only
during the hot months, as from April to Sep-
tember.
BRITANNICA, among the ancient phyficlar.s,
the name by which they calkd the great water-
dock ; a powerful aftruigent, which they prefcrib-
ed in ha-imorrhages, and other fluxes. See L.-\-
pathum.
21
B R O
BRITTLENESS, that quality of bodies on
account of v/hich they are denominated brittle ; or
which fubjcJts them to be cadly broken.
BRIZA, in botany, a genus of triandriousplants,.
whofe corolla is compofijd of two valves ; the lowcf
valve is of the fize and fhapc of the cup ; the up-
per valve is fmall, plane, and roundifli, fliutting
up the hollow of the other. It contains three
hairy filaments topped with oblong antherae ; the
corolla fcrving in the place of a pcricarpium, in-
clofes the feed, and when ripe drops it out. The
feed is fingle, fmall, roundiih, and compreffed.
BRIZE, in hufbandry, denotes ground that has
lain long untilled.
BROACHING-TO, in navigation, the aft
of bringing a fliip's fide to the windward, when flre
had been fleering more before it.
As a fliip can carry much more fail before the
wind than when flie bears her fide to it, this is a
moft pernicious event, which is often attended with
very fatal confequenccs ; fuch as rending the fails
to pieces, carrying awav the mafts, and even, per-
haps, overtu.niing the fliip ; it is occafioned either
by the negligence or incapacity of the men who
fleer.
It is eafy to conceive that, when the current of
air is a£ting nearly end-ways on a fliip as fhe di-
vides the fluid, that the preflure of the wind upon
the mafts mult be confidcrably diniinifticd as Ihe
flies from it ; and that if flic carries a great fail at
this time, it can only prefs her fore-part lower
down in th.e water : but if, when carrying a great
weioht of f.iil, her fiJe is fuddenly brought to the
wind, the whole force of it muft pour like a tor-
rent into the cavities of her fails, and the mafts
thereby unavoidably prefling, like a leaver, on the
hull fidev^ays, they muft go near to overfet, if the
fails are not immediatelv reduced, which is hardly
pofllhle to be done in fo fliort a time, or the mafts
may be carried away, or the fails torn to pieces,
by which fhe may recover her fituation.
The difference between broaching-to and bring-
ing-by-the-lee may be thus underflood. Suppoie
a fliip, v/ith all fail fct, is fleering north, and hav-
ing the wind S. S. W, then is weft the weather,
and eaft the lee-fide.
If by a neglect of the helmfman her head is
brought round to the wcftward, fo as that her fails
are taken all aback before he can make her return
to the courfe from which fhe had deviated, fhe has
broachc'd-to.
Ifotherwife, her head is frOm the farne caufe
direded io far eaft ward, as to lay the .fails aback,.
flie is faid to be brought-by-the-lee. .See
Aback.
BR.OAD, an appellation given to things whofe
breadth Ivears a confiderable proportion to their
length.
BROADSIDE, in a fea-fight, the whole dif--
5 M charge-
B R O
B R O
Aarge of the ^rLilltry on one fide of a fliip of v,T.r
■en her enemy.
BROCADE, or Brocado, a flufFof gold, fil-
ver, or filk,. raifed and enriched with f.ov/ers, foli-
ages, and other ornamcjit?, according to the fancy
of the merchants or manufacturer?.
. BROCCOLI, in gardening, the Italian name
for a fpecies of the brafTica or cabbage, much
cultivated in England for culinary i.'fe in win-
ter: there are tuo forts commonly raifcd, and dif-
t5nguifhcd by the names of puiplc and white broc-
coli. Thcfe plants are propagated by fo/zing their
feeds ; the feafon for which is the latt'.r end of May
cr beginning of June on a bed of good earth, and
kept well-v.-atcred in (.Ifv weather. When the plants
are got about three inches high, they fnnuld be
transplanted into beds at about four inches afunder ;
here they may remain till the latter end of July or
beginning of Auguft, when (taking if pcff.ble the
advantage cf m.oift weather) they may be planted
out where they are to remain, at the diflance of
three feet row from row. and two feet in the rows,
and placed alternately. The foil in which they
fhould be planted ought to be rich, rather light
than heavy : towards the end of December, if the
weather is not fe\ ere, they will begin to fhow their
fmall heads, which, efpecially at their firft appear-
ance, are not unlike caulifiowers. Thefe heads
fhould be cut off before they run to (ecd, with
about four or five inches of the ifalk, and a great
number of fprouts or fide-flioots, produced from
the flem, will fucceed them, and continue f.t for
eating till April : though they are not fo large as
the former, yet they are eo,ual!y as well tafled, if
not fuperior in flavour.
In order to fave good feeds of broccoli, there
fhould be refervcd a few of the largell heads to run
lip to feed, cbfer\ ing to frrip ofl" the hdc-(hoots,
leaving only the princip:il head to flower, with
this precaution, not to let any other plant of the
fame genus be near them when in blofiom, as the
clRuvia might occafion a degeneracy. If this
practice is duly cbfervcd, the fort may be prcferved
in perfection many years, and the feed as good as
thofe procured from abroad.
A.nother fort, called the brown or black broc-
coli, is by many greatly efteemicd, but is nuicii in-
ferior, in refptcf to the palate, to the former;
therefore, the only recommendation which can be
given to it is, that it is much hardier, and v/ill
bear the feverity of winter better ; and is on that
account a good fubflitute when the other forts
ha\'e failed. This fort will grow very tall, and
therefore fhould have the earth drawn up to their
ilcms, as they advance in height. This does not
form heads fo perfedl as the Italian broccoli, the
Hems and hearts of the plants being the parts which
ftre eaten. For the generical chara£le!-s of the broc-
coli, fee the article C.'i.Bu.'iCE.
Brock, among fportfmen, a term ufed to de-
note a badger.
A hart too of the third year is called a brock, or
brocket ; and a hind of the fame year a brocket's
fifter.
BROKEN-BACKED, in the marine, a fnip ib
faid to be fo when either b)' her weaknef?, age, cr
fome great ihain, flic is fo loofened in the mid-
dle as to droop at each end. See Keel, Cam-
BERli.'G.
This is more frequent in French fliips than
Englifli or Dutch, owng partly to the floor not
bting carried fufficiently forward and aft, or far-
ther from the middle towards the ends, anJ part!;'
frcni bein'r obliged frequently to have a jrreat
weight in both ends when tiiey are empty' in the
middle, at the time of deli', eriiig one cargo ai;d
taking in another.
BROKER, a nam.e gi\en to pcrfons of feveral
and very different profefiions, tlic chief of whicli
are exchange-brokers, itock-broker;-, pawn-brokers,
and brokers, fimply fo called, who fell houfhold
furniture and fecond-hand apparel
BROMELIA, a genus of hexandrlous plants,
refembling fome forts of aloes. From the center
of the plant arifes the flower-ftalk, the lower part
of which is gamiflied with leaves placed altecnale-
ly at every joint. The upper part of the (bilk is fur-
nifhcd with flowers fet in a loofe (pike cjultc
round ; thefe have three narrow herbaceous petal-,,
fitting upon the germen, and within arc fix llendtT
fdaments topped with oblong anthers;, which with
the rtylc are fhorter than the petals. Theie
flowers in their native country are fucceeded by
oval feed-veffels having a longitudinal iiartition,
in the center of which are fa'fened (everal fmooth
cylindrical feeds. 'I'hefe plants grow naturally in
divers parts of the Weft-indies, and arc piopa-
gatcd by feeds. To this genus Linnaeus has added
the ananas or pine-apple.
BRONCHIA, in anatomy, the ramification of
the trachea.
1 he bronchia, in their origin, are formed of im-
perfedl: annuli, and in their progrefs of cartilaginous
and membraneous fruff.t, very curiouflv coimect-
ed and joined together. Thefe have their origin
fiom the trachea; and after being fubdiiided into
innumerable ramifications, finally terrr.inate in
thofe fmall veficles which form the greater part of
the fubftance of the lungs. Theie veficles have
interfaces all the way between them, and ad-
here, as it were, to the branches of the bronchia,
in the manner of clufters of grapes. Seethe ar-
ticle Lungs.
The word is Greek, fifoyyji., which fignifies
the fame thin;;.
BRONCHIAL Artery, a vefibi allotted to
the nutrition of the lungs.
It rifes fcmetimcs fmgle, fometimes double,
foii.etimcs
B R O
fofnctimcs triple, from the aorta auJ intcrcoflalsj
ai'.iJ adheres c\ cry-whcrc firmly to the bronchi.i.
Bronchiai,-Vi;in aril'es either from thciiitcrcof-
t.ih, or from the vena azygos ; accompanies tlie
artery, and divides into the fame number of
branches with it. As the artery brings blood to
the bronchia for the nutrition thereof, and of the
vcficles of the lungs, fo the vein carries off the
blood again to the ca\'a, where it foon terminates.
BRONCOCHELE, in furgery, a tumour avif-
ing in the anterior part of the neck, from the
refifting flatus or air, fome humour or other vio-
lence, as draining in labour, lifting of weights,
The word is formed from the Cjreck, jifc-'/i',
the wind-pipe, and y,v}.», a tumour.
HRONCH()TOMY, in (urgcry, an incifion
inadc in the .-fpcra arteria, or wij.d-pipe, which is
ncccffary in mai;y cafes, and cfpecially in a violent
(;uinfey, to prevent fuiFocation from the great in-
flammation or tumour of the parts. It is alfo called
■ aryngotomy and trachcoton'>y.
The word is formed from the Greek, lipiyyj^-,
the wind-pipe, and ts/.u'.m, to cut.
There are fcveral methods of performing this
op?r;;tion ; but that which exceeds the reft, as be-
ing moll: eafy and expeditious, and occafioning the
l',;;.ft wound and pain to the patient, is by an in-
ilrument confif^ing of a fmrdl tube, in which is
cc!:tained a triangular needle called a trochar.
This infl.rumcnt is fo man.'^gcd, as to pafs through
the middle of the trachea bv one piifii ; and after
drawing out the riccdle from the tube, the latter
is left in tlie wound, till the patient recovers. Bron-
chotomy fhould be performed in time, while there
rs fufiicient ftrength and iiopes of the patient's re-
covery ; for when the patient is fpcnt, it is ufually
pcrlbrmed in vain. If a drowned perfon has but
juft expired, or not continued long under water,
the molt certain and expeditious v/ay of recover-
ing him, wilJ be by operiing the trachea v.'ith fuch
inftrument as is neareft at hand, raid afterwards
to inflate or blow into his lungs either v.ith the
naked mouth, or with a tube.
BRONCHUS, ^p'jyyjSt-; in anatomy, the af-
pera arteria, or wind-pipe, which reaches fiom the
h'.rvnx to the luna;s.
EKONnu'E,^ riuwrkr-StoK^;, in natural hif-
tory, the Hime witli the belcmnitre. Sec the arti-
cle BELEMNirrs.
FRONTIUM, ppoi'^scv, in Grecian antiquity,
a place underneath the floor of the theatres, in
which were kept brazen vefiek fi'.ll of ftones and
ether m.aterials, with which they imitated the noifc
of thunder.
BRONTOLOGY denotes the do^rine of thun-
der, or an explanation of its caufcs, jihrenomena,
fvc. together v, ith the prefages drawji from it. Sec
Thu:>D£R.
B R O
The word is forrr.cd from the Greek, iSfWTif,
thunder, and My^--, a difcourfe.
BRONZE, a conipo-jnd metal, two third* of
which confids of copper, and one third of brafs.
BRONZING, theadt of colouring by metal-
line pov.'dcrs, plairer. or other buffs and fiwurer,
in order to make them appear as if caft of bronze,
copp:r, or ot'.cr metals.
J'he old method cf ufing a cement in bronzing
wa.<;, to mix tlie powders with flrong gum-watci-,
or inng'afs Cze ; and tjien v/ith a brufh, or pen-
cil, to lay them on the fubjedt ; but the artiWs at
prcfent uie thejapanners gold fize : and proceed
in all refpefts in the fame manr.er as in gildin?
with the powders in other cafe?. Sec GiLurvC
BROOK-LIME, in botany, a hjib which
products white, fibrous, creeping roots. The (talks,
which arife from the roots, are thick, fucculent,
and fniooth, emitting roots from their joints, where-
by they !pre:id and propagate. The leaves are ova!,
(m.oc.th, flat, fucculent, and of a dark green co-
lour, fla'nding oppof;te. The flowers come out in
long bunches from the wings of the {lalk; they
are monopetalous, an.d of a bright blue colour,
refting on fhort footftalks ; thcfe flowers are pro-
duced a great part of the fummer, and are fuc-
cecded by cordated feed-veffels, filled with round-
ish keds. This herb grov/s naturally in brooks
and flreams of v,-ater in many parts of Engbnd ;
it has no remarkable taile, but is preferred to other
moi-e acrid antifcorbutics, as it abounds v/ith fuch
parts as to enable it to abrade and clear away thofc
little vifcofitics that obftrudl: the capillaries, and
o:c.(fion fcabs and blotches. The dofe of the
juice is four ounces, but it is befl mixed with the
j'nce of oranges, and then it may have a very cood
effect in hot fcurvics. It is alfo diuretic, and a
great cleanier of the vifccra, which gives it fre-'
cjiipntly a place in antiicorbutic and deobllruent
compofitions. This plant is a fpecies of the vero-
nica, though, by fome authors, claffed with the
anagallis, and called alfo beccabunga.
BR.OOM, Gr:i!jla, in botany, a fhrub which
grows naturally upon open heaths, &c. in many
parts of England : the root is hard, woady, tough,
yellow, and hath crooked fibres ; the iblks are
llendcr, woody, and about tv.'o feet high, fending
out many flender branches ; thefe are angular,
green, and tough, and furniflied with fmall, "hairy,
dark-green leav -s, fom.ctimcs growing three toge-
ther, and lomctimes fingle ; the flowers that grovT
thereon are of a bright vellow and papilionaceous,
with crooked fta'^ina and faffrcn-coloured apices,
to which fu.cceed flat broad pods, which are black-
ifh wh-'n ripe, containing fcveral flat, haid, kid-
ncv-fliaped feeds.
Bioom is exticmely pernicious to arable and paf-
ture land, and therefore ought by all mcan.s to be
rooted out, which is the only method cf killinn- it ; on
b.u-
BR O
tarrcn grounds, iiideedj it is a good improvement ;
for, bcfides its ufe as fuel, it makes an excellent
and lafting thatch, if well laid on.
This plant is intenfely bitter, and the leaves,
tojjs, and branches, decotled in wine or water, are
ufeful in (Iropfics, and all obf ructions of the kid-
ney? and bladder ; for they partly purge oft' the fe-
rous iiumours by (tool, and partly by urine.
Many gather the yellow buds of this plant, and
pickle them with fait and vinegar, in the fame
manner as capers, from which they are not then to
be diilinguifhed. The flowers arc moll: in ufe, and
are accounted fplenetic, nephritic, and hepatic,
fiiUher'sB'ROOM. See Ru^'cus.
Spnttijh Broom. See Spartivm.
ilROWALIA, in botany, an annual didyna-
mious plant, which ufually grows about two feet
high, and fpreads out into lateral branches on every
fide of the llalk : thefe are furniflied with oval en-
tire leaves, ending in a point, and fupported by
fhort foot-dalks. Near the extremities of the
branches the flowers come out fuigly upon long
pedicles, which arife from the wings of the leaves,
each flov/er having a monophyllous tubulated ca-
lyx indented in five parts ; from the center of which
arifes a monopctalous funnel-fhaped corolla, which
is crooked and bent downward; the top of the tube
is fpread open, and the brim is labiattd. In the
center is placed an cval germen, which afterv/ard
becomes an obtufe unilocular capfuie, divided into
four fegmcnts at the top, containin;:; fevcral fmall
feeds. The flower is of a bright blue colour, fome-
times inclining to a purple, or red, and often there
are flowers of three colours on the fame pLint.
The feeds of this plant fljould be raifcd in hot-
beds in the fpring, and may in June be tranfp!ant-
cd into the natural ground.
BROW, or Eve-Brow", the hairy arch extend-
ed over the orbit of each eye.
Brow-Antler, among fportfmen, that branch
of a deer's horn next his head.
Brow-Post, among builders, the beam that
goes acrofs a building.
BROWN, among painters, dyers, ^c. a dufky
colour with a rcddifli caft. There are a great va-
riety or degrees of this colour, diftinguifhed bv
different appellations.
The principal brown colours known among
painters are Spanifli brown, brown pink, biftre,
brown okre, umbre, afphaltura, and Spanifli juice,
or the extract of liquorice. See each under its
proper article. But it mull be remembered, that
a brown colour of any tin£i defired may be pro-
cured by a judicious mixture of red, blue, and
)ellow.
_ BROWNISTS, in ecclefiaftical hiftory, a reli-
gious feft that fprung up in England towards the
end of the fixteenth century. Their leader was
one Robert Brown, a native of Northampton.
5
B R Y
They feparated from the eftabliflied church on ac-
count of its difcipline and form of government.
They equally difliked epifcopacy and prefbyterian-
ifm. They condemned the folemn celebration of
marriages in churches, maintaining that matrimony
being a political contracl:, the confirmation of it
ought to proceed from the civil magiftrate. They
rejected all forms of prayer, and held that the
Lord's prayer was not to be recited as a prayer,,
being given only as a model, upon which to form
our prayers.
BRUMALIA, in antiquity, were feftivals of
Bacchus, celebrated twice a year, the firfl on the
twelfth of the calends of March, and the other on
the eighteenth of the calends of November. They
were inftituted by Romulus, who during thefe feafts
ufed to entertain the fenate.
BRUNIA, in botany, a genus of pentandrious
plants, the flower of which conlifts of five petals,
with flender ungues the length of the calyx ; it
contains five capillary filaments, iurroundinga fmall
germen crowned with a fingle ftylc, which is fuc-
ceeded by a fingle hairy feed.
BRUNSFELSIA, in botany, a pentandrious
plant, which rifes with a woody item to the height
of eight or ten feet, fending out many fide branches,
which are covered with a rough bark : thefe are
turniflied with oblong, oval, entire leaves. At the
extremity of the branches the flowers come out,
generally three or four together ; thefe are mono-
pctalous and funnel-fliaped, v/ith along tube fpread-
ing open at the top, and divided into five fegme.nts.
1 he fruit is a globofc unilocular berry, containing
a great number of roundifli feeds, placed clofe to
the intccrument of the berrv.
This plant grows naturally in moft: of the Well-
Indian i(]ands,v.'hcre it is called theTrumpet-fiower.
It is prop.igated from feeds, but, being tender, re-
quires a iiot houfe in this. climate.
BRU IE, an animal without the ufe of reafon,
or that aiSs by mere inltinct, in which fenfe it im-
plies much the fame with bead, and comprehends
all animals except the human fpecies.
BRYONIA, bryony, in botany, a perennial
plant, the ftalks of which are long and flender, a
little hairy, and climbing with tendrils like a vine.
The leaves are angular, palmated, rough, and cal-
lous on both fides ; thefe are placed altern.ttelv on
the ftalks. The flowers proceed from the hollows
where the leaves join to the ftalk, and confift each
of a fingle campaniform petal, divided into five
roundifh fections, of a whitifli green colour, mark-
ed with veins. Some of thefe flowers a.'-e male,
which contain five llamina; the others are fem.a!e,
and have a deciduous empalement. Thefe contain
an embryo, which turns into a fpherical berrv of
the fize of a pea ; it is at firft green, then turns
red, and is full of a naufcous juice, and contains afew
oval feeds. The root of this plant is flefhv, and
grow?
BUB
grows to a large fize ; thcic liave been formerly,
by inipoftors, brought into the rcfenibl.incc of the
human form, and carried about the country, and
fliewn lor mandrakes. The method thefe people
praJtifed, was, to find a young tliriving bry-
ony plant; then they opened the eaith all round
the root, being careful not to diftuib the lower
hbres. Being prepared with a mould fuch as is ufed
for culling plaller figures, they fixed the mould
clofe to the root, failening it witii wire, to keep it
in its proper fituation ; then they tilled the earth
about the root, and left it to grow to the (hape of
the mould, which in one fummer it will do; fo
that if this be done in March, by September it
v.il! have the fhape required.
Thcjuiceof bryony-root is fo fharp as to eat into
the fkm ; however, when they are dry, they lofe
a great part of their acrimony. It is a (Irong ca-
thartic, and powerfully diifolves vifcid humours,
and carries them o(F by llool, and fometimcs by
vomiting. It has been ufed in m.ulnel"s, and fome
kinds of dropfies with fuccefs, as well as in allhmas,
hylleric complaints, and even in palfies and epilep-
lies : the dri^d root, reduced to powder, is given
from a fcruple to a drachm ; but t!ie cxtraiTl: made
by wat::r is much the bell and fifeft, becaufe it
works in a milder manner, and the dofe is from
half a drachm to a drachm. Externally, it is a
pov/erful refolvent, and has been recommended
againft pains in the fide ; and fome will have it al-
moft infallible in arthritic pains and tumours, or-
dered in a cauplafm. The frefh root being bruif-
ed, and laid to the fmall of the back, has promoted
urine, and cured the dro[)fy ; for the hyp-gout it
fliould be bruifcd, mixed with linfeed-oil, and laid
warm to the part afflicTted. Bryor.y grows wild
under hedges, and climbs upon the bufhes, &c. In
many parts of England it may be cultivated in
gardens, by fowiiig the feeds in the fpring of the
year, in a dry, poor foil, where they will, in two
years time, grov." to be large roots.
Bleak liRVONY, in botany. See the article Ta-
MUS, ■ : . ■ .
Peruvian Bryony. See the article Jalap;
BRYUM, in botany, a genus of moffes, con-
fifting of a flalk furnifhed with leaves, which arife
immediately from the root : on this fialk ftands a
feparate pedicle, v/idi a conic capfule on its top,
covered with a fmooth operculum, and containing
a. fine powder..
BUBALUS, the buffalo. See Buffalo.
BUBBLE, in philofophy, a fmall drop, or ve-
ficle of any fluid filled with air, and citiier formed
on the furface of the fluid, as in rain, occ. or in
its fubilance,' by .1:1 internal motion of its compo-
nent particles. - . .:
Bubbles are dilatable and compreffiblc ; tiiat is,
they take up more orjefs fpace, .as the included air
is more or lefs heated, or more or iefs prcffed ex-
2X
tcrnally ; becaufe the included air ads equally in
every diredion. Their coat is formed of minute
particles of the fluid, retained by the atttadlion be-
tween thofe particles.
BuiiHLF., in commerce, a cant term given to a
kind of projedls for raifing money on imaginary
foundations, much pradliied in France and Eng-
land in the years lyig, 1720, 1721.
BUBO, or BuiJoE, in furgery, a tumour which
ariles, with inflammation, only in certain or par-
ticular parts to which they are proper, as in the
arm-pits and in the groin. See the article Tu-
r/iouK.
The divificn of a bubo is generally two-fold,
the benign and the malignant : a bubo is faid to
be benign, when it arifes fpontaneoufly, without
any preceding contagious and peftilential difeafe,
as they frequently do in infants : thofe arc alfo of
this kind which com.e after benign fevers, being a
critical dilcharge of the difeaie, and therefore com-
monly termed peftilential or venereal buboes.
With regard to the caufcs of benign buboes,
they take their rife from an infpiffation and obilruc-
tion of the blood ; fo that they differ from other
inflammations, only in the particular part where
they are featcd.
In buboes which are unaccompanied with an/
other di(i;afe, the frequent taking of fome cathar-
tic medicine, with an addition of mercurius dui-
cis, is found to be of great fervice ; other medi--
cines which attenuate the blood, Ihould be alfo
tiled. ^Vil^.•n the inflanunation is fo gentle, as to
give hopes of dilpcrlion, it may be proper to apply
difcutieiu plaftcrs e.Kternally, .''.s emplnjl. d'uichyl.
fimpifx. de jpcrmatt ceti, de galbano, &c.
But it the inflamnTation proves more violent, the
pains moi« inlenle, and the difcutient.plafters avail
nothing, it- will be proper to- bring it to fuppura-
tion, by the application of emp. diachylon, cuni
gummis, or 1'omcthiiig as efFeciu.-il. If violent
pains alfo affeiit the patient, the frequent applica-
tion ot digeiling catapkfms warm to the part, will
not only mitigate the pain, but alio greatly pro-
mote' a difperfion, or elfe a digeftion and matura-^
tion.
PejiUent'wl Buboes are diftinguifliable from other
tumours, by their happening at a time, and in
conjunclion with the plague, and from their be-
ing accomp:;nied, in the patient, with the fymtpoms
proper to. tliat dilleniper : thefe tumotirs are fome-
times joined v/tth carbuncles.
It is not without reafon affirmed by fome of the'
more learned and modern phyfieians, that almoil:
the whole buiinefs of curing the plague confilled
in carefully promoting the eruption of buboes-..
The patient, upon the firft appearance of the
tumours, {nould keep the houfc, or rather keep
in a warm bed, to be more fecure from the air.
I'tHi-ival Buno, a tumour with p'iin ynd inflam-
5 N matioiij-
BUB
imatioi!, aiifmg in the groin or arm-pits, after con-
tait with an impure woman who is afBidted with
the venereal difeafe. The moft certain figns of
buboes being venereal arc, the patient's having to
do with thefe women, and from their being, and
liaving been, accompanied with gonorrha;as, chan-
cres, or other fynrptoms of the venereal difcafc.
AVi'th regard to the cure, there are m.any phyfi-
cians who hold, that the difperfion of venereal bu-
boes are equally improper as in the peftilential -,
they therefore judge It necelTary to abftain entirely
from bleeding, purging, and to forv.-ard the tu-
mour to fuppuration as fad as poffible : however,
others are for taking cathartic and mercurial medi-
cines, together with a dccodtion of the woods, and
other purifiers of the blood. The difperfion is to
be effeiSled with large dofes of mercurius dulcis, as
is ufual in carrying oft" gonorrhaeas.
Externally to the tumour fnould be applied fome
■difcutient plafters, as thofe in the peftilential tu-
mours : the patient fhould keep a regular diet and
courfe of life, and fhould abifain from flrong li-
■quors.
Tlie fuppuration is to be promoted much in the
{■.\ms manner as mentioned in the benign and pef-
.tilential tumour.
'i"he internal medicines fhould be a decoiStion of
the woods, two or three times a day, from eight
to twelve ounces n,t a time, with thirty or forty
drops of eflent. lignor. pimpinellae, alb;t fumarire,
&c. It is to be opened as the pelhlential bubo.
BUBON, Macedonian parlley, in botany, a ge-
nus of umbelliferous plants. I'he common fort
has a long, thick, white, wrinkled woody root,
which fends forth a ftalk to the height of a foot
and a half: this is thick, hairy, and branched.
The leaves rcfem.ble thofe of garden-parflcy, but
are more large, of a bright pale-green colour, and
ferrated on their edges. The flowers grow on the
extremities of the branches in umbels ; thele are
whitifh, and are each compofed of fi\e lanceohtcd
inflexed petals, with the fame number of filaments,
topped with fimple antherne. The germen, which
« fituated below the flower, fupporting two bridly
ityles which are perfiftent, becomes afterwards an
ova'], ftriated, hairy fruit, feparable into two parts,
each containing an oval, aromatic feed, plarie on
one fide, and on the other convex, llriated, and
hairy.
This plant grows wild in Macedonia, and was
greatly valued by the antients. It is here culti-
vated in gardens, and propagated by fowing the
feeds in light fandy earth in the month of April,
and fhould be kept well watered in dry weather :
being fomewhat tender, it fhould be fneltered in
■winter in this climate. The feeds only are in ufe,
iind it has the fame virtues as thnfc of the common
parflfcv, but ftronger, and is one of the ingredients
in Venice-treacle. Botanills enumerated three
BUG
other fpccics, tv.'o of which are natives of Africa,
and the other grov/s naturally in Sicily.
BUBONOCELE, or Hernia Inguinalis,
in furgery, a tumour in the inguen, formed by a
prolapfus of the intellines, omentum, or both,
through the prccefles of the peritoneum, and rings
of the abdominal mufcles.
The bubonocele may arife from two caufes,
viz. a relaxation of the peritonaeum and rings of
the abdominal mufcles, or fome violent contradlion
and prefiiire of the abdominal mufcles upon the
intefiincs, as in jumping, lifting of great weights,
coughing, hollowing, blu^ving a trumpet, riding
on horfeback,va fall, <Vc.
When this diforder is fcrm.ed infenfibly, and by
degrees, it is attended vifith but few and llight fymp-
toms: when it arifes from violent colds, exercifes,
eating too plentifully of grofs and flatulent food,
which will exafperate the diforder, the confequencc
will be violent pain and inflammation, ficknefs,
vomiting, and the iliac pafiion. It may be farther
difco\ered from the tumour occafioned thereby in
tl.e groin, which proceeds up to the ring of the ab-
dominal mufcles ; and when the inteftine is not in-
carcerated, but returnable into the abdomen, the
tumour fubfides upon lying down. When the
bubonocele is incarcerated, fo that the parts forming
the tumour are not returnable into the abdomen,
it ufiially appears with a greater refiftance to the
touch, rednefs, and inflammation.
Thefe ruptures are often attended with danger,
efpecially the incarcerated ones, in which, if the
inteftine be not timely returned, but the llriclure
continues two or three days, red and livid ipots ap-
pear upon the tumour, which denote a fphacelus
or mortification ; and if an univerfal cold fweat
ftizes the patient, he has generally but a few hours
to live. When the omentum alone falls down,
there is lefs danger than when it is accompanied
with the intefiincs.
When the inteftine is returnaVle, the patient
fliould be laid on his back, with his thigh a little
bent, to relax the integuments ; then the tumour is
to be gently preffed, or returned with the hands
and fingers, after which a plaller and compreflure
are to be applied to the part afie*?ted, and retained
with a proper trufs, and a girdle or bandage, with-
out taking them off for feveral months, or longer,
as there is occafion. See the article Truss.
When the inteftine is not returnable, then the
operation of incifion becomes abfolutely necefTary,
in order to dilate the parts. However, the furgeoii
may firft try the repeated ufe of catajdafms, oint-
ments, and laxative clyfters, after bleeding ; where-
by the flritlure is fometimes removed, and the in-
teftine may be returned by the finger, v/ithout
ir.uch difScuItv.
BUCARDIA, or Bucardit,'e, in natural hif-
tory, a kind of figured ftones, forir.cd in the cavi-
ties
BUG
ties of the hugcr cockLs, and thence n'-TefTarily rc-
fembling, in fomc mca'Aire, a heart at caids.
BUCCAL, Bucca.is, fomething belonging to
the cheeks : thus the buccal glands arc thofe dif-
pcrfed over the inner fide of the checks.
BUCCANEERS, thofe who dry and fmoke flcfli
or fifh, after the manner of the Americans.
Buccaneers alfo figniiy thofe famous adven-
turers of all the nations in Europe, who formerly
jnined tor^ethcr to make war againft the Spaniards
of America, cruizing about in privateers, and tak-
ing all the veffels and fmall craft they could meet
with.
HUCCINA, an ancient mufical and militnry in-
ftrumcnt. It is ufually taken for a kind of a trum-
pet, which opinion is confirmed by FelKis, by
his defining it a crooked horn, played on like a
trumpet.
BUCCINATOR, in anatomy, a mufcle on each
fide of the faci.-, common to the lips and cheeics.
The origin of the buccinator is partly from thean-
tericr and lower part of the coronoide procefs of
t'-e lower jaw, and partly about the roots of the
poilerior dentes molares of both jaws. Its pro-
grcfs, as the head is cre£t, is nearly horizontal ;
its" termination is at the angle of ths lips. Its ufes
are to bring the food into the way of the teeth ;
and tl.e falival duci of Stcno perforates it in the
middle.
BUCHNERA, in botany, a genus of plrmts,
whofe flower confills of a m.cnopyhllous calyx,
divided into tive parts, which is perfiftcnt : the co-
rolla is monopetalous, with five equ.il and obvcrfc-
!v cordated fegments at its edge, containing four
•Ihort hlaments, topped with oblong antheras : the
fruit is £n ovato-oblong capfule, with two cells
divided at the top, containing numerous angulated
feeds.
BUCIDA, in botanv, a genus of d;-candricus
plants, whofe flower is ;;petn!ous; the calyx is mo-
iio]ihv!Iousandcampanulated, cut into five fegrr.ents,
and perfiilent ; the fruit is a dry ovated berry, with
one cell, containing an egg fliaped fmgle feed.
BUCK, among fportfnien, in his hrft year, is
c;dled a tawn ; the fecond, a pricket ; the third, a
Yorel ; the fourth, a fore ; the fifth, a buck of the
Hrft head ; and the fixth, a great buck. This
bead is common in moil: ccuntiies, being corpu-
lent as a hart, but in fize lefembling mi. re a roe,
except in colour ; the males ha\ e horns, v.hich
they lofe yearly ; the females none at all. As for ,
the colour, it is very difRrer.t ; howe\'er, they are
niofily branded and fandy, v.'ith a blai k lift all
idong the back. Their flelli is excellent liourifh-
ment.
Buck-Dean, In boany ; fee the artii-le Meni-
ANTHES.
Buck-Thorn, Rhamnus, in botany, a (hrub
which grows naturally in the hedges in di'.ers part?
BUG
of Engl.md. The root is long, har.^, and woody,
from which aril^s a ftrong woody ftalk, to tho
height ol twelve or fourteen feet, fending out many
irregular branches, wiiich are armed with thorns.
1 he young {hoots have a fmooth grayifli brown
bark, but the older branches have a darker and
rougher bark. The leaves Hand upon long iknder
pedicles, and are of a yello-.vifli green, about the
fize of tliofc of the floe-tree; ihele are (lightly fer-
ratcd on their edges, and have a pretty flrong mid-
rib. With le\eral veins proceeding ftom it, which
diverge toward the fides, but meet again near the
point. The flowers are fmall, of a greenifh or yel-
lowifli colour, and come out in bunches from the
iides ot the branches. Som; plants produce male-
flowers, and others female. The femr.le-flowcrs con-
fift of a lunnel-fn.iped petal, cut into four parts at
the top ; thefe are fucceeded by pulpy berries of a
rounddli form, green at firft, and black w.hen ripe,
yielding a bitter greenifli black juice, and inclof-
ing four hard feeds.
I his plant flov/ers in June, and the berries arc'
ripe toward the end of September. From tht;
juice of thefe berries a water-colour is made, called
by painters f.ip-green, which is done by preffing ic
cut when ripe, and then evaporating it to a con-
fiftence over a gentle fire, adding to it a little roach-
alum, dilloh'ed in water. To give it a higher and
more beautiful colour, it muft be continued over
the fire, till it comes to the confiftence of honey ;
then put in bladders, and hung up in a chim-
ney, or any other hot place, till it becomes hard.
\V hen thelij berries are gathered in harveft tim.e,
and ftceped in alum-water, they will yield a yel-
low or faflron-coloured juice. In medicine, thcfo
berries prove a flrong cathartic : a fyrup of them is
the only preparation now in ufe, and is reckoned a
good medicine to purge watery humours, and againil
the dropfv', jaundi-^e, itch, and all maimer of c.-up-
tions of the iTcin ; a dram, or a dram and a half df
the ripe berries is a dofe for removing the palfy,
gout, and rheumatifin. Of late years thefe terries
ha\e been mixed by the people v.'ho gather them,
with berries of other plants and other virtues, fuc-h
as thofe of the frangula, cornus fcemina,&-c. fothac
when the fynip is made by pcrfons v/ho have not
(kill enough to diPcinguifh the berries, it is often fo
very bad, that tvyo ounces of the f'.rup from one
fliop, will not purge fo well as one from another,
which has brought this medicine intodifrepute with
many perfons : but the cheat may eafily be de-
teded by opening them, and obferving the nun-.-
ber of feeds in each ; for thefe contain four feeds,
the frangula two, and the cornus fc-mina but one ;
alfo by rubbing the juice on white paper, which
will f^ain it of a green colour.
Buck-Wheat, the Engliih name of the fago
pyrum of authors ; it is cultivated in many parts of
England, and is a great improvement to dry barren
lands.
BUD
laTK^s. The beft fenfon for fovving the feed is in
Mav : one buftiel will fow an acre. The ground
fliould be ploughed and drefled in the fame manner
as for barley ; and, if the foil is not very lean, it
will yield a very great increafe, as fifty or fixty
bufhels upon an acre, and is excellent food for
liogs, poultry, &c. The flour of it is very white,
and makes a very good fort of pancake, if mixed
with a little wheat flour. The ftraw is good fod-
der for cattle ; and the grain, given to horfes
among their oats, will make them thrive; but it
muft be broken in a mill ; othervvife it is apt to
pafs through the cattle whole.
It is commonly late in the fcafon before it is ripe ;
but there is no great danger of the feed's failing,
nor of fufFering by wet after it is mown : it mult
lie feveral days to dry, that the ftalks, which are
hard, may wither before it is houfed.
Buck-v^heat is fometimes fown very thick, and
fufFcred to grov/ until it is near flowering, and is
then ploughed in, which makes a very good lay
for wheat or rye : but fome people efteem it the
better way to feed cattle with it, tfpecially milch-
cows, which they fay will caufe them to give a
great deal of milk, and make both the butter and
cheefe very good. This will alfo afford food for
cattle in the dricfl: time, when all other grafs is
burned up.
BUCKING of Cloth, among bleachers, the firft
operation or flep towards whitening of cloth. Sec
the article Bleaching.
BUCKLE, a well known utcnfil, made of divers
forts of metals, as gold, filver, ftecl, brafs, &c.
BUCKLER, a piece of dcfenfive armour ufed
by the ancients, and vi-orn on the left arm.
Votive Bucklers, thofe confecrated to the gods,
and hung up in their temples as an offering to the
gods.
BUCKRAM, in commerce, a fort of coarfe
cloth msde of hemp, gummed, calendered, and
dyed of feveral colours.
BUCOLIC, in ancient poetry, a kind of rural
poem, relating to fhcpherds and rural affairs. See
Pastoral.
The word is formed from the Greek, ^vk-.x'^,
an herdfnian.
BUD, among gardeners, implies that part of a
feed which fitfl: begins to fprout, or rather the leaves
which firlt appear.
Bud is alfo ufed to fignify the fprout from whence
the branch arifes.
BUDDLE, in minerology, a name given by
the Englifli dreffers of the ores of metals to a fort
of frame made to receive the ore after its firll fepa-
ration from its grofiefi: foulnefs.
7"he ore is firft beaten to powder in wooden
troughs, thro' which there runs a continual llream
of water, which carries off fuch of it as is fine
encugh to pafs a grating, which is placed at one
5
B UF
end of the trough ; this falls into a long fquare
receiver of wood, called the launder : the heaviell
andpureft of theore falling atthehead of the launder,
is taken out fcparately, and requires little more care
or trouble ; but the other parts, which fpread over
the middle and lower end of the launder, is thrown
into the buddle, which is a long fquare frame of
boards, about four feet deep, fix long, and three
wide. In this there (lands a man bare-footed, with
a trambling fliovel in his hand, to caft up the ore
about an inch thick upon a fquare board placed
before him as high as his middle ; this is termed the
buddlc-head ; and the man dexteroufly, with one
edge of his fhovel, cuts and divides it longways, in
refpecl of himfelf, about half an inch afunder, in
thefe little cuts ; the water, coming gently from
an edge of an upper plain board, carries away the
filth and lighter parts of the prepared ore tirll, and
then the metalline part immediately after, all falling
d^jwn into the buddle, where, with his bare feet, he
ftrokes it and fmooths it, that the water and other
heterogeneous matter may the fooncr pafs otl' from
it.
When the buddle by this means grows full, the
ore is taken out ; that at the he.id part, being the
lineil and purell, is taken out feparate from the
reif, as from the launder. The reft is again tram-
pled ill the fame buddle ; but the head, or as it is
called, the forehead of this buddle, and of the
launder, are mixed together, and carried to an-
other buddle, and trampled a? at firft. The fore-
head of this lall buddle, that is, that part of the
ore which has fallen at the head, is carried to
what they call a drawing buddle, whofe difference
fiom the reft is only this, it has no tye, but only a
plain Hoping board on which it is once more wafhed
with the trambling fnovel. Tin ore, when it is
taken from this, is called black-tin; and this is
found to be compleatly ready for the blowing-houfe.
Pbilof. Trarif. N° 69.
Building-Dish, a fmall, fhallow veffel for
wafhing ores by- the hand.
BUDGE-BARRELS, among engineers, fmall
barrels well hooped, v/ith only one head ; on the
other end is nailed a piece of leather, to draw to-
gether upon ftrings like a purfe. Their ufe is
for cairying powder along with a gun or mortar,
being lefs dangerous, and carried with more eafe
than whole barrels. They are hkewife ufed on a
battery of mortars, for holding meal powder..
liUFF, in commerce, a fort of leather pre-
pared from the flcin of the bufralo, and dreffed
with oil after the manner of ihammy. See
Shammy.
BUFFALO, Buhahi!, in zoology? an animal
of the ox kind, with very large, crooked, and re-
fupinated horns.
It is equal to our largeft oxen in fizc : the head
is very large, the forehead remaikably broad, and
the
BUG
the afpeft very fierce and terrible. The eyes are
large and prominent, tlie ears long and patulous,
the horns very thick but ftjarp at the point : the
neck is thick, and remarkably fliort ; the flefh
hangs very looie under the throat : the body is more
bulky in proportion than our bull, and the legs are
thicker, but about equal in length. The colour
is ufually a blackiili grey ; but in this particular
the.'e are great varieties.
The bufFalo is a native of the Eaft, but has been
introduced into Italy, and fome other parts of Eu-
rope ; where it is kept as a beaft of burden and
draught.
BUFFET, a fmall apartment feparated from the
reft of the room by flender wooden columns, glafs
doors, &c. for the difpofing china, glafs, plate, &c.
BUFFOON, a droll, or mimic, who diverts the
public by his pleafantries and follies.
BUFO, the toad, in zoology. See Toad.
BUFONITjE, in natural hiftory, a kind of ex-
traneous foffils, otherwife called lycodontes, or
wolf's teeth. See Lycodontes.
BUGLE, in botany. See the article Bugula.
BUGLOSS, BugloJJum, in botany, a plant which
fends forth ftalks about a foot and a half high,
•which are round and befet with ftifF hairs ; the
leaves are oblong, rough, narrow, and of a bluifh
green colour, placed alternately on the extremities
of the branches ; the flowers which come out from
the wings of the leaves, and are colledled in fmall
heads, of a fine blue colour, each is monopetalous
and funnel-fhaped. In which are inferted five fhort
filaments, topped with oblong antherse ; it contains
four germina, which afterward becomes as many
oblong blunt feeds, enveloped in the calyx, and the
whole plant has much the appearance of borage.
The flowers are in the number of thofe that are
faid to be cordial, and are proper to reftrain the
heat of blood ; thefe may be ufed in the manner of
tea.
This plant is propagated by fowing its feeds either
in fpring or autumn in light fandy earth, and after-
ward planted at the diftance of two feet from each
other in beds ; they flower in June, and the feed is
ripe in Auguft.
Fiper's BuGLOss. See Echium.
BUGULA, bugle, in botany, a genus of plants,
producing didynamious flowers ; the common fort
which grows naturally in woods and (hady moift
places in divers parts of England, has a flender fi-
brous white root, with roundifh foft finuatej leaves
of a darkifli green ; it hath two kinds of ftalks, one
of which creep on the ground and takes root at the
joints, while the other arife upright and quadrangu-
lar, with hair on the two oppofite fides, alternately
from joint to joint ; the flowers are produced in
loofe fpikes, and are monopetalous and ringent ;
the upper lip is fmall, upright and bifid, and the
under one large and trifid j the filaments arc, two
22
B U I
fliort and two long, terminated with double anthe-
rre ; the calx is monphyllous and pcrfiftent, divided
into fi/e parts, from whence the piftil arifcs, and is
fixed to the hinder part of the flower j this is at-
tended with tour embryocs, which turn to as many
feeds, which are inclofcd in the calyx.
This plant is greatly eftcenied as a vulnerary
herb, and is ufed both internally and externally ;
it enters as an ingredient into the vulnerary decoc-
tions, and recommended externally, applied to ul-
cers, and is faid to be good in the bloody-flux, and
all forts of hremorrhages.
This plant is alfo called confol'ida media, or middle
confound, and with the other fpecies of this genus
(which are natives of foreign countries) is called by
Linnasus, adjuga.
BUILDING, a fabric ereiSled by art, either for
devotion, magnificence, or conveniency.
Building is alfo ufed to fignify the art of con-
ftruding and raifing an edifice ; in which fenfe it
comprehends the expences, as well as the invention
and execution of the dcfign.
Three things are chiefly neceflary to be confider-
ed in the art of building, namely, conveniency,
firmnefs, and pleafure : and thefe Sir Henry Wot-
ton confiders under two heads, the fituation, and
the work.
As to the fituation, either that of the v/hole is
to be confidered, or that of its parts. In the firft,
regard muft be had to the quality, temperature, and
falubrity of the air ; to the quality of the foil ; to
the conveniency of water, fuel, carriage, 6cc. and
to the agrecablsnefs of the profpedl.
As to the fituation of the parts, the chief rooms,
ftudies, and libraries, fliould lie towards the Eaft j
thofe oflices which require heat, as kitchens, brew-
houfes, bake-houfes, and diftallatories, towards the
South ; thofe that require a cool, frefli air, as cel-
lars, pantries, and granaries, totheKorth; as al-
fo galleries for paintings, mufasums, &c. which re-
quire a fteady light.
The ancient Greeks and Romans generally fitu-
ated the fronts of their houfes towards the South ;
butthe modern Italians vary very much from this rule.
And indeed it is abfolutely neceflary to have regard
to the country, each being obliged to provide a-
gainft its own inconveniencies.
The fituation being fixed on, the next thing to
be confidered is the work itfelf, under which come
firft the principal parts, and next the acceflories or
ornaments. To the principal parts belong the ma-
terials, and the form or difpofition.
As for the materials they arc either ftone, brick,
mortar, &c. or wood, as fir, cyprels ; cedar for
pillars for upright ufes ; oak for fumrners, beams,
and crofs-work, or for joining and connexion.
As to the form and difpofition of a building, it is
either Ample or mixed.
The fimple forms are either circular or angular.
5 O The
B U I
The circular form is very commodious, and the
moft capacious of any, ftrong, durable, and very
beautiful ; but is the moft chargeable of all others,
and much room is loft by the bending of the walls,
when it comes to be divided into apartments ; be-
fides an ill diftribution of the light, unlefs it be
from the center of the roof. For thefe reafons, the
ancients employed this form only in their temples
and amphitheatres, which had no need of comparti-
tions.
As for angular forms, building neither loves
many nor (ew angles. The triangle is condemned
above all others, as wanting both capacloufnefs and
firmnefs, as alfo on account of its not being refolv-
able, in the internal partitions, in(o any other fi-
gure than its own. Buildings with five, fix, or
more angles, are more fit for fortifications than ci-
vil edifices. The redangle, therefore, is general-
ly chofen, as being a medium between the triangle
and the pentagon, &c. But then authors are in
difpute, whether the rciftangle fhould be an exaft
fquare, or an oblong; and Sir H. Wotton prefers
the oblong, provided the length exceeds not the
breadth by more than one-third. As to mixed
forms, partly circular, and partly angular, a judg-
ment may be made of them, from what has been al-
ready faid of fimple ones. Let the builder, how-
ever, remember not to lofe fight of uniformity,
while he is in purfuit of variety ; for thefe two may
be very well reconciled, as may be obferved in our
bodies, which are uniform in the whole configura-
tion ; and yet fome of the members are round, o-
thers flat; fome prominent, and others indented,
or retired.
Some obferve, that in building houfes long, the
tifc of fome rooms will be loft ; as they will take
up more for entries and pafiages, and will require
too much for doors ; and if the building be a geo-
metrical (quare, the middle rooms will want light,
in cafe the houfe be pretty large ; and therefore
they recommend the form of the letter H, a form,
fay they, in which the building ftands firmer againft
the weather, and in which the offices may be re-
mote from the parlour and rooms of entertainment,
and yet in the fame houfe.
This figure may ferve very weH for a country
gentleman's houfe.
7'he principal parts of a building are comprized,
by Baptifta Alberti, under five heads, viz. the
foundation, the v/alls, the apertures, the corn-
partitions, and the covering ; fee each under its
proper article, as Foundation, &c.
The accefiTories or ornaments of a buildir>g are
fetched from fculpture and painting. In the firft,
care ought to be taken that there be not too much
of it) efpecially at the entrance ; and that both in
fine and coarfc pieces of fculpture, and likewife in
placing figures aloft, the rules of perfpeclive be
AridUy. oblsrved..
B U I
In painting, the chief things to be regarded are,
that the beft pieces be placed in the beft lights ; and
that they be fuited to the intention of the room*
they are ufed in.
If we compare the modern with the old way of
building in England, we cannot but wonder at
the genius of thofe times. Our fore-fathers were
wont to dwell in houfes, moft of them with a blind
ftair-cafe, low cielings, and dark windows ; the
rooms built at random, without any contrivance,
and often with fteps from one to another : whereas
the genius of our times requires light ftair-cafes,
fine faOi-windows, and lofty cielings, with conve-
niencies far fuperior to thofe that houfes in ancient
days afforded upon an equal quantity of ground.
Ship-BuiLDiNC, the art of defigning the figure,
forming the feveral limbs, and conftru£ling the
body of a fhip or veflel. See Naval Archi-
tecture.
In the article referred to, and to which this may
be properly eftecmed a conclufion, the reader will
find a general account of the rife and progrefs
of 5/;//)-BuiLDiNG, together with a comparative
view of the art, as it has appeared amongft the
ancients and moderns : we likewife at that time
ventured to cenfure the evident impropriety of pre-
tending to eftablifh general rules of proportion, a
maxim fo often abfurdly adopted amongft many of
our modern 5/^//>-Builders, who for want of a
native genius and tafte, and a fufficient knowledge
of the nature of phyftcs, mathematics, folids, and
fluids, were neceffitated to purfue the fervile me-
chanical methods handed down to them by their la-
borious preceptors : it fhall be our prefent endeavour
to fpeak more particularly of the principal members
that compofe this complicated machine; in which
we fhall decline as much as pofTible to diftrai2 our
reader's attention, by drawing him into a labyrinth
of technical terms, from which we can neither ex-
tricate him nor ourfelves.
But it will be neceftary on this occafion to fay
fomething. of the different parts ufed in fabricating
thefhips of the ancients, previous to an explanation
of modern fhip-building.
The ignorance of the principal parts of their
Shipping has occafioned many miilakes and much
confufioii in thofe who have converfed with au-
thors of antiquity. Herein we fhall chiefly follow
Scheffer, who hath fo copioufly treated this fubjecS,
and with fuch induftry and learning, colledfed
whatever is neceflary to illuftratc it, that very little
room is left for enlargement by thoie who incline to
purfue this inveftigation.
The chief parts then, of which fhips formerly
confided, were three, viz.. the itv'/y, the prow, and
the ftern : thefe v/ere again compofed of other
fmalier parts, v/hich flial! briefly be defcribed in their
order.
I. In the belly or middle part of the fliip there
J'J^I
, /'^i,/)/(/ .Sliip liiiiMiiii;.
rj..iri:sxii:
'^'at'in// .Ship B\iiltljn_j;
'/, /(ti/.i/i/i 'y''^winrSy/
1
■ -'■•■■'/"'~'/'
■1
B U I
was TfoVij, carina, or the keel, whicli was com-
pofed of wood : it was placed at the bottom of the
fliip, being defigned to cut and glide through the
waves, and therefore was not broad, but narrow
and iharp ; whence it may be perceived that not all
fhips, but only the /ictKfa!, which /hips of war were
called, whofe bellies were ftraight, and of a (mall cir-
cumference, were provided with keels, the reft hav-
ing ufually flat-bottoms. Round the outfide of the
keel were fixed pieces of wood to prevent it from
being damaged, when the fliip was firfl launched
into the water, or afterwards ihuck on any rocks ;
thefe were called XE?,£i/irf*aTa:, in Latin ctinci.
Next to the keel was (paXnti, the pump-well or
well-room, within which was contained the d\nXia,
or pump, through which water was conveyed out of
the fhip.
After this, there was ^suri^a r^cm;, or the fecond
keel, fomewhat refembling what is now called the
kelfon; it was placed beneath the pump, and called
Xfff-fiov, x«'''<'ii'ij «^EiTtiTo'Jioi/ : by fome it is falfely
fuppofed to be the fame with (pa^*l;.
Above the pump was an hollow place, called by
Herodotus xo/^w tiij viic;, by Pollux kuto; and yat-j-'a:,
becaufe large and capacious, after the form of a belly,
by the Latins iejiudo. This was formed by crooked
ribs, with which it was furrounded, which were
pieces of wood rifing from the keel upwards, and
called by Hefychius vof^Eii, and by others ifnoiMa,
the belly of the fliip being contained within them,
in Latin cojia, and in Englifli timbers : upon thefe
were placed certain planks, which Ariflophaiies calls
hri^a-jEiai, or hri^uiwa.
Hence proceed we to the 'nMv^ai, latera, or fides
of the fhip, which encompafl'ed all the former parts
on both hands; thefe were compofed of large rafters
extended from prow to Item, and called fiji-.i^fj,
and ^a/MafiaTa, becaufe by them the whole fabric
was begirt or furrounded.
In both thefe fides the rowers had their places,
called Tclxoi, and iSuMa, in Latinyjr; and tranjha,
placed above one another : the loweft was called
SaX.'?//cf, and thofe that laboured therein Sa^auioi ;
the middle fu^a, and the men ftlyioi ; the uppernioft
Sfaioi, whence the rowers were termed ^/^avirai.
In thefe apartments were fpaces through which the
rowers put their oars ; thefe were fometimes one
continued vacuity from one end to the other, called
Tfa(p)i?, but more ufually diftindt holes, each of
which was defigned for a fingle oar ; thefe were
ftiled Tf)]|UaTa, r^vTrri/jiaTcc, as alfo o'ipte^|«o<, becaufe
not unlike the eyes of living creatures : all of them
were by a more general name termed iyKUTra, from
containing the oars ; but evkojotIv feems to have been
another thing, fignifying the fpaces between the
banks of oars on each fide, where tlie paflengers
feem to have been placed : on the top of all there
was a paffage or place to walk, called wa^osof,
B U I
and zsa^aS^avoi, as joining to the ^^dvot, or upper-
moft bank of oars.
2. npw'fo;, the prow cr fore-deck, whence it is
fometimes called f/.ht,:7rov, and commonly diftin-
gui/hed by other metaphorical titles taken from
human faces. In fonie fliips there is mention of
two prov/s, as alfo two fterns ; fuch was Danaus's
fliip adorned by Minerva when he fled from Egypt.
It was ufual to beautify the prow with gold and va-
rious forts of paint and colours : in the primitive
times red was moft in ufe, whence Homer's fhips
were commonly dignified with the titles of i^iXto-
TTa^Yioi, and tpoivtHCTrJc^voi, or red-faced : the blue
likewife or fky-colour was frequently made ufe of,
as bearing a near refemblance to the colour of the
fea, whence we find fhips called by Homer xnxvo-
w^co^ot, by Ariflophanes xuavs(xio\ot. Several other
colours were alfo made ufe of; nor were they barely
varnifhed over with them, but very often annealed
by wax melted in the fire, fo as neither the fun,
winds, nor water, were able to deface them. The
art of doing this, was called from the wax xvico-
y^ajria^ from the fire ibiaurixh, which is defcribed
by Vitruvius, and mentioned in Ovid.
-Pli^a coloribui iijiis
Caerukam matrem coucava puppis hahet.
The painted ftiip with melted wax anneal'd
Had Tc'thys for its deity.
In thefe colours the various forms of gods, ani-
mals, plants, &c. were ufually drawn, which were
likewife often added as ornaments to other parts of
the fhips, as plainly appears from the ancient mo-
numents prefented to the world by Bayfius.
The fides of the prow were termed 'ult^a, or
wings, and -arapia, according to SchcfFcr, or rather
zsa^iiou -, for fince the prow is commonly compared
to an human face, it will naturally follow that the
fides fhould be called cheeks ; thefe are now called
bows by our mariners.
3. Yi^ufni], the hind-deck or poop, fometimes
called i^a, the tail, becaufe the hindmort part of the
fhip : it was of a figure more inclining to round than
the prow, the extremity of which was fharp, that it
might cut the waters ; it was alfo built higher than
the prow, and was the place where the pilot fat to
fleer, the outer-bending part of it was called iTnc-iiuv,
anfwering to our term, quarter.
They had various ornaments of fculpture on the
prow; as helmets, animals, triumphal wreaths, Sec.
the ftern was more particularly adorned with wing.s,
fliields, &c. Sometimes a little mall was erected
whereon to hang ribbands of divers colours, which
ferved inftead of a flag to diftinguifti the fhip, and a
weather-cock to fignify the part from whence ths
wind blew. See Colours, Flag, Signal.
On the extremity of the prow was placed a round
piece
B U I
piece of wood, called the zslux';, from its bending;
and fometimes 6^a(i?^iA.h;, the eye of the Ihip, be-
caufe fixed in the fore-deck ; on this v/as infcribed
ll)e name of the fhip, which was ufually taken from
the figure painted on the flag. Hence comes the f^-e-
quent mention of fhips 'called Pega/i, Scyla, Bulb,
Rams, Tigers, &c. which the poets took the liberty
to reprefent as living creatures that tranfported their
riders from one country to another. See the article
Sea-Fight.
The whole fabric being compleated, it was forti-
fied with pitch, and fometimes a mixture of rofin, to
fecure the wood from the waters ; whence it comes
that Homer's fljips are every where mentioned with
the epithet of (lexaimi, or black. The firfl that
inadc ufe of pitch were the inhabitants of Phaeacia,
iince called Corfica : fometimes wax was employed
in the fame ufe, whence Ovid,
Cacrula ceratas accipit unda rates.
The azure waves receive the waxy fliips.
After all, the fhip being bedecked with garlands
and flowers, the mariners alfo adorned with crowns,
Ihe was launched into the fea with loud acclamations
and other expreflions of joy ; and being purified by a
prieft with a lighted torch, an egg and brimftone,
or after feme other manner, was confecrated to the
god whofe image fhe bore.
With regard to modern 5/;;'p-BuiLDiNG, it is
necefi'ary to obferve here, that the art is fo compli-
cated, extenfive and various, comprehending fuch a
diverfity of ftrucfures, that to treat the fubjecSt at
large with perfpicuity and precifion would fill a large
volume of itfelf, and therefore would greatly exceed
our bounds ; and being thus neceflltated to contradt
our defcription, we cannot treat particularly of all
the pieces that compofe a fhip. It fcems necefTary,
however, to fay foniething of the principal pieces :
we have therefore laid down each piece feparately,
Plate XXIV, by which means the length of the
fcarphs are defcribed, and the manner in which
they are to be joined together.
Explanation of Plate XXIV.
A. The keel, in four pieces, to be firmly bolted
together and clinched.
I. The fore- foot, one end of which is fcarfed to
the fore-end of the keel, of which it is a part, and
the other end makes a part of the flern, to which it
is fcarfed.
u u. Tvo pieces of dead-wood, one afore and
the other abaft, fayed upon the keel.
Note, The term afore arrived too late for the prcfs
in this Diiiionary : it means further, fonvard, cr
nearer tke fern, and is the oppoftc term to abaft ;
which fee.
B U I
C C. The flern in two pieces to be fcarfed toge-
ther : it is the circular piece of timber where both
the fides of the fbip uni.e forward.
£ E. The apron, in two pieces, to be fcarfed to-
gether, and fayed on the infide of the ftern, to fup-
port the fcarf of the ffern ; for which purpofe the
fcarf of the apron muft be clear from that of the
ftern.
0. The fternfon in two pieces, to fupport the
fcarf of the apron.
0. The falfe pofl, which is fayed to the fore-part
of the ftern-polf. Faying is fitting two pieces of
wood, fo as that one may be joined to the back, or
infide of the other, fo as to lie clofe.
B. The flern-poft : it is tenanted into the keel, to
which it is faftened with a knee ; and is that flraight
piece of timber at the after-end of the fhip, into
which both the fides are united.
D. The back of the poff, which is likewife
tenanted into the keel, and fecurely bolted to the
ftern-poft ; the defign of it is to give fufficient
breadth to the poft-, which feldom can be procured
of a fufficient breadth in one piece.
F. 7 he knee which fattens the poft to the keel.
N. The wing-tranfom. It is fayed acrofs the
flern-poft, and bolted to the head of it : the fafhion-
pieces are faftened to the end of it ; under this and
parallel to it is the deck tranfom.
O O. Two tranfoms faftened to the ftern-poft
and faftiion-pieces, in the fame manner as the wing-
tranfom.
P. The tranfom-knee which fafteneth it to the
fhip's fide.
Q. The fafhion-piece, of which there is one on
each fide : their heels are faftened to the ftern-poft,
at the height of the floor-ribbands, and their heads
are faftened to the wing-tranfom.
T. A floor-timber : it is layed acrofs the keel, to
which it is faftened by a bolt through the middle.
T T T T T. 2d, 3d, 4th. Futtocks and top-
timbers. Thefe fhew the proper length and fcarf
of the timbers, in what is called the midfhip- frame,
which is a plane comprehended between the two
fides, at their extreme breadth, and the keel to
which it is perpendicular ; fo that if a (hip were cut
through perpendicular to her length, and at her
greateif breadth, the exterior and interior part of
both fides from the upper-parts or edges, called the
gunnels, down to the keel, would exhibit the mid-
fliipframe. The futtocks are to be joined, to com-
plete a frame of timbers.
U U. Riders : thefe are fayed on the infide of
the fliip acrofs the keel, and ftand in the fame man-
ner as the timbers, and confift of floor and futtock
riders.
Z. The kelfon : this is made of two or three
large pieces of timber fcarfed together in the fame
manner as the keel. It is placed over the middle of
the
B U I
B U I
the floor- timbers, and fcored about an inch and a
half down upon each of them.
R, S. Bread-hooks : thefe are fayed on the in-
fide acrofs to the ftem, and to the bow on each fide
of it, to which they are faftened with proper bolts.
'I'here arc generally k.ur or five in the form of an R
in the hold, one in the form of S, into which the
lowcr-declc planks are rabbittcd ; there is one right
under the hawi'e-holes, and another under the fe-
cond deck.
X, Y, X. Are thick planks which are fayed to
the iniide, and ftretch fore and aft, or from one end
of the fhip to the other, to fupport the fcarfing of the
timbers.
Z. Are thick planks in the infide called clamp?,
which fullain the ends of the beams.
'5' '5i '5' 15> '5- ■^'■^ the wales : they are
planks broader and thicker than the reft, which are
faltened to the outlide of the fhip on a line with the
decks : with regard to the planks reaching from the
wale upwards to the top of the fide, and downwards
to the keel, the reader is referred to the feiflion of
one half of the midfliip frame, as laid down in the
plate.
d, d, d, d, d, d, d. Are knees. Thefe are crooked
pieces of timber confiding of two arms, which form
an angle fometimes acute and fometimes obtufe or
reflangular : their ufe is to faften any two pieces
together ; as the beams to the (hip's fide, kc.
19. The rudder : this is joined to the ftern-poft
by the rudder-irons, upon which it turns round in
the googings, which are faftened upon the ftern-
poft for that purpofe. There is a mortife cut
through the head of it, into which a long bar is
fitted, called the tiller, by which the rudder is
turned from one fide to the other, and both parts
together, are called the helm.
23. The cat-heads. Thefe are two large fquare
pieces of timber, one on each fide of the bowfprit :
they projec^t from the bow over the fide, in order to
keep the anchor clear of the fhip, which is drawn
up by a rope called the cat-fall, which pafles through
certain pullies, called flieaves, in the outer-end of
the cat-head : their inner-ends are faftened upon the
fore-caft!e.
7/.', m, !, !, i. Are the feveral pieces which compofe
the knee of the head, called by feamen the cut-
water ; the lower-part w is fa}'ed to the ftem, the
keel of it is fcarfed to the head of the fore-foot ; it is
faftened to the bows by two knees, called cheeks,
and to the ftem by a knee called a flandard in the
form of a K.
<7, X, Y. Are beams, or laige pieces of timber
which fupport the planks of each deck. See the
article Beams. The reader will readily difcover
that the two fides of the midftiip-frame in the middle
of the plate are fo difpofed, that all the pieces on one
iide may be ieen before they are joined, and on the
other after they are fixed in their proper places,
22
In fhips of war the general dimcnfions are efta-
blifhcd by the authority of thofe appointed by the
government for that purpofe. In the merchants
fervice, the extreme breadth, length of the keel,
depth in the hold, and height in the wafte, and be-
tween decks ; and foniLtimcs the height and breadth
of the wing-tranfom, are agreed on by contraiSt: :
and from thefe dimenfions the builder is to form a
draught fuitable to the trade for which fhe is de-
figncd.
The firft thing to be done, in order to lay down
the defign of a fhip of war, is to determine the
length, which fhould be either on the lower-gun
d-ck, or at the load- water-line : water-lines are
defcnbed lengthways on a ftiip's bottom by the fur-
face (if the water in which fhe fwims; that which
determines hovir much fhe is under water when
laden, is called the load- water-line, which is com-
monly at, or a little below her extreme length : there
muft be great care that fufficient room be left be-
tween the ports.
The next thing is to eftablifh the breadth by the
midfhip-beam ; although fc^me builders are divided
in their opinion, about proportioning this to the
length, yet moft of them conform to dimenfions of
fhips of the fame rate. After thefe two dimenfion.s
are determined, the depth of the hold muft be fixed,
which in moft fliips is half the breadth ; but the
form of the body fhould be confidered ; for a flat
floor will require lefs hold than a fliarp one. The
diftances between the decks muft alfo be deter-
mined.
We may then proceed to fix the length of the
keel, which will oblige us to eftablifh the rake of
the ftem and ftern-poft : rake is the difference be-
tween a fliip's lengths at the keel and upper-deck,
or the line on whiclr fhe gradually projects farther
out vj'iih the ftem and ilern as the fabric rifes. The
height of the ftem and wing-tranfom mult alfo be
fixed.
After thefe dimenfions are fettled, the timbers may
be confidered which form the fides of the fhip. A
frame of timbers, which appears to be one continued
timber, is compofed of one floor-timber, two or
three futtocks, and a top-timber on each fide: all
thefe being united and fecured by crofs-bars, form
a circular inclofure ; that which inclofes the greateft
fpace is called the midfnip frame : the curve of this-
frame is inverted at the lower part, fo that the floor-
timber will be fomewhat hollow in the middle,
whereby the ends will form a very obtufe angle;
but this angle decreafe=, the farther the frames are
removed from the midftiips, in fuch a manner, that
the foremoft and aftmoft will become very faarp,
and form a very acute angle. Floor-timbers of this
kind are called crutches.
Builders differ much in determining tb.e ftation of
the midfliip-fiame, fome placing it before, and
others at the middle of the fhip. I'hofe who place
5 P it
B U L
B U I
\t before alledge, that if a (hip is full forward, fhe
will meet with no refiftance after fhe has once
opened a column of water, and that the water fo
difplaced will eafily unite abaft, and by that means
force the (hip forward, and have more power on the
rudder, the farther it is from the center of gravity ;
and befides this, comes neareft the form of fifhes,
which fliould feem to be the moft advantageous for
dividing fluids.
When the rifing of the mldfliip floor-timber is
agreed on, we may then proceed to decide the rifing-
line of the floor abaft on the flern-poff, and afore
on the flem.
The height of the lower-deck is the next thing
to be confideied : it is determined in midfliips by
the depth of the hold ; and fome builders malie it no
higher than the flcm, but they raife it more than it is
in the midlhips, by as much as the load-water-mark
abaft exceeds that afore. As to the height between
decks, it is altogether atbitrary, and muft: be deter-
mined by the rate of the fhip, and the fervice fhe
is dcfigned for.
We come nov/ to confider the upper-work, or
all that is above water, called the dead vv'ork ; and
here the fhip mull be narrower ; fo that all the
■weight, lying above the load-water-line, will there-
by be brought nearer the middle of the fliip ; by
which m.eans flie will ftrain lefs by working the
guns, &c. But though thefe advantages are gained
by narrowing a fliip above water, gieat care mufl:
be taken not to narrow her too much, for there muft
be fufFicient room upon the upper-deck for the guns
to recoil. The fecurity of the mafls fhould like-
wife be remembered, which requires fulficient
breadth to fpread the fhrouds, although this may be
jn fome meafure fupplied by enlarging the breadth
of the channels which fpread them.
In the article Naval Jrcbitecture, we occafion-
ally mentioned feveral elTential qualities which ought
to be united in a fhip ; and we fhal! here briefly de-
fcribe the manner in which this may be executed.
To make a fliip carry a good fail. A flat flonr-
timbcr, and fomewhat long, or the lower-futtock
pretty round, a ftraight upper-futtock, the top-
limber to throw the breadth out aloft ; at any rate
to carry her main breadth as high as the lower-deck.
Now if the rigging be well adapted to fuch a body,
and the upper-works lightened as much as poffible,
fo that they all concur to lower the center of gra-
vity, there will be no room to doubt of her carrying
a good fail.
To make a fliip fteer well, and anfwer the helm
quickly. If the falhion- pieces be well formed, the
tuck, or fpreading-parts under the flern carried
pretty high, the midiliip- frame well forward, a
confiderable difference in the draught of water abaft
more than afore, a great rake forward and none abaft,
a fnug quarter-deck and fore-callle j all thefe will
make a fhip fleer well. A fhip which fails well,
will certainly fteer well.
To make a fhip carry her guns well out of the
water. A long floor timber, and not of great rifing ;
a very full midfhip-frame, and low tuck, with light
upper-works.
To make a fhip go fmoothly through the water
without pitching hard. A long keel, a long floor,
not to rife too high afore and abaft ; but the area or
fpace continued in the fore-body, according to the
refpeifive weights they are to carry ; all thefe aie
neceflary to make a fhip go fmoothly through the
water.
To make a fhip keep a good wind, and drive lit-
tle to the leeward. A good length by the keel j
not too broad, but pretty deep in the hold, which
will occaiion her to have a Ihort floor- timber, and
a great rifing.
As fuch a fhip will meet with great refiftance in
the water going over the broadfide, and little when
going a- head, fhe will not fall much to the lee-
ward.
Now fome builders imagine it is impoflible to
make a flnp carry her guns well, bear a good fail,
and be a prime failer ; becaufe it would require a
very full bottom to gain the firft two qualities,
whereas a fharp fhip will anfwer better for the lat-
ter ; but when it is confidered that a full fhip will
carry a great deal more fail than a fharp one, a
good artift may fo form the body, as to have all thefe
three good qualities, and alfo fteer well. After
what has been faid on this, it certainly cannot be
thought impoflibie to unite all thefe different quali-
ties in one fhip : giving the water a proper curve,
ought likewife to be confidered, upon which the
beauty and ftatelinefs of a fhip greatly depend ;
fince it is this which makes a fhip look airy and
graceful in the water. There is no certain rule for
laying them down ; this is left entirely to the fancy
and tafte of the artift, which, as we have more than
once obferved, is not often of the moft delicate de-
gree, or corre£fed by truth and judgment; witnefs
the barbarous and unnatural mixture of Gothic and
Chinefe ornaments, " clumfy heroes and fat-headed
gods," on the fame fhip, the monftrous ifTue of a
favage conception and an aukward genius, as de-
formed and aukward as their own cant- timbers.
See the article Carved-work, where we fhall
exhibit a further proof of this.
We refer fuch readers as wifh to be more fully
or particularly informed of Ship Building toM. Du
Hamel's curious and ufeful Elements of Naval Archi- j
tediure, to which we acknov/ledgo ourfelves greatly]
indebted for the above defcriptic-n. Rlr. Mungoil
Murray has alfo publiftied a book on this fubjeil,!
called a Treatife on Ship- Building, &c. which mufti
be of great fervice to the younger artificers of thi?
profefTion,, as it contains variety of very accurate
drawing^
B U L
drawings of fliips. An abridgment of M. Du Ha-
mel's book, referred to above, is alfo tranflated, and
annexed to Murray's Trcatife.
BUL, in the Hebrew chronology, the eighth
month of the ecclefiaftical, and the fecond of the
civil year ; the modern Jews call it Morfhevan, and
it nearly anfwers to our month of Oiftober.
BULB, or Bulbous Root, among gardiners,
fignifies a root of a roundifli form, and commonly
furniflied with fibres at its bafe. An uniform bulb,
is when it is compofed of the fame matter through-
out, without any lines intervening ; a truncated bulb
confifls of many coats furrounding each other, as
in the narcifl'us, tulip, onion, &c. a fquamous
bulbconlllfs of many fcales laying over each other
like the tiles on a houfe, or the I'cales of fiflies, as
the roots of the lilly, martagon, &c.
BULBOCASTANUM, in botany. See Bu-
KIUM.
BULBOCODIUM, in botany, a genus of plants,
producing hexapetalous funnel-fliaped flowers. One
of the fpecies which grows naturally on the Alps,
hath a fmall bulbous root, covered witli a rough
hairy fkin, from which iilues forth a few long nar-
row leaves ; from the middle of thefe comes forth
the flower, which is erecSt, and ftands on the top of
the footflalk, which rifes about three inches high,
and hath four or five narrow leaves placed alternate-
ly upon it below the flower. This plant flowers
in March, and the feeds are, ripe in May. The
whole plant has much the appearance of the fafFron,
or crocus, and is propagated in the fame manner.
BULGARIANS, a feft of heretics, who, a-
mong other errors, held that men ought to believe
no Scripture but the New Teffament ; that baptifm
was not neceiTary to mfants ; that hufbands who
converfed with their wives could not be faved ; and
that an oath was abfolutely unlawful.
BULIMY, among phyficians, a difeafe in which
the patient is afFe<Sted with an infatiable delire of
eating, and unlefs indulged, often falls into fiiinting
fits.
BULK-HEADS, in naval aichite£fure, certain
partitions built up in difFerent places of a fhip, either
acrofs or lengthwife, to form and feparate the various
apartments.
BULL, Taurus, in zoology, the male of the ox
kind. See the article Bos.
Bull, Taurus, in aftronomy. See the article
Taurus.
Bull's-Eye, in aftronomy; fee Aldf.baran.
Bull's-Eye, in the marine, a fore of fmall pul-
ley in the form of a ring, round v/hofe outer-edge,
which is made concave for that purpofe, a rope is
fitted, and fpliced clofe about it : it is uft;d to pafs a
rope through when it is required to haul the rope
tight above and below, as the bowline-bridle, upon
which the bull's-eye Aide up and down occafionally :
BUL
this is more frequent amongft the Dutch than Eng-
lifh.
BullFinch, in ornithology, the Englifh name
of the loxia with a black head, and red breaft. It
is about the fize of a common fparrow ; and its
wings are elegantly variegated with black and red.
Bull-Erog, the largeft kind of frog. See
Rana.
Bull, among ecclefiaftical writers, implies a
written letter, difpatched by order of the pope,
from the Roman chancery, and fealed with lead.
It is written on parchment, by which it is diltinguilh-
ed from a brief.
Golden Bvi.L, an edicEl: or imperial conftitution,
made by the emperor Charles IV, and eftcemed as
the Magna Chaita, or fundamental law of the Ger-
man empire.
It is dignified with the epithet golden, from its
having a golden feal appended to it with cords of
red and yellov/ filk. On one fide of this feal the
emperor is reprefented as fitting on his throne, and
on the other the capitol of Rome. The original of
this edidl, which is in Latin, and written on vel-
lum, is pieiervcd at Franckfort.
BULLACE-Tree, in botany, a wild plumb
growing in hedges in many parts of England. There
are two forts, the black and the white bullace, which
are rarely cultivated in gardens : for tiielr generical
charadfers, fee the article Prunus, of which they
are a fpecies.
BULLET, a leaden or iron ball or fliot, where-
with fire-arms are charged ; they are of various forts
and dimenfions. See the article Ball and Shot.
It is dcmonftrated in the Elements ol Geometry^
that fimilar folids are to each other, as the cubes of
their homologous, or correfpondent fides or diame-
ters : bullets are fimilar folids, and therefore they
arc to one another as the cubes of their diameters.
If we fuppofe the weight and diameter ot a bullet
to be known by experiment ; for example, if it is
found that a bullet of four pounds weight is three
inches in diameter, the weight of any bullet may
be eafily found, if its diameter be given, and the
diameter of any bullet, if the weight be given.
Let it be fuppofed, for inftance, that the weight
of a bullet of five inches diameter is required ; this
will be found by the Rule of Three, by faying.
As the cube of 3, which is 27, is to the cube of 5,
which is 125, fo is four pounds to the fourth term,
or the weight required ; or 27 : 125 : : 4 : the fourth
term, which will appear to be eighteen pounds and
a half, the weight of a bullet of five inches dia-
meter : by the fame rule the diameter of bulle-ts
may be found, whofe vveight arc given ; for the
Rule of Three having produced the fourth term,
or the cube of the dia.mctcr required, the diameter
fought will appear, by extracting the cube root
from it.
Rid-
BUN
Red-hot Bullets. See the article Naval En-
gag e m e n t .
BULLION, uncoined gold or filver in the mafs.
Thole metals ate called bullion, both before and
after they are refined, when melted down in bars
or ingots, or in any unwrought body.
BULTEL, a term ufed by millers to denote the
refufe of meal after dreffing.
BUI>WARlv, in ancient fortification, the fame
with which the moderns call rampart. See Ram-
part.
BUNCH, in botany, denotes certain flowers or
fruits growing together on one general ftalk, as
grapes, &c.
BUNCHED Roots, are fuch as have knobs or
knots on them.
BUNIAS, in botany, a genus of plants, pro-
tlucing cruciform flowers, the calyx is compofed of
four oblong fpreading leaves, which are deciduous;
it contains fix filaments the length of the cup, two
of which are oppofite and fliorter than the others ;
laefe are topped with ereiSt antheras, which are bifid
lit their bafe ; in the center is placed an oblong ger-
raeii, which afterward becomes an irregular and
ovato-obl .ng deciduous pod with four angles, which
are prominent and acuminated, containing a round-
iili feed under each point.
The feeds of this plant are faid to be heating,
drying, abfterfive, aperitive, and digeftive. Bota-
nirts enumerate three fpecies of this genus, two of
which are natives of Trance and Italy, and the o-
ther of the Archipelago illands.
BUNIUM, the earth-nut in botany, a genus of
pentandrious plants, hearing radiated umbelliferous
flowers: the common earth-nut, which grows natu-
rally in moift places and woods in divers parts of
England, hath a tuberofe folid root, which lies
deep in the ground, and puts out fibres from the
bottom and fides ; the leaves (which are like thofe of
parfley) are finely cut, and lie near the ground ; the
flalk riles about a foot and ahalf high, and is round,
channelled, and folid : the lower part is naked ; but
where it branches out, there is one leaf placed below
each branch, which are cut into finer fegments than
thofe below ; the flov/ers are white, and are fuc-
ceeded by oval fruit divifible in two paits, contain-
ing two feeds, which are oval, plane on one fide,
and convex, on the other.
The roots of this fort are frequently dut:; up, and
by the poorer fort of people are eaten raw, being;
nijch like the cheftnut in tafle, from whence it had
Its former name, bulbocaftanum. 1 hefe roots when
boiled are very pleafant and delicious, and arefup-
pofed to afford great nourifllinent : the fwine are very
fond of thel'e roots, and will root them up vvhere-
ever they can get at them, and will foon grow fat by
the nutriment v/hich they afford.
BUNT of a Sail, in the marine, the middle part
of a fqiiaie fail, as the main -fiiil, top-fail, &c.
B U O
If a fail of this fliape is fuppofed to be divided into
four equal parts, from one fide to the other, the
two middle parts, which comprehend half of the
fail, may be called properly the limits of the
bunt.
BUNTLINE3, ropes to draw up the bottom of
the fail to the yard : they are inferted through cer-
tain blocks orpullies on the upper part of the yard,
and pafling down on the fore- part of the fail, arc
there fattened to the bolt- rope, or rather to a fort
of half-rina;, or cringle, formed by one divifion
of a rope twilled through the bolt-rope round
itfelf till it becomes threefold. See Bolt-rope
and Cringle.
BUNTING, in ornithology, the Englifh name
of the embezia. Its head relcmbles, in fome mea-
fure, that of a rail; the chin, breaft, and belly,
are of a yellowifli white ; the throat hath oblong
black fpots ; the tail is about three inches long, and
of a dufky red colour. It generally fits and fings
upon the higheft twigs of trees and fhrubs.
BUOY, in the marine, a fort of clofe cafl<, or
block of wood, fadened by a rope to the anchor, to
determine its fituation, that the fliip may not come
too near it to entangle her cable about the flook of it.
See the articles Anchor and Cable.
Buoys are of feveral kinds ; as,
Crt'w-BuoYs. Thofe are in the form of a cone:
of this fliape are all thofe which are floated over
^dangerous banks and fhallows, as a warning to paf-
fing fiiips, that they may avoid them: they are ex-
tremely large, and are falfened to the anchors, which
are funk at fuch places with flrong chains.
Nun-'QvoYS, are fhaped like a double cone,
whofe two bafes laid together make the middle of
it : or they are cafks, large in the middle, and taper-
ing to each end.
iVocden Buoys, are folid pieces of wood with
one or two holes in them, in which to fix a fhort
piece of rope, whofe two ends being fpliced toge-
ther, mnke a fort of circle or ring, called a flrop.
CrtWf- Buoys, common caflcs, fitted with a rope
round them to buoy up the cables from any rocky
ground. In the harbour of Alexandria in Egypt,
every fliip is moored with three cables, and has at
leaft three or four buoys on each cable for this pur-
pofe.
BuoY-RoPE, the rope which faftens the buoy
to the anchor; it fhould be of little more length
than to reach from the anchor, where it is funk, to
the furface of the water, that the pilot may not be
miftaken in the place where the anchor lies.
The buoy-rope is often extremely ufeful other-
wife, in drawing up the anchor, when the cable is
broke ; it fliould therefore always be flrong enough
for this purpofe, or elfe the anchor may be lofl by
negleft.
Stream the BuoY, is to let it fall from the fliip's
fide into the flream, which is always done before
they
BUR
they let go the anchor, that the buoy-rope may not
retard the anchor as it goes down to the bottom.
BUPTHALMUM, ox-eye, in botany, a genus
of plants, producing compound radia.ed flowers,
compofed of hermaphrodite and female florets : the
hermaphrodite compofe the difli of the flower ; thefe
are funnel-fliaped, cut in five parts at the brim, and
contain five (hort capillary filaments, topped with
cylindrical antherse ; in the center is fituated an
oval comprcffLd gcrmen, which afterwards be-
comes an oblong coronated feed, whofe border is
cut into many parts : the female florets which com-
pofe the rays, are ftretched out like a tongue,
(preading open, and indented at the extremity in
three parts ; each of thefe contain a fingle com-
preiTcd feed cut on each fide. To this genus Lin-
naeus has added the aflerifcus and altcroides of
Tournefort.
BURDEN, or Burthen, in the marine, the
weight or meafure of any fpecies of goods that a
(liip will carry.
To determine the burthen or tonnage of a fhip,
multiply the length of the keel by the extreme
breadth of the (hip within board, taken along the
mid(hip-beam, and multiply the produft by the
depth in the hold, from the plank joining to the
kelfon, up to the under-part of the upper-deck,,
and divide the lall produ<£l by 94, then will the quo-
tient be the burthen in tons required.
BURDOCK, in botany. See Arctium.
LeJJer Burdock. See the article Xanthium.
BURGAGE, an ancient tenure in boroughs,
whereby the inhabitants hold their lands, &c. of
the king, or other fuperior lord of the borough,
at a certain yearly rent. A dwelling-houfe in a bo-
rough was anciently called a burgage.
BURGEON, a term ufed by fome gardeners, in
the fame fenfe as bud. See Bud.
BURGESS, an inhabitant of a borough, or a
perfon who poflefTes a tenement therein.
Burgess is now generally ufcd to fignify the re-
prefentative of a borough-town in parliament.
BURGH-BOTE, a contribution towards the
building or repairing of caftles, or walls, for the
defence of a borough or city.
BURGLARY, a felonious breaking and enter-
ing into the dwelling-houfe of another perfon, in
the night-time, with an intent to commit fome felo-
ny, whether the fame be a£tually executed or not.
The like ofFence committed by day is called houfe-
breaking.
BURGOMASTER, the chief magiftrate of the
great towns in Flanders, Holland, and Germany.
BURGRAVE, properly denotes the heredita-
ry governor of a caftle or fortified town, chiefly in
Germany.
BURLESQUE, a jocofe kind of poetrv, chiefly
ufed by way of drollery and ridicule, to deride ei-
ther perfons or things.
22
BUR
Both the word and thing fecm to be modern j ,
though fome maintain that one Raintovius, in the
time of Ptolemy Lagus, turned the ferious fubjedls
of tragedy into ridicule : but, perhaps, this is a
much better plea for the antiquity of farce than of
burlefquc.
Upon the whole, the Italians fcem to have the
jufteit claim to the invention of burlefque. The
firft writer of this kind was Bernia, who was fol-j
lowed by Lalli, Caporali, Sec. From Italy it paf-
fed into France, and became there fo much the
mode, that, in 1649, a book appeared under the ti-
tle of " The Paffion of Our Saviour in Burlefque
Verfe." Thence it pafl'ed into England ; but
though one or two have excelled in this fpecies ot
writing, the good fenfe of theEnglifti never adopt-
ed or owned it.
BURMANNIA, in botany, a genus of hexan-
drious plants, the flower of which is fmall, and
confifts of three- oblong ovated petals, placed at the
mouth of the cup ; the fruit is an involuted capfule
of a cylindraceo-trigonal figure, formed of three
valves with three cells, containing numerous very
fmall feeds.
BURN, in furgery, implies a folution of the
continuity of a part of the body by the force of
fire.
When either fire itfclf, or any inftrument fuffici-
"ently heated by the fire, is applied to any part of
the body, the fibres and fmall vefTels at the place of
contacfl will inftantly corrugate and burft, while
the blood and other contained fluids will be extra-
vafated, and there ftagnate and corrupt.
But as burns are attended with confequences pro-
portioned to the vehemence of the fire, they may
be divided into four degrees. The firfl and flighted
is that which occafions heat, pain, and a fmall ve-
fication of the injured part, in a fliort time. Tlie
fecond degree is when the part is inftantly af-
feded with prodigious pain and vefication. The
third is when the common integuments and fub-
jacent flefli are (o burnt, that they form a cruft.
The fourth is where every thing is deflroyed quite
down to the bone. The third degree refembjes
a gangrene, and the fourth a fphacelus: whence
it follows, that burns very much refemble inflam-
mations, and are known in their refpedlive degrees
by nearly the fame figns.
As a burn is not unlike an inflammation, in re-
gard to degrees, lb the method of cure in both is
much the lame. When there happens a flight burn,
or one of the firft degree, the moft proper medi-
cines, on all accounts, are relblvents, of which
there are two kinds principally to be obferved, the
aftrina:ent and the emollient. Mild aftringents are
fpirit of wine reflified, or camphorated : let the
part afFedted be immerged in this fpirit, and care-
fully fomented with linen cloths wet therein. Emol-
lients are of linfecd, or fwcet almonds, of olives,
5 Q. of
BUR
©f white lillies, of henbane, &c. with thefe the
part affetSled ftiould be frequently anointed. The
vulgar method of applying the burnt part to a can-
dle, or the fire, and keeping it in that pofition as
long as you can bear it, repeating this procefs till
all fort of heat and pain is removed, is frequently
attended with fuccefs. The injured part may be fo-
mented with water, as hot as the patient can bear
it, till the pain and heat entirely difappear.
When the burn is of the fecond degree, which is
attended with a blifler, it feems improper to open
the veficle, or cut the fkin already lacerated ; but
the beft method, in this cafe, is, with all the hafte
poffible, to apply one or other of the medicines pre-
fcribed in the firft degree, and renewing it very fre-
quently : if the pain continues, lenitive remedies
are to be ufed ; here the moft eligible medicines are
the linfeed oil, Mynficht's ointment, unguentum
nutritum, &c. With thefe the part muft be often
anointed ; or they muft be fpread on linen, and
bound to the part affeiSled : as the pain and heat
gradually dacreafe, fome plafter, as that of red
lead, may be applied, in order to fmooth and re-
flore the fkin. If this fecond degree be more in-
tenfe than ordinary, and aftciSls a great part of the
body, it will be necefl'ary forthwith to take away
fome blood, in proportion to the violence of the
burn, even till the patient faints, in order to pre-
vent exulcerations, deformities by feams, and per-
haps a gangrene : after which a fbrong cathartic
fllDuld be ufed.
As to the third degree, in which a cruft immedi-
stely covers the burnt part, it is very difficult, if
not abfolutcly impoflible to cure it, without a fup-
puration. When this happens in the face, all dili-
gence fliould be ufed to prevent deformity, which
may be occafioned by a large cicatrix ; therefore, in
this cafe, the ufe of all plafters and ointments
whatfoever is to be avoided : but you cannot be too
felicitous in forwarding the cafting off of the ef-
char, or cruft,, and the evacuation of the matter
that is concealed under it ; yet it fhould not be torn
away with the knife, nor feparated with the hands:
the eafieft and moft fuccefsful method is by the ufe
of emollients, fuch as have been mentioned already,
applied'Warni, and repeated till the hard crufts fepa-
ratefrom the live flefti ; that part ftiould be drefled
two or three times a, day,_ and at each dreffing, if
yoii fliould obferve any ponion of the cruft tending
to a.feparation from the reft, it ftiould be removed
with the forceps, and the remaining cruft anointed
with butter, at the fame time never negle(Sting the
ufe of fomentations. The cruft being taken off,
the ivound muft becieanfed and he.^led, the firft of
which offices may be executed by any mild digeftive
ointment, mixed up with :iiel rofarum : the medi-
cines ufed tor healing are principally unguentum di-
jpompholygos, vel de lithargyrio, &c. but if any
^^ortion ot. the elcliar. is left under thefe ointments
BUR
and plafters, a danger follows of making a deform-
ed cicatrix, from the conftriclion of the neighbour-
ing parts, and from the acrimony of the confined
fanies. Evacuations by bleeding and purging are
always to be premifed, and proper regulations,
with regard to diet, muft be complied with : the
beft method of encouraging the renovation of the
(kin, is by frequently holding the burnt part over
the fteam that rifes from boiling water. But as to
the fourth degree, which is always attended with
extreme danger, where the burning has penetrated,
to fuch a depth as to corrupt and mortify all before
it, almoft to the very bone, all remedies are vain
and ufelefs, and there is no other way of aflifting
the patient, but by cutting off the affeQed limb, as
is done in a fphacelus.
BURNET, the Englifli name of a plant called,
pimpinella by Linnaeus, and tragofelinum by Tour-
nefort.
It is a native of this country, and promifes very
great advantages as a green fucculent food for cat-
tle during the winter months; and the judicious
Mr. Rocque, on obferving that burnet retains its ver-
dure amidrt all the inclemencies of that feafon, re-
fulved to try the efteft of giving it a good culture.
He has fucceeded therein to his utmoft wifli ; and-
the plant bids fair to be of fingular utility, where
flocks of flieep are kept, becaufe, as It preferves all
its leaves unhurt by froft, the farmer may thereby
have a conftant ftock of green food for his ewes and
lambs, at a time when turnips and every other fuc-
culent plant may fail him.
In defcribing this plant, Mr. Miller diftingulflics
feven different fpecies of It ; but only three, or-
perhaps rather but two, of them feem to be the forts
proper to be cultivated for the food of cattle. Thefe
are; i. The tragofelinum majus, umbella Candida,
greater burnet faxifrage, with a white umbel. 2. Tra-
gofelinum alterum majus, another greater burnet
faxifrage ; and 3. The tragofelinum minus, op
leffer burnet faxifrage. All thefe are equally hardy
plants, and natives of this Ifland ; but the largeft
forts promife the greateft quantity of fodder, and
therefore ftiould, probably, be preferred by the hiif-
bandman. A fourth fort, which Mr. Miller men-
tions by the title of tragofelinum radice nigra Ger-
manicum, German burnet faxifrage with a^blaclc
root, will probably anfwer as well in its native coun-
try, Germany, as ours will here : and 1 therefore
recommend the trying of it there ;. as I do to other-
countries, the cultivating of their native fpecies of-
this plant, in full confidence that they will find it
anfwer greatly for the winter green food of their cattle.
Experience has proved that ali countries are bene-
fited by the introdudlion of foreign plants, as parti-
cularly the lucerne,., faintfolii, &c. 1 therefore
take this opportunity of recommending a trial of
the German burnet here,,ajrJ of outs ui Germany
and elfc-whae*.
The
BUR
The firft of the above-mentioned fpecies of bur-
ret grows naturally in woods, and on the fides of
banks near hedges, in fcveral parts of England.
The lower leaves of this fort are winged, and com-
pofed of three pair of heart-fhaped lobes, termina-
ted by an odd one : they are fharply fawed on their
edges, and fit clofe to the mid-rib. The lower
lobes, which are the largeft, are near two inches
long, and one and a half broad at their bafe, and
are of a dark green. Theftalks grow more than a
foot high, dividing into four or five branches ; the
lower part of the ftalk is garnifhed with winged
leaves, fhaped like thofe at the bottom, but fmall-
er ; thofe upon the branches are ftiort and trifid ;
and the branches are terminated by fmall umbels of
white flowers, which are compofed of fmaller um-
bels or rays. The flowers hive five heart-fliaped
petals, which turn inward, and are fucceeded by
two narrow, oblong, channelled feeds. It flowers
in July, and the feeds ripen in autumn. A variety
of this with red flowers is frequently found among
the other, and rifes from the fame feed.
The fecond fort grows naturally in dry paftures in
many parts of this ifland. The lower leaves of
this are compofed of four pair of lobes, terminated
by an odd one ; thefe are roundifh ; thofe on the
lower part of the leaf are about half an inch long,
and the fame in breadth : they are indented on their
edges. The ftalks rife near a foot high, and fend
out three or four flender branches, which are gar-
nifhed with very narrow leaves. The umbels of
the flowers of this are fmaller than thofe of the for-
mer fort, as are alfo the flowers and feeds, which
blow and ripen about the fame time.
The third, or fmaller fort of burnet, grows natu-
rally in dry gravelly paftures in feveral parts of
this country. Its lower leaves have five or fix pair
of lobes terminated by an odd one, and are deeply
cut almoft to their mid-rib, in form of wings. The
flalks are flender, and rife about a foot high, fend-
ing out a few branches, which have a narrow trifid
leaf placed at each joint, and are terminated by
fmall umbels of white flowers, compofed of feveral
rays ftanding upon pretty long foot-ftalks. The
flowers of this fort appear, and its feeds ripen, at
the fame time aa- thofe of the former J but they are
fmaller.
In the meadows about Windfor, half the grafs is
burnet. Mr. Rocque has experienced, that it will
grow in the drieit land : for he has planted fome of
it even in the gravel walks in his garden, where
every thing elfe is burnt up in the fummer, but this
never withers ; one of the qualities of burnet being
to continue in fap all the yea-r. It is the opinion of
many who have feen the burner of his raifing, that
if this plant is generally cukivated, there will never
be a fcarcity of hay in England, even in the greateft
drought.
The. land on which it is fown fhould be in fine
BUR
tilth, and free from weeds efpecially couch-grafs,
which is here the moft hurtful of all. A drag, that
is to fay, fuch a fork as the gardeners clean their
afparagus with, is the beft inftrument for extirpat-
ing this weed. The dragging of an acre thus will
coll fix or feven fhilHngs. If the land is poor, it
fliould be dunged, and laid down very fmooth. The
feed may be covered with a very light harrow, for it
will not bear to be buried very deep, and the ground
fliould then be rolled, that it may be fmooih for
mowing. It may be fown at any time between A-
pril and September.
Ten pounds of burnet-feed may do for an
acre of land : but twelve, fourteen, or even fix-
teen pounds will be better ;^ becaufe, when burnet
is thin, the plants grow fo large, that the hay made
of them is coarfe. Thefe will rife in eight or nine
days after the fowing. If great numbers of weeds
come up with them, it will be lefs chargeable to let
thofe weeds grow with the burnet, till it is about
five or iiK inches high, than to weed or hoe it.
The whole may then be mowed, and g.ithered clean
off; and the quick growth of the burnet afterwards
will choak all other weeds. The heart of the bur-
net being almoft within the ground, the fcythe can-
not hurt it.
If the burnet does not grow equally every where,
fome plants mufi: be drawn where they are too
thick, and planted where they are thinneil : or the
vacant fpaces may be fupplied from the nurfery. If
the land was not got in good order to fow the feeds
at a proper feafon, the burnet may be tranfplanted at
Michaelmas from this nutfery, and fet at nine or
twelve inches diftance evejy way, according to the
richnefs of the foil.
The feed fown in May may be mowed at the
latter end of July. That fown in June will yield
a pretty good crop, and muft be cut but onccj and
the fame of that which is fown in July. The
plants produced by the feeds fown in Auguft fliould
be mowed, to deftroy the weeds. Thefe mowings
may either be given green to horfes, or be made in-
to hay. The firft fpiing cutting will purge horfes ;.
and Mr. Rocque believes it will alfo cure the greafe ;
but it is only the firft crop that purges.
Burnet fhould be mowed but once the firft year,
in order to leave it rank in the winter ; and in this
cafe it will be ready to feed in February or March,
or to mow again in April.
If natural grafs grows among the burnet, it may
be harrowed in the fame manner as lucerne ; for,,
having a tsp-root, the liarrow will not hurt it : but
it muft not be ploughed, left the roots iliould be
broken in the ground.
When the feeds of this plant are to be faved, it
muft neither be ied, nor movv'ed, in the fpiing.
The feed will be ripe about the middle of June,
when it muft be reaped like wheat, and threftisd uii
a cloth. It Ihould be thitflied before it is too dry,
becaufe
BUR
BUR
becaufe it is apt to fhed, and it fiioulJ afterwards be
diied perfectly.
Burnet does not lofe its leaves in drying; and
though the hay made of it.be ftlcky, it will, after
threfhing, be very agreeable to horfes, which are fo
fond of it, that they never wade any. One acre
will produce upwards of three loads of hay, and a-
bove forty bufhels of feeds. Horfes are fonder of
this feed, than they are of oats : and Mr. Rocque
is of opinion, that it is a more proper food for thofe
who do not labour hard, becaufe it is not of fo hot
a nature, Burnet bears feed twice a year, and will
afterwards yield a good fpring crop.
It is not only good for horfes, but alfo for all man-
ner of cattle; even for fwine : and Mr. Rocque
lias experienced another virtue in it, which is, that,
being rtung by a wafp, the leaves of this plant rub-
bed pretty hard upon the part fo injured, immedi-
ately took oft" the inflammation.
Mr. Worlidge mentions as another excellent qua-
lity of this plant, that all good houfewives hold,
as an infallible rule, that there never need be bad
cheefe or butter, but efpecially cheefe, where faxi-
frage grows : " from whence," adds he, " it com-
" eth, that the Netherlands abound much in that
" commodity, and only, as is fuppofed, through
*' a plenty of this herb." Mills's Hi'Jbandry.
BURNING, the aiSlion of fire on fome pabu-
lum or fuel, whereby the minute parts of thofe bo-
dies are feparated from one another, and put into a
violent motion by the aftion of the fire. See Fir e.
Burning, orBRENNiNc, in our ancient cuf-
toms, implies an infe£lious difeafe, got in the {tews
by converfing with lewd women ; and fuppofed to
be the fame with what is now called the venereal
difeafe.
Burning-Glasses, are convex or concave,
commonly fpherical, which being expofed to the
fun, do colIeiSt all the .-ays falling upon them into a
very fmall fpace, called the focus, at a certain
diftance from the glafs in the axis thereof, where
wood or any other combuftible matter being put,
will be fet on fire. Metalline concaves, that pro-
duce this effeifl by refleiSlion, are called burning-
concaves.
Thefe glafles, by colledling the rays of the fun
into a focus, as before-mentioned, do excite a more
violent heat, and burn quicker than the hotteft wind-
furnace; as appears by tiie melting and calcining the
hardefb metals, and by vitrifying bricks and ftones
in much lefs proportions of time than a minute :
yet the rays of the moon being coliefted by the
fame glaffcs do not excite the leafl fenfible heat, nor
do they fenfibly afFecl the niceft thermometer when
caft upon the bail of it, though the biightnefs of the
light be very much incieafed. By meafuring the
breadth of the round image at the focus, and by
comparing it wl;h the breadth of the glafs itfelf, it
appears th:.t fome of thefe burning- glafles collect the
incident rays into a fpace about two thoufand timce
lefs than they pofleffed at their incidence. But by
the preceding calculation, the light of the moon
muft be condenfed about ninety thoufand times to
make it as denfe and as warm as the direifl rays of
the fun. It is no wonder then that the heat of the
moon's rays is not fenfible in the focus of the glafs,
being even then forty or fifty times thinner than the
diredl rays of the fun. For it is found by experi-
ment, that the degrees of heat are proportionable to
the denfities of the rays ; which being compared
with a fcale of the degrees of heat and warmth of
feveral natural bodies, determined by Sir Ifaac
Newton in the Philofophical Tranfaftions, N" 270.
it appears, there is a vaft difproportion between the
degrees of light which the eye can bear and be fenfible
of, and the degrees of heat which the touch can
bear and be fenfible of.
The famous Mr. De la Hire has endeavoured to
raife the antiquity of lenfes, or lenticular burning-
glafles, to a very great height, imagining he has
found them among the clouds of Ariftophanes,
AtSt. II. Seft. I. where Strepfiades tells Socrates he
had found out an excellent contrivance for paying
his debts, which was to melt the bond, (which in
thofe days was written on wax) by means of a
round tranfparent flone or glafs ; which, the fcho-
liafl: fays, they rubbed with oil, and heated it, and
then they brought it to a match ; and after this
manner they lighted the fire. De la Hire cannot
underftand what the oil was for, unlefs it was to
polifh the glafs ; but be that as it will, he fays the
fcholiaft conceived it was convex ; which fhews,
that in his time, though later than Ariftophanes,
they ufed fuch glafles to kindle a fire.
Confidering that catoptrics was known and culti-
vated by the ancients long before dioptrics, it is fur-
prizing they could not account for burning by re-
fle<51ion from a concave metal. Euclid in his Ca-
toptrics fays, its center is the burning point ; becaufe
all the rays which pafs through it are returned dire(Sly
back to it. But as the fun's diameter is fo fmall,
thefe rays are but very few, and the confequence
would be, that a very broad fpeculum would burn
no better than a narrow one, which is contrary to
experience. It is evident from this, and many other
blunders in that book, that Euclid, the geometer,
was not the author of it; and alfo that the ancients
made very grofs experiments.
But fince the effe£ls of burning with folid fpheres,
or glafs-bottles filled with water, was fo well known
to the ancients, how came it to pafs that they did
not know their eftedls in magnifying obje£ls \ Had
the Greek and Latin philofophers known this aug-
mentation of objects, would they not have men-
tioned it frequently, and would not feveral meta-
phors and illufions to it have been brought into their
language .''
Mr.
BUR
Mr. De la Hire accounts for this overfight of
tlieirs, partly from their falfe notion about the man-
ner of vifion, viz. by certain whimfical emanations
from the eye, that went out in qucft of obje£ts, or
elfe by little reprefentations in miniature, which
came from them, and fought out for our eyes j fo
that having no fufpicion of pencils of rays, nor of
our focus's, they could fee no analogy between a
burning-glafs and the manner of vifion.
This indeed is a fufHcient real'on for their not dif-
covering its magnifying power by tlieory ; but can
it be fuppofed they never looked through thofe
fpheres ? To this our author anfwers, that tiie focus
of a fphere of glafs is at the dillance of half the ra-
dius from the neareft furface ; fo that if thefe fpheres
had been fix inches in diameter, which is the moft
they can be fuppofed to be, the object in view mufl
have been placed at one inch and a half from the
fphere, to be feen diftin-ftly. But it is natural, and
almofl neceflary, that when any one had looked
through thefe fpheres, the objeils in view would
have been farther off, whicii, inftead of appearing
bigger, would only have looked confufed. A de-
fined or diftinfl augmentation of diftant obje£ts, re-
quires either very large fpheres, which is imprafli-
cable, or portions of large fpheres, as is now prac-
tifed with great fuccefs. And befides, they muft have
known how to have wrought and ground their
glafTes as we do; whereas, in all probability, the
ancients only knew how to blow their glafs, and
make veflels of it.
Among the ancients, the burnlng-mirrours of
Archimedes and Proclus are accounted the moft fa-
mous; by one of thofe the Roman (hips, belieging
Syracufe, under the command of Marcellus, were
burnt to aflies ; and by the other, the navy of Vita-
lian, befieging Byzantium; according to Zonaras,
Tretzes, Galen, &c.
Kercher, in Arte magna Lucls is' Umbra, fays,
that he found, by experience, the befl: burning-
concaves were fuch as did not exceed an arch of
eighteen degrees in their breadth. If the fegments
of a greater fphere and a leller lie each eighteen de-
grees in breadth, or even fomething more or lefs,
the number of degrees in both being the fame, the
efFefts of the greater fegments will be the greateft.
Burning-glafles, that are fegments of a greater
fphere, do burn at a greater diftance than thofe that
are fegments of a lefler fphere. Alanfredus Septala,
at Milan, made a parabolic fpeculum of this kind,
that would burn wood at the diftance of fixteen
paces.
Mr. Villette, at Lyons in France, made a metal-
line burning-concave, of a round figure, thirty inches
in diameter, and about a hundred pounds weight,
the focus, or burning-point, being about three ftet
diflant from the concave, and its bignefs about half
a louis d'or. This would burn or melt iron in forty
feconds, filver Ln twenty-four, copper in forty-two j
22
BUR
and turned quarry-flone into glafs in forty-five, and
mortar in fifty-three ; and melted a piece of watch-
fpring in nine feconds.
Mr. Villette afterwards made another, of thirty-
four inches in diameter, that would melt all forts of
metals, of the thickncfs of a crown piece, in lefs
than a minute ; and vitrify brick in the fame
time.
In the Philofophical Tranfadions, N" i88. we
find mentioned a copper burning- concave, made at
Luface, in German)', of near three Leiplick ells in
diameter, and its focus two ells off; being fcarce
twice fo thick as the back of a common knife, and
whofe force is incredible: for a piece of wood put
into the focus, flames in a moment ; a piece of lead
or tin, three inches thick, will be melted quite
through in three minutes time ; a piece of iron or
fteel is prefently red-hot, and foon after hath a hole
burnt through it. Copper, filver, &c. applied to
the focus, melt ; and the iron or fleel aforefaid melt
in five minutes ; flate in a few minutes will be turned
into black glafs ; as will tiles, earthen potfhcrds,
bones, &c.
Mr. Tfchirhaufen is faid to have made conve.Y
burning-glaffes, of three or four feet in diameter,
and whofe focus is twelve feet diftant, and of an
inch and a half in diameter; and, to make this focus
ftill ftronger, he contracts it by a fecond lens,
placed parallel to, and at a due diftance from the
firft, and fo makes the focus but eight lines in dia-
meter. This glafs vitrifies tiles, llates, pumice-
ftones, &c. in a moment. It melts fulphur, pitch,
and all rofins under water ; any metal e.xpofed to it
in little lumps, upon a coal, melt in a moTient ;
and iron fparkles as in a fmith's forge : all metals
vitrify on a piece of China-plate, if it be not fo
thin as to melt itfelf ; and gold, vitrified, receives a
purple colour.
Sir Ifaac Newton prefcnted a burning-glafs to tlie
Royal Society, confifting of feven concave-glafies,
fo placed, as that all their foci join in one phyfical
point, each glafs being about eleven inches and a
half in diameter. Six of them are placed round the
feventh, to which they are all contiguous ; and they
compofe a kind of fegment of a fphere, whofe fub-
tenfe is about thirty-four inches and a half, and the
central glafs lies about an inch further in than the
reft ; the common focus is about twenty- four inches
and a h.ilf diftant, and about half an inch in diame-
ter. This glafs vitrifies brick, tile, &c. in a mo-
m';nt, and in about half a minute melts gold. A
certain artificer of Drefden is faid to have made very
large burning-concaves of wood, whofe cffecRs v/ere
little inferior to thofe made by Tfchirhaufen. It is
likewife faid, that one Newman, at Vientia, in the
year 1699, made a burning- fpeculum of (tiff- paper,
and ftravv glued to it. And Zacharias Trabcius, \\\
Nervo, optician, fays, that very large buriiing-fpc-
culums may be made of thirty, forty, or more con-
5 R cave
BUR
BUR
cave fpeculums, or i'quare pieces of glafs, conve-
niently placed together in a large turned wooden con-
cave or difli ; and that their efFeft will not be much
lefs than if the fuperficies were contiguous.
Mr. De BufFon made one in the above manner,
confifting of i68 fmall mirrours, or flat pieces of
looking-glafs, each fix inches fquare, by means of
which, with the faint rays of the fun, in the month
of March, he fet on fire boards of beech-wooJ at
a hundred and fifty feet diftance. Befides, his ma-
chine has the conveniency of burning downwards,
or horizontally, as one pleafes ; each fpeculum being
moveable, by the means of three fcrew>, to be fet
to a proper inclination for diredfing the rays to the
given point : and it turns in its greater focus, or in
any nearer interval, which our common burning-
glafTes cannot do, their focus's being fixed and de-
termined. Mr. BufFon, at another time, burnt
wood at the diflance of two hundred feet ; he alfo
melted lead at the diffance of above one hundred
and twenty feet, and filver at fifty.
In order to account for the nature of burnlng-
glafles, whether mirrours, or lenfes, we mufl con-
fxder the area of their furfaces, and the focal diflance ;
becaufe both thefe qualities enter into the expreffion
of their power of burning. The number of inci-
dent rays is as the area of the mirrour or lens, and
the area of the fmall fpace into which the rays after
lefleftion or refraction are concentered in the focus ;
being inverfely as the fquare of the focal diflance, it
follows that the denfity of the rays, or power of
burning, will be as the area of the glafs dire£tly,
and the fquare of the focal diftance inverfely ; and,
confequently, if a and h reprefent the areas of two
propofed burning- glaffes, whofe focal diftances are
d and c refpedtively, then will p, the power of burn-
ing in the greater, be to y, the power of burning in
tlie lefler, asrtiTf to bdd; hence we gtt pbdd::zqacc,
from v/hence the ratio of a to b, or that of d to c,
may alfo be determined. See Lens, Mirrour,
Refraction, &c.
Burning of Land, a very great improvement
in hufbandry, and is not only at this time ufed in
many parts of this and other kingdoms, but it has
been pradlifed from the earlieft times. Virgil very
exprefbly mentions, and greatly recommends it; and
all the old writers of hufbandry fay much in its
praifc.
It does not take efFeft, however, in all forts of
ground. It is not proper for rich foils, nor for ftony
or chalky ones ;. nor is it a pradfice often to be re-
peated on any land, efpecially where the furface is
very {liallow ;. nor muft corn be fov/n too long upon
the land aftervviards ; for burning exhaufts the good
juices of the land, in fome degree, as v.'ell as the
bad ones. It is moft profitably ufi-d to fuch lands as
have laid a long time uncultivated, and over-run
with rank weeds, fuch as four grafs, fern, heath,
furze, and the like. Some lands, v/ken corn is
fown upon them, run it up into ftraw, and make
the ears but poor and light ; thefe are, beyond all
others, improved by burning. The ufual methods
of ploughing up for this is with a breaft-plough,
which a man pufhes before him, and cuts the turf
ofF the furface, turning it over when he has cut it
to about eighteen or twenty inches long. The
common way is only to pare it about half an inch
thick ; but if it be very full of weeds, with flubborn
roots, it is better to go deeper.
If the feafon proves dry, the turf needs no more
turning, but dries as it lies. If it be wet, it is necef-
fary to fet it on edge, and keep it hollow till fuch time
as the wind and air have fufficiently dried it. It is
then to be piled up in little heaps, about the quan-
tity of two wheel- barrows full in each heap ; and if
there be much roots and a good head upon it, there
needs no farther care but fetting it on fire, and the
whole heap will be reduced to afhes ; but if it be
earthy and too dead to burn out by itfelf, there
muft be a heap of furze or heath laid under every
parcel.
When the heaps are reduced to afhes, they are
left upon the place till fome rain comes to wet
them ; otherwife, in the fpreading, they would all
blow away. When they are wetted, the farmer
takes the opportunity of a calm day, and fpreads
them as equally as pofTible over the whole land,
cutting away the earth a little under the heaps, to
abate its over-great fertility there. After this, the
land is to be ploughed but very fhallow, and the
corn is to be fown upon it only in half the quantity
that it is upon other land ; and the later this is fown
the better. If it be wheat, the beft time is the lat-
ter end of Odfober ; for if fown fooner, it is apt to
grow too rank. The beginning of May is the pro-
per time for cutting the turf off from thefe lands,
becaufe there is then time fufHcient to get the land in
order for fowing at the proper feafon. The whole
charge of cutting, carrying, and burning the turf,
is generally about twenty- four fhillings an acre.
The turf is not to be burnt to white afhes ; for
this waftes a great part of its fait ; it is only to be
burnt fo as to crumble all to pieces, and be in a con-
dition to fpread well upon the land ; and it is better
that the heaps of it fliould burn flowly and gradually
than furioufly.
Some farmers ftub up furze, heath, and the like^
and, covering heaps of them with the parings of the
earth, fet fire to them ; others burn the flubble of
the corn-fields; and others the ftalks of all forts of
weeds, and add half a peck of unflaked lime to
every bufhel of afhes. They cover the lime with
the afhes, and loave heaps in this manner till there
comes fome rain to flake the lime ; and after this,
they fpread the mixture carefully over the field.
There is one great advantage attending this fort of
manure, which is, that it does not breed weeds like
the common way with dung, but only fill the ears
of.
BUS
of the corn, not running them up into ft^lk ; but
it is proper to add fonne dung to thefe lands at the
time of ploughing them up for a fecond or third
crop of corn. Mortimer's Hufbaniry.
Burning, in enamel painting. See Enamei
Painting.
BURNISHER, a round polifhed piece of fieel,
ferving to fmooth and give a luftre to metals.
Of thefe there are different figures, ftraight,
crooked, hz. Half burnifhers are ufed to folder
filver, as well as to give a luftre. See the article
Soldering.
BURNISHING, the art of fmoothing or polifh-
ing a metalline body, by a brifk rubbing of it with a
burnifher.
BURR, the round knob of a horn next a deer's
head.
BURSA-PASTORIS, fhepherd-pouch, in bo-
tany, a plant which grows wild in many parts of
England : it hath a white, ftraight, fibrous, flender
root, with a ftalk which rifes about a foot high ;
the lower-leaves are jagged like dandelion ; but
thofe which grow on the ftalks are lefs broad, with
even edges, and terminate in a point : the flowers
are placed in rows on the top of the branches, and
are fmall and cruciform ; they confift of four
roundifh petals, with fix fmaJl ftamina, two of
which are fhorter than the others ; the fruit is in
the fhape of a heart or purfe, and is divided into
two cells, containing two or three feeds in each.
This plant is faid to be a vulnerary aftringent,
cooling herb, and is given in hjemorrhages and
fluxes : the country people, with good fuccefs,. ap-
ply it to cuts and frefh wounds j and it is reported
to cure quartan and tertian agues, if made into a
cataplafm, and applied to the wrifts juft before
the coming on of the fit. This plant is claffed
by Linnseus with the thlafpi. See the article
Thlaspi,
BURSERA, in botany, a genus of hexandrious
plants ; the flower confifts of three plane ovated
fharp-pointed petals, with fix upright awl-fhaped
filaments, topped with oblong antherae ; the germen
is egg-fhaped, and turns to a capfule of the fame
form, which contains a fingle baccated compreffed
feed.
BURTON,, a fort of fmall taicle made by two
blocks or pullies till the rope becomes three or four-
fold, and acquires an additional power in propor-
tion.
It is ufed to draw tight the top-maft fhrouds; and
may be otherwife employed to move, or draw along,
any weighty body on the deck, or in the hold ; as,
anchors, bales of goods, &c.
BUSH, in botany, a term ufed for divers forts
of low growing ftirubs ; thus we fay a goofeberry-
bu(h, a currant-bufh, a furze-bufh, &c. it is alfo
ufed when there is an afTemblage of branches grow-
ing interwoven, or mixed together.
BUT
BUSHEL, a meafure of capacity for dry thines ;
as, grain, fruits, dry pulfe, &c. containing four
peck», (jr eight gallons, or one-eighth of a quarter.
A bufhel, by 12 Henry VII. c. 5. is to contain
eight gallons of wheat ; the gallon eight pounds of
troy-weight; the ounce twenty fterlings, and the
ftcrling thirty- tv/o grains, or corns of wheat grow-
ing in the midft of the ear. See the articles Mea-
sure and Weight.
At Paris, the bulhel is divided into two half
bufliels ; the half bulhel into two quarts y the quart
into two half quarts ; the half quart into two li-
trons ; and the litron into two half litrons.
BUSKIN, a kind of (hof, fomewhat in manner
of a boot, and adripted to either foot, and worn by
either fex.
This part of drefs, covering both the foot and
mid-leg, was tied underneath the knee ; it was very
rich and fine, and principally ufed on the ftace bv
ailors in tragedy. It was of a quadrangular form,
and the fole was fo thick, as that by means thereof,
men of the ordinary ftature might be raifed to the
pitch and elevation of the heroes they perfonated.
The colour was generally purple on the ftage ; and
was diftinguifhed from the fock, worn in comedy,
that being only a low common fhoe. The bufkin
feems to have been worn, not only by adtors, but
by girls, to raife their height ; travellers and hun-
ters alfo made ufe of it, to defend' themfelves from
the mire.
In claffic authors, we frequently find the bufkin
ufed to ilgnify tragedy itfelf, in regard it was a mark
of tragedy on the ftage.
It is alfo ufed to imply a lofty ftrain, or high
ftyle.
BUSS, in maritime affairs, a fmall fea-veffel,
ufed by us and the Dutch in the herring-filhery,
commonly from forty-eight to fixty tons burden,
and fonietimes more : a bufs has two fmall fheds or
cabins, one at the prow, and the other at the
ftern ; that at the prow ferves for a kitchen.
BUST, or BusTO, in fculpture, &c. a term
ufed for the figure or portrait of a perfon in relievo,
fhewing only the head, fhoulders, and ftomach, the
arms being lopped off^: it is ufually placed on a
pedeftal, or confole.
BUSTARD, in ornithology, the Englifh name
of a genus of birds, called by authors otis. See
Otis.
BUSTUARII, in Roman antiquity, gladiators-
who fought about the buftom, or funeral pile of a
deceafed perfon of diftin£fion, in the ceremony of
his obfequies.
BUTCHER-BIRD, in ornithology, the Englifh
name of the lanius. See Lanius.
Butcher's-Broom, Rufcus, in botany. See
the article Ruscus,
BUTLER, Bitticularius, the name anciently
given to an officer in the court of France, being
the
BUT
BUT
t1ie fame as the grand echanfon, or great cup-
bearer of the prefent times.
Butler, in the common acceptation of the
word, is an officer in the houfes of princes and
great men, whofe principal bufmefs is to look after
the wine, plate, &c,
BUTMENTS, in architedure, thofe fupporters
or props on or againft which the feet of arches reft.
See Bridge.
BuTMENT is alfo the term given to little places
taken out of the yard or ground- plot of a houfe, for
a butter/, fcullery, &c.
BUTOMUS, in botany, an aquatic plant which
grows common in ftanding- waters in fevcral parts
of England ; the flower of which confifts of fix
roundifh concave petals, alternately exterior, fmall-
er, and more acute ; with nine fubulaced filaments,
topped with double lamellated antherae : the fruit
conilfts of fix oblong-pointed ere6l capfules of one
valve, containing feveral oblong cylindric feeds,
obtufe at both ends. It is faid to be of an aperient
and deobftruent quality.
BUTT, in naval architeflure, the end of any
plank in a fliip's fide which unites with the end of
another : when a plank is loofened at the end by the
{hip's weaknefs or labouring, fhe is faid to have
flarted, or fprung a butt.
BUTTER, a fat unftuous fubflance, prepared
or feparated from milk by churning it. For the
manner of making butter, fee the article Dairy.
The word is formed from the Greek, 0stu^ov,
which is compounded of ^sj, a cow, and xofo?,
cheefe.
Butter, among chemifts, a name given to fe-
veral preparations, on account of their confiflence
refembling that of butter ; as, butter of antimony,
of arfenic, of wax, of lead, of tin, &c.
Butter-Bump, in zoology, a bird of the
heron kind, more ufually called bittern. See the
article Bittern.
BuTT£R-BuR, in botany. See the article
Petasites.
BUTTERFLY, the Englifli name of a nume-
rous genus of infedtsj called by zoologifts papillio.
See Papillio.
BuTTERFLv-FiSH, a fpccies of the blennius of
ichthyologifts, with a furrow between the eyes. It
is common in the American feas.
Butterflv-Flowers, in botany, the fame as
papilionaceous-flowers ; thev coinpofe the feven-
teenth clafs in the Linnean fyftem of botany ; fuch
are the bloflbms of the pea, bean, broom, lupine,
and various others.
BUTTERIS, in the manege, an inftrument of
fleel, fitted to a wooden- handle, wherewith they
pare the foot, or cut the hoof of a horfe.
BUTTER-MILK, a kind of ferum that re-
mains behind, after the butter is made. Of tliis
2
curds may be made, which are good when eat either
with cream, wine, ale, or beer. And the whey,
kept in a clean ftrong veflel, is an excellent cooling,
wholefome drink, to be ufed in the fummer inftead
of other drink, and will quench the thirft better
than beer.
Butter-milk is efteemed an excellent food, in the
fpring efpecially, and is particularly recommended
in hedlic fevers.
BuTTER-WoRT, in botany. See the article
PiNGUICULA.
BUTTERY, a room in the houfes of noblemea
and gentlemen, belonging to the butler, where he
depofites the utenfils belonging to his office, as
table-linen, napkins, pots, tankards, glafles, cruets,
falvers, fpoons, knives, forks, pepper, muftard, &c.
BUTTOCK, in naval architedlure, the round
parts of a fliip behind, under the ftern, terminated
hy the counter above, and the after-part of the bilge
below.
BUTTON, an article in drefs, whofe form and
ufe are too well known to need defcription.
Buttons are made of various materials, as mohair,
filk, horfe-hair, metal, &c.
Method of making common Buttons. Common
buttons are generally made of mohair; fome indeed
are made of filk, and others of thread ; but the lat-
ter are a very inferior fort. In order to make a but-
ton, the mohair muft be previoufly wound on a bob-
bin ; and the mould fixed to a board by means of a
bodkin thruft through the hole in the middle of it.
This being done, the workman wraps the mohair
round the mould in three, four, or fix columns,
according to the button.
Horfe- Hair Buttons. The moulds of thefe
buttons are covered with a kind of fluff compofed
of filk and hair; the warp being belladine filk, and
the flioot horfe-hair. This fluff is wove with two
felvedges in the fame manner, and in the fame loom
as ribbands. This fluff is cut into fquare pieces
proportioned to the fize of the button, wrapped
round the moulds, and their felvedges ftitched to-
gether, which form the under part of the button.
CUanftng (j/" Buttons. A button is not finiflied
when it comes from the maker's hands ; the fuper-
fluous hairs and hubs of filk muft be taken off, and
the button rendered gloffy and beautiful, before it
can be fold. This operation is performed in the
following manner :
A quantity of buttons are put into a kind of iron
fieve, called by workmen a finging-box. Then a
little fpiritof wine being poured into afhallow iron-
difli, and fet on fire, the workman moves and ftiakes
the finging-box, containing the buttons, brilkly
over the flame of the fpirit, by which means the
fuperfluous hairs, hubs of filk, &c. are burnt off,
without damaging the buttons. Great care how-
ever muft, be taken that the buttons in the finging-
box
BUT
BUT
box be k^pt continually in motion ; for if they are
fuiTercd to refl ovcrtlie flame, they will immediately
burn.
When all the loofe hairs, &c. arc burnt ofFby
the flame cf the fpirit, tlie buttons are taken out of
the fmging-box, and put, with a proper quantity
of the crumbs of bread, into a leather-bag, about
three feet long, and of a conical fhape ; the mouth
or fmaller end of which being tied up, the work-
man takes one of the ends in one hand, and the
other in the other, and fliakes 'he bag brilklv, with
a particular Jerk. This operation cleanfes the but-
tons, renders them very glofl"y, and fit lor fale.
Gold-Twijl Buttons. The mould of thefe
buttons is firft covered with the filk in the fame
manner as that of common buttons. This being
done, the whole is covered with a thin plate of gold
or filver, and then wrought over in diffcrL-nt forms
with purple and gimp. The former is a kind of
thread compofed of filk and gold-wire twifted toge-
ther; and the latter, capillary tubes of gold or
filver, about the tenth of an inch in length. Thefe
are joined together by means of a fine needle filled
with filk, thruft through their apertures, in the fame
manner as beads or bugles.
The jnaniier of ?naking Metal Buttons. The
metal with which the moulds are intended to be
covered is firft caft into fmall ingots, and then flatted
into thin plates or leaves, of the thicknefs intended,
at the flatting-mills ; after which it is cut into fmall
round pieces proportionable to the fize of the mould
they are intended to cover, by means of proper
punches on a block of wood covered with a thick
plate of lead. Each piece of metal thus cut out of
the plate is reduced into the form of a button, by
beating it fucceflivcly in feveral cavities, or concave
moulds, of a fpherical form, with a convex puncheon
of iron; always beginning with the (halloweft cavity
or mould, and proceeding to the deeper, till the
plate has acquired the intended form : and the bet-
ter to manage fo thin a plate, they form ten, twelve,
and fometimes even twenty-four to the cavities, or
concave moulds, at once; often nealing the metal
during the operation, to make it more dudlile.
[ This plate is generally called by workmen the cap
of the button.
The form being thus given to the plates, or caps,
they ftrike the intended imprelTion on the convex
fide by means of a fimilar iron puncheon in a kind
of mould engraven en creux, either by the hammer,
or the prefs ufed in coining. The cavity of mould,
wherein the impreffion is to be made, is of a dia-
meter and depth fuitable to the fort of button inten-
-ded to be flruck in it ; each kind requiring a par-
ticular mould. Between the puncheon and the
plate is placed a thin piece of lead, called by the
workmen a hob, which greatly contributes to the
taking ofl-' all the ftrokes of the engraving ; the
lead, by reafon of its foftnefs, eafily giving way to
22
the p.irts that have relievo ; and as eafily infinuat-
ing itfcif into the traces or indentures.
The plate thus prcp^ired makes the cap or fhell of
the button. 'Ihe lower part is formed of another
plate, in the fame manner, but much flatter, and
without any imprefllon. To the hi(t or under plate
is foldered a fmall eye made of wire, by whick
the button is to be faftened.
The two plates being thus finiflied, they are fol-
dered together with foft folder, and then turned in
a lathe. Gencrallv indeed they ufea vvt odcn mould
inftead of the under plate ; and in order to f^fleti
it, they p.ifs a thread or gut acroG, through the
middle of the mould, and fill the cavity between
the mould and the cap with cement, in order to ren-
der the button firm and folid ; for the cement enter-
ing all the cavities formed by the relievo of the o-
ther fide lulfains it, prevents its flattening, and pre-
lerves its bofle c-r defign.
Button-Mould, the piece of wood, &c. co-
vered with mohair, filk, metal, &c.
Manner of making Button-Moulos. The
wood is firft fawn into pieces of a proper thicknefs ;
and then the moulds turned out of thefe pieces by
means of tocjls called pierceis, of various forms
and dimenfions, according to the nature and fize of
the moulds intended to be made. If the moulds
are very finall, they are turned in a fmall lathe, by
means of a bow ; but if large, in a laihe turned by
a wheel, as one man cannot turn the lathe with
his foot, and manage the block of wood at the
fame time ; at leaft not with that facility or difpatch
as in the other manner.
Button-Tree, in botany, See the article Co-
NOCARrUS.
Button-Weed. See Spermacoce.
Button-Wood. See Cephalanthus.
Button, in fencing, fignifies the end or tip of
a foil, being made roundi.Qi, and ufualiy covered
with leather, to prevent making contufions in the
body.
Button, in building, denotes a flight fattening
for a door or window, made to turn on a tail.
Button of the Reins of a BridUy is a ring of
leather, with the reins put through it, running all
along the length of the reins.
Button, Antenna, a name given by naturalifts
to thofe antennae, or horns, as they arc called, of
butterflies, which are flender, and terminated at
the top by a fort of button, in form of an olive, or
part of one.
BUTTRESS, a kind of butment built archwifc,
or a mafs of ftoiie or brick, ferving to prop or fup-
port the fides of a building, wall, &c. on the oiit-
fide, where it is either very high, or has any con-
fiderable load to fuftain on the other fide, as a bank
of earth, &c.
Buttreflcs are ufcd againfl the angles of fteeples
and other buildings of flonCj &c. on the outfide,
5 S and
B U X
B Y Z
and along the walls of fuch buildings as have great
and heavy roofs, which would be fubjedl to thruft
the walls out, unlefs very thick, if no buttrefles
v/ere placed againft them : they are alfo placed for
a fupport and butment againfl the feet oi fome
arches that are turned acrofs great halls, in old pa-
laces, abbeys, Sec.
The theory and rules of bwttrelTes are one of the
defiderata in architecture; but the fize and weight
of them ought to be in proportion to the dimen-
fions and form of the arch, and the weight which
is fuperincumbent on it.
As to the weight of the materials, both on the
arch and ia the buttrefs, it is not difficult to cal-
culate : but it may be objected, that there may be
a fenfible difference as to the ftrength and goodnefs
of the mortar, which may, in fonie meafure, com-
penfate for the weight of the buttrefs. See
Bridge.
BUXUS, the box-tree, in botany, a g«nus of
ever-t^reen £hru.bs ; the branches are numerous and
furnlfhed with oblong, fmall, hard, thick, fhining
leaves, of a difagreeable bitterilh fmell and tafte ;
the flowers are male and female, produced on the
feme plant ; the male flowers have a three-leaved
concave empalement, with two roundifh petals, in
which are inferted four awl-fhaped filaments, topped
with double ere6l antherse. The female flower
hath a tetraphyllous calyx, with three concave
roundifh petals, in which is placed a three-cornered,
cbtufe, roundifh germen,. fupporting three very
{liort ftyles, crov/ned with obtufe prickly ftigma.
The fruit is fhaped like a pQttage-pot inverted ; of
a trreen colour, divided into three cells, containing
each two oblong feeds, which, when ripe, are
thrown out by the elafticity of the vefiels j tliefe
are brown,, long, and of a ftiining colour. There
are three fpecies of box noticed by botanifls ; one
©f which, railed the dwaif, or Dutch box, is much
ufed for edging; of flower-beds, or borders, for
which purpof'e it exceeds all other plants, as it will
bear the extremes of heat and cold, is more lafting,
and will grow in almoft any foil. This is eafily
increafed, by parting the roots: the feafon for
planting in dry lands is in September, and in moift
foils in March. The other fpecies grow in divers
'Jilts of England, particulaily on Box-hill in Sur-
rcv, and are of a confiderable iize. 1 he wood of
• ih'efe trees is of a yellow colour, and morecompaiSl
and ponderous than any of the other European
woods, and. is therefore of confiderable ufe to turn-
ers, engravers, and mathcniatical inflrument-ma-
kcrs, it being fo hard and clofe as to fink in water,
which renders it very valuable for divers utenfils.
Box is feldom ufed in medicine, though fome pre
Knd It has tlie fame virtues as guaiacuni.
The oil
diftilled from the wood is a great narcotic, anJ Is
fometimes ufed for the tooth-ach, by putting a drop
into a hollow rotten tooth.
BUZZARD, Buteo, in ornithology, the Eng-
lifh name of feveral fpecies of the hawk-kind, dif-
tinguifhed from each other by particular epithets ;
as, I. The bald buzzard, with blue legs. 2. The
common buzzard. 3. The honey buzzard. 4, The
fubbuteo, or the hen-harrier, and the ring-tail.
5. The moor-buzzard, &c.
BY-LAWS, or Bye-Laws, private and pecu-
liar laws for the good government of a city, court,
or other community, made by the general confent
of the members.
BYRLAW, or Burlaw-Laws, in Scotland,
are made and determined by neighbours elefled by
common confent in byrlaw-courts. The men,
chofen as judges, are called byrlaw, or burlawmen»
and take cognizance of complaints between neigh-
bour and neighbour.
BYSSUS, in botany, a genus of mofles, con-
fifting of plain, fimple, capillary filaments.
The byflTus is the moft imperfedt of all vegeta-
bles, no part of its frudlification having been hi-
therto difcovered : its filaments are uniform, and
often fo fine as to be fcarce difcernible fingly; tho',
in a clufter, they make a kind of fine down. Bota-
nifts are not agreed whether the byflus be properly;
a mofs or fungus. Linnaeus is of the latter opinion,
and the generality of botanifts of the former. Dil-
lenius thinks it is of a middle nature, between both.
This difference of opinion probably arofe from
hence, that authors have confounded two very dif-
tinfl: vegetables under the name byffus ; the one»
the filamentofe bodies, defcribed above, which are
the only true byfli ; and the other, the dufty mat-
ter found on rotten vegetables, confifting of fmall
globules. The byfli are nearly allied to the con-
fervae ;. from which however they differ, as confif-
ting of finer, fhorter, and more tender filaments^
and not growing in water as the confervae do.
Byssus, in antiquity, that fine Egyptian linen
whereof the tunics of the Jewifh priefls weie made.
Philo fays, that the hy.Tus is the cleareft and moft
beautiful, the whiteft, flrongeft, and moft glofTy
- fort of linen ; that it is not made of any thing
mortal, that is to fay, of wool, or the fkin of any
animal, but that it comes out of the earth, and be-
comes ftill whiter, and more (bining, every time
it is wafhed as it fhould be.
BYTTNERIA, in botany, a genus of pentan-
drious plant?, whofe flower confifls of a monophyl-
lous cup, divided into five parts, with five fhort ob-
long petals ; the fruit is a depreffed roundifh cap-
fule, containing an ovated compreffcd feed.
BYZANT, or Bezant. See Bezant.
I
^.
c
CAB
CThe third letter and fecond confonant of
the alphabet, is pronounced like k, before
^ the vowels a, », and u ; but like s, before
e and i.
As an abbreviature, C ftands for Caius, Caro-
]us, Csefar, condemm, &c. and C C for confuUbus.
As a numeral, Cfignifies lOO, CC200, &c.
C, in mufic, placed after the clifF, intimates,
that the mufic is in common time, which is either
quick or flow, as it is joined with alegro or adagio :
if alone, it is ufually adagio.
If the C be croffed or turned, the firft requires
the air to be played quick, and the laft very quick-
CAABA, a fquare ftone edifice in the temple of
Mecca, fuppofed to have been built by Abraham
and his fon and Iflimael ; being the part principal-
ly reverenced by the Mahometans, and to which
they always diredl themfelves in prayer.
The word is Arabic, caaba, and caabah, a deno-
mination which fome will have given to this build-
ing, on account of its height, which furpafles that
of the other buildings in Mecca -^ but others, with
more probability, derive the name from the qua-
drangular form of the ftrudlure itfelf.
CAAMINI, in botany, the name by which the
Spaniards call the finer kind of Paraguay-tea. See
the article Paraguay.
CAAPEBA, in botany. See the article Cis-
SAMPELUS.
CAB, or Kab, a Hebrew meafure of capacity,
equal to the fixth part of the feah, or an eighteenth
of the ephah.
The cab of wine contained two Englifli pints ;
the cab of corn 24 pints, corn meafure.
CABALA Vein, in natural hiftory, a name given
by our SuiTex miners to one kind of the iron ore
commonly wrought in that country. It is a ftony
ore, of a brownifli colour, with a blufh of red,
v.'liich is more or lefs confpicuous in different parts
of the fame mafles.
CABALLINE denotes fomething belonging to
horfes : thus caballine aloes is fo called from its be-
jiig chiefly ufcd for purging horfes ; and common
brimftone is called fulphur caballinum for a like
realon.
CABBAGE, Brajfica, in botany, a genus of te-
tradynamious plants, the flowers of which are te-
tr^pctulous and. cruciform ; the piftil. which, arifes
CAB
from the cup becomes afterward a long taper pod
depreflied on each iide, and is termina'.ed by the a-
pex of the intermediate partition, which divitics ic
into two cells filled with a number of round feeds.
There are divers fpecies belonging to this family of
plants ; as alfo feveral varieties belonging to fome
of the fpecies, occafioned by different foils and cul-
ture ; fuch as the Savoy cabbage, the red cabbage,
the early cabbage, the fugar- loaf cabbage, the muflc
cabbage, theRuflian cabbage, befides the cauliflow-
er, brocoli, borecole, colewort, and Scotch kale ; but
thofe which turns in and hardens firm, is (according to
the common acceptation of the word) called cab-
bage. This plant being a principal veaetable for
our common food, it may not be amifs to mention
their culture, and firft of the favoy ; this fort (as
likewife the others) is propagated by fowing the
feeds ; the feafon for favoys is to fow in the month
of April, and fome in May ; and when the young
plants have about fix or eight leaves, they fhould
be planted into beds about four inches afunder ;
(though this practice is omitted by the kitchen-gar-
deners, who raife great quantities for fale, they
planting them immediately from the feed-bed into
the places they are to perfect themfelves) thefe plants
by the time beans, he. are grown to their fize^
are planted between the rows, which affords theirs
a good {hade, until they are well rooted, at which
time the former crop is cleared away ; thefe fhould
be planted at two feet and a half afunder, The
red cabbage is fo hardy, that it will refill the fe-
vereft frofts : though it is not much ufed in the-
manner the others are, yet is the moft proper of
any for pickling, and may be fown in the fpringj.
and managed as the former.
The early or Batterfea cabbage (as it is called) ia
fown for fummer ufe, the feafon for doing which is
the beginning of July, and afterwards planted in-
beds, where they may remain till October, and
then taken up and planted for good, at the diRance
of three feet row from rov/, and two feet and a.
half afunder in the rows. In May and June this
fort begins to turn in their leaves for cabbaging, and'
in order to obtain them a litile fooner, the garden-
ers tie in their leaves clofe with a flender twig to
blanch their middle, by which means they havs
them a fortnight earlier than thofe which turn ini
naturally,. The fugar-loaf cabbage requires the-
fama;
CAB
/ame iTiinagement and feafon as the early fort,
and comes into ufe wlien thole are either cut or be-
come fo hard as not to be fit for the table. The
mu(k cabbage is much tenderer than the other forts,
and is therefore but little cultivated. The Ruffian
cabbage is but little noticed at prefent ; this fort is
fmall and hard, and may be fown in the fpring,
and fit for ufe in July and Auguft. The borecole
may be treated in the fame manner as the favoy,
but need not be pJanted above a foot afunder in the
lows, and the rows two feet dillance. Thefe are
never eaten till the froft hath rendered them tender,
for otherwife they are tough and bitter. The cole-
wort hds of later years been very little propagated,
the common cabbage plants being fubdituted in
their ftead ; thofe are tied up in bunches, and fold in
the London Markets, and are all called coleworts,
let them be of Vvihat fort they will. The Scotch
kale, or Siberian borecole, is extremely hardy, and
is always fweeter in the fevere winters than in milder
fealbns ; this is propagated by fowing the fei;ds in
July, and afterwards tranfplantej at about a foot
and a half afunder. Thefe are fit for ufe from Chrilt-
mas till April ; a variety of this fort is finely co-
loured, and is very ornamental in flirubberies dur-
ing the winter. To this genus Linnreus has added
the turnip, navew, and rocket ; which fee explained
under their refpective articles ; alio the Cauli-
I'LOWER and Brocoli.
Cabbage-Tree, palma maxima, or palmeto
royal, a very beautiful tree, common in feveral parts
of America.
It lias acquired the name of royal from its re-
markable height, majeftic appearance, and elegance
of its waving foliage : neither the tall cedars of Le-
banon, nor any of the trees of the foref}, are equal
to it in height, beauty, or proportion.
its roots are innumerable, refembling fo many
round thongs, of a regular determinative bignef::,
fi;!dom exceeding the fize of the little finger, but
of a great length, penetrating fome yards into the
earth, efpecially where the foil is fandy, or other-
wife porous : thefe routs are of a dark-brown co-
lour.
The trunk jets, or bulges out a little near the
ground, by which means it hath the becoming ap-
pearance of a fubftantial bafis to fupport its tower-
ing height. It is generally as ftraight as an arrow;
and fcarce can a pillar of the niccft order in archi-
tecture be more regular, efpecially when it is of
about thirty years growth : and as there is a natural
involuntary plcafure arifing from the harmony of
juft geometrical proportions, flriking the eye of the
moft unfkilful and ignorant beholder, it is not
flrange that thefe trees are univcrfally admired.
Writers of wonders reprefent fome of them to
be three hundred feet in height : however, Mr.
Hughej informs us, that in Barbadoes, where they
Mn mare nu.nerous than in the other iflands, that
CAB
they do not exceed one hundred and thirty-four
feet.
The trunk of this tree, near the earth, is about
feven feet in circumference, the whole body grow-
ing tapering to the top.
The fubltance of the tree, for about two or three
inches of the outfide, but within the bark, is of a
blackifli colour, and extremely hard and folid : this
furrounds th,e in-ner fubftance, which is a whitifli
pith, intermixed with fome fmall veins of a more
ligneous texture.
The colour of the bark much refembles that of an
afli tree, and is very faintly clouded, at about the
diftance of every four or five inches, with the vefti-
gii of the fallen-ofF branches : this colour of the
bark continues till within about twenty-five or
thirty feet of the extremity of the tree : there it
alters at once from an afli-colour to a beautiful deep
fea-green, and continues to be of that colour to the
top.
About five feet from the beginning of the green
part upwards, the trunk is furrounded with its nu-
merous branches in a circular manner ; all the lower-
moft: fpreading horizontally with great regularity ;
and the extremities of many of the higher branches
bend wavingly downwards, like fo many plumes of
feathers. Thefe branches, when full-grown, arc
twenty feet long, more or lefs ; and are thickly fet
on the trunk alternately, rifing gradually fuperior
one to another : their broad curved fockets fo fur-
round the trunk, that the fight of it, whilft among
thefe, is loft, which again appears among the very
uppermoft branches, and is there inveloped in an
upright green conic fpire, which beautifully termi-
nates its greateft height.
The above-mentioned branches are fomewhat
round underneath, and flightly grooved on the up-
per fide : they are likewife decorated with a very
great number of green pennated leaves ; fome of
thefe are near three feet long, and an inch and a
half broad, growing narrower towards their points,
as well as gradually decreafing in length towards the
extremities of the branches.
As there are many thoufand leaves upon one tree,
every branch bearing many fcores upon it, and every
leaf being fet at a fmall and equal diftance from one
another, the beauty of fuch a regular lofty group of
waving foliage, fufceptible of motion by the moft
gentle gale of wind, is not to be defcribed.
The middle rib, in each leaf, is ftrong and pro-
minent, fuppoiting it on the under fide, the upper
appearing fmooth and fhining. The pithy part of
the leaf being fcraped ofi^, the infide texture appears
to be fo many longitudinal thread-like filaments.
Thefe being fpun in the fame manner as they do
hemp, or flax, are ufed in making cordage of every
kind, as well as fifhing-nets, which are efteemed
ftronger than thofe ufually made from any other
material of the like nature.
It
CAB
It is obferved, that the lov/ermoft branch, fur the
time being, drops monthly from the tree, carrying
with it an exfoliated circular lamcn of the green
part of the tree, from the fettiiig on of the branches,
to the aih-colour part, which is about five feet in
length, and in breadth the circumference of the tree
at that part. This, and the branch to which it is
always fixed, fall tegether.
When the lofs of this lower branch happens,
then the green conic fpire, which ifTues from among
the center of the uppermoft branches, and rifes fu-
perior to all, partially burfts, and ihrufls from its
fide a young branch, which continues the upper-
moft, till another of the lowermoft branches drop
oft": then the fpire, the common parent of all the
branches, fends forth again another branch, fuperior
in fituation to the laft ; fo that the annual lofs of the
branches below is providentially fupplied in this
manner by thofe above.
The green-coloured part of the tree, already men-
tioned, differs from the afli-coloured part no lefs in
fubftance than colour ; the former, inftead of being
extremely hard on the outfide, and pithy within, is
compofed of fo many coats, or feparate laminae, of
a tough bark-like fubftance, of near a quarter of an
inch thick, and fo very clofely wrapped together,
that they jointly compofe and conftitute that green
part of the tree.
As the lowermoft, as well as each other higher
branch, when they fucceffively grow to be old, is
joined by the broad fockct of its foot-ftalk to this
outward coat, lamen, or folding, it is obfervable,
that fome time before the lowermoft branch is en-
tirely withered, this green circular coat, which to
the eye appeared fome days before to be a folid part
of the tree, flits open lengthvi'ife, from the fetting
on of the branches to the afh-coloured part beneath,
being about five feet in length, and the circumference
of the tree in the breadth; and, peeling orT, it falls
with the falling branch to which it is joined by many
flrong cartilages, leaving the next fucceeding coat
to appear for a time as a confiituent part of the tree,
till a fucceeding withered branch carries this ofF like-
wife.
Mr. Kuohes farther informs us, that having; felled
one of thefe ftately trees, to examine its make, tex-
ture, &:c. he obferved, that the feveral exfoliations
of its green part were equal in number to tlie
branches.
The firft, fecond, third, and fometimes the fourth
of thefe laminae are green on the outfide, and per-
fedlly white within : all the remaining inner coats,
.or foldings, are of a bright lemon-colour without,
and white within.
When thefe very tough hufky exfoliations are
taken off", what is called the cabbage, lies in many
thin, fnow-v/hite, brittle flakes ; in tafte fomething
like the kernel of an almond, but fweeter: it is fo
full of oil, that a ourious obfervcr may fee feveral
23
CAB
very fmall cells abounding v/ith if. Thtfe Hakes
are called, from fome refemblance, when boiled,
the cabbage, which then cats fomewhat fwect and
agreeable.
What is called the cabbage- flower grows from
that part of the tree where the afli-coloured trunk
joins the green part already defer ibed. Its firft ap-
pearance is a green hiifl-ty fpatha, growing to above
twenty inches long, and about four broad ; the in-
(ide being full of fmall white ftringy filaments, full
of alternate protuberant knobs, the fmalleft of thefe
refembling a fringe of coarfe white thread knotted :
thefe are very numerous, and take their rife from
larger footftalks ; and thefe footftalks likewife are
all united to diflerent parts of the large parent ftalk
of all.
As this hufky fpatha is opened, while thus young,
the farinaceous yellow feed, in embryo, refembling
fine faw-duft, is very plentifully difpeifed among
thefe ftringy filaments, which anfwer the ufe of
apices in other more regular flowers : thefe fila-
ments, being cleared of this duft, are pickled, and
efteemed among the beft pickles in Europe.
But if this fpatha is not cut down and opened,
whiift thus young, if it be fuffered to continue on
the tree till it grows wild and burfts ; then the
inclofed part, which, whiift young and tender, is
fit for pickling, will by that time have acquired an
additional hardnefs, become foon after ligneous,
grow buftiy, confifting of very fmall leaves, and in
lime produce a great number of fmall oval thin-
flielled nut?, about the bigiiefs of unhufl;ed coff^ee-
berries : thefe, being planicd, produce young cab-
bage-trees.
CABBAGING, among gardeners, a term ufcd
for feveral plants, whofe leaves turn in, and become
hard lik^ a cabbage.
CABBALA, among the Jews, is properly the
myftical interpretations of their fcripturcs, handed
down by tradition.
The word is Hebrew, and literally fignifics tra-
ditions.
CABBALISTS, thofe Jewifli doflors who pro-
fefs th€ ftudy of the cabbala. In the opinion of
thefe men, there is not a word, letter, or accent, in
the law, without fome myftery in it. The firft
cabbaliftical author that we know of, is Simon, the
fon of Joachai, who is faid to have lived a little
before the deftru(5lion of Jerufalem by 7'itus. Hii
book, entitled Zohar, is extant ; but it is agreed
that many additions have been made to it. The firft
part of this woik is entitled Zenintha, or Myder}' 5
the fecend Idra Rabba, or the Great Synod ; the
third Idra Lata, or the Little Synod, which is the
author's laft adieu to his difciples. See Rabbins.
CABECA, or Cabesse, a name given to the
fineft filks in the Eaft-Indies, as thofe from 15 to 20
per cent, inferior to them are called barina. The
Indian workmen endeavour to pais them ofF one
5 T ■ with
CAB
CAB
•with th: other ; for which reafoii the more experi-
enced European merchants take care to open the
bales, and to examine ail the ficains one after an-
other.
CABIN, in naval architediure, a room or apart-
ment for any of the officers of a Jliip to fleep and
drefs in, &c.
There are many of thefe in large fhips, the prin-
cipal of vvhicii is defigned for the captain or com-
mander ; and this in fhips of the line is furnifhed
with an elegant gallery in the ftern. See the article
Gallery.
When any bed-places are built up at the fides of
a fliip, which is frequently the cafe in merchant-
men, they are alfo called cabins.
CABINE'I', a piece of joiners workmanfliip.
It is a kind of prefs or chelf, with feveral doors and
drawers, to lock up the moft precious things, or only
to ferve as an ornament in chambers, galleries, or
other apartments,
Cabinet, in a garden, is a conveniency which
differs from an arbour in this ; that an arbour or
fummer-houfe is of a great length, and arched over
head, in the form of a gallery ; but a cabinet is
either fquare, circular, or in cants, making a kind
of faloon to be fet at the ends, or in the middle of
a long arbour.
Cabinet of Natural Hljlory, a building con-
taining all the curiofuies of nature, digefled in a
proper manner.
Such a building might indeed be called, with
more propriety, a mufsiim or repofitory ; cabinet
here, therefore, mud be underftood in a larger fenfe
than the common acceptation of the word, as here-
in are exhibited to our view the animal, vegetable,
and mineral kingdoms at once: in fiiort, an epi-
tome of nature.
It is not certain whether the aiicients ever formed
any colledlions of this kind, or ereded any ftruc-
tures for the receotion and difpofition of them.
But it is not improbable, that Ariffotle, fupported
hy the gsnerofity and magnificence of Alexander the
(?reat, built fomething of this kind, at lead with
regard to animals ; becaufe the obfervations he has
left us, are undoubtedly the refult of anatomical ob-
iervations; and the remarks he has made on the vari-
ous fpecies of animals, fhew our knowledge, even
fince th.e revival of letters, to be vaflly inferior to
his in this refpecl.
The knowledge of natural hiflory improves, as
co!le£>ions of this kind are made more perfect ; and
uur own age has firll fet on foot eftablifhments that
deferve the name of cabinets of natural hiffory.
CABIRT, a term in the theology of the ancient
pagans, fignitying great and powerful gods, being
f\. name given to the god^ of Saniothracia. TTiey
were alfo worfhipped in other parts of Greece, as
• Lemnos and Thebes, where the cabiria were cele-
brated in honour of them ; thtfe gods are faid to
be, in number, four, viz. Axieros, Axlocerfa^
Axiocerfus, and Cafmilus.
CABIRIA, feftivals in honour of the cabiri, ce-
lebrated in Thebes and Lemnos, but efpeciall? in
Samothracia, an ifland confecrated to the cabiri.
All who were initiated into the myfteries of thefe
gods were thought to be lecured thereby from ftorms
at fea, and all other dangers. The ceremony of
initiating was performed, by placing the candidate,
crowned wi:h olive branches, and girded about the
loins with a purple ribbon, on a kind of throne,
about which the priefls and perfons before initiated,
danced.
CABLE, in the marine, a large ffrong rope,
ufed to retain a fhip at anchor. See the article
Anchor.
Cables are of various kinds and fizes; they ar?
mofl frequently formed of hemp ; fome, hov^'cver,
are made of bafs, and thofe are generally the manu-
facSfure of Barbary ; others are compofed of a fort of
Indian-grafs ; and are the produdl of different parta
of Afia.
Every cable, of whatever thicknefs, is formed of
three ftrands or twiffs, and each of thefe made up-
of three fmaller ftrands ; and thofe laft are compofed
of a certain number of rope-yarns, which number is
greater or lefs, in proportion to the fize of the cable
required.
All fliips have, or ought to have, at leaft three
good cables; the fheet- cable, and the two bowers,
beft and fmall.
All cables are, or ought to be, one hundred artd
twenty fathoms; for which purpofe, the threads,
or yarns, muft be one hundred and eighty fathoms,,
fmce they are diminilhed one-third in length
by twifiing ; but it is often neccfTary, notwith-
ftanding this length, to fplice two cables, at leaff,
together, in order to double the length, when there-
is a necefflty to let go the anchor into deep water ;
for although a fliip feldom anchors in above forty
fathoms depth, if there is but one cable, the
lower part of it will fcarce bear on the ground^
and the anchor will be obliged to fuffain all the
fhocks and jerks of the ihip in a dire£fion too nearly
perpendicular, which muft of neceiTity loofen the
anchor, fo that the flirp muft drag it, in the fea-
phrafe, and, driving from her ftation, be in danger
of being wrecked on the firfl: rocks, &c. whereas it
is evident, that if the length of the cable be dou-
bled, or tripled, the anchor will' be dragged more
horizontally, and besr a much greater force.
A fecond advantage is, chat, hy having feveral
cables at one another's ends, they will be lefs lia-
ble to break ; for all the parts lying more upon a.
level, they will oppofe the fhocks of the fea in a
direflion more perpendicular to the motions which
the fliip receives ; whereas, when the cable is not
long, it will be nearly vertical to the anchor, aird
therefore cannot bear fuch a ftrain : for it is evident,
thai
CAB
C A C
that a fliorter cable is charged with a greater elFort,
and (lioulJ therefore be ftronger ; otherwife it will
' only bear the fame flrain in the proper direction,
and will not be fufKcient in an horizontal direc-
tion, which is that in which the fhip endeavours to
drive.
The long cable will not be Co apt to break as the
{hort one ; becaufe it will bear a great deal more
llretching before it comes to the greateft drain :
otherwife, being fliort, it muft break at the firft vio-
lent tug, becaufe it will not bear llretching; for a
lono; cable may be compared lo a fort of fpring,
which may be very cafily extended ; and recovers
its firft fituation, as foon as the force which ex-
tended it is removed. Befiiles all this, a (hip will
ride much fmoother with a long cable than with a
fhort one, and be lefs apt to plunge into the water ;
whereas, when a fliip rides with a fhort cable, as
mariners have too often experienced, fhe frequently
pitches all the fore-part under water.
By what has been faid on this fubjeiS^, we may
fee how very necefiary it is to furnilh a fhip with
I'ufficiency of cables, or what is called ground-
taicling; and what an inconfiderate policy it is in
merchants to fubjeilt their veflels to fuch evident
dangers, from the want of them : for we may ven-
ture to aliert, without violation of truth, that many
good fhips have been loll:, within our own remem-
brance, only on account of a deficiency in this
article.
Cable is likewife a general name given to all
large ropes which ferve to raife heavy loads by
means of cranes, pullies, and other engines ; as in
bridges of boats : it is feldom given to a rope of
lefs than three inches diameter.
The number of threads each cable is compofed
of, being always proportioned to its length and
thicknefs, its weight and value are determined by
this number of threads : thus a cable of ten inches
in circumference ought te confift of four hundred
and eighty-five threads, and weigh one thoufand
nine hundred and forty pounds; and on this foun-
dation is calculated the following table, very ufeful
for all perfons engaged in marine commerce, who
equip merchant-fhips on their own account, or
freight them for the account of others.
A Table of the number of threads and weight of
cables of different circumferences.
Circumference Threads, or Weight in
in inches.
9
10
1 r
J2
13
1 +
l6
rope-yarns.
- 393 -
, 485 -
- 5<;H -
- 699 -
- 821 -
- 952 -
- 1C93 -
- 1244 -
pounds.
1572
1940
2392
2796
32^4
3808
4372
4976
Circumference
in inches.
>7
19
20
Threads, or
rope-yarns.
- 1404 —
- 1574 —
- 1754 —
- 1943 —
Weight in
pounds.
— 56)6
— 6296
— 7016
— 7772
Si:rve the Cable, is to bind it round with ropes,
leather, or other materials, to prevent it from bein^
galled or fretted in the hawfc by friction. See
Hav.sk.
Splicing the Cable, is interweaving the ends of
the ftrands of two cibles together, or of one that
had been broke.
Pity away the Cable, is to let more run out of
the fhip, tbat flie may ride eafier.
CABLED, in heraldry, a term applied to a
crofs, formed of the two ends of a lliip's cable;
fometimes alfo to a crofs covered over with rounds
of rope, more properly called a crofs-corded.
CABOCHED, in heraldry, is when the head:
of hearts are borne without any part of the neck,
full-faced.
C AC ALIA, foreign coltsfoot, in botany, a genus
of fyngenefious plants, producing compound flowers :
one of thefpecies grows naturally in Auftria, and o.t
the mountains in Switzerland ; this hath a flefliy
root, v/hich fpreads in the ground, from which fprings
up many leaves, Handing on fingle foot-ftalks, and
are fhaped like thofe of ground-ivy, but are of a
thicker texture, of a ftining green on their upper-
fide, but white underneath ; between thefe arife the
flalk, which is round, branching towards the top,
and grows to about a foot and a half high ; under
each divifion of the ftalk is placed a fingle leaf of
the fame form as thofe below, but much fmaller :
the branches are terminated by purplifh flowers,
groyning in a fort of umbel ; thefe are ere£f, tubulous,
funnel-fliaped, and cut at the top into five fegments,
and are fucceeded by oblong feeds, crov.'aed With
dov/n.
To this genus Linnaeus has added the cacalian-
themum, tithymaloidesj and porophyllum of other
authors.
CACAO, the chocolate-free, in botany, a ge-
nus of trees, called by Linnius theobroma. See
Theobroma.
The fruit of this tree is an oblong, roundifh nut»
nearly of the fliape of an almond, but larger : the
fiiell is dark-coloured, brittle, and thin : the keri;el
is both externally and internally brownifli, dividtd
intofevera! unequal portions, which are joined firmly
together. It is the produce of a fmall American
tree, bearing a large red fruit, fhaped like a cucum-
ber, which contains thirty or more of the nuts.
There are feveral forts of thefe nuts in the fiiop.;,
dillinguifhed by their fize, and the pbces whence
they are brought : the larger kind, from the pro-
vince of Nicaragua in Mexico, is n-.oft eileemed.
Cicao-
C A C
Cacao-nuts have a light agreeable fmell, and an ,
unfluous, bi terifli, roughifii, not ungrateful tafte :
thofe of Nicaragua and Caracco are the moft agree-
able ; thofe of the French Antilles, and our own
American iflands, the moft unftuous. All the forts,
thoroughly comminuted and committed to the prefs,
yield a confiderable quantity of a fluid oil, of the
fame general qualities with thofe obtained from other
feeds and kernels : boiled in water, they give out a
large proportion, half their weight or more, of a
lebaceous matter, which gradually concretes upon
the furface as the liquor cools. For obtaining this
product to the beft advantage, the faculty of Paris
direds the nuts to be fiightly roafted in an iron-pan,
cleared from the rind and germ, levigated on a hot
itone, then diluted with a proper quantity of hot
water, and kept in a water-bath till the oil rlfes to
the top ; which, when concreted, looks brown,
and by repeated liquefa(5lion3 in hot water becomes
white. This vegetable fcrum is not liable to grow
rancid in long keeping ; and hence it is recom-
mended as a bafis for odoriferous unguents, and the
tompofitions called apopleftic balfams.
The principal ufe of thefe nuts is for the prepara-
tion of the dietetic liquor, chocolate; a mild un6lu.
ous fluid, fuppofed to be ferviceable in confumptive
diforders, emaciations, and an acrimonious ftate of
the juices in the firft paffages. See Chocolate.
CACHEXIA, of Ham, bad, and £|,?, habit, an
univerfal bad habit of body, proceeding from a defeft
in nutrition, which muft arife either from a deprava-
tion of the nutritious juices, or a defcd in the vef-
fels which ought to receive thefe juices ; or a defi-
ciency in that adlion of the animal ceconomy, by
\vhich a part of the circulating juices is applied to
the folids for their nutrition.
The nutritious juices are depraved by aliments
which are fuperior to the powers of digeftion ; that
is, which cannot be digefted and afllmilatcd by the
proper organs. Of this fort are all crude, farinace-
ous, and legumine vegetables, which, on a weak
flomach, are fubjedl to form a kind of tenacious
pafte. Add to thefe all forts of food which are
hard, fibrous, fat, acrid, aqueous, and vifcid.
Among thefe may juflly be reckoned fome indi-
geftible fubftances, which depraved appetites fome-
times covet, as cinders, chalk, fand, or lime.
It muft however be remarked, that the aliments
above-mentioned will not be fubjedl to induce a
cachexy, provided the organs of digcftion are fuffi-
ciently ftrong, and proportional exercife is ufed by
the perfon who takes them. Hence other caufes of
the depravation of the nutritious juices muft be
joined to the preceding, as a deficiency, with refpedt
to animal motion or exercife, and debility of the
digeftive organs ; though a too great tenfion thereof
may have the fame efFedls, if fufficient to interfere
with the folution and affimilation of the aliment.
If the general mafs of blood alfo happens to be
C A C
vitiated extremely in any manner whatever, the rm-
tritious juices muft, in proportion, be depraved.
Thefe defects, in the organs of digeftinn, are
brought about in various manners; as by all profufe
fecretionsof what kind foever, as violent vomitings,
diarrhoeas, dyfenteries, or h.xrnorrhages ; by a
fcirrhous diforder of any of the vifcera ; or by a
retention of fomething in the body which ought
to be excreted.
It is evident that thefe caufes united, aft either
by diminiftiing the folids, or by diftending them
with fluids not adapted to circulate through them.
Hence arife two forts of difeafes; 'hat is, a con-
fumption, and what is ufually called a leucophleg-
matia, or an anafarca.
According to the different colour, bulk, tena-
city, acrimony, and fluidity of the ftagnating li-
quids, various appearances arife, which may be
efteemed fyinptoms of a cachexy. Thus, the fkin
appears white, yellow, livid, red, green, black, or
tawny ; the patient perceives a fenfation of gravity j
tumours arife under the eyes, and affeft the more
thin parts of the body. Add to thefe flatulencies
and oedematous tum.ours of the parts remote from
the heart ; palpitations of the heart and arteries,
which are augmented by the leaft motion ; crude
and thin urine ; fpontaneous and evidently watery
fweats ; all which are fucceeded by emaciation of
a leucophlegmatia, and dropfy.
No univerfal dcfe£t of the vefiels, which ought
to receive good nutritions, can be afligned ; but
their too great contra£tion or laxity, and the con-
fequences thereof, may be admitted as caufes of
thefe defeats.
There is a deficiency in that aftion of the animal
ceconomy, by which a part of the juices is applied
to the folids, whenever the force of the circulation
is either too languid, or too violent.
From what has been faid, a cachexy may be eafily
diftinguiftied : and as to the confequences thereof,
they may be forefeen, by carefully confidering the
caufe, ftanding effects, and degrees of the diforder.
To all thefe the method of cure muft be carefully
adapted ; for it is evident that a mitigation, or mo-
derate infpifiation, of the too acrid and too fluid
juices, are fometimes required ; and in other cafes,
the tenacious and adhering juices muft be refolved
and rendered fluid : and as a difiblution and an in-
fpifiation of the juices may be induced by various
caufes, it will be neceffary to vary the medicines,
and the manner of applying them, as the different
caufes fhall determine.
But the principal rules to be obferved in the cure
are,
Firft, to adminifter fuch aliment as approaches
nearly to the nature of the healthful fluids of the
body, which are eafily digeftible ; which are in their
nature oppofite to the caufe of the diforder ; and
which are agreeable to the patient.
Secondl/i
CAD
Secondly, to promote the di^cftioii of I'ulIi ali-
ments, by (cafoning them witli proper aromatics ;
ty drinking proper quantities of generous wine ;
and by exercifc and air.
Thiroly, to difpofe the organs of digeftion to per-
form their duties by proper gentle digellives, vomits,
purges, and corroborants.
Fourthly, as foon as the pa/Tages are relaxed, and
the morbid matter is attenuated, to promote its ex-
piilfion, by attenuating diuretics and (udorifics.
Laftly, to complete the cure by chalybeats, alka-
line and faponaceous fubflances, together with walk-
ing, riding, or other proper excicifes, fiidions, and
baths.
The caufe, however, of this diftemper only can
determine the choice of all thefe, and the manner
of applying them.
When a cachciflic confumption arifes from too
great an acrimony of the juices, the particular
fpecies of acrimony muft, if poffible, be difcovered.
Firft, by invefbigating the caufe of the cachexy.
Secondly, by examining into the nature of the
difeafe, and the conftitution of the patient.
Thirdly, by the fymptoms.
Fourthly, by the excretions.
And when the nature of the prevailing acrimony
is known, it muft be corretSed by fubftances of a
contrary nature. Bier. Jph.
CACHRYS, in botany, a genus of umbellife-
rous plants, the general umbel of which is uniform,
and compofed of many fmaller ; the involucrum is
pol) phyllous, with lanceolated leaves, and the flower
confifts of five fpear-fhaped, ereil, equal petals ;
the ftamina are the length of the petals, and the
fame number ; the germen is turbinated, and fup-
ports twoftyles, each topped with a roundifh ftigma:
when the flower is decayed, the empalemenc be-
comes an oval, angulated, obtufe, large fruit, fe-
parable into two parts, containing two large fungous
feeds, very convex on one fide, and plain on the
other.
CACOETHES, in medicine, an epithet applied,
by Hippocrate?, to malignant and difficult diitcm-
pers : when applied to figns or fymptoms, it imports
that it is very bad and threatening ; and if given to
tumours, ulcers, &c. it denotes a great malig-
nancy.
Cactus, in botany, a niime given by Linnaeus
to the melocaiSlus, cereus opuntia, tuna, and peref-
kij, of other authors. See them explained under
their refpe£tive articles.
CADARI, or K->dari, a fe^ of Mahomme-
dans, who attribute the aclions of men to man a-
lone, and not to the divine decree determining his
will; and deny all abfolute decrees and predeffina-
tion. Ben Aun calls the cadari, the magi or
inanichees of the Muflulmen.
Cade, a cag, cafk, or barrel. A cade of her-
rings is a vefi'el, containing the quantity of five
2^
CAD
hundred red herrings ; or of fprats one thoufaiij.
CADE-LAMii,a young lamb, weaned and brought
up by hand in a houfe.
Cade-Oii., an oil much uftd in France and
Germany. It is prepared from the fruit of a fpecics
of cedar, called oxycedrus.
CADENCE, in mufic, according to the ancients,
is a feries of a certain number of notes, in a certaiti
interval, which ftrike the ear agreeably, and cfpe-
ci.illy at the end of the fong, ftanza, ^cc. It con-
fills ordinarily of three notes.
Cadence, in the modern mufic, may be defined a
certain conclufion of a fong, or of the parts of a
fong, which divide it, as it were, into fo many
numbers or periods. It is when the parts terminate
in a chord or note, the ear feeming naturally to
expeft it ; and is much the fame in a fong as the
period that clofes the fenfe in a paragraph of a
difcourfe.
A cadence is either perfe61, confiiling of two
notes fung after each other, or by degrees, con-
joined in each of the two parts, and by thefe means
fatisfying the ear -, or imperfeft, when its laft mea-
fure is not in the oif^ave or unifon, but a iixth or
third. It is called imperfe.^, becaufe the ear does
not acquiefce In the conclufion, but exptdls a con-
tinuation of the fong. The cadence is laid to be
broken, when the bafs, inftead of falling a fifth, as
the ear expe<£ls, rifes a fecond, either major or
minor. Every cadence is in two meafures ; foma-
times it is fufpended, in which cafe it is called a re-
pofe, and only confiUs of one meafure, as when the
two parts fiop at the fifth, without finifiilng the ca-
dence. With regard to the bafs-viol, Mr. Rouficau
diftinguifhes two cadences, one with a reft, when
the finger, that (hould lliake the cadence, ftops a
little, before it fhakes, on the note immediately
above that which requires the cadence ; and one
without a reft, when the flop is omitted.
Ail cadences are to be accommodated to the
characleis of the airs.
Cadence, with fome French muficians, is fynony-
mous with a (hake. See Shake.
Cadence, in the manege, an equal meafure or
proportion obferved by a horfe in all his motions ; fo
that his times have an equal regard to one another;
the one does not embrace or take in more ground
than the other, and the horfe obferves his ground
regularly.
Cadence, in rhetoric and poetry, the running
of verfe or profe, otherwifc called the numbers,
and by the ancients, p[.5//c;. See the article
RUYTHMUS.
It would be eafy to give inftances, both in our
own, as well as the Greek and Roman poets, when
the cadence Is admirably adapted to the fubject i.a
hand.
CADENE, one of the forts of carpets which
the Europeans inif ore from the Levant. They are
5 1-' 'he
c m. M
the vvorfl fort of all, and are fold by the piece from
one ;o two piafters per carpet.
CADET, a military term, denoting a young gen-
tleman vvhochoofcs to carry arms in a marching re-
giment, as a private man. His views are to acquire
fome knowledge in the art of war, and to obtain a
commiffion in the army. Cadet differs from volun-
teer, as the former takes pay, whereas the latter
ferves without any pay,
CADI, orCADHi, a judge of the civil afTairs in
the Turkifh empire.
It is generally taken for the judge of a town,
judges of provinces being diftinguifhed by the ap-
pellation of mollas.
Jn Biledulgerid, in Africa, the cadi decides in
fpiri;ual affairs.
CADILKSCHER, a capital officer of juflice, a-
moiig the Turks, anfweiing to a chief juftice a-
mong us.
CADMIA, in the natural h^ftory of the ancients,
the name of two difliiift fubftances, called native
cadmia, and faftitious cadmia. The native cadniia
■was only one of the copper ores ; the faftitious cad-
jnia was a recrement of copper, produced in the
copper works.
Among the modern writers, it is not unufual to
confound thefe fubftances with tutty. See the arti-
cle TUTTY.
CADUCEUS, In antiquity, Mercury's rod, or
fceptre, being a wand entwilled by two ferpents,
borne by that deity, as the enfign of his quality and
office, given him, according to the fable, by Apol-
lo, for his feven-ftringed harp.
CiECILIA, in zoology, the name of a genus
of ferpents, the charadlers of which are thefe : the
body is naked, with wrinkled fides ; the upper lip is
prominent beyond the reft of the mouth, and has
two tentacula ; but no tail.
Of this genus, authors enumerate feveral fpe-
cies, diftinguifhed by the number of their ruga; or
wrinkles.
C^CUM, or CoECUM, in anatcmy, the blind
gut, or firft of the thick inteftines. Of the three
large inteftines, called, from their fize, intefti-
ra crafia, the firft is the caecum, fituated at the
right OS ileum ; it refembles a bag, and has a ver-
miform or worm-like appendage fixed to it. It be-
gins at the termination of the ileum, and terminates
in the bottom cf the bag, or facculus, which it
forms: its length is no more than three or four
fingers breadth. In the appendage, or opening in-
to the fide of the caecum, there are fome glands,
which, together with its ere6t fituation, feems to
Ihew that fome fluid is fecretcd there. In hens,
this is double; as alfo in many other fowls. In
fifties, there are frequently a vaft number of them;
and in fome fpecies not lefs than four hundred.
Ill man it is, at the utmoft, fingle, and is often
wanting.
CiEMENT. See Cement.
c ^ s
CEMENTATION. See Cementation.
C^SALPINA, a decandrious tree, which pro-
duces very flender branches, armed with recurent
thorns; the leaves are winged, branching out into
many divifions, each being furniftied with fmall oval
lobes, indented at the top, and placed oppofite ; the
foot-ftalk of the flowers come out from the fide of
the branch, and are terminated by a loofe pyrami-
dical fpike of white flowers; each of thefe have a
quinquefid cup, which contains five ringent petals :
the fruit is an oblong, acuminated, unilocular cell,
inclofing feveral comprefted oval feeds. This tree
affords the brafiletto wood, fo called, which is
much ufed in dying ; it grows naturally in the
warmeft parts of America, from whence the wood
is imported for the dyers ; but the demand has been
fo great of late years, that in the Britifh colonies the
biggeft tree fcarce exceeds eight inches in diameter,
and fifteen feet in height.
C/ESAR, in Roman antiquity, a title borne by
all the emperors, from Julius Csefar to the deftruc-
tion of the empire. It was alfo ufed as a title of
diftiniSHon, for the intended or prefumptive heir of
the empire, as king of the Romans is now ufed for
that of the German empire.
This title took its rife from the furname of the
firft emperor, C. Julius Csefar, which, by a de-
cree of the fenate, all the fucceeding emperors were
to bear. Under his fuccefl'or, the appellation cf
Auguftus being appropriated to the emperors, in
compliment to that prince, the title of Casfar being
given to the ftcond perfon in the empire, though
itill it continued to be given to the firft ; and hence
the difi^erence betwixt Caefar ufed fimply, and Cae-
far with the addition of Imperator Auguftus.
C^SARIAN Section, in midwifry, a chirur-
gical operation, by which the foetus is delivered
from the womb of its mother, when it cannot be
done in the natural way.
There are chiefly three different cafes in which
this operation is praiSicable; the firft if, when the
mother is dead, either in the birth,' or by fome ac-
cident, while the foetus is reafonably fuppofed to be
yet furviving in the womb: the fecond is, whea
the mother is living, and the foetus dead, but in-
capable of being extraiSled or expelled by the natu-
ral pafiages : the third and laft is, when the mother
and foetus are both living, but the latter is incapa-
ble of being brought into the world through the
natural pafiages.
In the firft cafe, this operation fliould be perform-
ed, not only as foon as poffible', but even before the
circulation in the mother is flopped, becaufe the foe-
tus cannot long furvive : then the abdomen muft be
laid open, by a crucial incifion, as in common dif-
fccStions, or by making a longitudinal incifion on
one fide ; and if the foetus fliould have fallen into
the cavity of the abdomen, from a rupture of the
uteru», &c. it Ihcuid be taken out immediately ; but
if
C JE S
C A I
if it remains concealed in the womb, that boJy
(liouM be cautioufly opened, t^nd the fcetus ex-
traiRcd.
In (he fecond cafe, tlie fiirwcon mufl make a lon-
gitudinal incilion on the outfide of the rcflus mufcic,
between the naval and the angle of the os ilium,
and thereby extraft the foetus. If the foetus is con-
tained in the Fallopian tube, or in the ovary, thofe
parts are to be opened, and the foetus, with its pla-
centa, then removed : but if the fa:tus is concealed
in the uterus, this is alio to be opened, by a. longi-
tudinal incinon, fufficient to give a pafLge to the
foetus, and its appendages.
In the third and laft cafe, when the birth is pre-
vented by a callofity of the vagina, or fomething
amifs in the mouth of the uterus, a divifion and di-
latation of thefe parts is preferable to the Cafarian
fecHion, as lefs dangerous; and the fame may be
laid when the vagina is obftruif^ed by the hymen,
or fome other preternatural membrane : but when
the callofity of the vagina is fo large and hard, as
to render the birth that way vmpraiRicable, if it
was to be divided, there is no other means left but the
Csfarian fedion. If a rupture of the uterus fliould
be made in the agonies of labour, fo as to let out
the fcetus into the cavity of the abdomen, in this
cafe it will be neceflary to make an incifion in that
part made moft prominent by the foetus, which
fhould be extraiSled, as before.
CA^STUS, in antiquity, a larfje gantlet made of
raw hide, which the wredlers made ufe of when
they fought at the public games.
This was a kind of leathern ftrap, flreng'hened
with lead, or plates of iron, which encompaffed the
hand, the wrili", and a part of the arm, as well to
defend thefe parts as to enforce their blows.
CiESTUS, or C^STUM, was alfo a kind of gir-
dle made of wool, which the hufband untied for
his fpoufe the firft day of marriage, before they
went to bed.
This relates to Venus's girdle, which Juno bor-
rowed of her, to entice Jupiter to love her. See
the article Cestus.
CAESURA, in the ancient poetry, is when, in the
fcanning of a verfe, a word is divided, fo as one part
feems cut of}", and goes to a different foot from the
reft ; as
Alenti j ri rio | //, mm j qttam men j dacia | profunt.
Where the fyllables r/', //, quam, and men, are csefuras.
Cj^SUHA more properly denotes a certain and-a-
greeable divifion in the words between the feet of a
vetfe, whereby the laft fyllable of a word becomes
the firft of a foot ; as in
Jrma virumque eano, trcjee qui primus ah oris,
VVhere the fyllables no andja are cafuras.
C^suRA, in the modern poetry, denotes a reft,
or paufc, towards the middle of an Alexandrine
verfe, by which the voice and pronunciation are
aided, and the verfe, as it were, divided into two
hemiCiiehf.
In Alexandrine verfe of twelve or thirteen fylla-
bles, the caefure muft always be on the fixth ; in
thofe of ten, on the fourth ; and in thofe of twelve,
on the fixth : verfesof ciidit fyllables muft not have
any crelure.
CETERIS PARIBUS, a Latin term, often
ufed by mathematical and phyfical writers ; the
words literally lignifying the reft, or the other
things, being alike, or equal. Thus we fay, the
heavier the bullet, cateris paribus, the grea'er the
range ; that is, by how much the bullet is heavier,
if the length and diameter of the piece, and the
quantity and ftreng h of the powder be the fame,
by fo much will the utmoft range or diftance of a
piece of ordnance be greater.
Thus alfo, in a phyfical way, we fay, the velo-
city and quantity of theblood, circulating, in agiven
time, through any feilion of an artery, will, eateris
paribus, be according to its diameter, and diftance
from the heart,
CAPFA, in commerce, painted cotton cloths
manufactured in the Eaft- Indies, and fold at Ben-
gal.
CAG, or Keg, of fturgeon, &c. a barrel or
vcfTel that contains from four to five gallons,
CAHYS, a dry meafure for corn, ufed in fome
parts of Spain, particularly at Seville and at Cadiz.
It is near a bufhel of our meafare.
CAIMACAN, orCAiMACAM, in the TurkiOi
affairs, a dignity in the Ottoman empire, anfwer-
ing to lieutenant, or rather deputy, among us.
There are ufually two caimacans, one refiding
at Conftantinople, as governor thereof ; the other
attending the grand vizir, in quality of his lieute-
nant, fecretary of ftate, and firft minifter of his
council ; and gives audience to ambafTadcrs. Some-
times there is a third caimacan, who attends the ful-
tan ; whom he acquaints with any public diflur-
bances, and receives his orders concerning them.
CAINIANS, or Cainites, in church hiftory,
Chriftian heretics, that fprung up about the year
130, and took their name from Cain, whom they
looked upon as their head and father : they faid that
he was formed by a celeftial and Almighty power,
and that Abel was made but by a weak one.
This fed adopted all that was impure in the he-
refy of the Gnoftics, and other heretics of thoft;
times : they acknowledged a power luperior to that
of the Creator ; the former they called wifdom;
the latter inferior virtue : they had a particular ve-
neration for Korah, Abiram, Efau, Lot, the So-
domites, and efpecially Judas, bccaufe his treachery
cccafioncd liie death of Jefus Chrift : they even
made \ik of a gofptl, which, bore that falfe apoftle's
name,
CAISSON,
C A L
the gum being ufed in thofe countries as
CAISSON, in the military art, a wooden cheft,
into which fevcra! bombs aie put, and fomctimes
unly filled with gunpowder : this is buried under
U)ine work, whereof the enemy intends to pclTcfs
(hcaifelves ; and when they are mafters of it, it is
lircd, in order to blow them up.
Caisson is alfo ufed for a wooden frame, or
i-b.cit-, ufed in laying the foundations of the piers of
a brido^e.
CALABA, Indian maflich-tree, in botany, a
genus of trees, whofe charaftcrs are : it has a rofa-
ceous flower, confifting of i'everal petal*, which
arc placed in a circular order; from whofe fiower-
cup arifes the pointal, which afterwards becomes a
Iph.erical flcfhy fruit, including a nut cf the fame
form.
This tree grows to a great magnitude in the
ivarni parts of America, where it is a native. PVom
the trunk and branches there illue out a clear gum,
lomewhat like the maftich, from whence it received
its name
mallich.
At prefent this tree is pretty rare in England, it
being fo tender as not to bear the open air : fo that
it mufl be preferved in floves, with the moft tender
exotic plants. It is propagated by the nuts, which
are frequently brought from America ; thefe fhould
be planted in fmall pots, filled wiih frefh light canh,
and plunged into an hot-bed of tanners bark, ob-
J'erving to water the pots frequently, to forward the
vegetation of the nuts, which, having liard fhclls,
are pretty long before they break their covers, un-
Icfs they have a good (hare of heat and moiflure.
When the plants are come up about two inches
h gh, they fliould be carefully tranfpl.'.nted, each
into a feparate fmall pot, filled with freih light earth,
and plunged into a moderate hot-bed of tanners
bark, obferving to water and fhade them till they
have taken new root ; after which time they fiiould
have air admitted to them, in proportion to the heat
of the weather, and the bed in which they are
placed ; and they muft be frequently watered in warm
weather. In this bed they may remain during the
fuoimer-feafon ; but at Michaelmas they (hould be
jemovcd into the bark-ftove, and placed in a warm
iituation. During the winter-fcafon thefe plants
will require water pretty often ; but it fliould not
be given to them in large quantities, efpecially in
cold v-Jeather, left it rot the fibres of their roots.
As the plants advance, they muff be fliifted into
l.^.rgcr pots, and treated in the fame manner as the
coffee-tree. See the article Coffee-Tree.
With this management the plant will thrive very
v/ell ; and as the leaves of this plant are long,
fcrong, and of a fhining green colour, they make
a pretty appearance in the ffove, with other tender
exotic plar.ts. MUUr'iGard.Dla. .
Calabash, m botanv, a fpecies of melopepo,
or cucurbita. See Cucurbita.
C A L
CALABASH-Trtif, the fame with the crefcentia of
Liiina-us.
CALADE, in tb.e manege, the defcent or (lopino-
declivity of a rifing manege prround, being a fmall
eminence upon which we tide down a horfe fevcral
times, putting hini to a fhort gallop, with his
fore hams in the air, to make him learn to ply
or bend his haunches, and form his ffop upon the
aids of the calves of the legs, the flay of the bri-
dle, and the cavcfon, feafonably given.
CALAMANCO, a fort of woollen f^ufF manu-
fadured in England and in Brabant. It has a fine
glofs, and is chequered in the warp, whence the
checks appear only en the right fide. Some cala-
mancos are quite plain, others have broad iiripes a-
dorned with flowers ; forne with plain broad ffripes,
fome with narrov/ flripes, and others watered.
CALAMBA, or Calambac- Wood, the befl
kind of lignum alnes.
CALAMIFEROUS, among botanifts, the fame
with culmiferous. See the article Culmiferous.
C.ALAMINARIS, or Lapis Calaminaris,
in natural hiftory, a mineral fubftance, of a grey-
ifh, brownifli, yellowifh, or pale reddifh colour,
and fometimes of all thefe colours varioufly mixed ;
confiderably heavy, and moderately hard, but never
fufiiciently fo as to ftrike fire with ffeel ; when
mixed with powdered charcoal, changing copper,
by fufion, into a yellow metal called brafs. It is
found plentifully in England, Germanv, and other
countries, either in diilindl mines, or intermingled
with the ores of lead or other metals.
C ALA MINT, Ca/am/«;/;a, in botany, a di(lin£l:
genus of plants, with fquare flalks ; the leaves fet in
pairs ; and the flowers on branched pedicles, where-
of two ifijc from one joint in the bofoms oi the
leaves : the upper lip of the flower is divided into
two fegments, the lower lip into three. It is pe-
rennial, and flowers in June and July. There
are tliree fpecies of this plant ufed in medicine j
namely,
I. Calamint, with reclining ftalks ; fmall irre-
gularly oval leaves, very flightly indented, without
pedicles ; and the flo vvcr-llalks longer than the leaves.
This fpecies grows wild in dry grounds, and by the
fides of fields.
It has a ftrong aromatic fmell, approaching to that
of penny-royal ; and a moderately pungent taf^e,
fomcwhat like that of fpearmint, but warmer. In
virtue, it appears to be nearly fimilar to a mixture
of thofe herbs : infufions of the leaves are drank as
tea, in weaknefles of the ftomach, flatulent cholics,
and uterine obfl;ru£iions.
Water extrafls by infufion nearly all the virtues
of the calamint, and carries off, in evaporation,
the whole of its fpecific flavour. \n dillillation
with water, there feparates trom the aqueous fluid a
confiderable quantity of efiential oil, of a very pun-
gent tafte, and fmclling (trongly of the heib. The
remain-
C A L
rcmaininp; decoflion, thus diveftcd of the aromatic
part of the plant, is unpleafantly roughifli, bitter-
ifli, and mucilaginous.
Rcdlificd ffiiiit extraifls the virtues of the cala-
mine more perfectly than water, and gains from it
a deep green tiniSlurc. On gently diiHUing the fil-
tered liijuor, a part of the Havour of the herb rifes
with the fpirit, and a part remains behind in the in-
fpiifated extract. Spirit manifellly brings over more
from this plant than from fpearmint, and lefs than
from penny-royal ; its aiSlive matter being more vo-
latile than that of the one, and lefs (o than that of
the other.
2. Common calamint, with upright {^Iks ; larger,
fhort, fcrrated, pointed leaves, fet on pedicles ; and
the flower-ftalks of the length of the leaves. It is
found wild about the fides of highways, but is lefs
common in this country than the other.
The leaves of this fpecies are in tafte weaker
than thofe of the preceding. Their fmell is ftrong,
not like that of penny-royal, but rather approach-
ing to that of the wild mints, though more agree-
able. The eiTential oils of the two plants differ in
flavour as the herbs themfelves: in the fpirituous
extrafJs the difference is lefs confiderable. They
are fuppofed to agree in virtue, and have been ufed
indifcriminately ; the fliops being generally fupplied
with the fpecies which is moft eafily procurable.
3. Mountain calamint, with larger leaves and
flowers than the two preceding, but fmaller ftalks ;
the leaves fet on pedicles, pointed, acutely and
deeply ferrated like thofe of nettles ; the flower-
flalks fhorter than the leaves, and of the length of
the flowers themfelves. It is a native of the fou-
thern parts of Europe, and railed with us in gar-
den"?.
This fpecies has a moderately pungent tafte, and
a more agreeable aromatic fmell than either of the
other calamints. It appears to be the moft eligible
of the three as a flomachic.
CALAMUS, in botany, a genus of hexandrious
plants, producing apetalous flowers, which are
compcfed each of an hexaphyllous perfiflent cup ; in
which is inferred fix capillary filaments topped with
round antheras; the fruit is a globofe membranace-
ous pericarpium of one cell, which contains around
flcftiy feed.
Calamus aromaticus, or acorus Ve-
RUS, in botany, the fweet-fmelling flag, a plant
which grows in marfliy places in feveral parts of Eu-
rope. The leaves, which arife immediately from the
root, are like thofe of the iris ; they are fharp at the
point, of a fine fmooth, green colour, and about a
quarter of an inch broad. The flowers are fmall,
difpofed in a compact fpike, and cover the recepta-
cle of fru£lification ; each of thefc have a cylindri-
cal fpadix, in which is inferted fix obtufe petals,
■with fix crafliufcu'ar filaments. The gcrmen is gib-
bous and longifh, without a ftyle; but the Itigma is
23
C A L
a prominent point. The fruit is a fliort triangular ob-
tufe capfule of three cells, which contains a num-
ber of ovato-oblong feeds. The root of this plant
is ufcd in medicine, and is oblong, genieulated,
and a little comprcfled. When frcfh, it is of a whi-
ti(h green colour, hut afterwards turns of a reddifii
yellow; it is white and f[wngy within, eafy to
break, and of a ftrong fragrant fmell, with a (harp
bitterifh tafte : it abounds with a volatile efl'sntial
oil ; it is faid to be good to ftrengthen the ftomach,
difcufling wind ; the Indians ufc it in their fauces,
and efteem it as a diuretic : the fume of it burnt
with turpentine is recommended for difcafes of the
breaft ; and the Indian women, according to fomc,
ufe it as an uterine and cephalic.
Cala.mus-Scriptorii/s, in antiquity, a reed
or rufli to write with.
The ancients made ufc of ftyles to write on ta-
bles covered with wax ; and of reed, or rufh, to
write on parchment, or Egyptian paper.
Cai.amus-Scriptorius, in anatomy, a dila-
tation of the fourth ventricle of the brain ; fo call-
ed from its figure, which refembles that of a goofe-
quill.
CALANDRA, in ornithology, a name by which
fome call the great lark, without any creft.
CALASH, or Calesh, a light and very low
kind of chariot, ufed chiefly for taking the air in
parks and gardens.
Knights of CALATRAVA, a military order in
Spain, inftituted under Sancho III. king of Caftile,
upon the following occafion. When that prince
took the ftrong fort of Calatrava from the Moors of
Andalufia, he gave it to the Templars, who want-
ing courage to defend it, returned it him again.
Then Don Reymond, of the order of the Cifter-
cians, accompanied with feveral perfons oi quality,
made an ci?ei~to defend the place, which the king
thereupon delivered up to thejn, and inftituted that
order. It increafed fb much under the reign of Al-
phonfus, that the knights defired they might have a
grand mafter, which Avas granted. Ferdinand and
Ifabella afterwards, with the confent of pope Inno-
cent VIII. re-united the grand mafterftip of Cala-
trava to the Spanifli crown j fo that the kings of
Spain are now become perpetual admiiuftrators
thereof.
The knights of Calatrava bear a crofs gules,
fleurdelifed with green, Sec. their rule and habit
was originally that of the Ciftercians.
CALCANEUM, or Os Calcis, in anatomy,
the bone lying under the aftragalus, to which, and
the OS cuboides, it is articulated. Its apophyfis be-
hind ferves to prevent our failing backward, and on
its pofterior furface is inferted the tendo achillis ; in
its interior fide there is an excavation, intended to
give fate pafljge to the vcflels running to the meta-
tarfus and toes.
X
CALCAR,
GAL
CALCAR, in anatomy, the fame with calcane-
um. See the article Calcaneum.
Calcar, in glafs-making, a fort of oven, or
reverberatory furnace, in which, being well heated,
the cryftal frit, or bolHto, is made.
CALCARIOUS, in general, denotes fomething
belonging to, or partaking of, the nature of calx.
See the article Calx.
Cai.carius Lapis, in natural hlflory, the fame
with time {lone. See Li:me.
CALCEDON, among jewellers, denotes a flaw
or foul Vein, like chalcedony, found in feme pre-
cious ftones.
CALCEDONY, or Chalcedony, in the hif-
tory of precious ftones. See the article Chalce-
dony.
CALCINATION, in chemiftry, the feparating,
by means of heat or fire, the more fixed from the
volatile parts of any compound body.
CALCULATION, the a<a of computing feve-
ral fums, by adding, fubtrafling, multiplying, or
dividing. See the articles Arithmetic, Addi-
tion, &c.
Calculation is more particularly ufed tofignify
the computations in aflronomy and geometry, for
making tables of logarithms, ephenierides, finding
the timeof eclipfes, &c. For the calculation of clock
and watch-work, feeCx-OCK and Watch-Work.
CALCULUS, in natural hiftory, properly de-
notes a little ftoneorpebble. See the article Pebble.
Calculus, orCALCULUs-HuMAXus, in me-
dicine, the flone in the bladder or kidneys. See
the article Stone.
Calculus Dljffirerrtialis, is the arithmetic of in-
finitely fmall differences between variable quantities,
which in England we call fluxions. The calculus
difVerentialis therefore, and fluxions, are the fame
thing under different names ; the latter given by
Sir Ifaac Newton, and the former by Mr. Leibnitz,
who difputes with Sir Ifaac the honour of the dif-
covery.
Mr. Leibnitz, about 1676, by mofl foreigners is
allowed to have firfl invented this docfrine of infi-
iiite fmall quantities, who called it the cakuliis dif-
ferenticUs ; but it is plain, from Sir Ifaac's papers,
fhat Sir Ifaac was the firll inventor of it, who be-
ing too free in communicating it to Mr. Leibnitz,
he Pole it from him ; and that the fufpicion might
be the lefs, he invented different words and notes
from thofe in Sir Ifaac's method j for inffcad of
putting the fluxion of .vthus, x, he puts it thus, dx;
a.nd for y, dy, inflead of j; and thefc are ufed by
almoft all foreigners.
Yet cv'en James Bernoulli, in the Leipfick zSis
for January 1691, acknowledges, that our famous
DV. iiarrovT- (before Sir Ifaac Newton> or M. Leib-
nitz either) had given fonre fpecimens of this me-
thod above ten years before that date, in his geo-
ajttrtcjj leclures, and of which all his apparatus of
C A L
propofitions there contained are fo many e-^amples. '
Healfo acknowledges that Mr. Leibnitz's method
of calculus differ enlialh, is founded on Dr. Barrow's,'
and differs from it only in fome notes and compendi-
ous abridgments. See Fluxions.
Calculus E>rpor,cntialis, among mathematici-
ans, a method of differencing exponential quanti-
ties, and fumming up the differentials of the fame.
By an exponential quantity is meant a power, the
exponent of which is variable; as y', c^. In or-
der to difference an exponential quantity, nothing
more is required than to reduce the exponential
quantities to logarithmic ones, upon which the dif-
ferencing is managed in the fame manner as loga-
rithmic ones.
CALCULUS Integralh, is the method of find-
ing, from a differential quantity given, the quantity
from whofe differencing the differential refults. But
in England we underffand the method of finding
the proper flowing quantity of any given fluxion to
be the calculus hucgralis, and is the reverfe of the
calculus differentialis, which in England is to find
the fluxion from the flowing quantity.
Calculus Spccialis, or Literalis, the fame as
algebra. See Algebra.
CALF, or Kale. See Cabbage.
S^a CaLE. SeeCRAMBE.
CALEA, in botany, a genus of fyngenefious
plants, whofe flower is uniform and funnel-fliaped^
cut at the extremity into five parts, and contains five
very"" fhort capillary filaments, topped with tubulofe
cylindrical antherae ; it is deftitute of a pericarpium,
but the calyx contains a fingle oblong feed topped
with down.
CALEFACTION, the pvoduaion of heat in a
body from the adfion of fite, or that impulfe im-
preflcd by a hot body upon other bodies about it.
This word is ufed in pharmacy, by way of diflinc-
tion from coflion, v/hich implies boiling; whereas
cakfaftion is only heating a thing.
CALENDAR, or Almanack, is a political dif-
tribution of time, accommodated to the ufes of life,,
and taken from the motions of the heavenly bodies.
Of this kind are thofe annual books, wherein the-
days of the month, the feflivals, the fign the fun is
in, the fun's rifing and fetting, the changes of the
moon, &c. are exhibited, which we alfo call al-
manacks. But the word calendar feems to come
from the vrord ta/end^y which amongfl the Romans
fignifies the firft days of every month.
The firfi calendar among the Romans was con-
ftruiffed by Romiilu?, who, being ignorant of the-
fcience of affronomy, fuppi fed the fun to make its
annual revolution in thresf hundred and four days,,
and therefore divided -the year into ten months only,,
beginning on the firfl day of March. But Numa-
Pompilius, who added two months more, viz. Ja-
nuary and February, placed them before March.
His year confuled of three hundred and fixtv-Sve
days,.
C A L
days. This Was afterwards Improved by Julius Caj-
far, with the help of Sofigenes, a celebrated atlro-
nomer of thofe times, who found that the difpenfa-
tion of time in the calendar could never be fettled
on any fure footing, without having rcg.ird to the
annual courfe of the fun. Accordingly he obferved
the fun's annua! revolution to be performed in three
hundred and fixty-fivedays, fix hours ; therefore he re-
duced the year to the fame number of days, which was
retained in moftProteflant countries, and in our nation
till the year 1752. This corre6lion, or Julian calen-
dar, difpofes the year into quadriennial periods,
whereof the firft three years, which were called
common, confifled of three hundred and fixty-five
days, and the fourth, called BifTextile, of three hun-
dred and fixty-fix, by reafon of the fix hours,
which in four years make a day, or fomewhat lefs ;
for in one hundred and thirty-four years an interca-
lary day is to be retrenched. On this account it
was that pope Gregory XIII. with the advice of
Clavius and Caiconius, appointed that the hun-
dredth year of each century fhould have no Biifex-
tile, excepting each fourth century : that is, a fub-
traiflion of three Biflextile days is made every four
centuries, by reafon of the eleven minutes wanting
of the fix hours, whereof the BifTextile confifts.
See Bissextile.
Julian Cbrijlian Calendar, is that wherein
the days of the week are determined by the letters
A, B, C, D, E, F, G ; by means of the folar cycle,
•and the new and full moons, efpecially the Pafchal
full moon, with the feaft of Eafter, and the other
moveable feafts depending thereon, by means of
golden numbers rightly difpofed through the Julian
year. See Golden Number.
Gregorian Q.M-EVTt.w., that which, by means of
epacls rightly difpofed through the feveral months,
determines the new and full moons, and the time
of EaiTer, with the moveable feafts depending there-
on in ^be Gregorian year. See Epact.
Rcfarmed, or correofedCAfEKDAR, is that which,
fettiiig afiJe golden aumber, epacfls, and dominical
jetters, determines the equinox with the Pafchal
full moon, and the moveable feafts depending there-
on, by agronomical computations, according to the
Rudoiphine tables, or any other tables that are
nlore correct. This calendar vjzs introduced among
the Protefi:ant ftates of Germany in the year 1700,
when eleven days were at once thrown out of the
month of February, by which the corrected ftylc
agrees wiili the Gregorian.
Jjh-onanical Calendar, an i nfl rument en grav-
ed upon copper plates, printed on paper, and part-
ed on board, with a br.ifs fiiJer, v/hich carries a
hair, and fhews by infpcc*.ion the fun's meridian
altitude, right afc'enfion, declination, rifing, fetting,
amplitude, he. to as great exailuefs as our common
globes. For the conllrudfion of calendar or alma-
nackj fee EvHEMERiPEs.
C A L
CALENDER, in mechanics, a machine ufcd in
manufadlories, to prcfs certain woollen and filkcn
ftuffs, and linens, to make them fmooth, even,
and glofiy, or to give them waves, or water them,
as may be fecn in mohairs and tabbies. This in-
flrument is compofed of two thick cylinders or rol-
lers of very hard and polifhed wood, round which
the fluffs to be calendered are wound : thefe rollers
are placed croflwife, between two very thick boards ;
the lower ferving as- a fixed bafe, and the upper
moveable by means of a thick fcrew, with a rope
faftened to a fpindle, which makes its axis : the up-
permoft board is loaded with large flones cemented
together, weighing twenty thoufand pounds or
more. It is this weight that gives the polilh, and
makes the waves of the ftufFs about the roller, bv
means of a fhallow indenture, or engraving cut in
it. At Paris there is an extraordinary machine of
this kind, called the royal calender, mad:; by order
of Mr. Colbert ; the lower table or bafe of which is
madeofa block of fmooth marble, and the upperlined
at bottom with a plate of fmooth poliflied copper.
CALENDS, Calenda, in Roman chronology, is
what the Romans called the firft days of every
month, from the Greek word Kxy.iv.; or cahoot to
call ; becaufe, anciently counting their months by
the motion of the moon, there was a priefl appoint-
ed to obferve the time of the new moon ; who,
having feen it, gave notice to the prefident over
the facrifices, and he called the people together,
and declared to them how they muft reckon the
days until the nones, pronouncing the word caUit
five times, if the nones did happen on the fifth day ;
or feven times, if they happened on the feventh
day of the month. This is the account given by
Varro : but others derive the appellation hence ;
that the people being convened on this day, the
pontifex called or proclaimed the feveral feafts or
holy-days in the month, a cuftom which continued
no longer than the year of Rome 450, when C.
Flavius, the curule edile, ordered the fafli, or ca-
lendar, to be fet up in public places, that every
body might know the difference of limes and the
return of the feftivals. The Roman nietiiod of
reckoning the days of their months is backwards,
or in retrr^rade order, as is exprefled in the foUow-
Prima dies imnfis cujufque eji diHa caJenda :
Sex Mains, nonas, yulius, Oilobef, U Jldarsi
^ualuor at rcliqui : hahet idus quilibet oiio ;
Inde die! rehqnos onines die effe CuUndai ;
^fas retro Kumeram, dice a mcnfe fequente.
Hence to find the day of our month aafwering to
that of the calends :
To the number of days in the preceding month
add two, and from this fum fubtracling the numher
of calends given, ai;d the remaiadcE will be the
C A L
day of our month : thus the fourth of the calenjs
of June is found to anfwer to the twenty-ninth of
May; and fo in other cafes.
CALENDULA, nurygold, in botany, a genus
of plants producing compound radiated flowers.
There are divers fpecies of this genus ; the common
marygold lias a root divided into many thick fibres
or branches, the ftalks are (lender, a little angular,
hairy, and clammy to the touch. It is divided into
many branches, and furnifhed with oblong leaves,
joined clofe to the ftalk, widening from thence to
the extremity, and of a light green colour. The
flowers grow on the extremities of the branches,
and are of a radiated oiange colour ; each of thefe
confift of hermaphrodite and female florets, in-
cluded in a fingle empalement : the hermaphrodite
are tubulofe, and femiquinquifid ; and the female
florets, which compofe the rays, are long, iigul.ited,
and cut in three fegmcnts at the extremity : there
arc no central feed in the dilk ; thofe of the peri-
phery are fometimes folitary, and are large, oblong,
membranaceous, and cordaied. This plant is an-
nual, common in gardens, propagates itfelf by
feeds, and flowers from May till autumn. The
flowers of this plant are faid to be aperient and
diffolvent, and reckoned good in uterine obftruc-
tions, and i£ieric diforders ; and, infufed in wine,
they vjiW open a flight obftruflion of the liver,
and cure a fuppreflioti of the menfes. To this
genus Linnxus has added the caltha, dimorphotheca,
and cardifpermum of other authors.
CALENTURE, Cnhntura, in medicine, a
feverifli diforder incident to failors in hot climates ;
the principal fymptom of which is, their imagining
the fea to be green fields : hence, attempting to
walk abroad in ihcfe imaginary places of delight,
they are frequently loft.
Vomiting, bleeding, a fpare diet, and the neu-
tral falts, are recommended in this diforder : a fingle
vomit commonly removing the delirium, and the
cooling m.edicines completing the cure.
CALF, Vitulus, in zoology, the young of the
ox kind.
Among fportfmen, the term calf is ufed for a
hart or hind of the firft year. The fame term is
alfo ufed for the young of the whale.
Inhere are two ways of breeding calves ; one,
when they are allowed to fuck their dams all the
year round, chiefly ufed in countries where pafture
is cheap ; and the other, when being taken from
their dams after fucking a fortnight, they are taught
to drink milk, or milk and water, out of a tub.
The forhier, however, of thefe methods is allowed
to make the beft cattle.
Calf's-Snout, in botany. See Antirrhi-
num.
CALIBER, or Caliper, properly denotes the
diameter of any body: thus we fay, two columns
of the fame caliber, the caliber of the bore of a
4
C A L
gun, the caliber of a bullet, &c. See Can-
non, &c.
Caliber-Compasses, the name of an inftru-
menr, made either of wood, iron, fleel, or brafs ;
that ufe^ for meafuring bullets confifts of two
branches, bending inwards, with a tongue fixed to
one of them, and the other graduated in fuch a
manner, that if the bullet be comprefled by the
ends of the two branches, and the tongue be ap-
plied to the graduated branch, it will fhcw the
weight of the bullet.
Caliber alfo fignifies an infliument ufed by
carpenters, joiners, and bricklayers, to fee whether
their work be well fcftiarcd.
CALIDUCT, in antiquity, a kind of pipes, or
canals, difpofed along the walls of houfes and apart-
ments, ufed, by the ancients, for conveying heat to
feveral remote parts of the houfe, from one common
furnace.
CALIPH, the fupreme ecclcfiafllcal dignity a-
mong the Saracens ; or, as it is otherwife defined,
a fovereign dignity among the Mahometans, vefl:ed
with abfolute authority in all matters relating both
to religion and policy.
It fignifies in the Arabic fucceflbr, or vicar: the
Saracen princes afiumed this title as defcendants from
Mahomet, the caliphs bearing the fame relation to
Mahomet the popes pretend they do to JefusChrift,
or St. Peter. It is at this day one of the grand
feignor's titles, as fucceflfor of Mahomet ; and of
the fophi of Perfia, as fucceflbr of Ali.
CALIXTINS, in church hiftory, a fcfl of
Chriftians in Bohemia and Moravia : the principal
point in which they differed from the church, was the
ufc of the chalice, or communicating in both kinds.
Calixtins is alfo a name given to thofe a-
mong the Lutherans who follow the fentiments of
George Calixtus, a celebrated divine, who oppofed
the opinion of St, Auguftine on predeftination,
grace, and free-will.
CALKING, in (liip- building, the aft of driving
a quantity of oakum, /. e. old ropes untwifted and
drawn afunder, into the feams of the planks, or into
the intervals between the edges of the planks on a
fhip's decks or fides, to keep out the water. After
the oakum is driven very hard into thefe feams, it is
covered with hot- melted pitch, to prevent the water
from rotting it.
Amongft the ancients, the firft who made ufe of
pitch in calking were the inhabitants of Phaeacia,
afterwards called Corjka. Wax and rofin appear to
have been commonly ufed previous to that period ;
and the Poles ufe a fort of clay for this purpofe on
their rivers at this day. See the article Ship-
Building.
CALKINS, the prominent parts at the extremi-
ties of a horfe-fhoe, bent downwards, and forged
to a fort of point.
Calkins are apt to make horfcs trip : they alfo
occafion
C A L
OCCafion blymes, and ruin the back fmews. If
fafliiohed in fo>in> of a hare's ear, and the horn of
a horfe'a heel be pared a little low, they do little
da-nage ; whereas the great fqaare calkins quite
{poW the foot.
Calkins are either fmgle or double; that is, at one
end of the fhoe, or at both : thefe laft are deemed
lefs hurtful, as the horfe can tread more even.
CALICO, or Callico, a kind of linen manu-
fadlut'e, made of cotton, chiefly in the Eafl-InJies.
There is a great trade in the province of Bengal, in
this commodity, which is tranfported in prodigious
quantities in Perfia, Turkey, Arabia, Mufcovy,
and ail over Europe. Some of them are painted
with flowers of various colours; and the women in
the Indies make veils and fcarfs of them, and, of
fome, coverlets for beds, and handkerchiefs. They
make another fort of this manufaflure, which they
never dye, and hath a ftripe of gold and filver quite
through the piece ; and at each end, from the
breadth of one inch to twelve or fifteen, they fix a
tiflue of gold, filver, and filk, intermixed with
flowers : both Tides are alike. They make alfo
other forts of cotton cloths at Biampour, becaufe
there is no other province in all ihe Indies which
has greater quantities of cotton.
At Seconge they are faid to make the beft forts of
calicoes ; in all otlier parts the colours are neither fo
lively nor lafling, but wear out with often wafhing ;
whereas thofe made at Seconge grow the fairer the
more you wafh them. This is faid to arife from a
peculiar virtue of the river that runs by the city,
when the rain falls ; for the workmen, having made
fuch prints upon their cottons as the foreign mer-
chants give them, by feveral patterns, dip them into
the river often, and that fo fixes the colours, that
they will always hold. There is alfo made at
Seconge a fort of calico fo fine, that when a perfon
puts it on, his fKin fliall appear as plainly through
it as if he was quite naked ; but the merchants are
not permitted to tranfport it; for the governor is
obliged to fend it all to the Great Mogul's feraglio,
and the principal lords of the court, to make the
fukaneffes and noblemen's wives fhifts, and gar-
ments for hot weather.
The city of Baroche alfo is very famous for trade,
on account of the river, which has a peculiar qua-
lity to whiten their calicoes, and which are, there-
fore, brought from all parts of the mogul's terri-
tories thither for that end.
This manufaflure is brought into this nation
by the Eaft-India company, which is re-exported
by private merchants to other parts of Europe and
America.
CALico-Prinliiigf the artof ftaining calicoes, &c.
of various colours. See Lwen- Printing.
CALL, amongft failors, a fort of whiftle or
pipe made of filver or brafs, ufed by the boatfwain
and his mates, to fummgn the failors to their duty,
23
C A L
and dircft them in the various work cf the fiiip,
which they are taught to obey, by different ftrains
of the call, as foldiers are dire(5led by the drum, to
march, retreat, charge, &c.
The principal articles which are commanded by
this iiiftrument, are, heaving round the capftern,
veering away the cable, hoifling, lowering, belay-
ing, &c. nor would fuch orders be heard without
the call, on account of the bacchanalian clamour
commonly made by failors in futh exercifts, which
would be impenetrable even to the boatfv/ain's voice,
although that indeed is more barbarous zu-d dread-
ful than can be eafily conceived.
We occafionally remarked, in the article Boat-
swain, that his voice was extremely fimiUr to the
bray of an afs ; but if any of our readers have
heard the alternate roaring and whiftling of that
officer, they muft naturally perceive that there is a
moft perfeft fympathy between them ; the latter of
which feeming emulous, at every time he draws
breath, when braying, to imitate the found of .the
call. Indeed, if the Pythagorean fyftem of tranf-
migration were not exploded, and that our ortho-
doxy might therefore be queflioned, we fhould not
make the leaff fcruple to believe, that the body of
that fagacious beaft is animated by the foul of a
dead boatfwain.
CALLA, the African arum, in botany, a gynan-
drious plant with a thick flefby tuberofe root,
which is covered with a thin brown Ikin, with
many fibres f^riking into the ground. The leaves are
green and fucculent, arrow- fliaped, reflexed at the
point, and are about eight or nine inches in length ;
thefe {land on footftalks about a foot long, and
arife from the root in cluflers. Between the leaves
fpring forth the footftalk of the flower, which is
thick, finoolh, of the fame colour of the leaves
rifing above them, and terminated with a fingle
flower, fliaped like thofe of the arum ; the hood or
fpatha being twified at the bottom, but fpreads
open at the top, and is of a pure white colour. In
the center of this is fituated the fpadix or club,
which is of an herbaceous yellow colour, upon
which the fmall flowers are placed, and fo clofely
joined, as that the male and female party are very
difficult to bediftinguiilied : when thefe decay, part
of thofe which are fituated at the top of the club,
are fucceeded by roundifh fiefhy beriies coRiprefl'ed
on two fides, each containing two or three obtulc
feeds. This plant flowers in May, and the feeds
are ripe in Auguft ; it propagates very fafl by oft-
fcts, and grows naturally at the Cape of Good
Hope.
CALLICARPA, in botany, a baccifcrous flirub
which grows plentifully in the woods of Carolina;
it rifes from four to fix feet high, fending out many
branches from the fide, which are woolly when
young, and furnifhed with oval lanceolated leaves,
placed oppofite in pairs, and ftanding on pretty long
^ Y foolftalksj
C A L
footftalks ; ihefe are a little indented on their edges,
their furface rough, and a little hoary. The flowers,
' which are of a deep purple colour, come out in
whorl^s round the ftalks, fetcing very clofe to the
branches, at the footftallcs of the leaves ; each of
thefe are fmall, tubulofe, and monopetalous, cut
into four obtufe fegments at the top, which expand
and contain four filiform filaments, topped with
oblong yellow anlherfe. In the center is placed a
roundifh germen, which afterwards becomes a
• fmooth, round, fucculent berry, which turns firft
to a bright red colour, but afterwards changes to a
deep purple when ripe, and inclofes four hard ob-
long comprefTed feeds. The leaves of this fhrub is
faid to be ufed in dropfical cafes, with very good
fuccefs.
CALLIGONUM, in botany, a genus of poly-
andrious plants, whofe flower is apetalous, and
confifts of a pentaphyllous calix, the leaves of which
are concave, roundilh, and premanent ; the fila-
ments are fmall and numerous, topped with double
antherx ; the fruit is an oval, comprefTed, ftriated,
' hairy pericarpium, with bifid tops, turning back-
wards, containing a fingle feed, In this genus
Linnaeus has claffed the polygonoides of Tourne-
fort.
CALLIMUS, xa^M^of, in natural hiftory, the
name ufed by the ancients for the loofe fubftance
found within the aetites, or eagle- ftone. See the
article j^TiTES.
CALLING the Houfe, in the Britifh parliament,
is the calling over all the members names, every one
anfwering to his own, and going out of the houfe,
in the order in which he is called : this they do in
order to difcover whether there be any pcrfons there
not returned by the clerk of the crown ; or if any
jnember be abfent without leave of the houfe.
CALLIPIC PERIOD, was an improvement of
the cycle of Meton, of nineteen years, which Calli-
pus, a famous Grecian afbronomer, finding in rea-
lity to contain nineteen of Nabonaffar's years, four
d.iys, and \■l-^^ he, to avoid fradtions, quadrupled
the golden number, and by that means made a new
cycle of feventy-fix years ; which time being ex-
pired, he fuppofed the lunations or changes of the
moon would happen on the fame day of the month,
and hour of the day, that they were on feventy-
Tix years before : but this has t^en demonftrated to
be falfe, erring a whole day in five hundred and
fifty-three years.
CALLISTEA, in Grecian antiquity, a Lefbian
feftival, v/herein the women prefented themfelves
in Juno's temple, and tlie prize was afligned to the
laireft. There was another of thefe contentions at
tlve fe.lival of Ceres Eleufinia, among the Parrha-
fians, and another among the Eleans, where she
molt beautiful man was prefented with a complete
fuit of armour, which he confecrated to Minerva,
to whofe temple he v/alked in proceffion,. beijig
4
C A L
accompanied with his friends, who adorned him
with ribbons, and crowned him with a garland of
myrtle.
CALLOSUM CORPUS, in anatomy, a whitifh
hard fubftance, joining the two hemifpheres of the
brain, and appears in view when the two hemifpheres
are drawn back. See the article Brain.
In this part Lancifi, and feveral others, have fup-
pofed the foul particularly to refide.
CALLOUS, Callofusy fomething partaking of
the nature of a callus.
CALLUS, or Callosity, in a general fenfc,
any cutaneous, corneous, or olFeous hardnefs, whe-
ther natural or preternatural : but moft frequently it
means the callus generated about the edges of a frac-
ture, provided by nature to preferve the fraftured
bones, or divided parts, in the fituation in which.
they are replaced by the furgeon.
A callus, in this laft fenfe, is a fort of jelly, or
liquid vifcous matter, that fweats out from the
fmall arteries and bony fibres of the divided parts»
and fills up the chinks, or cavities, between them.
It firft appears of a cartilaginous fubftance, but at
length becomes quite bony, and joins the fradlured
part fo firmly together, that the limb will often
make greater refiftance to any external violence
with this part, than with thofe which were never
broken.
But as the new flefli in wounds will often fprout
up too faft, fo will the callus in fraflures, and by this,
means render the limb uneven and deformed : the
only meafure to prevent this luxuriancy, is by^
making the bandage fomewhat tighter than ordi-
nary, and wetting it firft with fpirits of wine
When the callus is indurated, we have no medi-
cine that will deflroy it, or take it down : however^
the cmplaftium de ranis vigon. cum mercurio^
tying a plate of lead over it, is prefcribed for taking
it down.
Callus is alfo a hard, denfe, infenfible knob,,
rifing on the hands, feet, &c. by much, fridlion and
preflure againft hard bodies.
CALM, in the marine language, that fiate of
reft which appears in the air and fea when there is
no wind ftirring.
That tradl of the Atlantic ocean, fituated between
the tropic of Cancer and the latitude of 215° north,,
or the fpace between the trade and variable winds, is.
frequently fubjedt to calms of very long continuance ^
and hence it has juftly acquired the name of the
calm-latitude.
A long calm is oftea more fatal to a fhip than the-
fcvereft iTorm, if {he is tight, and in good condi-
tion ; as the provifions and water may be entirely
confumed, where there may be no opportunity to,
obtain a frefh fupply : at fuch a time the furface of
the ocean is fmooth and bright as a looking-glafs.
CALOGERI, in church hiftory, monks of the
Greek churcbj, divided into three degrees, the no-
■ vicesj,
C A L
vices, called archari ; the ordinary proftflcd, called
microchemi ; and the more perfefl, called mega-
lochemi : they are likewife divided into c;i;nobites,
anachorets, and reclufes. The caenobites are em-
ployed in reciting their office from midniglit to fun-
fet ; they are obliged to make three genuflexions at
the door of the choir ; and returning, to bow to
the right and to the left, to their brethren. The
anachorets retire from the converfation of the
world, and live in hermitages in the neighbourhood
of the monafteries ; they cultivate a little fpot of
ground, and never go out hut on Sundays and holi-
days, to perform their devotions at the next monaf-
tery. As for the reclufes, they fliut themfelves up
in grottos and caverns, on the tops of mountains,
which they never go out of, abandoning themfelves
entirely to providence : they live on the alms fent
them by the neigbouring monafteries.
CALOMEL, in the materia medica, a name
given to mercurius dulcis, fublimated fix times :
the preparation is done thus.
Take corrofive fubiimate a pound, purified mer-
cury nine ounces ; add the quickfilver to the mer-
cury, reduce to powder, and digeft them together
in a glafs mattrefs, in a gentle fand heat, frequently
fliaking the vefl'el, till the whole is united : when
they are thus mixed, increafe the heat, fo as to fubii-
mate the whole : take out the fubiimate, and fcrape
off" an acrid part that is found at the top of it ; and
if any globules of mercury appear, feparate them
alfo : let the fublimation be repeated fix times. It
is a gentle purgative, and a very noble attenuant.
It is the greateft of all medicines againft worms,
and is now the general remedy in a gonorrhoea.
The common method of giving it is in a bolus,
over night, ten or twelve grains for a dofe, and a
purging draught the next morning, Sic. Rubbed
with an equal quantity of fulphur antimonii aura-
tum, it is recommended as a powerful and faie
alterative.
CALOPHYLLUM, a genus of polyandrious
plants, whofe flower confifts of four roundifh, con-
cave, patent petals ; the filaments are numerous,
fhort, filiform, and topped with erecl oblong an-
thers;; the fruit is a large globofe drupe, contain-
ing a round fub-acuminated nut. Li this genus
Linnaeus has clailed the calaba of Piumier.
CALOTTE, a cap or coif of hair, fatin, or
other fluff ; an eccleliaftical ornament in moft
popifh countries.
Calotte, in architeiflure, a round cavity or
depfreirure, in form of a cap or cup, lathed and
, plaiffered, uf'ed to diminifh the tile or elevation of
a moderate chapel, cabinet, alcove, &c. which,
without fuch an expedient, v/ould be too high for
other pieces of the apartment.
CALQUING, or Calking, a term ufcd in
painting, &c. where the backfide of any thing is
covered with a black or red colour, and the ftrokes
C A L
or lines traced through, on a waxed plate, wall, or
other matter, by pafFing lightly over each ffroke of
the defign with a point, which leaves an impreffioii
of the colour on the plate or wall.
CALTHA, marfli-marygold, in botany, a genus
of polyandrious plants, the flower of whioh confifts
of five large, oval, plane, deciduous petals ; the
filaments aic flender and numerous, fliorter than the
petals, and topped with tibtufe eredl anthera; ; in the
center is placed feveral oblong comprelTed germen,
which afterward becomes fo many fhort, acumi-
nated bicarinated capfules, containing a number of
roundifh feeds.
Marfh-marygolds grow upon molft boggy lands
in many parts of England, a variety of which,
with double flowers, is preferved in feme gardens,
and is propagated by parting the roots in au-
tumn.
Caltha is alfo the name by which Tournefort
calls the calendula, or marygold.
CALTROPS. See the article Chausses-
Trapes, or CrowsFeet.
Caltrops, in botany. See the article Trj-
BULUS.
IVatcr Caltrops. See Trapa.
CALVARIA, in anatomy, the hairv fcalp or
upper-part of the head, which, either bv difeafe,
or old age, grows bald firfl:. See the articles Head
and Calvities.
CALVARY, in heraldry, a crofs fo called, be-
caufe it refembles the crofs on which our Saviour
fufFcred. It is always fct upon fteps.
CALVINISTS, in church hiflory, thofe who
follow the opinions of John Calvin, one of the
principal reformers of the church in the fixtecnrh
century, a perfon of great parts and induftry, and
of confiderable learning ; v/hofe doctrine ftill fub-
fifls in its greateft purity at Geneva, where it was
firft broached, and from whence it was propa-
gated. This is the prevailing religion of the
United Provinces. In England it is confined a-
nioJig the diffenters ; and, in Scotland, it fubfifts
in its utmoft rigour.
The Calvinifts are great advocates for the abfo-
lutenefs of God's decrees ; and hold that eleiifirin
and reprobation depend on the mere will of God,
without any regard to the merit or demerit of
mankind ; that he affords to the elect an irrefifli-
ble grace, a faith that they cannot lol'e, which takes
away the freedom of will, and neceffitatcs all their
actions to virtue.
The Calvinifts believe that God fore-knew a de-
terminate number, whom he pitched upon to be
perfons, in whom he would manifeft his glory ;
and that, having thus fore-known them, he pre-
dcftinated them to be holy, in order to which he
gives them an irrefiftible grace, which mikes it im-
pofnble for them to be otherwife.
CALVITIES, or Calvitium, in medicine,
baJdaefsj,
C A L
balilnefs, or a want of hair, particularly on the
fincipu', occafioned by the moifture ot the head,
■which fliould feed it, being dried up, by feme
difeafe, old age, or the immoderate ule of pow-
der, die. See the article Alopecia.
CALUMET, a fymbol of peace among the
Indians in the north of America. It is made of a
red (lone, like our marble ; the head refembles our
tobacco-pipes, but larger ; and is fixed on a hollow
reed, to hold it for fmoaking ; they adorn it with
fine wings of fevcral colours, and is the calumet of
the fun, to whom they prefent it, efpecially if they
want fair weather, or rain. This pipe is a pafs
and fafe-condui5t amongft all the allies of the na-
tion who has it given : in all enibaffies the ambaf-
lador carries it as an emblem of peace, and it al-
ways meets with a profound regard ; for the favages
are generally perfuaded, that a great misfortune
would befal them, if they violated the public faith
of the calumet.
CALX, properly fignifies lime, but it is alfo ufed
by chemifts and phyhcians for a fine powder re-
maining after the calcination, or corrofion of me-
tals and other mineral fubftances. See Calcina-
tion and Lime.
CALYCANTHUS, in botany, a genus of ico-
fandrious plants, whofe fiower is apetalous ; but
contain a monophyllous calx ; the filaments are
numerous, and awl-fliaped, topped with oblong,
fulcated antheras; the gcrmina are numerous, and
contains a number of caudated feeds. In this genus
Linnaus has included the bureria, butneria, and
bafteria of other authors.
CALYCIST^E, an appellation given by Linnsus
to thofe botanifls who have claffed plants according
to the different flrufture of the calx, or cup of the
flowers ! fuch was Magnolius.
CALYPTRA, or veil, a term given by bota-
nifts to a peculiar kind of calyx ; it is a thin mem-
branaceous involucrum, ufually of a conic figure,
and covers the ilamina, and other parts of frudifi-
cation : the capfules of moft of the niofles have
calyptrs.
CALYX, among botanift?, fignifies the cup of
a. flower ; this is the termination of the cortex, or
outer bark of plants, which, after accompanying the
trunk or ftem through all its branches, breaks out
• with the flower, and is prefent in the fruftification ;
in this new form its chief ufe is to inclofe and pro-
te(£f the other parts. The calyx has received diffe-
rent appellations, according to the circumftances
with which it is attended, and on that account dif-
tinguifhed by feveral names, as perianthium, invo-
lucrum, amentum, fpatha, gluma, calyptra, and
volva. See the articles Perianthium, &c.
That the calyx is a part of the flower, (though
it often attends the fruit) is manifefl from hence,
that there is no inftance of its coming out after the
CAM
plant has done flowering. Calyx is alfo often ftyle^
the empalement of a flower.
CAM^A, in natural hifiory, a genus of the fe-
mipellucid gems, approaching to the onyx ftruc-
ture, being compofcd of zones, and formed on a
cryftalline bafis ; but having their zones very broad
and thick, and laid alternately on one another, with
no coiTimon matter between ; ufually Icfs tranfpa-
rent, and more dtbafed with earth than the
onyxes.
CAMAIEU, orCAMEHUiA, in natural hiftory,
the fame with camaa. See the preceding article.
Camaieu is alfo a term in painting, when
there is only one colour, the lights and fliades lie-
ing of gold, or on a golden and azure ground. It
is chiefly ufed to reprel'ent baflb-relievos.
CAMALDULIANS, a religious order founded
by St. Romauld, in a little plain on the Mount A-
pcnnine, called Camaldali, fituated in the ftate of
Florence.
CAMBERED-DECK, in the marine, the deck,
or flooring of a fhip, is faid to be cambered, or to
lie cambering, when it is higher in the middle of
the fhip, and droops towards the flem and flern,
or the two ends ; alfo when it lies irregular, being
higher in one place than another, a circumflance
which renders the fhip very unfit for war.
CAMBLET, or Camlet, a plain fluff, com-
pofed of a wafp or woof, which is manufadlured on
a loom, with two treddles, as linens are.
There are camblets of feveral forts, fome of
goats-hair, both in the warp and woof; others, in
which the warp is of hair, and the woof half hair
and half filk ; others again, in which both the warp
and the woof are of wool ; and laftly, fome, of which
the warp is of wool and the woof of thread. Some
are dyed in the thread, others are dyed in the piece,
others are marked or mixed ; fome are flriped, fome
waved or watered, and fome figured.
CAMEL, Camelus, in zoology, a genus of qua-
drupeds, of the order of the pecora ; diflinguifhed
from the refl by having no horns.
This genus comprehends the camel, properly fo
called, with two bunches on its hack ; the drome-
dary, or camel with a fingle bunch ; the glama, or
Peruvian camel, with a gibbofe breafl and even
back ; and the pacos, or camel with no gibbofity
at all.
The camel is larger than the dromedary, and co-
vered with a fine fur, fhorter as well as foftcr than
that of the ox kind ; only about the branches there
grow hairs nearly a foot long. It is a native of A-
fia, particularly of BacSria, and makes an excellent
beafl of burden.
CAMELEON, or Chameleon, in zoology.
See the article Cham^^leon.
CAMELLIA, in botany, a genus of plants : the
flower confifts of five ovated petals, conneded ver-
tically
y!£.4rx_ixrr
'J tii/i/t/ Caniei'a Ob.scufa
X^Vl/^^ *-/^n/p.
CAM
•tically at the bafe ; the fruit is a turbinated, I ignofc, and
furrowed capfule ; the feeds are numerous and fmall.
CAMELOPARDALIS, in -/.oology, a creature
of the deer kind, otherwife called zurnapa. See
the article Zurnapa.
Camrlopard.'^lis, in aftronomy, is a new
conftellation in the northein hemifphcre, formed by
Hevilius, confifting of thirty-two flars, firft ob-
ferved by him ; hut fince his time many more have
been obferved, and their places fettled. This con-
ftellation is fituated between Cepheus, CalTiopeia,
Perfeus, the two Bears, and Draco. The right
afcenfion, declination, with the variation, &c. to
the year 1770, is exhibited in the following cata-
looue.
-0
Name.
flj
Right
Afcenfion
Diftance
from Nor.
Pole.
Var.in
Riglit
Var.ir.
Decli-
I
s
a
Alccn.
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1 ig.20.22
CAMERA Obscura, in optics, a machine,
reprcfenting an anificial eye, wherein the images of
objedls are exhibited diflindly, and in their native
colours, either invertedly, or erefl.
The camera obfcura, or dark chamber, is of two
kinds. The one is no other than a convex lens
fixed in a hole of a window-fliutter, which lens,
when no other light is permitted to enter the room,
except what pafTes through ir, will reprefcnt all the
external objedls, that are vifiblc through that hole,
upon a white paper held at the focal diftance of the
lens, painted in their proper colours; but the ob-
jelSls will be rcprefented inverted, becaufe the pen-
cil of rays that flows from the objedt croffes in the
middle of the glafs. The other fort of camera ob-
fcur.3, is that which is called the portable one, and
is of ufe in drawing landfcapes, &c.
In Plate XXV. you have reprcfented the difTe-
rent forts of cameras.
Fig. I. is of the firft kind above-mentioned,
where A B C D is the profpeiSt of a houfe, trees,
&c. E F a darkened room, or camera obfcura, on
one fide is the oiif^ure (y H of the above view in-
verted, formec^y a convex lens, fixed in a large
cylindric pole, bored through the middle of a ball,
commonly called the fky-optic-ball, which is eafily
moveable about its centre, vi'ithin a hollow zone
made of wood, and fattened to the window-fhutier
at V ; this zone confifts of two half zones fcrew-
ed together in the niidule after the ball was let in,
and the concavity of the zone hinders the light
from piiffing between it and the b.iH.
Fig. 2. is a portable camera obfcura in the form
5 Z of
CAM
of a fedan-chair, having a door behind. A is a
fmall fquare turret, in which a mirrour is placed; B
the mirrour, either of looking glafs or metal ; C the
tube in which the lens is faftened, moveable up-
wards or downwards for the convcniency of finding
a proper focus ; D the table on which the defigner
lays his paper; E the defigner's feat ; F F ledges of
wdod for ftrengthening and darkening the machine ;
G G G cthsr ledges faftened to the door, in order
to exclude the light when the door is fhut.
Fig. 3, is another camera obfcura, more portable
than the former, in the form of a pavilion, placed
on a table or flool, which is no part of the machine.
It has the fame ufe, and the apparatus on the top is
the fame as in the laih
Fig. 4. is a fmall pocket camera obfcura. The
lower part of this inftrument is a fquare box, four
inches in diameter, with a looking-glafs, E, fixed at
an angle of forty- five degrees. In the middle of
the fide B C is a fmall hole, two inches in diameter,
in which goes a tube to Aide, two inches long, and
in that a lens for the object glafs. The top part F
of this box is a piece of ground glafs, to receive
the image from the looking-glafs E. But as the
pi£lure will be very fmall, and confequently the
objects too much diminifhed ; therefore on the top
of the box C D a i, is another tube G, with a lens
of a large magnifying power, which being raifed
higher or lower, by pufiiing the tube upwards or
downwards, will fo increafe the fize of the pl<£lure,
as to make the whole view diftinft. The fore-part,
which is left opeii, may be either made like two
doors to move upon hinges, or may flide in grooves
for that purpofe, one of which is abfolutely necef-
fary on account of cleaning theglafles.
Any of the above inftrumeiits may be had of
Mr. Watkins and Smith, opticians, at Charing-
Crofs, or of Mr. Bennett in Crown-court, St.
Anne's, Wefliminfter.
Fig. 5. repreft-'nts a fe£lion of a portable camera
obfcura, through the axis of the tube that holds the
iens, and through the middle of the fquare box
and looking-glafs within it. The feftion of the
fide oppofite to the tube is not here reprefented, it
being a door that opens fidevvays ; the edges of the
Tough gljfs.at the top are placed in grooves, as be-
fore delcribed j which being taken off, it is placed
in a drawer e f at the bottom of the box ; the
looking-glafs ABC, may alfo be ^rawii out of the
groves in the fides of the box, anfl lodged in the
fame drawer. The fquare v/oodeh tube, confiding
of three parts, may be taken to pieces and packed
in the fquare hox a db c, after which the lid at the
top, and the door at the end, both being fhut and
iixt, the machine becomes more commodious for
carriage, and in lefs danger of receiving damage.
The theory of this machine is this. The rays
thut come from ths objedl P f.^R, fg. 5. after paf-
CAM
fing the lens E, are tending to form an Image ^ f r j.
but being reflefted upwards by the looking-glafs
ABC, they form an horizontal image m n 0, upon
a glafs plane, whofe unpolifhed fide lays uppermoft,
upon which a copy of the pi<9ure may be fketched
out with a black pencil, and to the fpedator facing
the objc(Sl tlie pifture appears upright.
The ufe of the camera obfcura is manifold ; it
ferves to a very good purpofe in explaining the na-
ture of vifion, and hence it is that fome call it the
artificial eye. It affords very diverting fpedfacles,
both by exhibiting images perfe<flly like their ob-
jects, and each cloathed with their native colours,
and by expreffing at the fame time all their motions,
which latter no other art can imitate. By means
of this inflrument, a perfon, unacquainted with de-
figning, may be able to delineate objefts to the
greatelt accuracy, and another, well verfed in paint-
ing, will find many things herein to perfedf his art.
Having defcribed the two forts of darkened cham-
bers, it will be necefTary to enumerate fome parti-
culars which mufl be attended to in this philofophi-
cal contrivance.
Firft, That the lens be extremely good, or free
from any veins, blebs, &c. which may diltort or
blemifli the pidure.
Secondly, That the lens be placed direflly a-
gainft the objecSl whofe pidfure you would have per-
fecStly formed to contemplate ; for if the glafs has
any other pofition to the obje(£f, the image will be
very imperfedf, indiftin£f, and confufed.
Thirdly, Care ought to be taken that the ball be
fufHciently large, and the frame in which it is placed
not too thick, that fo there be fufEcient room for
turning the ball every way, to take in as many ob-
jedfs as poflible, to render the ufe thereof more com-
pleat.
Fourthly, The lens ought to be of a jufl magni-
tude or aperture ; for if it be too fmall, the image
will be obfcure, and the minute parts not vifible at
a diftance, for want of requifite light. On the o-
ther hand, if the aperture be too large, the image
will be confufed, and become indiftindl by too
much light.
Therefore, fifthly, if by experience we find that
an aperture of two inches diameter is beft for a lens
of fix feet focal diftance, then the diameter of any
other lens of a different focal diftance, ought to be
in the fubdupiicate ratio of fix to the faid focal dif-
tance, that the 'oh]tSt, or its image rather, may be
equally bright and diftinft in both.
Sixthly, We ought not to attempt to exhibit a
piflure of objciSts in a dark room, unlefs the fun
fhines upon, or ftrongly illuminates the objedfs ;
for mere day-light is not fi)fHcient for this purpofe,
the greateft beauty in this phenomenon being the
exquifite appearance and contrails of lights and
(liadov/s, none of which can appear but from arj,
obie(5^:
CAM
C A jM
obje(£t placed in tlie fun -beams, without which
every thing looks daik and dull, and makes a diCa-
greeable figure. ,
Therefore, feventhly, the window, or the fide of
the room where the fcioptic ball is ufed, ought to
look towards that quarter cJireilly upon which the
lun fliines, that fo the illuminated fides of objefis
may prefcnt themfclves to the lens, and a['pear
more glorious in the piflure.
Eighthly, It is eafy to infer, that the bed time of
the day for this experiment is about noon, becaufe
the fun- beams are llrongeft, and of courfe the pic-
ture moll luminojs and diltimil: : alfo that a north
window is the bed: ; though, for viewing the fha-
dows in great perfecSlion, an eaft or weft window
will anfwer the end beft.
Ninthly, As the image is formed only by the re-
fiefled rays of the fun, fo due care fliould be taken
that none of the fun's direiSt rays fall on the lens in
the window ; for if they do, they will, by mixing
with the former, greatly difturb the piifture, and ren-
der it very confufed and unpleafant to view.
Tetithly, As white bodies refledl the incident
rays moft copioufly, and black ones abforb them
moft ; Co, to make the picture moft perfect, it
ought to be received upon a very white furfacc, as
paper, painted cloth, a wall, 2cc. bordered round
with black ; fo that the collateral rays which come
from on each fide the object may be ftifled, and
not fufFered to difturb the piflure by refleftion.
Thefe are the neceffary precautions for the due
ordering of the various circumftances of this expe-
riment.
VVe (hall finifli this fubjeft with an obfervation
that may be ufeful to perfons concerned in drawing ;
and that is, that if an objedl be placed juft twice
the focal diftance from the glafs without, the image
will be formed at the fame diftance from the glals
within the room, and confequently will be equal in
magnitude to the objedt itfelf.
(JA\1ERARIA, in botany, a genus of plant?,
the flower of which is a petal of a funnel-form,
with a cylindraceous long tube, ventricofe both at
the bafe and the top, a plane limb divided into five
lanceolated fegments. The fruit is compofed of two
oblong follicles, bent horizontally, obtufe at both
ends, and fending out a lobe on each fide, near
the bafe ; they have one cell, with one valve,
containing numerous, oval, and imbricated feeds,
inferted in a large oval membrane, at the bafe.
CAMERATED, among builders, the fame with
vaulted or arched.
CAMISADE, in the art of war, an attack by
furprize in the night, or at the break of day, when
the enemy is fuppofed to be a-bed.
CAMISARDS, a name given by the French to
the Calvinifts of the Cevennes, who formed a
league, and took ud arms in their own defence, in
CAAIEET, or Camdlet. Sec the article
Camelkt.
CAMLETIKE, a f ght ftuft", made of hair and
coarle filk, in the manner of camblet. It is now
out of faftiioii.
CAMOMILE. See the article CHAM^ffiME-
LUM.
Camp, in mili'.ary afTairs, the wh.ole fpace or
extent of ground in general occupied by an army
when it is in the field, and upon which all its bag-
gage is lodged.
in a ficgc, the camp is placed all along the cir-<
cumvallation, at one hundred and twenty fathoms
diftant from the line; the army faces the circum-
vallation, that is, the foldiers have this line before
them and the town behind.
The line which terminates the camp on the fic'e
of the circumvallation, is called the ke.id of the-
camp, and that which terminates it on the fide of
the town, is the tail, or rear of the camp.
The principal advantages to be confidered in
choofing a camp for an army, are to have it near
the water, in a country of forage, where the fol-
diers may find wood for dreffing their victuals ; that
it have a free communication with garrifons, and
with a country from whence it may be fupplicd
with provifions ; and, if poflible, that it be fituated
on a rifing ground, in a dry gravelly foil. The ad-
vantages of the ground ought likewife to be con-
fidered, as marfhes, rivers, woods, and enclofurcs^
and if the camp be near the enemy, with no river
or marfli to cover it, the army ought to be in-
trenched. An army always encamps fronting the
enemy, and generally in two lines, running paral-
lel about five hundred yards diftance, the horfe and
dragoons on the wing,', and the foot in the center:
fometimes a body of two, three, or four brigades,
is encamped behind the two lines, and is called the-
corps de referve. The artillery and bread-waggons
arc generally encamped in the rear of the two lines..
A battalion of foot is allowed eighty or one hun-
dred paces for its camp, and thirty or forty to the
interval between one battalion and another. A
fquadron of horfe is allowed thirty for its camp,
and thirty for an interval, or more, if the ground
will allow it.
Ths difpofition of the Hebrew encampment was
luid out by God himfelf : it was of a quadrangular
form, furrounded with an inclofure of the height of
ten hands- breadth ; it made a fquare of twelve
miles in compafs about ihe tabernacle, and within
this was another called the Levites camp. The
Greeks alfo had their camps fortified with gates and
ditches. The Spartans made their camp of a round
figure, looking upon that as the moft perfc£t end
defenfible of any form : we are not, however, to
imagine that they thought this form foeftintial to a:
camp, as never to be difpenfed with, when the cir—
cumftance of the place required it. Of the reft < f
tiic-
C A M
the Grecian camps, it may be obfervcd, that the
moft valiant of the Coldiers were placed at the extre-
mities, the reft in the middle. Thus we learn from
Homer, that Achilles and Ajax were ported at the
ends of the camp before Troy, as bulwarks on each
fide of the princes.
The camps of the Romans were generally either
of an exa6t fquare form, or elfe oblong; though
this was often accommodated to the fituaiion of the
place. They were always fortified, and a very ex-
a£t difcipline maintained in them, in order to pre-
vent furprizes from the enemy.
Camp is alfo ufed by the Siamefe, and fome o-
ther nations in the Eaft-Indies, as the name of the
quarters which they affign to the foreigners who
Come to trade wi h them.
In thefe camps every nation forms, as it were, a
particular town, where they carry on all their trade,
not only keeping their warehoufes and fhops there,
but alfo live in thefe camps with their whole fami-
lies. The Europeans, however, are fo far indulged,
thjt at Siam, and ulmoft every where elfe, they
may live either in the cities or fuburbs, as they fhall
judge moft- convenient.
Flying Camp, the ground on Vi'hich a flying ar-
my is encamped.
Camp-Diseases are chiefly a bilious, fever, ma-
lignant fever, fcurvy, fluxes, &c. Sec the articles
Fever and Campaign.
Camp-Hospital. See Hospital.
CAMPAIGN, in the art of war, denotes the
fpace of time that an army keeps the field, or is en-
camped, in oppofition to quarters.
CAMPANIFORM, or Campanulated, an
appellation given to flowers refemblino; a bell ; a
chara£leriftic, whereon Tournefort eftablifhes one
of his clafies. See'the article Botany.
The word is compounded of the Latin, campana,
a bell, Andfjima, rcfemhlance.
CAMPANULA, bell-flower, in botany, a genus
of plants, the flower of which confifts of a campa-
nulated fingle petal ; the bafe broad and impervi-
ous J the limb lightly divided into five broad, acute,
petalous fegments. The ne£tarium is fituated in
the bottom of the carolla, and is formed of five a-
cute connivent valves. The fruit is an anguhited
roundifli capfule, with three or five cells, and hav-
ing fo many foramina in the fides, for letting out
the fteds. The feeds are numerous and fmall, and
the receptacle fixed and columnar.
C^M?l:^CU.Y-V^oo•D,• Camped a, in botany,
the fiiinc with the haematoxylum of Linnaeus, other-
wife called logv.'ood.
It is brought to us in large and thick blocks or
Ipgs, and is the heart only of the tree which pro-
duces it. It is very heavy, and remarkably hard.
It is not eafily cut, but it fplits pretty readily in a
Jonaitudinal direflion.
Campeachy-wood muft be cho.'en in large and
2
C A M
thick pieces, found, and of a deep red colour. It
has been long known among the dyers ; hut it is only
of late that it has been introduced into medicine. It
is found to be an excellent aftringent, and is given,
in form of an extracSl, in diarrhoeas, with very great
fuccefs.
CAMPHOR, in the materia mcdica, a body of
a particular nature, being a mixed fubflance, dry,
white, tranfparent and brittle, and of a very pene-
trating fmell.
There are fundry Indian plants from which ca.m-
phors are obtainable, but only two which afford
any large quantity, and from which this commodi-
ty is commonly prepared, one growing in Sumatra
and Borneo, the other in Japan, ;.s particularly a-
bout Satfiima. The firft is called by Breynius cam-
phorifera Sianatrana, &c. the camphor-tree of Su-
matra, with leaves like thofe of the clove-tree, but
longer pointed, a large oblong fruit, and a very
large cup, fomewhat refembling a tulip : the latter,
camphorifcra Japonlca, &c. the camphor- tree of Ja-
pan, with bay-like leaves, a fmall globular fruit,
and a very fhort cup. The camphor of the Japan
fpecies is the only fort kept in the fl^ops, the other
being never brought into Europe. This tree is a-
bout the fize of a large lime, the flowers are white,
the fruit is a fmall red berry. All the parts of it
are impregnated with camphor, but the roots con-
tain moft: hence the roots are chiefly made ufe of
for the preparation of this commodity; though, in
want of fuflicient quantities of thefe, the wood and
leaves are mixed.
The camphor is extraiSted by difiillation with
water in large iron pots, on which are fixed earthen
heads ftufl^ed with ftraw ; greateft part of the
camphor concretes among the flravv in its cryftal-
line form, and a p^rt likewife pafles down into the
receiver along with the water. It is faid by fome
to be extra£ted by fublimation without water ; but
by fuch a procefs, it could not avoid receiving from
the woody matter an empyreumatic fmell, v/hich it
is never found to have. The rough camphor, as
firft diftilled, looks much like the grey, fmall-cry-
ftalled Eaft-Indian falt-petre, or like common bay-
falt : in this ftate it is imported in canifters into Eu-
rope, particularly into Holland, and there purified
or refined.
The refining of camphor was formerly one of
the manufactures of Venice, the Venetians being
then the only people in Europe who tra.l;:d directly
to the Eaft-Indies : but that trade has Ion ^ ago paf-
fed into other hands ; the Venetian., now import lit-
tle or no camphor, and the ait o. lefining it is
known only to the Dutch. The Englilh and
French import fome rough camphor, but fend it to
Amfterdam fo be refined, having nev.j. been able to
fucceed in the procefs themfelves.
Camphor, confidered as a medicine, is a very
warm diaphoretic and antifeptic : it does not how-.
ever
CAN
ever beat the coiiflitution fo much as might be cx-
, pedled from its hot pungent taftc. I have been af-
fured by an eminent phyfician, that a fingle drop of
oil of cinnamin, though generally containing a lit-
tle expreiled oil, heats more than ten grains of cam-
phor, and an ounce of ftrong fpirit of wine more
than a whole dram. Camphor is employed likewife
in fire-works, and in fundry other arts, particularly
for varnlfhes. Camphorated varniihes excellently
prefcrve both animal and vegetable bodies, and pecu-
liarly refift worms and other infeits. Camphor, in
fubftance, alfo laid among clothes, preferves them
from moths.
CAMPION, in botany, a name fometimes given
to the lychnis. See the article Lychnis.
Vifeous Campion. See Silene.
CAMPUS, in antiquity, a fpace of ground in
cities, left without any buildings, not unlike what
we call fields or fquares.
Campus Maii, in ancient cufloms, an anni-
verfary affembly of our anceftors held on May-
day, when they confederated together for defence of
the kingdom againft all its enemies.
Campus Martius, among the Romans, a
field by the fide of the Tyber, where the youth ex-
ercifed themfelves in warlike exercifes. It was fo
called on account of a temple that flood on it, con-
fecrated to the god Mars.
CANAL, Canalis, in hydrography, a kind of
artificial river, made for the convenience of water-
carriage.
Canals are contrived for various purpofes, fome
for forming a communication between one place
and another ; as the canals between Bruges and
Ghent, or between Bruflels and Antwerp ; others
for the ornament of a garden, or houfeof pleafure, as
thofeof Verfaille3,Fontainbleau,or St. James's Park.
Egypt is full of canals, dug to receive and diftri-
bute the waters of the Nile at the time of its inun-
dation : thefe however are dry the reft of the year,
except the canal of Jofeph, and four or five others,
which may be ranked as confiderable rivers.
Canals of communication are artificial cuts,
commonly furnifhed with locks and fluices, and
fuftained by banks or mounds, in order to make a
.quicker paflage, and fhorten the way between one
place and another, by means of veffels.
Store of navigable canals and rivers is one of the
marks of good policy in a country ; in which rc-
fpe<5l Italy, the Netherlands, ami France, but efpe-
ciallyChina, abound as much as England is defe<Sive.
In China indeed there is fcarcely a town or vil-
lage but what has the advantage of an arm of the
fea, a navigable river, or a canal, by which means
navigation is rendered fo common, that there are
aimoft as many people on the water as land : but
in England we have only one remarkable canal,
and that made by other people, and futfered to de-
cay by ourfelves ; that is, the ancient canal from the
24
CAN
river Ncn, a little below Peterborough, to the ri-
ver Witham, three miles below Lincoln, called by
the modern inhabitants Cacdike; which may be
ranked amongft the monuments of the Roman
grandeur, though ;ilm()it filled up now. It was for-
ty miles long ; and, fo far as appears from the ruins,
nuilt: have been very broad and deep. Some au-
thors take it for a Danifh work. Morton will have
it made under the emperor Domitian : urns and
medals ha\x been difcovered on the banks of this
canal, which fcem to confirm that opinion.
The canal of Languedoc, called alfo tlie canal of
the Hvo fcas, as ferving to join the Mediteriancan
and Cantabrian feas, was firfl: propofed under Fran-
cis I. but begun and finifhed under Louis XIV.
By means of it a ready communication is made be-
tween the two fertile provinces of Guyenne and
Languedoc; the canal is fixty-four leagues long,
extended from Narbonne to Tholoufe, and, receiv-
ing feveral little rivers in the way, fuppoi ted at pro-
per intervals with one hundred and four fluices. In
iome places it is conveyed over aquedufls and
bridges of incredible height, built on purpofe,
which give paffage underneath to confiderable ri-
vers. What is moft extraordinary is, that in fome
places, for a mile together, a paflage is dug out for
it through the rock. The expence was thirteen
millions of livres, of which the king contributej
feven, and the province of Languedoc the reff.
The canals of Briere and Orleans are alfo of
very great ufe for the fame purpofes.
The canal of Egypt, for a communication be-
tween the Nile and the Red Sea, was begun, ac-
cording to Herodotus, by Necus, fon of Ffamme-
ticus, who defifted from the attempt, on an anfwer
from the oracle, after having loft fix-fcore thoufand
men in the enterprize. It was rcfumed and com-
plcated by Darius, fon of Hyftafpes, or, according
to Diodorus and Strabo, by Ptolemy Philadelphus ;
who relate, that Darius relinquifhed the work, on
a reprefentation made to him by unfkilful engineers,
that the Red Sea, being higher than the land of E-
gypt, would overwhelm and drown the whole
country. It was wide enough for two galleys to
fail abreaft; its length was four days falling. It
feems to have been opened anew by the caliph O-
mar, in the year 635. Elmacin indeed fays, that
a new canal was then made for the conveyance
of the corn of Egypt to Arabia ; but this is more
naturally underllood of a ren)oval of the ancient
one ; the navigation of whi.h, towards the decline
of the Roman empire, had been much negleded :
there are fome traces of it however flill fubfifting.
The great canal of China is one of the wonders
of art, made about eight hundred years ago. It
runs from north to fouth quite crofs the empire,
beginning at tlie city Canton. By it all kinds of
foreitrn merchandize, entered at that city, are carried
diredily to Pekin, a dift^nce of eight hundred and
6 A twenty-
CAN
twenty-five miles. Its breadth and depth are fuffi-
cient to carry barks of confiderable burden, which
are managed by fails and mafts, as well as towed
by hand. On this canal the emperor is faid to em-
ploy ten thoufand fliips, abating one for a reafon
very particular. It pafl'es through, or bv, forty-one
Jarge cities ; there are in it feventy-five vaft locks and
flwices to keep up the water, and pafs the barks and
fhips, where the ground will not admit ot a fuffi-
•cient depth of channel, befides feveral thoufand
draw, and other bridges on it.
The Spaniards have feveral times had in view the
digging a canal through the ifthmus of Darien,
from Panama toNombre deDios, to make a ready
communication between the Atlantic and the South-
fea, and thus afford a ftraight pafTage to China and
the Eaff-Indies.
Canal of an aqueduiTl, is the part through
ivhich the water paflls ; which, in the ancient edi-
fices of this kind, is lined with a coat of maftic of a
peculiar compofitton.
Canal, is anatomy, a duel or paflage through
■which any of the juices flow : as, i. The femi-cir-
cular canals, didinguiflied by the epithets of the
largeft, the middle one, and the fcaft, in the laby-
rinth of the car, opening by five orifices into the
■velHbule. 2. The canals of the auditory nerve,
viz. the common and larger, in which tlvere are
little apertures into the labyrinth, and the proper,
narrower, and longer, terminating partly by a lit-
tle aperture in the cavity of the cranium, and part-
ly in the aqueduit of Fallopius. 3. The canalis
arteriofus, between the pulmonary artery and the
aorta of a fcetus, which ferves for a peculiar circu-
lation in the foetus. 4. The nalal canal. 5, The
fanalis femi'runaris. And 6. The canalis venofus.
See the article F'oETUs, Nose, &c.
Canal of the Larmier, the hollowed platfond,
or foffito ot a cornice, which makes the pendent
mouchctte. See the articles of Larmier and
SOFFITO.
Canal of the Volute, in the Ionic capital, the
face of the circumvolutions inclofed by a liitel.
CANALICULATE, or Canaliculated,
fomething hollowed in the manner of a canal ;
thuRwefaya canaliculated leaf, acanaliculatej ftalk.
CANARY-BIRD,, PafcrCanarhnfa, the Lng-
lifh name of the wbitifh iringilla, with the wings
snd tail greenifh.
Canary birds are natives of the Canary Iflands,
•whence they have got their name ; bu-t the melody
of their voice is fo fwect, that there are few nations
in Europe which do not keep theni in cages, where
[hev very readily breed,^
Canarv-Grass, See the article Grass.
CAN-BUOY. See the artle Buoy.
CANCER, thccrab, inzoolog-y, the name of a
■well-known fhell-fifh, of which there are a great
■snany fjgcciesi as the common large crab, the f^ider-
CAN
crab, the Molucca-crab, or king-crab, the little
woolly-crab, the prickly long-armed crab, &c.
Cancer, in furgery, a roundifli unequal hard
livid tumour, generally feated in the glandulous
parts of the body, and at length appearing with
turgid veins, /hooting out from it fo as to refemble,
as it is thought, tlie figure of the crab-fifh, or,
as others fay, becaufe, like that fifh, when once it
has got hold, it is fcarce poflible to drive it away.
Cancerous, or fcirrhous tumours, often appear
fpontaneoufly without any evident caufe, and feem
peculiar to certain conftitutions ; at others, they
may be accidental, or proceed from fharp ccrrofive,
or other coagulated juices in the body, errors in the
non-naturals, a ftoppage of the neceffary evacua-
tions, contufions, ftagnation, or coagulation of the
milk in the breaft, &c. The immediate caufe of
a cancer feems to be a too corrofive volatile fait,
approaching to the nature of arfenic, formed by
the ftagnation of humours, &c. Stolterforth ob-
ferves, that it has been frequently cured by mercury
and falivation. Some take an ulcerous cancer to
be nothing elfe but an infinite number of little
worms, which devour the fiefh by degrees. The
cancer is allowed to be the mofb terrible evil that
befalls the body ; it is ufually cured, while yet a
fmall tumour of the bignefs of a nut, or at moft a
fmall egg, by extirpation; when it feizes the breaft,
or is burft into an ulcer, amputation takes place.
It begins without any pain, and appears at firft like
a chicory pea, but grows apace, and becomes very
painful. The cancer arifes principally on the lax
and glandulous parts, as the breafts and emundt©-
ries : it is mofl frequent in women, efpccially fuch,
fays Stolterforth, as are barren, or live in celibacy.
The reafon of its appearing in the breafts, more
than other parts, is, they being full of glands, witk
lymphatics and blood-vefl't;ls among them, the
fmalleft contufion, compreffion, or pun(flion, extrr.i-
vafates thofe liquors, which grow by degrees acri-
monious from the cancer. Hence the mafters of
the art fay, that a cancer is that in the glands,
which a caries is Ln the bones, and a gangrene in the
fieftiy part.
The cancer is, however, found in other foft
fpongy part; of the body; and there have beea
fome found in the gums, belly, neck of the mar
trix, ureters, lips, nofe, cheeks, abdomen, thighs,
and even in the fhoulders, as Stolterforth proves. A
cancer arifing on the leg is called a lupus ; or in
the face or nofe, a noli me tangere. Cancers ars
divided, according to their feveral ftages, into oc-
cult and open, or ulcerated : occult cancers are
thofe not arrived at their ftate, or not yet burft ; ul-
cerated cancers are known by their roughnefs and
fulnefs of holes, through which oozes a filthy ftink-
ing glutinous matter, frequently yellovvini ; by their
pungent pain, which refemb'es the pricking of pins ;
by their blacktiefs, the fwellitig of the lij« of the
ulcer,,
CAN
ulcer, and the veins about it, \vhii;h arc blackifli,
tumid, and varicofe : fometimcs the extremities of
the blood-veflels are gnawed oft', and the blood if-
fues out. In a cancer of the breatl, the adjacent
flefh is fometimes fo conCumed, that one may fee
into the cavity of the thorax ; it occal'ions a flow
fever, a loathing, oftentimes faintings, fometimes
a droply, and, ialtly, death.
Some cancerous tumours are moveable, others
fixed ; fome inflamed, others palilh, and attended
with pain, heat, tenfion, and pulfation. In their
beginning they are fometimes no bigger than a pea,
but often increafe gradually to the fize of a wal-
nut, egg, &c. fometimes alfo their growth is fud-
den, and at others flow, fo as to continue upon
the increafe many years together. \A'hen they ul-
cerate, the fuppuration is generally partial, the mat-
ter they difcharge feeming of an ill colour, and very
foetid.
All cancers are dangerous, and feldom give way
to the ufe of evacuating medicines, efpecially when
they lie deep, or feem ow ing to a particular confli-
tution of the patient. They alfo prove more diffi-
cult to cure, according to their fize, the nature and
office of the part they affedf, the age of the pa-
tient, &c. Some occult cancers, particularly thofe
which happen in the breafts of women, may re-
main harmlefs to the body for feveral years, and
without ulcerating ; though, upon any external in-
jury, they may afterwards increafe, break, and foon
prove mortal. In this cale, every thing that fud-
denly raifes the velocity ol the blood flaould be
carefully avoided.
The learned Dr. Stork, of Vienna, has publifh-
ed two pieces on the virtues of cicuta, or hemlock,
in the cure of cancers, arxi given many remarkable
cafes in which it was attended with fuccefs. Experi-
ments of the fame kind have alfo been made in Eng-
land, fome of which have fucceeded, while others have
totally failed of fuccefs: fo that the virtues of the
hemlock in curing this terrible difeafe are not yet
properly eflablilhed. See the a-rticle Cicuta.
Cancer, in aftronomy, is one of the twelve
figns of the zodiac, reprefented on the globe, in
the form of a crab, as in Plate XXVI. It is the
fourth fign, reckoning from the point Aries, and
gives name to one of the quadrants of the ecliptic.
According to Ptolemy it contains thirteen flars,
Tycho Brahe fifteen, Bayer and Hevilius twenty-
nine, but in theBritifli Catalogue eighty-three.
The poets tell us, that this is the crab which bit
Hercules by the heel while he was fighting with the
ferpent Hydra in the fen Lerna ; for which lervice
the crab was placed in heaven by Juno, who was
the utter enemy of Hercules. It was not without
a great deal of propriety, that the ancients repre-
fented this fign by the crab ; for they firft took no-
tice that the fun gradually afcend?d above the equi-
aoiiidl,, till it arrived at this fign, from which itaf-
CAN
terwards declined again, and defcended as gradual-
ly, which retrograde motion tiiey very pcrtincnti/
reprefented by the fide-long, or retrograde motion
of a crab. For the places of the ftais in this con-
ftellation, fee the following catalogue.
.-•
Diftance
Name.
1-
Right
Afccnfion
rom Nor.
Pole.
V'ar. ii
V'ar. in
6
J
2
—
A.lien
Tation.
6
115.48.57
73-35.30
/i-5
8.7
2
6
i™» ad
a)
'16.35.39
63-57.58
52-7
8.9
3
6
11644.37
71. 3. 8
493
8.9
4
6
2^^ ad
w
116.48. t
64.16.16
52.4
9.0
5
6
116.57. ir
72.53-53
49-5
9.1
6
5
[J Borum
X
1 17.10.58
6i-33- 5
53-5
9.2
7
8
117.25.41
67.17.32
5'-5
9-3
h
6
"7-56- 3
76.12.57
48.5
9.4
9
7
I'^'ad
/"
1 18. 2. 9 66.42. 5]
53B
9.4
10
5
1^^ ad
M
iiS. 24.15
67. 44.16
53-4
9-5
II
1 18.31.43
61.50. 8
53-3
9.6
12
6
118.47.42
75-40-55
48.5
9.6
13
6-7
1"^ ad
^J-
118.55.25
63.27.56
53^
H
14
4
2"" ad
vf-
iig. 0. 5
63.46.22
54-5
9.8
'5
5
3'i« ad
i
'I9-33-5C
59.28.46
54.0
9.8
16
5-i
i
119.36.24
7I-38-39
51.9
9.9
17
4 3
a
120.53.22
80. 5.18
49-1
10.4
18
6
X
121.21.47
62. 0.53
53-c
1C.7
'9
6
A
121. 34. 10
65.13.30
53-c
1C.9
20
6
!"••» ad
cl
122.24.47
7c.55.j0
52.0
10-9
21
6
i22.38.29
7^-37A-5
48.C
11.
22
6,7
i™^ ad
f>
122.58. c
61.19.51
53-2
1 1.0
23
6
2"' ad
<?
123. 4. 2
62.18. 7
53-c
11. 1
24
6
!">' ad
V
123. 6.28
64.31.30
52
III
25
6
2^" ad
d
123. 4.20
72.10.21
49-2
JI-2
2b
6
3''= aJ
<p
123.14.20
61.21.16
53-0
11.2
27
6
123.22. 3
76.34.52
48.0
'1-3
28
6.7
2-^' ad
V
I23-35-46
65. 4.50
5'-7
11-3
29
6.7
123. 48. 21
75. 1.29
48.5
ii-4
30
6
^tia ad
u
124.19.48
65. 7.47
51-7
11-5
31
6.5
(,
124.29.43
71. 6.31
51.S
11.5
32'7.fe
4" ad
V
12442.21
65- 6.57
51-5
ii.b
33
6.7
y
'24-43-43
68.45-33
52.6
II-9
34
6
124.53.2fc
79. 8.43
47-2
II. 9
35
7
125.22.43
69.35.56
50.0
12.0
3&
6
i-^^ad
c
126. I.; 5
.79.32. 6
47.0
12.1
37
6
2""" ad
c
126.17. '^4
79-36.43
47-0
12.2
3S
8
S'ebul.
126.28.5;
69.23.46
50.0
12.3
39
6
Prafep.
126.34.4^
69.11.44
50.0
12.4
40
6
Jidtae
126.35 58
69. 2. 4
50.0
12.4
41
7
E
.126.41. t
.69 38.50
50.0
12.4
42'7-S
c
126.43.55
.69.16.52
50.0
12.5
43, 4
Afellur.
y
127.20.53
67.40.56
52.7
125
44I 6
Bor.
127.22.2(,
,71. 0.16
49-5
12.5
45
! 6
i^"'' ad
a
i27.3O.IC
76.29. 6
49-5
12.5
46
6
127.39.11
58.26.57
53-7
12
47
4
AfellHS
127.46.22
70.58. 29
.51-5
12 6
i^
5
Auft.
I
128. 2.11
60.22 4c
.53 c
L2.S
C A
o
i-Q
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
5
5«
59
&o
61
62
6
64
65
66
67
6!i
6q
7^
71
72
73
74
75
7&
77
7«
79
80
81
8;.
3
6
6
6
6
6
7
fa
6
56
6
5.6
4'5
6
6
6
6
4
6
6.7
6
6
6.7
n
6
6
6.7
4-5
56
6
8
7
7
6
6
Name,
p/' ad
jma ad
[">* ad
i°- ad
3'"' ad
2<ia ad
4'^ ad
2'*» ad
I"" ad
I™* ad
a"*^ ad
3"' ad
%^' ad
4'" ad
5<^ ad
6-" ad
Right
Afcenfion
128
.29,
129
1 29
129
129
(2g
129
129
130
130
(30
130
130,
31
^3^
'3i'
131
131
32.
132.
32.
132.
33'
33
33-
33
33
33
33
•34
34
134
'35
136,
55-3
27. iS
25-37
24-5;
28.52
2934
•34-43
.51.5
'53-23
1942
35
41.58
5c. 4
57-26
2.5c
II. I3
20. o
39-47
5^-3
5
9
27
55
23-25
26.33
31.22
40.11
41.54
53-56
56-57
9 47
37-50
49.10
30.20
23.27
Diflance
from Nor
Pole.'
79. 4.20
76. 2. II
56.3H.34
73- 7- 2
60.51.25
73 47-21
60.45.48
60.47. f
88.49.32
61.10. 6
56.10.50
77.28 10
5!^-5i-35
73-47- 3
73.31.20
56.39.44
77'i3-55
56.49 31
61. 9 39
71.58.59
64.37. 4
61. 9.40
71-3932
59-23-36
73-45-37
74-3044
62.23.50
7822.48
66.59.53
7I-33-5I
69. 2.42
70.59. 1
73- 3- «
74- 4-39
71.17.20
"•fix. in
.R.glu
Afcen
47-2
49-6
542
49.0
525
49.0
52-7
52.7
53-5
52-5
54.2
47 5
532
4^'-5
48.5
54.C
47-5
54-0
52.2
49.0
51.0
52.2
49.6
527
48,2
48.0
51
49
52
49
50
49-0
50.2
48.0
49.0
Var.in
Octli.
natu n
O
3
-■>
J
3
3
3
3
33
3-3
3-3
3
3
3
3
3-3
34
3-4
3-4
3-4
3-4
3-4
4
4
4
4
4
4
34
3-9
par-
ticle
CANCEROUS, fomcthing belonging to, o
taking of, the nature of a cancer. See the a
Cancer.
CANDIDATE, a perfon who afpires to fome
public office.
CANDLE, a fmall taper of tallcw, wax, or
fperma ceti ; the wick of which is commonly of
feveral threads of cotton, fpun and twifted toge-
ther.
There are two forts of tallow-candles ; the one
dipped, the other moulded : the former are the
com.-Tion candles ; the latter are the invention of the
Sieur le Breire, at Paris.
The method of making candles, in general, is
this : after the tallow has been weighed, and mix-
ed in the due proportions, it is cut into very fmall
pieces, that it may melt the fooner ; for the tallow
in lumps, as it comes from the butcheis, would be
2
CAN
in danger of burning or turning black, if it werft
left too long over the fire. Being peifedHy melted and
fkimmed, tluy pouracertam quantity of water uvoit,
proportionable to the quantity of tall 'W. This
ferves to precipitate to the bottom of the veflel the
impurities of the tallow whieh may have efcaped the
ikinimer. No water, however, mult be thrown
into the t.illow dcfigned for the three firlf dippings;
bt-cdufe the wick, being flill quite dry, would im-
bibe the water, which makes the candles crackle in
burning, and renders them of bad ule. The tal-
low, thus melted, is poured into a tub, through a
coarfe lieve of horfe-hair, to purify it ftiil more,
and may be ufed after having flood three hours.
It will continue fit for ufe twenty-four hours in
fummer, and htteen in winter.
Ihe wicks are made of (pun cotton, which the
tallow-chandlers buy in flcains, and which they
wind up into bottoms or clues : v,?hcnce they are
cut out with an infliument contrived, on purpofe,
into pieces of the length of the candle required ;
then put on the flicks or broches, or elfe placed in
the moulds, as the candles are intended to be ei-
ther dipped or moulded. Wax-candles are made
of a cotton or flaxen wick, flightjy twilled, and
covered with white or yellow wax. Of thefe there
are feveral kinds ; fome of a conical figure, ufed to
illuminate churches, and in proceffions, funeral ce-
remonies, is.C.
Eor the m-'thod of making wax-candles, fee the
article Wax-Chandler.
Sale or Au^ion by Inch of Candle, is when a
fmall piece of candle being lighted, the by-ftanders
are allowed to bid for the merchandize that is fell-
ing ; but the moment the candle is out, the com-
modity is adjudged to the laft bidder.
There is alfo an excommunication by inch of
candle, when the finner is allowed to come to re-
pentance, while a lighted candle continues burn-
ing ; but after it is confumcd, he remains excom-
municated to all intents and purpofes.
Candle-Berry Myrtle, in botany. See the
article Myrica.
CANDLEMAS, a feaft of the church held on
the fecond day of February, in honour of the pu-
rification of the Virgin Mary. It was borrowed
from the pra£lice of the ancient Chriftians, who on
that day ufed abundance of lights both in their
churches and proceflions, in 'memory, as is fup-
pofcd, of our Saviour's being on that day declared
by Simon, " To be a light to lighten the (Jen-
" tiles."
In imitation of this cuftom, the Roman catho-
lics, on this day, confecrate all th= tpipcrs and can-
dles which they ufe in their churches during the
whole year.
CANDY, or Sugar-Q, h-a-ay , a preparation of
fugar, made by melting and cryftallizing it fix or
feven times over, to render it hard and tranfparent.
It
CAN
Tt is of three kinds, white, yellow, and red. The
whice conus from the loaf-fugar, the yellow from
the cafl'onaJo, and the red trom the mufeovado.
Sec Sugar.
Sugar-candy is mort: proper in colds, becaufe it
melts flowly, and thereby gives time to the faliva
to mix with it, and thus to blunt the acrimony of
the phlegm.
CANDYING, in pharmacy, the a£t of pre-
ferving fimples in fubllance, by boiling them in
fugar.
The performance of this originally belonged to
the apothecaries, but is now become a part of the
bufmefs of a confectioner,
Candy-Tuft, it». botany, a low-growing an-
nual plant, ufually fown in the fpring, in patches,
for the ornament of the flower-garden. There are
tw6 forts, one with purple flowers, and the other
with white : both make an agreeable appearance
when in bloflbm, and are a fpecies of the iberis,
which fee.
Tree Candy-Tuft. See the article Iberis.
CANE, a fort of walking-ftick, of which fome
are without knots, and very fmooth and even ;
others are full of knots, about two inches diftant
from each other. Thefe lall have very little ela-
flicity, and will not bend fo well as the others.
Cane Arundo, in botany. See the article
Reed.
Cane, Canna, is alfo the name of a long mea-
fure, which differs according to the feveral coun-
tries where it is ufed.
At Naples, the cane is equal to 7 feet 3^ inches
Englifh meafure ; the cane of Tholoufe, and the
Upper Languedoc, is equal to the varre of Arragon,
and contains 5 feet 8i inches ; at Montpelier,
Provence, Dauphine, and the Lower Languedoc,
to 6 Englifh feet 5^; inches.
CANELLA ALBA, wild cinnamon, in the
materia medica, the inner bark of a large hay-
leaved tree, growing in the Low-lands of Jamaica,
and other American iflands, brought over in the
form of quills ; of which fome are large and thick,
taken from the trunk of the tree ; others flenderer
and thinner, from the branches, having generally
pieces of a wrinkled brownifli coat adhering to the
outfide, lined on the infiJe with a fine v.'hite mem-
brane, breaking over with a clofe even furface, and
appearing internally of an unequal, pale, brownifli
or yL-llowifli white colour.
Canella albi has hitherto been rarely employed in
medicine, unlefs as a fubfiitute for winter's bark,
which it pretty much refembles, and has been com-
non'y miffaken for. The London college has n^^w
rectii ed it in twoofficinal compofitions for alkviaiino'
the ill flavour of aloes. It is a moderately warm
aiomatic, of an agreeable fincll, fomewhat refeni-
bling that of cloves, but fur weaker ; and of a
24
CAN
pungent tafle, accompanied with a canfideraUc
bitternefs.
CANEl'flOR/F,, in Grecian antiquity, virgins
who, when they became marriageable, prcfented
certain baflccts full of little curiofities to Diana, in
order to get leave to depart out of her train, and
change their flate of life.
CANEPHORIA, in Grecian antiquity, a cere-
mony which made part of a ici^. celebrated by
the Athenian virgins, on the c\e of their marria"e
day.
Canephoria is alfo the name of a fcflival of
Bacchus, celebrated particularly by the Athenian",
on which the young maids carried golden baflzets
hill of fruit ; which bafkcts were covered to con-
ceal the myftery from the uninitiated.
CANES VENALICI, or The two Hounds,
in aflronomy, a new conftellation of the northern
hemifphere. Thefe two hounds are reprefented on
the globe coupled together by the neck, and held
in a firing by Bootes. This conftellation contains
twenty-five ftars, their places, &c. are as in the fol-
lowing catalogue.
_.
X,
r> * T i
1 Diftance
1
Name.
s
f.,. ^.- liom Nor.
Afcenhon.U ,
Var.ii
Right
Vjr.in
Decli-
s
-1
I'oie.
.Afccn.'nati.in
" / //
/ //
f/
/f
5
1H0.44.17
35 1325
44 5
20.0
6
181. 4.49
48. 0. 5
44-2
I2O.O
6
181. 59. J.?.
394035
43-0
20.0
6
183. 0.27
46 7.20
43-5
20.0
6
'«3 557
37- 6.25
43-2
20.0
5
e
183-30 37
49.38.40
43-5
20.0
7
184.43.16
37- 7-53
42-5
20.0
4-5
b
185.3631
47-20.40
42.7
199
6.7
J 86.49. 6
47.47.46
42.5
19.9
6
188.25.16
49-5- 8
42.0
19.9 .
6
189.26. 38
40.13- 3
41.0
199
2-3
A
101,12. 5
5023.
41.2 19 7
4-5
c
X92. 10.46
57.54.56
42 o|i9 7
5
d
I93-37-27
5254-31
41.0
19.6
65
I94-4I-IO
50.11. I
40.2
'9-5
6
194.4623
50. 9.51
40.2
'95
6
194 46 38
50.13. 0,40.2
19.4
6
•94-53 47
47 55-24 |40.o
ig-4
7
'96 1151
47.52. 9
40.0
19-3
6
196.43.18
48. 9. 2
40.0
192
6
197- 0.48
.19- 3- 4
37-2
X9.2
6
19/. 4^
38 3- 4
37 5
19 I
7
'97-24-53
^^'35- 3
3'^2
I '..9
5.6
V
201.11.23
39'45- 4
36.0
.87
5
h
201.38 13
42.38.56
37-7
18.6
I
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
II
12
'3
'4
15
16
17
18
'9
20
21
22
23
24
25
C.ANICLfLA, in afir noniy, the fame as caivis
minor. See Cams Minor.
Canicular Days, are thofe dajs, or that
6 B fpace
CAN
CAN
fpace of time, taken up by the fun in pafflng tlie
conftellution Canis major, or all thofedays in which
the fun and feme part of Canis major pafs the
meridian together, at which time Syrius, or the
dc<g-ftar, and the fun rife and fet nearly together ;
from hence they likewife are called the Dog-(iays.
The ancients, when they obfervcd the heliacal
rifing of Syrius, ufually facrificed a brov/n dog, to
appeafe its rage ; for they fuppofed it to be the
caufe of the hot, fultry weather, ufually felt in the
dog-days : but this fuppofition muft certainly be
abl'urd, for in time the dog-days will happen in
Vi'inter ; therefore, for the fame reafon, they muft
iuppofe it the caufe ot froft and fnow.
Among the Egyptians, (if we may believe feveral
hiftorians) there were more ftars than Syrius, which
they called Canicula, or the Dog-ftar, and by which
their magi prognoflicated the future events of the
year. There was one which went under the name
of Thot, and fometimes Anubis, fituated near
Cancer, which they fuppole caufed the fwelling
and finking of the river Nile. They ufually denoted
the obfei\ation of the dog-ftar by the figure of a
i'erpcnt. The figure of Anubis or That they ufually
accompanied with a full purfe, the fight whereof
■filled the people with joy.
Canicular Ye AR, among the Egyptians, de-
notes their natural year, which was computed by
one heliatical rifing of the dog-ftar to the next.
Thiis is ca!li;d Annus canarius and Annus cynicus ;
by the Egyptians themfelves the Sothic year, from
Soth, a denomination given by them to Syrius.
Some alfo call it the Heliacal year. The canicular
year confifted ordinarily of three hundred and fixty-
five days ; and every fourth year of three hundred
and fLxty-fix days, by which it was accommodated
to the civil year.
The reafon of their choice of the dog-ftar, or
Syriu?, to compute their time by, v/as not only the
Superior brightnefs of that ftar, but becaufe its he-
liacal rifing was in Egypt at a timeof fingafar note,
as failing on the
the reputed father of Egypt
CANINE, whatever partaltes of, or has any re-
lation with, the nature of a dog. Thus,
Canine Teeth, in anaiomy, are two fliarp-
cilered teeth in each javv; one on e.ich fide, placed
between the incifi jes and molares.
Canine Muscles, a pair of mufcles common
to both lips. 7 hey arife from the hollow on each
fide under the OS JDgalis, ia the os maxillare, and
aie inferted in'o the angle of the li|'s.
Canine Appktite. See Bulimy.
CANiS, dog, in zoology, the name of a com-
prehenfive genus of quadrupeds, of the order of the
fers.
They are diflinguifhed from the other genera of
ihis order, by the number of their teats, or paps,
which iu the dog kind are ten,, four on the brcuft.
jreateft augmentation of the Nile,
and fix on the belly : add to this, that their feet arc
adapted to running ; thev have five toes on the fore
ones, and four on the hinder.
Canis Major, or the Great Dog, in aftronomy,
a conflellation of the fouthern hemifphere, which,
according to Ptolemy, contains twenty-eight ftars,
Tycho thirteen, and the Britifh catalogue thirty-
one.
The poets tell us, this was the dog that Jupiter
fet to keep Europa after he hat! ftolen her away, and
conveyed her into Crete; and for his good fervices
placed him in heaven. Others fay, it was one of
the dogs of Orion ; and Njovidius will have it to
be Tobias's dog.
The right aicenfion, &c. of the ftars in this con-
flellation to the year 1770, is as follows.
-
c
J
bJD
CM
5
§
1
3
'1
2
3
4
4
5
5
5
fc
5
7
5
8
5
9
I
ic
6
ri
5
12
6
'3
5
H
5
IS
6
16
5
1/
6
18
4
•9
6
20
4
ii
3-2
It
4
-^3
3
-M
5'4
^5
2-3
26
7
-
-/
/
2S
5
2';
5
3^
5
3'
3-2
Name.
i""' ad
2''^ ad
jma ad
2'*' ad
3''' ad
Syrius
J ma j(J
' ad
' ad
ad
otra a J
^da ad
Right
Afcenfion
Diftance
from NorJ"^"-'"
Pole.
Right
Afcen.
92. 50.41
93- 3-37
93.24- 9
95.28.35
96.15.46
96.28.59
96-33-47
96.50.54
98.40.13
98.59.43
98.59. c
99.10.11
100. 6.ig
100.46. 6
100.47. 2
101. 2 48
101. 9.59
IOI.17.31
101. 1.8.35
101.22 36
102.15.53
103. 0.1^1
103.14. 9
107.15^2 1
104.37.17
105.34,21
106. 5.42
ic6. 14.53
107. 8.46
107. 9.59
'•ioS-37-35
119.57,
107.50
123.18
113.15.
112.47.
108.28.
109. 3.
108. 2.
106.22,
120.50,
104.10.
110.46
122.14
101.43
109.57
113-53
1 10. 7
103-44
109.51
106.46
118.39
i'7-35
105.17
113.29
116. 1
•15-32
115.56
116.22
114. 7
114-31
118.50
30
3
40
II
II
17
48
36
25
31
55
5'
3'
'59
•23
34
32
•43
17
.21
Var. in
Dech.
nation
38.0
40-3
31-5
36.0
36.2
37-2
37-5
38.0
40.4
327
39-2
37-0
32-2
40.2
37-2
36.C
37-2
39-5
37-2
38.5
340
342
40.8
36.0
.16136.7
59' 35-2
42j35-o
45 35-0
46 36.0
•13 35-7
301 35-7
i.o
I.I
1.4.
1-7
1.9
2-3
2.6
2.8
3-0
3-1
32
3-3
3-4
3-5
3-6
3-7
3-8
3 9
4.1
5.?
6.0
6.2'
6.4
Canis Minor, or the Lejfer Dog, in aftronomy,
a conltellation of the northern hemifphere, which,
according to the Britifti catalogue, contains fourteen
ilars.
According to the fabulous ftories of the poets,.
this
CAN
ihls is the dog of Origonc, called Mers, of which
mention is made in the coiiftellation Bootes. See
Bootes.
The right afccnfion, declination, &c. as fol-
lows.
u
u
6
c
a
1
2
7.6
6
3
4
5
6
3
6
6
6
7
6
«
6
9
6
10
1.2
II
6
12
5-6
13
14
5
6
Name.
J mi ad
i"*^ ad
3"' ad
Proc)oii
Right
Afcenfion
107,
108
ic8,
108
188,
lOg,
109.
1 10,
no.
III.
ii3'
114,
114.
116.
53-55
, 7.2f,
40.5
45-23
46. o
5.50
53-56
7. II
21.22
41.22
14-34
45-17
48.38
28.20
Diftance
from Nor,
Pole.
77-53- 5
80.16.18
81.14.37
80.36.31
82.36. 5
77-31- 4
87-35-49
86.13. 3
86. 7.38
84. 9.20
78.39.48
76.50.17
87.38. 7
87. 9. 6
Var.in
Right
A It en
48.0
49-6
47. c
47.2
j-6.5
48.2
45. c
45-2
45-5
46. c
47-7
48.2
45. c
45-c
Vir. in
Decli-
nat;on.
63
6.4
6.4
6.5
6-7
6.8
6.9
7-0
7.2
7-3
7.8
8.2
8-3
9.0
CANISTER, a large tin-box, in which tea is
brought from China. They are of feveral fizes,
holding from one pound to ten of that vegetable.
CANKER, a fpeck made of a fliarp humour,
which gnaws the flefh almofl: like a cauftic ; very
common in the mouths of children.
Canker in Trees, a term ufed by our farmers
to exprefs a wound or blemifh in the trunk of a
tree, which does not heal up by nature, but will
increafe and damage, if not endanger, the whole
tree. Thefe wounds are fometimes occafioned by
accidents, as blows, or by the branches of one tree
galling another by the motion they are put into by
the winds; if this latter be the cafe, the offending
branch muft be cut ofF, or drawn another way, or
elfe all remedies are vain.
The wound muft be cut and enlarged every way
to the quick, and all the decayed wood muft be
taken clean out ; then the whole interna! furface of
the wound muft be rubbed over with tar mingled
with oil ; and after this it mult be filled up with clay
and horfe-dung mixed together, or with horfe-dung
alone, which many efleem beft of all ; in this cafe
the dung muft be hound over with a rag : hogs-
dung is by many preferred to horfe-dung for this
purpofe ; and it is proper to add to this application
the keeping of the roots cool and moiff, by laying
fern and nttiles about them. If the canker be only
in one of the boughs of the tree, the fhorteft way
is to cut off the bough at once ; if that be a large
one, it fliould be cut off at feme diftance froin the
body of the tree ; but if a finall one, it fliould be
CutofFcloie. 7'he adding a coat of dung, and
CAN
pond or river mud, about the roots of trees, if they
are fubjecfl to this from their ftanding in a dry
barren land, as is often the cafe, is a very good
cure.
CANNA, in botany, a genus of plants; the
flower of which is monopetalous, and divided into
fix parts. The laciniie ate lanccoUted, coherin" at
the bafes, of which the three exterior ones are
ereff ; the three interior ones are longer than thefe,
and two of them are credf, and one reflex. The
fruit is a roundifh, fcabrous, coronated, trifulcated
capfule, with three cells and three valves, contain-
ing fome globofe feeds.
CANNABIS, hemp, in botanv. See Hemp,
CANNACORUS, in botany,' the name ufed by
Tournefort for the canna of Linnaeus. See the
article Canna.
CANNEf^-COAL, in natural hiftory, a fub-
ftance which has a long time, though with very-
little reafon, been confounded, both by authors and
druggifts, with jet. It is dug up in many parts of
England in great abundance, particularly in Lanca-
fhire, where it is burnt as common fuel. It is
worked into toys and utenfils of various kinds,
under the name of jet,
CANNEQUINS, white cotton-linens brought
from the Eait-Indies, a very proper commoditv Vor
trading on the coait of Guinea.
CANNON, in military affairs, the machine? ufed
with gunpowder, were at firft called cannon, or
bombards : but this cuftom has long fince been
changed. That which is now called a cannon is
a fire-arm of brafs or iron, long and round, con-
cave within, and thicker at the end oppofite to its
opening than at the opening, which is called it»
mouth. See the article Artillery,
Its principal parts are,
Plate XXVII, Fig. i.
The breech A, and its button, orcafcabel. The
breech is the folid metal from the bottom of the
concave part to the cafcabel, which is the extremity
of the cannon oppofite to its mouth.
The trunnions I. fland out on each fide like aa
arm, and fcrve to fupport the cannon : on thefe it
may be poifed, and held almoft in equilibrio; I fay
almoft, becaufe the breech-end ought to be about
the thirtieth part of the weight of the piece heavier
than the other : as the metal is thicker at the breech
than towards the mouth, the trunnions are placed
nearer to the end than the other.
Fig. 2. Reprefents a twenty four pounder divided
longitudinally v.'ith the bore or chnfe, which is all
the interior or concave part of the cannon ; and the
little chamber of the breech that receives the powder
by which the cannon is fi^ed. In a twenty- foi;r
pounder this chamber is one inch and a half in
diameter, and two inches and a half in depth ; and
ill a fi.xteen pounder it is one inch. la. diameter, wi
&U6
CAN
one inch ten lines in depth. The pipe of the
touch-hole comes into this little chamber at about
nine lines from its innioft recefs in twenty- four
pounders, and at about eight in fixteen pounders.
llie pipe of the touch-hole is an aperture made
near the breech, through the whole thicknefs of the
metal, by which the powder is fired that lies within
the cannon. This hole is made in a fmall cavity
refcmbling the infide of a fcollop (hell, funk for
that purpoft in the upper- part of the piece.
The ears, or handles P, called by us maniglior.s,
or dolphins, are two rings, of the fame metal with
the piece, placed as the trunnions, only fomething
near the breech, made in the fhape of dolphins,
ferpents, &c. Through thefe is put a rope to raife
or move, mount or difmount, the cannon, which,
fufpended on the handles, ought to be in eqiiilibrio ;
that is, the breech ought not to be heavier than the
mouth.
Names cf the other parts of the cannon.
b. The platband and mouldincr of the breech.
c. The region of the touch-hole.
d. The aftragal of the touch-hole.
e. The fir ft renfort.
f. The platband and moulding of the firft ren-
fort.
g. The fecond renfort.
k. The platband and moulding of the fecond
renfort.
/. The cinfture or ornament of the chain.
m. The aftragal of the cindlure.
n. The chain.
e. The neck aftragal.
p. The neck with the border in tulip-work,
[peculiar to the French.]
q. The crown with its mouldings.
r. The mouth.
Thefe cannon difcharge, by means of gunpowder,
globes or balls of iron, called bullets.
The metal of which cannon are made, is a com-
pound of copper, brafs, and tin. The refpe£live
quantities of each of thefe, which flioulJ enter into
this compofition, is a point not decided ; every
founder has his own propofitionf, which are peculiar
to himfelf: but the common proportion of thefe in-
gredients to a quantity of metal, is one-third of
copper, one-fourth of brafs, and one-feventh of
tin ; for example, to two hundred and four pounds
-of metal fit for calling, they put fixty-eight pounds
of copper, fifty-two pounds of brafs, and twelve
pounds of tin.
With rtfpc'6l to iron cannon, their ftiu£lure is the
fame with the other ; they are not however capable
of the fame refiftance as thofe of brafs, but they
coft much Icfs. Thefe are commonly uftd oafliip-
board, and on fome occafion^ on 'here.
Cannon are of different fize<, in proportion to
wliich they difcharge bullets of more or kls weight.
2
CAN
Cannon were formerly made to carry a thirty-
three pound, a forty-eight pound, and even a
ninety-fix pound bullet ; and M. Saint Ramy ob-
ferves, in his Memoirs, that there is frill one of
this laft fort in the city of Strafburg ; but the largeft
battering-pieces now commonly caft are thofe which
carry a bullet of twenty-four pounds weight, and
which are therefore called twenty-four pounders ;
and the largeft made on board his majeft)'s fhips are
forty-tv/o pounders ; but thefe are generally brafs,
and confined to (hips of the firft rate in our
navy.
Cannon generally take their names from the
weight of the bullets which they difcharge ; thus
a piece that difcharges a bullet of twenty-four
pounds, is called a four-and-twenty pounder ; one
that carries a bullet of fixteen pounds, is called a
fixteen pounder ; and fo of the others.
Cannon arc alfo diftinguifhed by the diameter of
the mouth, or bore, which is generally called the
caliber of the piece; fo if this diameter is three,
four inches, &c. the cannon is faid to be a piece of
three, four, &c. inches caliber.
The diameter of the bullet, or ball, ought to be
about two lines, or two-twelfths of an inch, at
leaft lefs than the bore of the piece, that it may be
difcharged with the greater eafe, and not damage
the piece by rubbing it loo forcibly in its pafTage j
this is called the vent of the bullet.
When the diameter of a bullet and its weight are
known, it is eafy to find the weight of all bullets,
having the diameter given, and the diameter of all
bullets, if the weight be given. Geometry has
furniftied certain rules for effeifting this, which are
mentioned among the ufcs of the fedfor.
The twenty-four p'-.unders are ufed in fieges to
batter and deftroy fortifications ; their length is
eleven feet, including the length of the cafcabel ;
and their weight ought to be five thoufand four
hundred pounds, or upwards; their bore is about
five inches, eight line, and confequently the bullets
they carry are about five inches, fix lines diameter."
Befides thefe pieces of twenty-four pounders,
there are others, viz. fixteen, twelve, eight, and
lour pounders.
The fixteen pounders are called demi-cannon, or
culverins ; their bore is four inches, eleven lines ;
they carry balls of four inches, nine lines diameter;
their length is about ten feet, fix inches, and their
weight four thoufand, two hundred pounds at moft :
there are fome longer, and, among others, the
piece, called the culverin of Nancy, from its having
been cait in that city.
It is now common to call any piece a culverin,
which is longer than other pieces of t'~e fame bore.
The twelve pounder carries bullets of four inches, S
three lines diameter ; its length is about ten feet, "
and its weight three thoufand two hundred pounds
at molt.
The
CAN
The eight pounder is called a baflard or demi-
caniion j its length is about eight feet, ten inches ;
its weight ought to be two thoufand, one liundrcd
pounds at molt ; it carries a ball of about three inches,
ten lines diameter.
I he four pounder, inoyqnne, or middle fize,
ought to be fcven feet, three inches in length ; its
■bore is about three inches, two lines, and by, confe-
<juence, the bullet it carries is no more tlian three
inches diameter; the weight of this piece ought to
be one thoufand, one hundied and fifty pounds.
Befides thefe pieces, there are others iiill lefs,
that carry irom two pounds to a quarter of a pound
bail i thtfe are called falconets : their length is
about leven feet, and thcif weight varies from tight
hundred down to one hundred and fifty pounds.
The metal of cannon is not equally thick in all
parts, but is in fome meafure proportioned to the
force of the powder which it is to rehlf ; at the
breech, where the efFort is ftrongeft, the thickn.fs
of the metal is equal to the diameter of the bullet
of the piece ; at the firH renfort, wliere the force
begins to diminifli, the thicknefs is fomewhat lefs
than at the bieech ; at the fecond, where the force
is further dimini/hed, the thicknefs is lefs than at
the firit ; and, by the fame rule, the chace has lefs
thicknefs than tlie fecond renfoit. The thicknefs
of the chace gradually diminifhes from the trunnions
to the mouth of the piece. W a cannon was with-
out cafcabel, or button, trunnions, and mouldings, it
would exactly refemble the fruftum of a cone, or a
cone, the fmall end being cut ofF.
It the diameter of the ball be divided into twelve
«qual parts, the thicknefs of the metal at the breech
of the piece will be equal to the whole twelve ; to
eleven at the end of the lirft renfort, nine and a half
at the end of the fecond, feven and a half at the
neck aflragal, the fame at the extremity of the
chace ; and at the greateft protuberance of the
border, or mouldina: at the muzzle, eioht and a
half.
With refpecl to the length of the piece, if it is
divided into (even equal parts, from the extremity
of the platband of the breech, to the extremity of
the mouth, the firft renfort will be two of tliefe
parts ; the fecond renfort will terminate at the end
of the third part, which is alfo the place of the
trunnions; and the four remaining parts will be the
length of the chace.
The lengch and thicknefs of each trunnion are
«qual to the uiameter of the piece, and the length
ot the cafcabel is two diameters of the bullet.
Aii thefe proportions have been eftabliihed by ex-
perience, which has (hewn, (hat cannon, in which
they were nearly obferved, have been capable of
doing good fervice ; I (iy nearly, bccaufe they ate
not kept with a geometrical exacfnefs. Le Blo'ui's
Elements of IVar. See the articles Caiiri.-\GE,
Chamber, and Charge.
24
CAN
CANNULA, in furgery, a tube made of dif-
ferent metals, principally of lilvcr and lead, but
fometimes of iron.
They are introduced into hollow ulcers, in order
to facilitate a difcharge of pus or any other fubftance ;
or into wounds, either accidental or artificial, of
the large cavities, as the thorax or abdomen : they
are ufed in the operation of bronchotomy, and by
fome, after cutting for the ftone, as a drain for the ■
urine.
Other cannulas are ufed for introducing cauteries,
either adlual or potential, in hollow parts, in order
to guard the parts adjacent to that to be cauterized
from injury. They are of various ligurcs ; fome
being oval, fome round, and others crooked.
Canoe, in the marine, a fort of Indian boat
or vefl'el formed of the trunk of a tree hollowed,
and fometimes of feveral pieces of the bark faftened
together.
Canoes are of vai ious fizes, according to the coun-
tries where thev are formed, or the ule for which
they may be dehgned : the largeil are made of cotton-
tree, fome of which will carry between twenty or
thirty hoglheads of fugar or molafles ; fome are
made to carry fail, and for this purpofe are fteeped
in water till they become pliant, and then their
fides are extended with ftrong beams, on which a
deck is afterwards laid. The other forts v^xy rarely
carry fail, unlefs when going afore the wind ; their
fails, for this purpofe, are fometimes made of a kind
of ruflies or filk-grafs. They are commonly
rowed with paddles, which are pieces of light
wood, fomev.'hat refembling a corn-fhovel ; and
inftead of wielding the paddle horizontally, like an
car, they row perpendicularly. The fmall canoes
are very narrow, having only room for one perfon
in breadth, and eight or nine lengthwa)'s. The
rowers, who are generally negroes or American
favages, are very expert in moving their paddles
uniformly, and in b.illancing them properly with
their bodies, which would be difiitult for a ftranger
to do, how well accuftomed foevtr to tlie manage-
ment of European boats, bccaufe the canoes are ex-
tremely light, and liable to be overturned.
I'he American Indians, when they are neceffitated
to land, to avoid a water-fall, or to crofs the land
from one river to another, carry their canoes on their
heads, till they arrive at a place where they can launch
them again.
There is a Greenland canoe in the repofitory of the
Royal Society covered with feal-lkins, and refem-
bling a great bladder, fo that however the waves
dafl) over ir, the perfon who manages it fits fate.
Canon, in eccletiaitical alfoirs, a peifon who
podefles a revenue allotted for the performance of
divine fervice in a cathedral or coUtgiaie church.
Canon of Scripture, a catalogue or lift ot the
infpired writinos, or fuch bocks of the Bible as are
Called canonical, bi,caufe they are in the number of
6 C thofe
CAN
thofc books which are looked on as lacrcd, in oppo-
fition to thofe which either are not acknowledged as
divine books, or are rtjeiSled as heretical and fpijri-
ous, and are called apocryphal.
The canon of Scripture may be confidered either
as Jewilh or Chrillinn, with refpc6l to the facicd
writings acknowledged as fuch by the Jews, and
thofe admitted by the Chriftians.
The firft canon, or catalogue of ihefacred hooks,
was made by the Jews ; but who was the author of
it is not fo certain. The five books of Mofes wcie,
quettionlefs, collected into one body within a fhort
time after his death ; fmce Deuteronomy, which is
an abridgment of the other four, was laid in the
tabernacle near the ark, according to the command
he gave to the Levites : fo that the firft canon of the
facred writings confided only of the five hooks of
Mofss. There were no more added to them till the
diviilon of the ten tribes; fmce the Samaritans ac-
knowledge none elfe. However, fmce I\1ofcs, there
were feveral prophets and other writers divinely in-
fpired, who compofcd either the hiftory of their
time", or prophetical books, and, divine writings,
or pfalms to the praife of God; but it cannot be
difcovered that, any time before the captivity, they
were colle6ted into one body, and comprized under
one and the fame canon. It is evident that, in our
Saviour's time, the canon of the Holy Scripture was
already drawn up, fmce he cites the law of Mofes,
the prophets, and the pfalms, which are the three
forts of books of which that canon is compofed,
and which he often ftyles the Scripture, or the Holy
Scripture.
It is generally received that Ezra was t!ie princi-
in\ author of this canon, though Nehemiah had
fome fliare in it ; and that he re-eftdbli.'hed, cor-
rected, and ordered the facred books to be written
in new characters.
The Jewifh canon is generally called the canon
©f Ezra; but it is certain, that ail the books were
rot received into the canon of the Scriptures in his
tmie ; for .Vialachi, it is fuppofed, lived afttr him ;
and, in Nehtmiah, mention is madeof Jaddua tlie
high-priefh, and of Darius CodomaniK, a king of
Perfia, who lived at leaft a hundred years after his
time. Dr. Prideaux, with great appearance of rea-
fon, fays, it is niofl probable, that the two books of
Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, and Either, as well as
Malachi, vveie afterwards added in the time of
Simeon the Jufl; a.nd th^itit was not till then th&t the
Jcvvilh canon of the Holy Scripture was fully com-
plettd. And, indeed, thefe iaft books fecm very
much to want tiie accuracy and fkill of Ezra, in
their publication ; for they fall fhort of the exafinefs
found in the other parts of the Hebrew Scriptures.
There are fome authors who pretend, that the Jews
have made one or more canons ; and thai: they have
added to the firmer the books of Tobit, J-udithj
icclefsaflicus., Wifdoni, and the- Maccabees ; but
CAN
it is moft evidently true, that the Jews had no
other canon but that of Ezra, nor confeflcd any
other books for facred, but thofe it contains, The
two affemblies of the fynagogue, which, as it is
pretended, were held for that purpofe, are mere
chimeras ; nor have any ancient writers faid any
thing of them.
As for the Chriflian church, there is no doubt
but it acknowledged thofe books to be canonical
v/hich were cited, as of divine authority, by Chrifl
and his apoflles ; the ancient catalogues of the cano-
nical books of the Old Teffament, which are to be
met with in Chriftian writings, are conformable to
the canon of the Jews, and contain no other books ;
the Chriftian church, for feveral of the firft ages,
receiving the infpired writings no farther than the
Jewifli canon. The firfl:, and moft ancient cata-
logue of this kind, is that of Melito, bifhop of
Sardis, who flourilhed in the reign of Marcus An-
toninus. It agrees with the Jewifli canon, except-
ing his omifTion of Eft her, and that he makes Ruth
and Judges two books. Origen has given us a lift
of the facred books, in which he takes in Efther,
and joins Ruth with Judges. St. Gregory Nazianzen
divides the books of Scripture into hiftorical, poeti-
cal, and prophetical : he reckons twelve hiftorical
books, viz. the five books of Mofes, v/ith Jofliua,
Judges, Ruth, the two books of Kings, Chronicles,
and Efdras. Eive poetical books, Job, Daniel, and
the three books of Solomon. Five prophetical
books, viz. four great prophets, and twelve fmall
ones. The council of Laodicea was the firft fynod
in which the number of the canonical books was
afcertained ; this council afligns on!/ twenty-two
books to the OldTcftament, including Efther, and
joining Baruch and the Lamentations with Jeremialv.
St. Epiphanius reckons twenty-feven canonical books
of the Old Teftament; yet he admits no more than
are in the catalogue of Origen, and obferves that the
Jews had reduced them to twenty-two. The third
council of Caiihage, in the year 397, admitted the
books of Wifdom, Ecclefiafticus, Tobit, Judith,,
and the two books of Maccabees, into the canorr.
The church of Rome has agreed herein with that
of Africa ; for Innocent 1. in his letter to Exuperius,
pldces the fame bocks in the canon of Scripture, as
pope Gelafius, in the council held in the year 494;
and the decree of pope Eugenius, and the canon of
the council of Trent, agree with the canon of thg
council of Carthage. '1 hat the council of Trent
had no prior authority to proceed on, excepting (mvs
flcnder pretence from the council of Carthage above-
mentioned, appears from the current teftimony of
the Latin church.
As to the canon of the New Teftament, it is to
beobfeivcd, that the four Evangelifts, the Afts of
the Apoftles, all the Epiflles of St. Paul, except
that to the Hebrews, and ibe firft FfilUes of St.
Pttci; and St. John, have been received as canonical.
CAN
by the unanimous confent of a'll the churches in all
times ; the Epiftle of St. James, that of St. Judc, the
fecond Epiftle of St. Peter, and the fecond and third
Epililes of St. John, were not received by ail the
churciies from the beginning, as canonical ; but
have fince been acknowledged as genuine, and
therefore admitted into the canon.
^Ve muft obferve that the canon of the New
Tcftament was neither fettled by any fynod, or
fingle authority ; this collection was formed upon
the unanimous confent of all the churches, who, by
conftant tradition, reaching to the apoflolical age,
had received fuch a number of them as were written
by infpired authors.
Canon, in monaflic orders, a book wherein the
religious of every convent have a fair tranfcript of
the rules of their order frequently read among
them, as their local ftatutes.
Canon is alfo ufed for the catalogue of faints
acknowledged and canonized in the Romifli church.
CanoNv in mufic, a fliort compofition of two
or more parts, in which one leads, and the other
follows: or it is a line of any length, fhewing, by
its divifions, how mufical intervals are diflinguiflied
according to the ratios, or proportions, that the
founds terminating the intervals bear one to ano-
ther, when confidered according to their degree of
being acute or grave.
Canon, in arithmetic, is a rule to folve all
things of the fame nature with the prefent enquiry :
thus every laft Hep in algebra is fuch a canon; and
if turned into words, is a rule to folve all queftions
of. the fame nature with that propofed. The tables
of logarithms, artificial figns, tangents, &c. are
called likevvife by the fame name of canon.
Canon-Law, a collection of ccclefiaftical laws,
ferving as the rule and meafure of church govern-
ment.
The power of making laws was exercifed by the
ehurch before the Roman empire became Chriftian.
The canon-law that obtained throughout the Wefl,
till the twelfth century, was the colle6tion of canons
made by Dionyfius Exiguus, in 520, the capitu-
laries of Charlemaign, and the decrees of the popes,
from Sircius to Analtafius.
The canon-law, even when papal authority was
at its height in England, was of no force when it
was found to contradict; the prerogative of the king,
the laws, rtatutes, and cuftoms of the realm, or the
diiffrine of the ertablifted church. The ecclefiafti-
eal jurildiclion of the fee of Rome in England was
founded on the canon-law; and this created quarrels
between kings a'ld feveral archbilhops and prelates,
who adhered to the papal ufurpation.
Belides the foreign canons, there were feveral
laws and conftitutions made here for the government
of the church ; but all thefe received their force
from the royal alTcnt ; and if at any time the eccie-
£aftical courts did, by thdi: fentence„ endeavour to
CAN
enforce obedience to fuch canons, the courJs at
common law, upon complaints made, would grant
prohibitions. The authority vefied in the church
of England of making canons, was afcertained by ^i
flatute of Henry VIII. commonly called the a£l of
the clergy's fubmifilon ; by which they acknowledged
that the convocation had been always aflembled by
the king's writ ; fothat though the power of making
canons refided in the clergy, met in convocation,
their force was derived from the authoiity of the
king's alFeiUing to, and confirming them.
The old canons continued in force till the reign
of James I. when the clergy being afilmbled in
convocation, the king gave them leave to treat and
confult upon canons; which they did, and prefc-nted
them to the king, who gave them the royal aflent ;
thefe were a colleclion out of the feveral preceding
canons and injunclions. Some of thefe canons are
now obfolete. In the reign of Charles I. feveral
canons were pafll-d by the clergy in convocation.
CANONESS, in the Romifli church, a woman
who enjoys a prebend, affixed, by the foundation,
to maids, without their being obliged to retiounte-
the world, or make any vows.
CANONESSES cf St. Augujilne, or Royal Ca-
NONESSES, a kind of religious, who follow the:
order of St. Auguftine, of which there r.re various
congregations.
CANONICAL, fomething belonging to, or
partaking of, the nature of a canon : thus we read
of canonical obedience, which is that paid by the
ini'erior clergy to their fuperiors, agreeably to t.he-
canon-law. See the article Canon-Law.
We alfo meet with canonical life, canonical
hours, &c. ufed much in the fam.e fenfe.
CANONICUM, in the Greek church, the name
given to certain fees paid by the clergy to their pre-
lates, for degrees of promotion.
CANONiSl", a perfon fkilled in, or who
makes profeflion of the canon-law. See the article
Canon-Law.
CANONIZATION, a ceremony in the Romifli.
church, by which perfons deccafed are ranked in the
catalogue of the faints.
CAHONRY, the benefice filled by a canon. le
differs from a prebend, in that the prebend may
fubfift v^ithout the canonicate ; whereas the canoni-
cate is infeparable from the prebend : again, ther
rights of fulFrages, and other privileges, are an-
nexed to the canonicate, and not to the prebend.
CANOPY, a magnificent covering, railed above-
an altar, throne, chair of ftate, pulpit, and the-
like.
The word canopy comes from the Greek xuivoTr^^iv,'
a net fpread over beds to keep off the gnats, froai
;iuvi)4', a gnat.
CANQUES, a fort of cotton cloth made in
China, which they wear next their fkin,, and is
properly their ihirt.^
CANTA*-
CAN
•CANTALIVERS, in architeaure, the fame
nearly as modillions, only the one is plain and the
other carved. They are both a kind of cartouzes
fee at equal diftances under the corona of the cornice
of a building. Cantalivers which projedt much are
at prefent out of fafhion, and with good reafon,
cfpecially in London-Streets, as they darken, by their
hanging over, the upper chambers at leaft ; and are
apt to fpread and communicate fire in cafe of a
misfortune of that fort : and befides, ufe, conve-
niency, and fimplicity are more Jaudibly fludied
than mere ornament.
CANTAR, or Cantaro, in commerce, a
weight ufed in Italy, particularly at Leghorn, to
weigh fome forts of merchandizes.
There are three forts of cantari, or quintals, one
weighs one hundred and fifty pounds, the other
one hundred and fifty-one, and the third an hun-
<lred and fixty ; the firft ferves lo weigh alum and
cheefe, the fecond is for fugar, and the third for
wool and cod fifli.
CANTATA, in mufic, a fong or compofition,
intermixed with recitative?, airs, and different move-
ments, chiefly intended for a fingle voice, with a
thorough baf«, though fometimcs for other inifru-
ments.
CANTERBURY Bell-Flower, in botany,
the Englifn name for a fpecies of the campanula.
It is a biennial plant, with oblong rough hairy leaves,
which are ferrated on their edges. From the center
arifes a ibfF, hairy, furrowed ftalk, fending out feveral
lateral branches from the bottom upwards, which are
garniflied with long, narrow, hairy, ferrated leaves,
placed alternately. From the places where the leaves
pjt forth ifl'ues out the flowers on foot-ftaiks, di-
minifting gradually upwards in a pyramidical form.
Thefe are large, and hlofTom in June. This plant
is propagated by feeds fown in the fpring.
CAN IHARIDES, in the materia medica, a
beautiful kind of fly or winged infeiS, of a bright,
fhining, greenifli, golden colour, wiih fome admix-
ture of bluirti. They were formerly brought from
Spain, and hence are ftill commonly called Spanifh
flies. Thev arc not, however, peculiar to that king-
dom, France, fome paits of Germany, and other
countries, produce abundance. It is princip.ally in
the fpring, and on the poplar and afh-trce^, that they
are met with.
The ufual way of killing them is by the fleam of
ftrong or difiilled vinegar. The flies are put into a
clean pot, which is covered with a hair cloth, and
then inverted upon another pot containing the vine-
gar warmed by a little fire made umieineath, the
i'lnct'jre of the two pots being chfely luted to con-
iine the fleam. The flies arc afterwards thoroughly
diied, and packed up fecure from the air. In long
keeping, thev fall by degrees into a greyifii or
brovvnifh light powder, and in this ftate are unfit for
ufc, their intrinfic qualities perilling with thcii" ex-
CAN
ternal form. The wing' are the mod pcrmansht
part, thefe remaining e, 're after the body of the
fly has mouldered intodut,.
Cantharides, when 'efh, have a ftrong fetid
fmell : tafted, they mat e at fiifl: no impreflion upon
the tongue, but in a little while they difcover a de-
gree of acrimony, ariri a kind of pitchy flavour.
Applied to the fkin, they rail'e a bliiter on the part.
The ufual bliflering-plaffers are compofed of pow-
dered cantharides and f >mc common plafler, in the
proportion of one part of cantharides, or two,
fix, eight, or more of the plafler, according as
the compofition is required to be more or lei's
adlive.
Taken internally, in the dofe even of a few
grains, they generally occafion violent irritation and
inflammatir ns. They z£t in a peculiar manner upon
the kidneys, and the urinary and icniinal vefTels :
when applied ^nly externally as a blifter to remote
paits, they often afFeil the bladder, and bring on a
difficulty and pain in making water. They are
neverthelefs given inwardly in fmall doles, h jth with
fafety and advantage, in fome rcfraftory -iiforders,
which bdHe the force of medicir.es of lefs ;-,(Slivity.
Dr. Gra?neveld, who was imprifoned in England
for having ventured to exhibit tliem, publifbed a
treatife in defence of his prailice and of the utility of
the medicine. He einploys camphor for correifiing
the virulence of the cantliarides ; but the heft reme-
dies againft the ill tffcdts of this, as of other flimu-
latini; drugs, are milk and exprefl'cd oils.
CANLHI, in anatomy, cavities at the extremities
of the eye-lids, commonly called the corners of the
eye : the greater of them, or rhe greater canthus,
is next the nofe ; the leffer, or the liitle canthus,
lies towards the temple.
CANTHUS, in chemiftry, the lip of a vefTel,
or tliat part of it which is a little hoUov/ed or de-
prefTcd, for the eafy pouring < f? of liquors.
CANTICLES,' a canonical book of the Old
Teflament. The Talmudifls afcribe it to Heze-
kiah, but the learned are agreed that king Solo-
mon was the author of it; and his name is prefixed
to it in the title of the Hebrew text, and of the
ancient Greek verfion.
It is a kind of epithalamium, in the form of
an idyllium or bucolic, in which are introduced, as
fpeakers, a bridegroom, a bride, the friends of <he
bridegroom, and the companions of the bride. The
bridegroom and bride exprefs their love for each o-
ther in very tender and affeclionate terms ; for
which reafon the Jews never allowed this bo'^k to
be read by any, till they were at leaft thirty years
of age.
Some authors are of opinion, that Solomon's de-
fi^n in this piece, was to defcribe his amour with
the Shunamite, or with the daughter of Pharaoh : on
the contrary, others take it to be wholly alleg<irtcal,
and underitand it of the fpiritual love of God to-
wards
CAN
CAP
wards his church. Some have prctenJcd (o difco-
ver in it five fcenes; but others, wiili more juft-
nefs, diftinguifli it into fcven days, during which
the ancients celebrated their nuptials.
CANTIMAROUS, or Catimarous, a kind
of raft made of three or four hollowed trunks of
trees, tied together with ropes of cocoa, with a
trianguter fail in the middle made of mats. They
are ufed by the inhabitants of the coaft of Coro-
niandel, to go a fifliing, and to trade along the
coaft.
CANTO, in mufic, the treble, or at leaft the
higher part of the piece.
This worn more properly fignifies the firft treble,
unlefs the word J'eLH/ido, for the fecond, or ripieno,
for the treble of the grand chorus, be added.
Canto-Concertante, is the treble of any
principal part in a concerto, and generally plays or
lings throughout.
CANTONED, in architeflure, is when the
corner of a building is adorned with a pilaller, an
angular column, ruilic quoins, or any thing that
projects beyond the naked part of a wall.
Cantoned, or Cantonized, Cantonee, in
heraldry, the pofition of fuch things as are borne
with a crofi, &c. between. He bears gules, a crofs
argent cantoned with four fcallop- (hells.
CANTONING, in military affairs, the allotting
diftindl and feparate quarters to each regiment of an
army ; the town, where they are quartered, being
divided into fo many cantons, or divifions, as there
are regiments.
CANTRED, or Cantref, fignifies an hun-
dred villages, being a Britifli word, compounded of
the adjedhve canty that is, hundred, and tref, a
town or village. In V\'ales fome of the counties
are divided into cantreds, as in England into hun-
dreds.
CANT-TIVIBERS, in naval architeaure, the
mod crooked timbers in a (hip; they are fituatedat
the two ends, and are called fo, from their being
canted, or raifed obliquely from the keel, in con-
tradiftinflion to thufe whofe planes are perpendicu-
lar to it: the upper part of thofe in the bow or fore-
end of the fiiip, are inclined to the prow, as
thofe in the after, or hind-p^rt, incline above to the
ftern-poft.
The principal of thofe lad is the fafliion-piece,
whih terminates the ftern.
CANVAS, in commerce, a very clear unbleach-
ed cloth of hemp, or flax, wove very regularly in
little fquares. It is uftd for working tapeftry vi-ith
the needle, by paffing the threads of gold, filver,
filk, or wool, through the intervals or fquares.
Canvas is alfo a coarfe cloth of hemp, un-
bleached, fomewhat clear, which ferves to cover
women's ftays, alfo to ftiffen men's cloaths, and to
make fome other of their wearing apparel, &c.
Canv-ivs is alfo a very coarfe cloth made of
24
hemp, unbleached, ferving to make towels, and
anfvvering other domeftic purpofes. It is alfo ufed
to make fail' for (hipping, &c.
CANZONE, in mufic, fignifies, in genera!, a
fong where fome little figures are introduced : but
it is Ibmetirnes ufed for a fort of Italian poem, ufu-
a!ly pretty long, to which mufic may be cornpofcd
in the flyle of a cantata. If this term be added to
a piece (>f inftrumental mufic, it fignifies much the
fame as cantata : if placed in any part of a fonata,
it implies the fame meaning as allegro, and only
denotes that part, to which it is prefixed, is to be
played or fung in a brific and lively manner.
CANZONETTA, a diminutive of canzonp,
denoting a little Ihort fong : the canzonette Nea-
politane have two (trains, each whereof is fung
twice over, as the vaudevilles of the French : the
canzonerte Siciliane are a fpecies of jig, the mea-
fure whereof is ufually twelve-eights, and fix-eights,
and r.imetimcs both are rondeaus.
CAP, a part of drtfs made to cover the head,
and much in the figure thereof.
Cap of Maintenance, one of the regalia, or or-
naments of (late belonging to the kings of Eng-
land, before whom it was carried at the coronation,
and other great folemnities. Caps of maintenance
are alfo carried before the mayors of the feveral ci-
ties in England.
Cap of a Gun, a piece of lead which is put over
the touch hole of a gun, to keep the priming from
being wafted or fpoiled.
Cap, in the marine, a flrong thick piece of
wood firmly hooped with iron, having two holes per-
pendicularly cut thro' it, one of which is fquare, and
the other round. The former is firmly fixed on
the upi^er end of the lower-maft, and the latter
keeps the top-maft fteddy, which ilides up through
it, till the heel, or lower end, reaches the top,
where it is fattened. See the article Fid.
In the fame manner as the top- mart Aides up
through the cap of the lower-maft, does the top-
gallant-maft flide up through the cap of the top-
ma(h SeeCAP, Plate XXVIII,/^ i. See alfoMAST
and Cross-trees.
CAPACITY, in a general fenfe, an aptitude or
difpofition to retain or hold any thing.
Capacity, in geometry, is the folid content
of any body ; alfo our hollow mtafures for ale,
beer, wine, corn, &c. ate called meafures of ca-
pacity.
Capacity, in law, the ability of a man, or
body politic, to give or take lands, or other things,
or fue a£iions.
CAPARASON, or Horse Cloth, a fort of
cover for a horfe.
' CAPAX, in the order of Malta, a name given
to the knights that have refided five years at Malta,
have made four caravan?, or fea-ca-mpaigns, and
are in a condition of coming to a command.
6 D CAPE,
CAP
CAP
CAPE, in law, a judicial writ concerning plea
of lands i)r tenements, and is divided into cape
magnum and cape parvum, both of which afFedt
things iiTim jvealile ; and bel'ides thefe, there is a
cape ad valenciam.
Cape, in geography, a promontory, or head-
land, which projects into the fea farther than the
reft of the coaft.
Cape Afagniifn, or the grand cape, lies before
appearance, to fu;nmon a tenant to anfwer the de-
fault, and alio aver to the demandant.
TheQAVE Parvum, is after appearance and view
granted, and it fummoneth the tenant to anfwer the
default only.
Cape ad Valenciam, is a fpecics of cape magnum,
where one being impleaded, and on a furnmons to
warrant lands, a vouchee does not come at the day;
whereupon, if the demandant recovers of the te-
nant, he fiiill have this writ againft the vouchee,
and recover fo much in value of his lands, in cafe
he hath fo much ; and if not, there fliall be an ex-
ecution of fuch lands and tenements as fliall after
defcend to him in fee; or if he purchaies after-
wards, there may be a re-fummons, ?cc. againfl him,
CAPELET, adiCeafe in horfes, when (he tip of
the hock is moveable, and more fwelled than ordi-
nary.
CAPELLA, in aftronomy, a bright ftar in the
left fhoulder of the conftellation Auriga. For its
place, he. fee the conflellation AuRiG.'V.
CAPER-BUSH, Capparis, in botany. See the
article Capparis.
Bi-an-CAPUR. See Zygophyllum.
The buds of this plant make a confiderable arti-
cle in commerce ; they are imported from Italy and
France in pickle, and ufed in fauces, &c.
The caper-bark of the (hops is not the bark of
the branches, but that of the roots of the fhrub
which produces it.
It is an aperient and attenuant, and is recom-
mended in nephritic cafes, and in dropfies, jaundi-
ces, and many other chronic difeafes : but the pre-
fent praiflice does not pay any regard to it.
CAPHAR, a duty which the Turks raife on the
Chriftians, who carry or fend merchandizes from
Aleppo to Jerufalem,. and other places in S) ria.
CAPI-AGA, or Capou-Aga^si, a Tu/kifli
officer, who is, as it were, grand-niafter of the (e-
;ag!io.
CAPIAS, in law, a writ of two forts, one be-
' fore judgment in an aiSlion, and the other after :
that before judgment is called capias ad refpondcn-
dum, where an original is fued out, &c. to take the
tlcfendant, and male him anfwer the plaintiff; and
that after judgment is the capias ad fati^facimdum^
&c.
Capias Ad Satisfacien'dum is a writof ex-
ecution that iii'iies on a judgment obtained, and lies
wlieie any perfon recovers in a pcrfonal aiition, as
for debt, damages, &c. in which cafes this writ if-
fues to the fherifF, commanding him to take the
body of him againfl whom the debt is recovered,
who is to be kept in prifon till he make fatisfac-
tion.
Capias Conductos Ad Proficiscendum,
an original writ which lies, by the common law,
againft any foldier who has covenanted to ferve the
king in war, and appears not at the time and place
appointed. It is direftcd to two of the king's fer-
jeants at arms, to arreft and take him wherever he
can be found, and to bring him «rfl« ccnjitio nojiro^
with a claufe of afliftance.
Capias Pro Fine, is a writ lying where a
perfon is fined to the king, for fome offence com-
mitted againft a ftatute, and he does not difcharg.e
the fine according to the judgment ; therefore his
body fhall be taken by this writ, and committed to
gaol till the fine is paid.
Capias UtlegatuM, a writ which lies a-
gainft any one outlawed, upon any action perfonal
or criminal, by which the Iherift' is ordered to ap-
prehend the party outlawed, for not appearing on
the exigent, and keep him in fafe cuftody till the
day of return, when he is to prcfent him to the
court, to be there farther ordered for his con-
tempt.
Capias In Withernam, a writ that lies for
cattle in IVithernam ; that is, where a diftrefs taken
is driven out of the country ; fo that the fherifF
cannot make deliverance upon a replevin ; then this
writ iflues, commanding the fheriftto take as many
beafts of the diftrainer.
CAPIGI, in the Turkifli affairs, the name of cer-
tain inferior officers belonging to the feraglio, to
the number of fi.ve hundred, whofe bufmefs it is to
adift the janizaries in guarding the firft and fecond
gate of that palace ; whence alfo the name capigi,
which fignifies a gate.
CAPILLAMENT, in a general {^-c.k, fignifies
a hair, whence the word is applied to feveral things,
which, on account of their length or their fiiieneis,
refemble hairs : as,
Capillaments of the Nerves, in anatomy, the
fine fibres, or filaments, whereof the nerves are
Compnfed.
CAPILLARY, in a general fenfe, an appella^
lion given to thinirs, on account of their cjwtfeme
fineneff, or rcfembling hair.
Capillary Filaments, in botanv, are the
fine flsnder parts of the ftamina, (confpicuous in
many flowers) like hairs, which fupports the anthe-
rae or apices.
Capillary Fracture, a fmalt and almoft
infenfible fradlureof the f!:ull. SeeFRACTURE.
Capillary Ores, in minerology, the lame
with thofe otherwife denominated arborefcent, or
ftriated.
Capillary Plants, are fuch plants as have
no.
CAP
no main flem, but their leaves atife from the root,
vpon pedicles, and produce their feeds on ihc back
of their leaves, as the feni, maiden-hair, &c.
Capillary Tubes, in phyfics, are glals pipes,
the diameter of whole bore is at moll but about
one-tenth ot" an inch ; though any pipe, whofe ca-
vity does not exceed liiat magnitude, may be called
a capillary tube. The phenomena of capillary
tubes being fuch as contraditit a known law in hy-
droflatics, viz. that a fluid rifes in a tube to the
lame height with the level of its fource, and like-
wile of affinity with the afcent of the fap tluough
the flems of plants, for the nourifliment of their
fruit, and with divers other operations of nature;
it has been thought of no fmall moment in philofo-
phy, to find out and eflablifli their true caufe,
which after numerous experiments, and fcveral con-
jedlures about it, is found to be no other than the
attradlion of coliefion, by which fmall particles of
matter mutually adhere together, and form large bo-
dies. See Attraction of Cohefion.
Mr. HaukXbee, after having made many experi-
ments to account for the afcent and fufpenfion of
water in gbfs tubes, affigns the attraction of ihe
concave furface, in which the liquor is fufpended to
be the caufe ; but Dr. Jurin, in a paper read be-
fore the Royal Society, and printed in number 355
of the I'hilofophical Tranfaftions, denies the above
to be the caufe, which he demon Itrates thus : Since, in
every capillary tube, the height to which water will
fpontaneoufly rife, is reciprocally as the diameter of
the tube, it follows, that the furface, containing the
fufpended water in every tube, is always a given
quantity : but the column of the water fufpended, is
as the diameter of the tube. There, if the attrac-
tion of the containing furface be the caufe of the
water's fufpenfion, it will follow, that equal caufes
produces unequal efFefls, which is abfurd.
To this it may perhaps be objecied, that in two
tubes of unequal diameters, the circumftances are
different, and therefore the two caufes, though
they be equal in themfelves, may produce effects
that are unequal. For the lefTer tube has not only
a greater curvature, but thofe parts of the water,
which lie in the middle of the tube, are nearer to
the attraiiling furface than in the wider. But from
this, if anything follovi's, it muft be, that the nar-
rower the tube, it will fufpend the greater quantity of
water, whieh is contrary to experiment ; for the
columns fufpended are as the diameteis. But as
experiments are generally more fatisfaiElory in
things of diis nature than mathematical reafoning,
it may not be amifs to make ufe of the fullow-
in-^.
The tube c d (Plate XXVIII, /^. 2.) is compofed
of two parts ; in the wider of which the water will
rife fpontaneoufiv to the height of b f, but the nar-
rower part, if it were of a fufEcient length, would
caife the water to a height equal to cd. This tube
CAP
being filled with wa'er, an<l the wiffer end c \m~
merfed in the ftagnant water <v i, the whole con-
tinues fufpended. But if the narrower end be im-
mcrfed, (asinyfo-. 3.) the water immediately fub-
fides, and ftands at lafc at the height il g, equal to
bf. For which it is manifell, that the fulpenfinn
of the water, in the former part of this experiment,,
is not owing to the attradtion of the containing fur-
face ; fince, if that were true, tliis furface, being the
fame when the tube is inverted, would fufpend the
water at the fame height, vtrliich we think fuffici-
ently fliews that Mr. Haukibee's hypothefis is fali'e.
The real caufe of this phenomein.n, is the at-
tradlion of the periphery, or rather of the fmall an-
nular portion of the inilJe of the tube, to which
the upper furface of the wa'er is contiguous, and
coheres : for this is the only part of the tube from
which the water mull recede upon its fubfiding, and-
conCequently the only one, which, by the fuice of
its cohelion orattradnon, oppofes the defcent of the
water.
This likewife is a caufe proportionable to tlie ef-
fei£t which it produces, lince that periphery, and the
column fufpended, are both in the fame proportion
as the diaraeter of the tube. Though from either
of thofi particulars it weie eafy to draw a juft de-
monftration, yet, to put the matter out of all doubt,
it may be proper to confirm this allertion, as we
have done the former, by a<3ual experiment.
Let therefore ^ ^f (Plate XXVIII, /». 4.) be a
tube, like that made ufc of in the former experiment,
except that the narrower part is of a greater length,
and let a f and bg be tlie heights to which the wa-
ter v/ould fpontaneoufly rife in the two tubes edin.<\
d c. If this tube have its wider 01 ifice c immerfeci^
in the water a b, and be filled to any height lei's
than the length of the wider part, the water will
immediately fublidc to a level with the pointy; but
if the furface of the contained water enter never fo
little within the fmaller tube e d, the whole column-
ar will be fufpended, provided the length of that
column do not exceed the height af. h\ this ex-
periment it is plain, that there is nothing to fuflain
the water at fo great a height, except the conta<3:
of the periphery of the lefler tube, to which the
upper furface of the water is contiguous j for the
tube d c, by the fuppofition, is not able to lupporc
the water at a greater height than b g.
When the fame tube is inverted (as in fig. 5.) and
the water is railed into the lower extremity of the
wider tube c d, it immediately finks, if the length
of the fufpended column dh be greater than gh;
whereas, in the tube d e, it would be fufpended to
the height af; from which it manilelHy appeais,.
that the fufpenfion of the column d h dut^s not de-
pend on the attradfion of the tube de, but upon the
periphery of the v/ioer tube, with which its upper
furface is in contaft.
Though tliefe experiments fcem to be conclufive,,
Vi'
CAP
CAP
yet it may not be improper to prevent an objeclion,
which naturally prefents itfelf, and which at firft
view may be thought fufficient toiverturn the above
theory. For fince the periphery of the tube e d (fig.
4.) is able to fuftain no more tnan a column of the
length a f^ contained in the fame tube ; how comes
it to fuflain a column of the fame length in the wi-
der tube lie, which is as much greater than the for-
mer, as the fection 'of the wider tube exceeds that
of the narrower ? Again, if a periphery of the
vv-ider tube dc (fig. 5.) he able to fultani a column
of water in the fame tube of the length bg ; why
will it fupport no mure than a cul mn of the
fame length in the narrower Cube ^ i^f' which que-
ries may likewife be made with regard ^o fg. i
and 2.
The anfwer is eafv, for the moments of thefe
two columns of water are prec^fely the fame, as if
the fullaining tubes ed and cd were continueu
down to the furfaceof the Ragnant water ah; lince
the velocities of the water, where thofe columns
grow wider or narrower, are to the velocities of the
attracting peripheries, reciprocally, as the different
feflions of the columns.
Capillary Vejf-ls, in anatomy, are the fmallefi:
or extreme parts of the veins and arteries.
. CAflLLITIUM Veneris, in philofophy, the fine
threads often feen floating in the air during the au-
tumn. See AirThreaus.
C/IPILUS Fencrii, in botany. See the article
Maiden Hair.
CAPISTRUM, in furgery, the name of a ban-
dage ufed in cafe of fraitures of the jaw.
CAPJTAL, in a general fenfe, iirplies the head,
chief, or principal of a thing.
The word is formed from the Latin, caput, the
head, fource, or beginning.
Capital, in geography, denotes the principal
city of a kingdom, province, or flate. See Me-
tropolis.
Capital, among merchants, &c, implies the
fum of money which individuals advance to make
up the common itock of a partner&ip v^ hen it is
fird formed. It is alfo ufed to fignify the Ifock with
which a merchant firlT: begins trade on his own ac-
count. It likewife denotes the fund or ftock of a
trading company or corporation.
Capital Crime, implies a crime which fubjedls
the criminal to a capital punifbment, or lots of life.
Capital, in architecture, is the uppcrmolt part
of a column or pilader, fcrving as the head or
crowning, placed immediately over the Ihaft, and
•under the entablature.
The capital is the principal and effential part of
an order of a column or pilafter, and is of a diffe-
rent form in difl'erent order?, becoming the diltin-
guifhiiig charaderiflic between them. Vitruvius
ttils us til it Callirnachus, an ingenious ffatuary of
Athens, invented the firll regular capital from the
2
following accident. An Athenian old woman hap-
pening to place a bafket, covered Vv'ith a fquare
tile, over the root ot an acanthus, v/hich grew on
the grave of a young Corinthian lady, the plant
fhooting up the following fpring, encompailed the
bafket all round, till, meeting with the tile, it curled
back in a kind of fcrolls. The above fciilptor paf-
fing by, and obferving it, executed a Ci^pital on
this plan, reprefenti^g the tile by the abacus, the
leaves of the acsnthus by the fcrolls, and the bafket
ay the body <Ji^ tiie capital.
The Tujcan CAPITAL is the mofl fimole and un-
adorned ft ail the reit ; its members, i.'i parts, are
four only, viz. an abacus n ; (Plate XXVIII, y?^. 6.)
an ovolo or quarter round b ; a coilarmo or neck f j
and an aftragal d ; the latter indeed pioperly belongs
to the fuft or fhaft.
The character which diflinguifhes this capital
from the Doric, &c. is, that the ab.cus is fiquare
and quite plain, having no ogee or other mov.Kfii g ;
and that there are no annu'ets uiwirthe ovol . Au-
thors indeed vary a irtle with regard to ilie cnarac-
ter of the Tufcan capital.
Vignola, for inftance, gives the abacus a f.IIet
inftead of an ovolo: Vitruvius and Scamoz/,i add
an aftragal and fillet between the ovolo and neck :
Serilo only a iillet ; and Philander rounds the cor-
ners of the abacus.
In the Trajan column there is no neck, the aftra-
gal of the fliaft being confounded with that of the
capital.
The heitjht of this capital is the fame with that of
the bafe, viz. one module, or femidiameter. Its
proje£iure is equal to that of the bottom of the co-
lumn, viz. five-eights of the module.
The Z>«r;V Capital has three annulets, or little
fquare members, underneath the ovolo, inftead of
the aftragal in the Tufcan, befides the abacus, an
ovolo and a neck, all which it has in common
with tbe former; and a talon, cyma, or ogee,
with a filkt over the abacus. See Plate XX VI II,
fig- 7-
Authors are alfo divided with regard to the cha-
racters of this capital. Paliadio, Vignola, &c. put
rofes under the corner of the abacus, and alfo on
the neck of this capital.
Vitruvius makes the height of this capital equal
to half the diameter of the column below ; and this
height being divided into three parts, the firit goes
to the neck, the fec'ond to theboultiii, and the third
to the uppermoft part of the capital.
The Ionic Capital is compofed of three parts ;
an abacus, confifling of an ogee ; under this a rind,
which produces the volutes or fcrolls, the moft ef-
fential parts of this capital ; and at the bottom an
ovolo or quarter round. The aftragal under the
ovolo belongs to the fliaft : the middle part is called
the rind or bark, from its fuppofed refeniblance to
the bark of a tree, laid on a vafe, whofe brim is
reprefented
J'l..tTKX\Tlll.
/■iiiiii.f C'apiial
e>^ d. ' %t/ca// ^j7////a/. ^^^-7- ^ry/yr ^a/t/Arrl.
^f^.<f.f>-/?nv/'//tfyo7Uc/jrj^/fta/ t>?^5?,f Z^^-^/v/ i/omc fff/iz/yr/.
tAf./o. /jy/tf///>n7/f / a ////{?/ .
y'f<///. /om//o(i^/^ /nA/fa/ .
CAP
CAP
reprefented by the ovolo, and feeming to have been
fhrunk up in drying, and to have been twifted into
the volutes. T he ovolo is adorned with eggs, as
they arc rnnictimes called from their oval form. See
Plate XXVUI. /^. 8.
T he height ot this capital, according to Mr. Per-
rault, is eighteen minutes, and its projedture one
ipodule, fcvcn tenths
The differences in the charadter of this capital
flow chiei!)' iVom the different management ot the
volutes, and coi fift in the following particulars :
I. That in the antique and fomeof the modern, the
eye of the vohite does not anfwer the affragal of
the top of the ihik, as Vitruvius and fome of the
moderns make it. 2. That the face of the volutes,
■which ufually makes a flat, is fomctimes curved
and convexed, fo that the circumvolutions go ad-
vancing outwaids, as is frequent in the antique.
3. That the border, or rim of the fcroll in the vo-
lute, is foiiietimes not only a plain fweep, but the
fweep is accompanied with a fillet. 4. That the
leaves which inveft the ballufter are fometimes long
and narrow, fomctimes larger and broader. 5. That
the two faces of the volutes are fometimes joined at
the outward corner, the ballufters meeting in the
middle, to form a regularity between the faces on
the tri.'nt and ba'. k ot the building, with thofe ot
the fides. 6. That among the moderns, fince Sca-
mozzi, the Ionic capital has been altered, and the
four faces made alike, by taking away the ballufter,
and hollowing all the faces of the volutes inwards,
like the Compofite capital. 7. That Scamozzi and
fome others make the volutes to fpring out of the
ovolo, as from a bafe; whereas, in the antique, the
hark paffes between the ovolo and abacus quite
ftraight, only twiifing at its extremities to form
the volute. And laftiy, that of late the fculptors
have added a kind of fmall feftoons, which fpring
from the flower, whofe ftalk lies on the circumvo-
lution of the volute. See Jig. g.
The Corii'thian Capital is the richeft of all the
orders, and imputed to CalHmachus, an Athenian
flatuary, as we have already obferved. It is adorn-
ed with eight volutes a, (Plate XXVIII. fg. 10.) a
double row of leaves i, and eight fcrolls c, fituated
round a body called, by fome, campana 01 bell,
and by others tambour or drum.
Theheicht of this capital is two modules, and one-
third, and Its proje£fure one module, and one third.
The diflerences in the charatSters of this capital
are: i. That in Vitruvius, and others, the leaves
are thofe of the acanthus ; whereas, in the antique,
they r.re ufually thofe of the olive-tree. 2. That
the leaves aie commonly unequal, the lower being
made the taller ; though foinetimes all equal ; nor
are there inftances wanting where the lower leaves
are the fliorter. 3. The leaves are fometimes ruf-
fled, fometimes quite plain ; the tiiit row generally
bellies out towards the bottom, but at other times
24
they are fl might. 4. Sometimes the horns of the
abacus are fharp at the corner, but moft commonly
the corners are cut off". 5. There is fome diff"erence
in the form and fize of the rofe. 6. 1 he volutes
are (bmetimes joined to each other, and fometimes
wholly ieparated. 7. Sometimes the fpires of the
volutes continue twitting even to the end, in the
fame courfe ; and fometimes they are turned back
again near to the center, in the form of the let-
ter S.
7/.'c Comfop.te Capital is an invention of tha
Romans, and i^ conipofed of the double row of
leaves in the Corinthian, and the volutes in the
Ionic. See Plate Plate XXVllI. fig. 11,
The height of this capital is two modules, and
one-third, and the projecture one module, and two-
thirds.
The difTerences of its charaifler confift in the fol-
lowing particulars: i.Tliat the volutes, which ge-
nerally dcfcend and touch the leaves, are in fome
works of the antique feparated from them. 2. That
the leaves are fometimes unequal in height, the
lower row being the taller; and fometimes both ate
equal. 3. That the volutes of the moderns ge-
nerally fpring out of the bafe; whereas, in the an-
tique, they run ftraight the whole length of the
abacus, over the ovolo, without fti iking into the
vale. 4. That the volutes, whofe thicknefs is con-
tracted in the middle, and enlarged both above and
below in the antique, have their fides parallel in the
works of the moderns. 5. That the volutes, which
have generally been made as if folid both by the an-
cients and moderns, are now made much lighter
and more airy ; the folds {landing hollow, and at a
diftance from one another.
Jaii Capital, that which has leaves of parti-
tion 111 the s^orge.
Jugular Capital, that which fupports the re-
turn of an entablature at the corner of the projec-
ture of a frontifpiece.
Capital cf a Ballufler, that p:irt which crowns
a ballufter, refcmbling fometimes the capita! of fome
order, generally the Ionic.
Capital of a Trigliph, the plat band over the
trigliph, called by Vitruvius txiiia. It is fometimes
a trigliph, ;ind performs the office of a capital to the
Doric piUaftcr.
Capital of a Nich, a kind of fmall canopy
made over a fliallow nich, to cover a ftatue.
Capital of a Lantern, a covering, f( metimes
of one form, a:;d fomctimes of another, which
finiflies the lantern of a dome.
Capital of a B.fuon, implies a line drawn
from the point of the baftion to the aniile of the
polygon; or from the point of the baition to the
middle of the gorge.
Capitals, among printers, large or initial let-
ters, with wiiich all periods, verles, &c. com-
mence.
6 E CAPI-
CAP
CAPITATED Plants, in botany, a name
given by Mr. Ray to thofe plants, whofe feeds,
wi'.h their down, are included in a (caly calyx, or
cup ; of this fort are the thiftle, artichoke, and
divers others.
CAPITATION, a tax or impofition raifed on
each perfon, in confideration ot his labour, induf-
try, office, rank, &c.
CAPITE, in law, an ancient tenure of land,
held immediately of the king, as of his crown,
either by knight's fetvice, or foccage. It is now
aboliflied.
CAPITOL, in antiquity, a celebrated caftle e-
redted on the fummit of the Mons Capitolinus at
Rome, and contained a temple dedicated to Jupi-
ter, in which the fenate formerly aflembled. The
nave of this ftrudlure was facred to Jupiter, one of
the wings to Juno, and the other to A'linerva. In
this beautiful edifice, which was richly adorned with
ornaments, were contained the moft facred depofits
of religion, fucli as the ancylia, the books of the
Sybils, Sic.
CAPi rOLINE Games, in antiquity, annual
games, inftituted by Camillus, in honour of Jupi-
ter Capitolinus, and in commemoration of the Ca-
pitol's not being furprifed by the Gauls.
There was alio another kind of Capitoline games
inftituted by Domitian, when rewards and crowns
■were beftovved on the poets, orators, hiftorians,
and muficians. Thefe v/ere celebrated every five
years.
CAPITULA RuRALiA, affemblies or chapters
held by rural deans and parochial clergy, within
the precindl of each deanry ; held at firll every
three weeks, afterwards once a month, and nioie
folemnly once a quarter.
CAPITULATION, in military affairs, a trea-
ty made between the garrifon or inhabitants of a
place befieged, and the befiegers, for delivering
up the place on certain conditions exprcfied in the
treaty.
Capitulation, in the German polity, implies
a coiitradf made by the emperor with the elc6tors,
in the name of all the princes and flatcs of the em-
pire, before he is, declared emperor, and which he
jatifies before he is raifed to the Imperial dignity.
CAPITULUM, among botanilh, fignifies the
head or top of any fiowering plant, and is the fame
as what is more commoiiiy tal.ed umbel, which
Ue.
CAPIVI, or Copaiha. See Balsam of Co-
fa iba.
CAPOC, a fort of cotton as foft as filk, but fo
fine and lhf;rt, that it cannot be fpun. It grows in
the Eafl-Ii dies, and alfo near the river Guaia-
^uil in South- America, wheie it is ufed to fill
beds, &:c.
CAPON, a cock chicken, gelded as foon as left
fcy the ken, oi at kiilt as fooii js he begins to crow.
CAP
Capon's Tail- Grass, the fame wtth feftuca.
See Festuca.
CAPONIER E, or Capokniere, in fortifica-
tion, a work funk about four or five feet deep, on
the glacis of a place ; the earth that is thrown out of
it ferves to form a parapet of two or three feet
high, furnifhed with loop-holes, or fmall embra-
fuies; it is covered over head with flrong planks,
on which are laid clays, or hurdles, to fuppnrt the
earth, with which the whole is covered. It will con-
tain about fifteen or twenty men, who fire through
the loop-holes upon the befiegers. Caponieres are
fometimes made in the bottom of a dry moat.
CAPPADINE, a fort of filk flock taken from the
upper part of the cocoon, after the filk is wound ofF.
CAPPANUS, a name given by fome authors to
the worm which adheres to and gnaws the bottom of
a fhip.
The cappanus is extremely pernicious to {hips,
particularly in the Eaft and Weft- Indies j to prevent
this, feveral fhips have lately been fheathed with cop-
per, particularly his Majefty's fhips, Alarm, Tartar,
and Jafon.
CAPPARIS, caper, in botany. See Caper.
Capparis, the caper bufh, in botany, a poly-
andrious plant, whofe charaiSlers are, it hath a large
woody root, from whence proceed various flalks
covered with a white bark, which fends out
many lateral branches, armed with hard fliarp
fpines, and on which the leaves are alternately
difpofed : thefe are round, fmooth, and entire.
At the intermediate joints, between the branches,
come out the flowers upon long foot fhilks : eacfi
of thefe confiffs of four large, obtufe, fpreading
petals, with numerous filiform filaments, topped
with inclined oblonjr antherje. The fruit is an
unilocular fiefliy berry, and contains a number of
kidney-fhaped feeds, in Italy it grows wild among
the ruins of old buildings, &c. but in other places
it is cultivated.
What goes by the name of capers, (which are
common as a pickle) are the buds of the flowers
before they are opened, which are firft laid in the
fhade for about four hours, and then put in vinegar
for eight days ; after which they are taken out,
lightly prefled, and put into frefh vinegar for eight
da\s more: this is repeated the third time, and
then they are put into cafks foi fale. They make 3
confiderable article of commerce, and are ufcd in
fauces, and are good to excite a languid appetite.
I he bark of the root is faid to be aperient and dil-
fulvent ; but it is not much in ufe.
CAPRA, the goat, in zoology. See Goat.
Capra-Saltans, in meteorology, a fiery n-e-
teor or exhalation, fometimes (i?en in the atmolphcre.
It forms an inflciited line, relcmblmg in fome meafure.
the capetings of a goat, whence it has its name.
CAPRaRIA, in botanv, a didynamious plant
which grows naturally in feveral pails of America j
tbe
1
CAP
CAP
the ftalk of which is angular and green, about a
foot and a halt high, lending out branchis at every
joint. The leaves are pla.cd round the branches by
threes, with (hort foot-fla'ks : thefe are oval, hair\',
and {lightly indented on their edges. The flowers
are produce) at the wings of the leaves; each of
which confifts of a inonopctiilous campanulatcd
corolla, cut at the top into live parts. Ihc germcu
is conical, which afterwards becomes an ob-
long-conic capfule, comprefTed at the point, hav-
ing two cells, containing a number of loundifli
feeds.
CAPREA, or Capreolus, the roe-deer, in
natural hiftory, an animal of the deer-kind, with
rounded, ere£f, and ramofe horns.
CAPRICORNUS, or Capricork, in agro-
nomy, one of the twelve figns of the zodiac, re-
prefented on the globe in the form of a !;oat, with a
fifh's tail, as in Plate XXIX.
It is the tenth fign in order, and is marked
thus >f. According to Ptolemy and Tycho, it
contains nineteen ftats, P'evilius twenty-nine, and
Flamflead fifty-one.
This conlfellation is very properly reprefcnted by
the wild goat, whole nature being to feek its food
from the bottom to the lop of mountains, climbing
from rock to rock, fitly emblemized the afcent of
the fun, from the lowelt point, in the beginning of
this fign, to its highelf pitch or fummit, in the (um-
ir:er folftice.
The poets tell us that this was Pan, the god of
the fhepherds, whom they feign in this manner.
7"he gods having war with the giants, gathered
thcmfelves together in Egypt. Typhon, the giant,
purfued them thither, whereby the gois were
brought into a quandury, that happy was he who,
by changing his fliape, might fliift for himfclf.
Jupiter turned himfelf into a ram, Apollo became
a crow, Bacchus a goar, Diana a car, Juno a
cow, Venus a fiHi ; but Pan, leaping into the river
Nilus, turned the upper-part of his body into a
goat, and the lower part into a fifh. Jupiter, won-
dering at his ftrange device, would have that image
tranflatcd into heaven, and made one of the twelve
figns. The hinder-patt of this fign, being repre-
fcnted by a fif!"!, is fuppnfed to betoken, that when
the fun pafles the latter part of this fign, that it will
be inclinable to rain. Others fuppofe, that this was
the goat that fuckled Jupiter, and that after it was
dead, he made a fhield of its fl;in, called .(Egis,
with which he finely combated the giants ; after
which he reftored the goat to life a^ain, and placed
her in heaven amon'j the conffellations. This lall
fuppofition we think a little abfurd, for Capricorn
is reprelented on the globe with the head of a he-
goat, therefore Jupiter could with little probability
be fuckled by him, except the poets fuppofed he-
goats to give miik in tbofe days.
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CAPRI-
CAP
CAPRIFOLIUM, in botanv, a name given by
former authors to the honey-fuckle ; but compre-
hended under the lonicera of Linnjeus. See the
articles Honky-Suck.le and Lonicera.
CAPRIMULGUS, the goat-fucker, in ornitho-
logy. See HiRUNDO.
CAPRIOLES, in the manege, imply the leaps
made by a horfe in the fame place, without advan-
cing, ill fuch a manner, that when he is at the height
of the leap, he jerks out his hinder legs.
CAPSICUM, Guinea pepper, in botany, a genus
of pentandrious plant^, the flower of which is mono-
petalous, and rotated with a fiiort tube, an open,
plicated border, and divided into five broad and
fliarp-pointed fegments. The filaments are fmall and
Tubulated, topped with oblong anthers, which are
conntcSted. The fruit, in fome fpecies, is a globular
berry; in others heart-fliaped, and in fome irregu-
lar ; but in all is foft and pulpy : it hath two or
more cells, which contain a number of kidney-
ihaped comprelfed feeds. This genus contains feve-
ral fpecies, fome of which are annual, and the others
perennial. The annual forts are moft of them
raifed on hot-beds in the (pring, either tor the orna-
ment of the flower-garden, or lor pickling when
green ; for which purpofe they are very well adapted
to thofe palates that are fond of hot fauces. One
of the fpecies, called In the vVeflTndies bird-pepper,
is the bafis of the powder brought from thence under
the name of Cayan- pepper ; and it may be remarked,
that this fruit, perhaps the (Irongefl of the aroma-
tic ftimular.ts, is ufcd freely by the natives of the
warmer climates : polTibly thefe pungent antifeptic
kinds of fublfances may be more falubrious there
than with us, as they ftem qualified to refift or
corrt-if the putredinous colliquation of the humours
\vhi< h immoilerate heat produces.
CAPSQUARKS, in gunnerv, flrong plates of
iron, which come over the trunnions of a gun, to
keep it faft in ihe carriage.
1 hey are faftcned by a hinge to the prize-plate,
that they may lift up and down, and form an arch
of a circle in the niiddle to receive a third part of
the thicknefs of the trunnions, two thirds being let
into the carriage. The other end is fattened with
two iron wedges, called the forelocks and keys.
At fea, the capCquares aie called clamps. See the
article Clamp.
CAPSTKRN, or Capstan, in naval architec-
ture, a ftrong, mafly column of timber, let down
through the decks of a (hip, to raife any great pur-
chafe, by heaving round horizomally.
A capftern is compofed of fcvcral parts. See
Plate XXX. fig I. and 2. where A is the m;iin
pofl-, or body, b the whelps, c the drum-head,
and d the fpir\dle.
The whelps rife out like buttrefles from the main
body of the capfkrn, to cr.large the fwecp, that a
2
CAP
greater portion of the cable may be drawn into the
(hip, or whatever rope they may be heaving on, at
every revolution of the capflern : they reach from
the lower-part of the drum- head downwards u. the
deck, and are defcribed \n fig. i. of Plate XXX.
being the horizontal fe£tion of the b^ dy of a cap-
ftern.
Plate XXX fig. i. and 2.
The drum-head f is a broad cylindrical piece of
wood, refembling a mill-ftrme, of the lame ftock
with the refl of the body : in ihe outfide of this are
cut a number of holes parallel to 'he deck, to re-
ceive the bars.
The fpindle, which is (hod with iron, is the axis
or foot, which the capftern refts on, and turns round
in the faucer, which is a fort of iron focket, fixed
on a wooden block or llandard, called the (tep, reft-
ing on the beams.
Befides the diflrerent parts of the capflern men-
tioned, it is furnifhtd with feveral appurtenances, as
the bars, the p'ns, the pawls, and fwifter.
'] he bars are long pieces of wood or arms thruft
into a number ot fquare holes, cut into the drum-
head all routid : they appear like the radii of a circle,
and are for heaving the capftern round to draw the
cable into the (hip, or raife any great purchafe ;
the men prefling iheir breafts to the bars, and
walking about the capflern till the operation is
finiftjed.
The pins are little bolts of iron thruft perpendicu-
laily through the holes of the drum-head, when the
bars are fixed, to prevent the bars from working
out as the men heave ; for this purpofe there is a
fmall hole bored through tlie end of every bar to re-
ceive the pin : every pin is fattened to the drum-
head with a fmall iron chain ; and that the bars may
exadlly fit their refpedive holes, they are all num-
bered.
The pawls, which are on each fide, are two
fhort, thick pieces of iron, bolted at one end
through the deck to the beams, clofe to the body of
the capftern ; the other end, which occafionally
turns round on the deck, the pawls being pUced
in the intervals of the whelps, as the capftern turns,
prevents it from recoiling or turning back by any
fudden jerk of the cable as the (hip pitciies, which
might greatly endanger the men who heave. And,
laftly.
The fwifter, is a rope pa(red through the outer-
ends of the bars, and drawn very tight : the intent
of this is to keep the men fteddy as they walk round,
when the (hip rocks, and to give room for a greater
number to aflift.
There are commonly two capfterns in a (liip of
war, the main and the jear capftern ; the former of
which has two drum-heads, and may be called a
double one. This is reprefented by fig^ i. of
Plate XXX. the latter is exhibited \nfig- 2.
Surge
CAP
CAP
Surge the Capstern, is to flacken the rope
heaved round, that it may Aide farther upon the
body of the capftern, as it would otherwife, by a
conftant winding round the capllern, get under the
whelps, and prevent it from going round. There
is generally about two turns and a half of the rope
wound about the capftern at once.
Heave the Capstern, is to go round with it,
heaving on the bars, and dravv'ing on any rope
which creates the purchafe.
Come up the Capstern, is to let go the rope on
which they had been heaving.
CAPSULATE, or Capsulated Peants,
thofe furniflied with capfules for the reception of
their feed.
CAPSULE, in a general fenfe, implies a fmall
receptacle or coffer, in the form of a bag.
I'he word is formed from the Latin, capfula-, a
diminutive of copfa, a coffer.
Capsule, among botanifts, is a hollow pericar-
pium or feed-veffel, which cleaves or parts in fome
determinate manner : it is compofed of feveral ela-
flic valves, which, when the feed is ripe, burfts
open, and difcharges its contents ; and is diftin-
guifhed from a pod by its form in being fhort and
roundifh.
This kind of pericarpium fometimes contains one
cell, or cavity, and fometimes more : in the firft
cafe it is called an unilocular capfule ; in the fe-
cpnd, bilocular, trilocular, &c. as it contains two,
three, &c. cells or cavities.
CAPSULA-COMMUNIS, in anatomy, is a
tunic continuous with the peritoneum, and in-
cludes the branches of the vena porta and biliary
dudls, both as they approach the liver, and with-
in it.
Capsula-Cordis. See Pericardium.
Capsul.*: Atrabiliarij€, called alfo ghn-
dulis 7'enales., and renes fuccenturlati, are two yel-
lowlfh glands of a comprelTed figure, lying on each
fide of the upper-part of the kidneys. They have
, a very narrow cavity, imbued with a brownifn li-
quor of a fweetifli tafte. Their figure is irregular,
between fquare, triangular, and oval. Their fize
alfo is various ; but in adults, they are iii general
about the big-nefs of a large nux vomica. In the
foetus they are larger, and often exceed the kidneys
themfelves in fize. The membrane that furrounds
them is very thin ; it clofeiy involves tr.eir Vi'hole
fubftance, and connects them with the kidneys.
Their blood veilels are fometimes fent from the aorta
and the vena cava, but more frequently from the
emulgents : their nc;ves are from the plexus rena-
lis, and their lymphatic veflels are numerous.
There is no excretory duct difcovered in tliem ;
and their ufe is thei-efore not certainly known. By
tlieir great iize in the fcetus, they feem deflined
rather to the fervice of that ftate than of any
other.
25
Capsuije Seminales, the fame with veficula;-
feminales. See Vesicul.;e, &c.
CAP rAIN, a militny officer, whereof there
are various kinds, according to their different de-
partments and commands.
Captain of a Troop or Company, an inferior
officer, who commands a troop of horfe or com-
pany of foot under a colonel. In the fame fenfe,
we fay, captain of dragoons, of grenadiers, of
marines, of invalids, &c.
In tile horfe and foot guards, the captains have
the rank of colonels.
Captain General, the officer who fuperlnfends
the military forces of a kingdom.
Captain Lieutenant, he, who with the rank of
captain, but the pay of lieutenant, commands a
troop or company in the name and place of fome
other perfon who is difpenfed with on account of
his quality from performing the fundlions of his
pofl.
Thus the colonel, being; ufually captain of the
firft company of his regiment ; that company is
commanded by his deputy, under the title of
captain-lieutenant.
So in England, as well as in France, the king,
queen, dauphin, princes, &c. have ufually the title
of captains of the guards, gens d'armes, &c. the
real duty of which offices is performed by captain-
lieutenants.
Captain Reformed,'one who, upon the reduc-
tion of the forces, has his commiflion and company
fuppreiTed ; yet is continued captain, either as fe-
cond to another, or without any poft or command
at all. ■
Captain of Militia, he who commands a com-
pany of the militia, or trained bands. See the ar-
ticle Militia.
Captain Bashaw, orCAPONDAN Bashaw,
in the polity of the Turks, fignifies the Turkiflj
high-admiral. He pofllfT^s the third office of tf.e
empire, and is invefted with the fame power at
fea, that the vizier has on fhnre.
Captain of a Ship of IVar, the oificer v;hc>
commands a fhip of the line of battle, or a frigate
which carries twenty guns or above. He ranks
with a colonel in the army.
The charge and command of a captain, or com-
mander of one of his Majefty's fliips, is very great,
vaiious, and complicated, fince he is not only
anfwerable for any bad conduct: in the military
governiiieiit, navio;ation, and equipn.ent ot the fliip,
but alfo for the ill management of his inferior
officers, whofe particular charges he is appointed to
infpect and controul.
Wiien he is informed of the fhip's condition,
which he is cominiffioiied to govern, he is ordered
to attend her conliantly, and accelerate the necel-
fary preparations to fit her for fea ; indeed lo flrict
are the inJMn«5tions laid on him by the Icrd-higTi-
6 F adnViuI,
CAP
admiral, or commiflioners of the admiralty, in
thcfe cafes, that he is forbid to lie out of the fliip
from the day of his arrival aboard, till the day of
his difchargc, iinlefs by particular leave from the
Admiralty or his commander in chief.
He is ordered diftindtly to furvey all the military
fiores that are fent aboard, and to return whatever
are found unfit for fervice ; to ufe his utmoft affi-
duity and conftant application to procure his com-
plement of men ; and obferve particularly to enter
fuch men only as are fit for the necefTary duty, that
the government may be put, as little .is poflible, to
unneceflary cxpence, and, when fully manned, to
endeavour to keep the eftablifhed number of men
complete ; in order to this he is ordered to mulf er
them himfelf, if there be no clerk, of the check or
muffer-mafter at the port. See thofe articles.
When employed in a cruiiing ftatioii, he is to
keep the fea the full length of time required ; but if
}ie is compelled by inevitable neceflity from any un-
lorcfcen accident to return to port fooner than the
limited time, he is to make no unneceflary (lay
there : at this time he is to be very careful in the
choice of a good anchoring fituation, and to order
the mafler, or other careful officers, to found and
difcover the depths of water, and dangers of the
coafl-.
He is to quarter the officers and men to the necef-
fary places, according to their ffation and abilities,
previous to any engagement ; and to exercife them
in the difcipline of naval war, that they may be the
more expert in the time of battle.
He is ordered particularly not to convert any of
his Majefly's Ifores to private ufes ; nor are any
ftores to be transferred from their original defign,
but by the cnnfent of his officers.
He is not to fufrer the purfer, by any means, to
have more advantages, by the piovifions of the
people, than is confident with honour, and the
general rules of naval difcipline.
And, laftly, he is ordered by the admiralty to
fhew a good example of honour and virtue to the
officers and men, and to difcountenance and fup-
prefs all diflolute, immoral, and difordcrly prac-
tices ; and alfo fuch as are contrary to the rules of
difciple and obedience, and to correft thofe who aie
guilty of the fame, according to the ufage of the
fea. See the article Chaplain, to whom this
duty is ufually tranfmitted.
He is alfo inlfrudfed to carry no v/oman to fea,
nor reqii"ft any fortigners, who are cificers or gen-
tlemen, to fcive in his fnip, without orders from the
Admiralty ; to give timely notice to any mcrchant-
fhipi-, dtftinc-d on the fame road, whi.ii going to
fea, and take them under his charge and protection,
together with fuch as he meets at fea in his pall'age,
at leafl as far as his way agrees with theirs. And
at the time of his arrival in any port, or his re-
turn from abroad, he ia to aueniisle his officers, and
CAP
draw up a detail of the obfervations that have been
made during the voyage ; or the qualities of the
fhip, as to her trim, ba'lalf, flowage, and manner
of failing, for the information and diredlion of thofe
who may fucceed in command : and this account is
to be frgned by himfelf and officers, and to be re-
turned to the commilTioner of the navy refiding at
the port where the fhip is difcharged.
CAPTION, in law, is where a commiflion is
executed, and the commiffioners fubfcribe their
names to a certificate, declaring when and where
the commiffion was executed. It relates chiefly to
commiffions, to take anfwers in chancery, and de-
pofitions of witneffes, and take fines of lands, &c.
CAPTIVE, a llave or perfon taken by the enemy
in war, or by a pirate or corfair. See the articles
Slave and Pirate.
CAPTIVITY, a punifhment which God in-
fli»3ed upon the Ifraelites for their vices and infideli-
tiis. The firft of thefe captivities is that of Egypt,
from which Mofes delivered them ; after which are
reckoned fix during the government of the judges :
but the greateft and moff remarkable were thofe of
Judah and Ifrael, which happened under the kings
of each of thefe kingdoms. It is generally believed
that the ten tribes of Ifrael never came back again
after their difperlion ; and Jofephus and St. Jerom
are of this opinion : neverthclefs, when we exa-
mine the writings of the prophets, we find the re-
turn of Irael from captivity pointed out in a manner
almoft as clear as that of the tribes of Benjamin and
Judah.
llie captivities of Judah are generally reckoned
four ; the fourth and lafl: of which fell in the year
of tlie world 3416, under Zedekiah ; and from this
ptriod begin the feventy years captivity, foretold by
Jeremiah.
CAP PURE, fignifies particularly prizes taken
hv privateers, in time of war, which are to be
divided between the captors. See the article
Prize.
CAPUT, the head, in anatomy. See Head.
Caput Concutients, a mufcle of ' the
neck, otherwife called tranfverfarius fecundus. See
Tr ANSVERSARIUS.
Caput Draconis, the dragon's-head, in aflro-
nomy, the afcending node of the m jon. See the
article Node.
Caput Draconis is alfo a ftar of the firft mag-
nitude, in the head of the conftellation draco. See
the atticle Draco.
Caput Galmnaginis, in anatomy, a kind ofl
feptum, or fpongeous border at the extremities ofl
the apertures of each of the veficulae feminales,!
ferving to hinder the feed coming from one fide,l
from rufliing upon, and fo flopping the difcharge ofj
the other.
Some will have its ufe to be, to prevent the im-'
pidfe of the feed from dilating the orifices of the
velkulap.
CAR
veficula, and Co oozing out, except when afTifted
by the compreflion of the furrounding parts, as in
copulation ; but this, according to others, is ra-
ther the office of a diftinft caruncle, placed at each
orifice, and afting as a valve.
Caput Mortuum, in chemiftry, that thick,
dry matter, which remains after diltillation of any
thing, but efpcciilly of minerals.
The caput mortuum, called alfo terra damnata,
is found in form of a friable, porous matter, with-
out tarte or fmell : it is ranked among the chemical
elements, and fuppofed to conftitute the dry, fixed,
earUiy, and folid part of all bodies whatever. It is
what the chemifls call a paffive element or princi-
ple, ferving as the bafis or fupport of the aflive
ones.
CAR, or Carr. See the article Carr.
CARABE, or Karabe, in natural hiftory, a
name given to amber. See Amber.
CARABINE, in military affairs, is a fort of
mulketoon, the barrel of which is rifled fpiraliy
from the breech to the mouth, fo that when the
ball which is forced into it is again driven out by the
ftrength of the powder, it is lengthened about the
breadth of a finger, and marked with the rifle of
the bore.
The barrel of the carabine is three feet long, and
the piece is four feet long, including the ftock ; it
has an iron rammer, and the bullet is firft driven
into the mouth of the piece with a fhort iron pin,
called a driver, ftrikingr it on the end with a fmall
hammer made for that purpofe.
The carabine has a much greater range than the
fufil, or mufkc, becaufe the rifle of the barrel im-
pedes the ball, which by that means makes the
greater refiftance at the firft inflammation of the
powder, and giving time for the whole charge to
take fire before it goes out of the bore, it is at
length thrown out with a greater force than from
the common mulket.
CARABINEERS, or Carabiniers, regi-
ments of light-horic, carrying longer carabines
than the reft, and ufed fometimes on foot.
CARACOL, in the manege, the half turn
which a horfeman makes, either to the right or
lefr.
In the army, the horfe always make a caracol
after each difeharge, in order to pafs to the rear of
the fquadron.
Caracol, in architecture, denotes a ftair-cafe
in a helix or fpiral form.
CARACT, Carat, or Carrat, the name
of that weight which exprcfles the degree of fine-
nefs that gold is of.
The mint-mafter, or cuftom, have fixed the
purity of gold at twenty- four caradls ; though it
is not poflible fo to purify and refine the metal, but
it will want ftill about one fourth part of a caraft
in abfolute purity and perfection. The carait is
CAR
divided into ^, ;, -,\, and .j^. Thefe degrees
ferve to diftingui(h the greater or leflsr quantity
of alloy therein contained : for itiftance, gold of
twenty ■ two caracts is that which has two parts of
filver, or of any other metal, and twenty- two of
fine gold.
Caract is alfo a certain weight which gold-
fmiths and jewellers ufe wherewith to weigh precious
ftones and pearls.
This cara£l weighs four grains, but fomethinf
lighter than the grains of other weights. Each of
thefe grains is fubdivided into |, ^, I, ^'^, &c.
CARAGROUTH, in commerce, a filver coin
of the empire, weighing nine drachms. It goes at
Conftantinople for one hundred and twenty afpers.
There are four forts of them, which arc al/ equally
current, and of the fame value.
CARAITES, in the ecclefiaftical hiftory of the
Jews, a religious feft among that people, who ad-
here clofely to the text and kttcr of the fcripturer,
lejcding the rabbinical interpretations, and the ca-
bala. The Calaites pafs for the moft learned of the
Jewilh dodors ; they are chiefly to be met with in
Poland, Mufcovy, and the Eaft ; they are but few
in comparifon of the bulk of the Jews, who are v(
the party of the rabbins : the latter have fo great an
averfion for the Caraites, that thev will have no
alliance, nor even converfation with them : they
treat them as baftards ; and if a Caraite would turn
rabbinift, the other Jews would not receive him.
CARANNA, a concrete rcfinous juice, exudinc
from a large tree, of which we have no particular
account. It is brought from New Spain, and fome
other parts of America in little maffes, rolled up In
leaves of flags ; externally of a dark brownifh cq-
lour, internally brown with a caft of red, varie-
gated with irregular white ftreaks ; fomewhat foft
and tenacious when it firft comes over, but in keep-
ing grows dry and friable.
Caranna has been chiefly employed as an ingre-
dient in vulnerary balfams, corroborant and difcu-
tient plaifters, and other external applications. It
has very feldom been given internally, and is now,
in this country, almoft wholly in difu'fe.
CARAT, or C A R A c T. See the article
Caract.
CARAVAN, or Caravanni;, in the Eaft,
fignifics a company or aflembly of travellers and
pilgrims, and more particularly of merchants, who
for their greater fecurity, and in order to aflift each
other, march in a body through the dcfaits, and
other dangerous places, which are infefted with
Arabs, or robbers.
There is a chief, or aga, who commands the
caravan, and is attended by a certain number of
janizaries, or other militia, according to the coun-
tries from whence the caravans fet out ; which num-
ber of foldiers muft be fufficient to defend ihem,
and condud them with fafety to the places for
whicli
CAR
CAR
which they are defigned, and on a day appointed.
The caravan encamps every evening near fuch wells,
or brooks, as their guides are acquainted with ; and
there is a (lri<5l difcipline obferved upon this occafion,
as in armies in time of war. Their hearts of burden
are mod commonly camels, who are capable of
undergoing a very great fatigue.
Caravan is alfo ufed for the voyages or cam-
paigns which the knights of Malta arc obliged to
make at fea againft the 1 uiks and corfairs, that they
may arrive at the commandments or dignities of the
order.
The reafon of their being thus called, is becaufe
the knights have often feized the caravans going
from Alexandria to Conftantinople.
CARAVANIER, a perfon who leads t!ie camels,
and other beafts of burden, who are commonly ufed
in tiie caravans in the Eaft.
CARAVANSERA, or Karavaksera, a place
appointed for receiving and loading the caravans.
It is commonly a large fquare building, in the
middle of which there is a very fpacious court ;
and under the arches, or piazzas that furround it,
there runs a b^ink, raifed fome feet above the ground,
where the merchants, and thofe who travel with
them in any capacity, take up their lodgings, as
well as they can, the beafts of burden being tied
to the foot of the bank. Over the gates th.it lead
into the court, there are fometimes little rooms,
which the keepers of the caravanfcras let out at
a very high price, to fuch as have a mind to be
private.-
Thefe buildings are chiefly owing to the charity of
the Mahometans : they are efteemed facred dwell-
ings, where it is not permitted to infult any perfon,
or to pillage any of the eft'esSts that are depofited
there.
CARAVANSERASKIER, the fieward or keeper
of a caravanfera.
He keeps an. account of all the merchandizes that
are fold upon truft, and demands the payments of
the fums due to the merchants for what has been
I'old in the caravanfera, on the feller's paying two
per cent.
CARAVAYAY, Carraway, the Englifii
name of the carui of botanifts. See the article
Carui.
■ Caraway, in botany. See the article Carum.
CARKUNCLt, in natural hiftory, a very ele-
gant gem, whofe ,colour is a deep red, with an ad-
mixture of fcarler.
This gem was knov/ji among the ancients by the
name of anthrax. It is ufu.illy found pure and
faultlefs, and is of the fsme degree of hardnefs with
the fapphire : it is naturally of an angular figure ;
ar.d is, lound aJhering, by its bafe, to a heavy and
ferrugineous flone of the emery kind : its ufual
fi7,e is near a quarter of an inch in Jungth, and tv.'o
thirds ot that in diameter in its thicktft parts ; when
2
held up agalnfl: the fun it lofes its deep tinge, and
becomes exaftly of the colour of a burning char-
coal ; whence the propriety of the name which the
ancients gave it. It bears the fire unaltered, not
parting with its colour, nor becoming at all the
paler by it. It is only found in the Eaft-Indies, fo
far as is yet known, and there but very rarely.
Carbuncle, or Anthrax, in furgery, an in-
flammation which arifes, in time of the plague,
with a veficle or blifter, almofl like thofe produced
by burning. This inflammation, for the mofl part,
terminates in a fphacelus, and putriiies the fubjacent
parts down to the bone, they becoming as black as a
coal. A carbuncle always breaks out very fpeedily,
e\en in the fpace of an hour or two, attended with
heat and pain : as foon as it is opened, it difcharges
a livid fanies, or fometimes a limpid water : it is
black within, which is a fign that the fphacelus has
feized the fubjacent parts, and is making its pro-
grefs ; but the putrid flefh in thofe who recover fup-
purates, and parts from the found. The fize of
thefe peftilsntial blifters is various, more or lefs ; as
is alfo their number in the patient; for there is no
part of the body which they do not infeft, and
they generally appear in company with buboes.
BUBOE.
Thofe carbuncles which arife in the face, neck,
breaft, or arm-pits, are obferved to be of the worft
kind ; for they generally kill the patient. As to
the internal treatment of caibuncles, the very fame
is to be obferved in this cafe as has been recom-
mended under the zruc'le pej^ik/itial Buboes.
In the external treatment, fome of the modern
phyficians ufe only fcarification in this cafe, with
very good fuccefs ; others only open the eruptions
with a pair of fciflars, and having difcharged the
matter, they frequently wafli the carbuncle with
/p. viti. camph. or fp. via. wherein has been digefted
a little theriaca : they aftci wards applv a maturating
cataplafm, which is to be continued till the car-
buncle feparates from the found parts ; then they
cut it out all at once.
Carbuncle, in heraldry, a charge or bearing,
confiffing of eight radii, four whereof make a
common crof?, and the other four a faltier,
So.Tie ell thefe radii buttons, or ftaves, becaufe
round, and enriched with buttons, or pearled like
pilgrims ffaves, and frequently tipped or terminated
with flower-de-luces : others blazon them, royal
fceptres, placed in faltier, pale and fafle.
CARCASE, in architcdure, the llrcll or ribs of
a houfe, containing the partitions, floors, and
rafters, made by carpenters ; or it is the timber-
woik, or as it were tiie fkeleton, of a houfe, be-
fore it is lathed- and plaiftered ; it is otherw'ife called
the fram.ing.
CARCASS, in military affairs, is a fort of car- '
touch tor the mortar ; its figure is that of a fpheroid,
lengthened at one end, and flatted at the other } it
is
CAR
CAR
is compofeJ of two arches of a circle, or rstlicr an
oval, of iron, which intcrfc^l each other at ri^ht
angles and terminate in a kind <if little iron pan,
ordifh, which forms the fl.it end of the carcafs, and
is called its culot or breech.
The interior part of this carcafs is filKd with
grenadoes, and pillol barrels, charged with leaden
bails, as alfo with pitch, ai.ii whuls: powder, and
the whole afterwards covered with dkuri dipped in
pitch, and fackin^;, which laft fervcs as a wrapper ;
a hole is nude in this clo h, to put fuch a fiife
through into the carcafs, as is. ufed in bombs, and
the carcafs is in the fame manner difchargcd from a
mortar.
It is faiJ carcafTeS were invented towards the year
^672, and ufL'd by the French in the wars between
France and Holland.
The carcafs weighs about twenty pounds, is
twelve inches high, and ten inches diameter in the
middle. The u'e of this carcafs is to fet fire to the
places on which it is thrown. The various parts of
its compofition cannot fail of caufmg great diforder
where it falls j the pitch which is poured into it, fo
as to fill all the vacancies between the reft of its con-
tents, renders the fire tenacious, and the fmall bar-
rels it is charged with, and which do not go ofF all
at one time, deter every one from coming near
enough toextinguifli it, and it is for that reafon they
are put in. But the ufe of this kind of fire-ball is
notwithftanding aboliftied, if we may be allowed
the expreffion, becaufe it has been obferved that its
efFedl is very little fuperior to that of a bo'mb, and
that it is notwithftanding attended with a much
greater expence.
CARCINOMA, xaoKiva/ia, among phyficians,
the fame with cancer. See the article Cancer.
CARDS, among gamefters, little pieces of fine
thin pafteboard of an oblong figure, of feveral fi-
zes, but moft commonly in England three inches
and an half long, and two and an half broad, on
which are painted feveral points and figures.
The moulds and blocks for making cards are ex-
aifily like thofe that were ufed for the firft books :
they lay a fheet of wet or moift paper on the block,
which is firft flightly done over v/ith a fort of ink
made with lamp-black diluted in water, and mixed
with fome ftarch to give it a body. They after-
wards rub it ofF with a round lift. The court-
cards are coloured by means of feveral patterns,
ftiled ftanefiles : thefe confift of papers cut through
Vvfith a pen knife, and in thefe apertures they apply
feverally, the various colours, as red, black, &C.
Thefe patterns are painted with oil-colours, that
the brufiies mav not wear them out ; and when the
pattern is laid on the pafteboard, they flightly pafs
over it a brufti full of colour, which, leaving it
within the openings, forms the face or figure of the
card.
Card, among manufadurers, a fort of inflru-
25
mcnt or comb, compofed of a great number of
fmall pieces or teeth of iron wire, incurvated or
bent, like a hook, near the middle, and laJ'en.J
very clofely together by the bafcs or feet in rows>
Carb-Making, the bufinefs of making cards
for the maniifaclurer?.
A piece of thick leather, of the fizc intended for
the card, is ftraincd in a frame for that purpofe,
and then pricked full of holes, into which the teeth
or pieces of iron wire are inferted. After which
the leather is nailed by the edges to a flat piece of
wood, in the form of an oblong fquare, about a
foot in length, and half a foot in breadth, with a
handle placed in the middle of one of the longer
fides.
The teeth are made in the following manner:
The wire being drawn of the fize intended, a fkain,
or number of wires, are cut into proper length?,
by means of a gauge ; and then doubled in a tool
contrived for that purpofe. After which they are
bent into :he proper direftion by means of another
tool, and then placed in the leather, as mentioned
above.
CARDAMINE, lady's fmock, in botany, a ge-
nus of tetradynamious plants, producing cruciforni
flowers, each confifting of four oval, oblong, open
petals, terminating in ereft ungues. The truit is a
long comprcfled cylindrical pod, compofed of two
fpiral valves, with tv/o cells, containing a number
of roundifh feeds; the common fort grows natural-
ly in the meadows in many parts of England, which
being eaten by way of fallad in the fpring, is fup-
pofed to be a good antifcorbutic.
CARDAMOM, in the Materia Medica, a dried
fruit or pod, brought from the Eaft-Indies ; divided
internally into three cells, in each of which are con-
tained two rows of triangular feeds, of a brownifh
colour on the outfide and white within. They are
diftinguiftied by the epithets rnajus and minor.
Cardamomum Minor, the lefter cardamom,
has fhort triangular hufks, fcarce half an inch iti
length ; the produce of a plant with reed like ftalks,
and is defcribed in the Hsrtus A'la'aiariais, under
the name of elettari.
Thefe feeds, freed from the hufks, are an elegant
and ufeful aromatic, of a grateful fmell and flavour,
very warm, yet not fiery, or fubjeft, like the fpi-
ces of the pepper kind, to produce immoderate
heat. The hufks fhould be i^sparated only at the
time of ufe ; for the feeds foon lofe a part of their
flavour, in being kept without this defence.
Their virtue is extraited not only by reflified
fpirit, but alinoft completely by water alfo, with
this difterence, that the watery infuiion is cloudv
or turbid, the fpirituous clear and traiilparent ; the
colour of both is a pile yeliow. Scarcely any of
the aromatic feeds giv: out fo much of their warmth
to watery meiiftrea, or abound fo much with cum-
my matter, which appears to be the principle by
6 G which
C A R
vhich the aromatic part is made difToluble in water :
the infufion is Co mucilaginous, even in a dilute flate,
as hardly to pa's through a hlter.
Ill diftillation with water, a confiJerable quantity
of eirential oil fcparates from the watery fiuid^ of
a pale yellowifh colour, in fmell exatSlly refembling
the cardamoms, and of a very pungent trifle : the
remaining deco£iion is difagreeably bitterifh, and
mucilaginous, retaining nothing of the pungency
cr warmth, any more than of the peculiar flavour
of thi fpice. On infpiilating the tinfture made in
redlitieJ fpirit, a part of the flavour of the caida-
moms arifcs with the fpirit, but the greatefi: part
remains behind concentrated in the extraft ; which
fmells moderately of the feeds, and has a pungent
aromatic tafte, very durable in the mouth, and
rather more grateful than that of the feeds in fub-
itance.
Tinftures of this fpice, both in reflified and
proof fpirit, are more agreeable than the watery in-
fufions ; and proof fpirit impregnated with its fla-
vour by diftillation, more agreeable than the fimple
diftilled water. A tindfure of fix ounces of the
feeds in a quart of proof fpirit, and a fpirituous
water more lightly flavoured with them, by draw-
ing ofF a gallon of proof fpirit from four ounces,
are kept in the fhops, and occafionally made ufe of
as pleafant warm cordials, and for flavouring other
medicines. It is obferved, that none of the aroma-
tics anfv/er, in general, fo well as the tinifture of
this fpice, for rendering mineral waters and other
faline liquors acceptable to the ftomach.
CARDAMOiMUM Majlis, the greater cardamom,
railed alfo grana Paradifi, grains of Paradife. See
Gran A Paradlfl.
CARDIAC, an appellation given to fuch medi-
cines as prefer ve, or increafe the ftrength of the
lieart, and by that means the vital forces, though
they do not immediately work upon the heart, nor
are particularly appropriated to the corroboration of
that part. This effedl they perform either by re-
plenifhing the exhaufled veflels with good humours,
©r exciting motion when it is required : therefore
nutritives duly chofen, with refpedt to particular
conllitutions, belong to this clafs, as well as aftrin-
gent corroboratives and ftimulants. All the mo-
dern difpenfatories are full of cardiacs or cordials,
both of the dry and liquid kind ; but the beft are
thofe which remove the diforder, of which lownefs
of fpirits is the confequence ; and next to thtfeis
wine, which adminiftered in proper quantities, and
jnore or lefs diluted, as circumftances require, will
generally anfvver better purpofes than more pom-
pous cordials, whilft it is lefs capable of doing mif-
chief.
CARDIACA, raother-wort, in botany, v/hofe
char:?61ers are ; if hath a permanent root, from the
head of which arifes i'everal ftalks and leaves ; the
ftalks are quadrangul.ir, and of a reddifli black co-
CAR
louri furniilied with leaves, placed dppbfite in pairs
at each jtiiit on long foot-lialks ; the leaves are ve-
nous and wrinkled, cut deeply into three (harp-
pointed indented fegments ; the lower ones are
larger than thofe on the ilalks. The flower is labi-
ated and monopetalous, with a narrow tube fpread-
ing at the brim ; the upper lip is cylindrical, long,
concave, hairy and obtufe at the point ; the lower
lip is fhorter, reflexed, and divided in three parts.
The piftillum arifes fiom the calyx, attended with
four enibryoes, which afterwards become four ob-
long fmooth feeds, inclofed in the empalement ; it
is found wild on the fides of banks and in lanes in
many parts of England.
It is faid to cure convulfions, open obftru£lions
of the vifcera, and to kill worms, and fome ac-
count it excellent in dileafes of the fpleen, and the
hyfteric pafl^ion ; the leaves and tops have a mode-
rately ftrong fmell not very agreeable, and a very
bitter tafle. The dofe of the leaves in powder is a
dram, and muft be taken in wine.
CARDIACUS Plexus, in anatomy, a plexus
or piece of net-work, formed of a ramification of
the par vagum, or eighth pair of nerves.
CARDIALGIA, in phyfic, a pain at the mouth
of the ftomach, or heart- burn.
The word is formed from xap^ta, the heart, or
rather the left orifice of the ftomach, and a- yEfu, to
burn.
The cardialgia is none of the Icaft evils incident
to mankind, but of the nature of thofe diforders
which afFedt the mind as well as the body ; nor is
it a pain of the heart, as it is commonly reckoned,
but of the ftomach, which is a very nervous part,
and of exquifite fenfation, and principally affeiSts
its orifices, being feated near the pit of the fto-
mach, and very pungent, attended with great an-
xiety, difficulty of breathing, lofs of ftrength, reft-
lefl"nef«, ftrainings to vomit, trembling and cold-
nefs of the extreme parts, and a flight lipothymy,
and owing its original to a convuUion or inflation,
and frequently communicating its ill efFeiEls, by
eonfent of parts, to the whole nervous fyf'em.
The curative intentions are, ftrft to temper and
corre<S the peccant matter lodged about the fto-
mach, and to remove it by proper difcuticnts, or
proper evacuants. Secondly, to alleviate and footh
the violent pains, which furprifin2;ly impair the
ftrength, left an inflammation fliould fuccecd.
Thirdly, to have a due regard to the primary and
original difeafe, if the diforder be fymptomatical.
Fourthly, to reftore and confirm the tone of the
ftomach and inteflines, which have been weak-
ened Ivy the violence of the pains and fp^fms, by-
proper remedies.
The heart- burn is ufually caufed either by an al-
caline or an acid acrimony prevailing in the fto-
mach. If by a redunlant acid, which is moft ge-
nerally the cafe.j alcalme fubftances will cure the
4, pcefent
CAR
prefcnt Jiforcler, as teftaceous powder.'', or a clove
chewed iti the mouth, and fwallovvcd gradually :
but if thedifordcr proceeds from an aicaii, the cure
will conlid in exhibiting acefcent fubftances.
Galen recommends vinegar of ftjuills, as a moft
cfFeilual remedy for preventing the heart-burn : but
Hippocrates, in the fecond of his Epidemics, or-
ders hot bread with pure wine, to be given in this
difordcr. Perhaps the beft medicine yet known tor
t!iis difeafc, when it proceeds from an acid acri-
mony, is the magnefia alba.
CARDINAL, in a general fenfe, an appella-
tion given to things on account of their pre-emi-
nence : thus we fay, cardinal winds, cardinal vir-
tues. Sic.
Cardinal Flower, in botany. See the ar-
ticlh Rapuntium.
Cardinal Virtues, are thefe four, juflice,
prudence, temperance, and fortitude, upon which
all the reft depend.
Cardinal Points, in cofmography, are the
eaft, weft, north, and ibuth. bee the article
Point.
Cardinal Winds, thofe that blow from the
cardinal points.
Cardinal Signs, in the zodiac, are Aries,
Libra, Cancer, and Capricorn.
Cardinal, an ecclefiaftical prince, in the Ro-
naifh church, being one who has a voice in the
conclave at the election of a pope.
The cardinals compofe the pope's council, or
fenate ; and there is, in the Vatican, a conftitution
cf pope John, which declares, that as the pope
reprcfents Mofes, fo the cardinals reprefent the Se-
venty elders. It was pope Pius IV. who firft de-
creed that the pope fhould be chofen only by the
college of cardinals ; though fome carry up this
right as high as Nicolas II. in 1058. The cardi-
nals began to wear the red- hat, at the council of
Lyons, in 1243. Till the time of Urban Vlll.
they were ftyled only Moft lUuftrious : afterwards,
by a decree of that pope, they had the title of E-
minence given them.
The cardinals are divided into fix clafTes, or or-
ders, confifting of fix bifhops, fifty priefis, and
fourteen deacons, making in all feventy ; which
conftitute v/hat they cafl the facred college. The
number of cardinal- biihops has been always the
feme ; but that of cardinal-pi lefts and deacons is
not fixed. Till the vear 1125, the college con-
fi-fted of fifty-two or fifty-three. The council of
Conftance reduced them to twenty-four, and Sixtus
IV. raifcd them atrain to fiftv-three. The fix car-
OLnal biihops are thofe of Oftia, Porro, Sabina,
Paleltrina, Fr.il'cati, and Alhano.
CARDiNG, the combine and preparing of
wool, cotton, fliix, &c. with the inftruments call-
ed cards. See Cards.
Before wool bs Ciird.td, it muft be greafed with
CAR
oil, of which one fourth part of the weight of the
wool is required, fcjr that which is deligned for
making the woof of ftufts, and the eighth part for
that of the warp.
CARDIUID CURVE, in geometry, a curve
firft propofed in the Mem. Acad. Scienc, 1705, by
Monfieur Carre, It is formed thus : let the diame-
ter A B, ( Plate XXX. fg. 3. ) of the circle
AMBA, revolve about the point A, and AB
produced ; let B a M N, AD, M N, &c. be al-
ways equal to A B, then will the point a dcl'cribe a
curve, which from its figure refembling a heait, is
called a cardioid.
From the conftruflion it appears that A N r= B A.
-]- A M, and that NAN is always double the dia-
meter A B, and is bifeiled by the circle in M.
K we put A B := (7, a E :=x, E N =r ;», the e-
quation of the curve will be exprefl'ed algebraically
thus, j4 — bay^ -\- iz x^ y^- — b a x'' y -^ x-* =
12 a'- y'^ — %a^ y-\- 2,"^ ''^•
For the method of drawing tangents and other
properties of this curve, fee Phil. Tranf. N°. 461.
Sedt. 8.
CARDIOSPERMUM, in botany, a genus of
oiftandrious plants, the flower of which confifls oF
four obtufe petals, with eight awl-fhaped filaments,
topped with finall antberae. The fruit is a roundifli
inflated trilocular capfule, with three lobes opening
at the top, each cell having one or two round feeds
marked with a heart. To this genus Linna-us has
joined the coriiiduin of Tournefort and veficaria
of P.ivini.
CARDO, in anatomy, a name given to the fe-
cond vertebra of the neck.
CARDUUS, the thiftle, in botany, a biennial
plant, growing naturally in divers parts of England.
This plant fends forth many long leaves near the
ground, which are compofed of feveral long feg-
mentp, placed by pairs, and are joined to a wingect
border, running on each fide of the mid-rib. 'J he
whole length of thefe fegments are alternately point-
ing upwards ; the under fide of the leaves, and the
margin of the raid-rib, are armed with long fliarp-
fpines ftanding every way. The following fpring
there arifes from the center of the plant one ftrong
channeled ftalk four or five feet high, branching
every way toward the top ; the ftalk and branches.
are garniflied with the fame fliaped leaves as below,,
and each branch is terminated by a fiiigle head of
purple floweis ; each of thefe are compound, and.
formed of many hermaphrodite florets,, included in
a common imbricated ventricol'e calys ; the florets
are monopetalous and funnei-fliaped, and contain,
five fhort hairy ftamina ; the germen is oval, and
afterwards becomes an oblonsi, four-cornered leedj^
crowned with down, and incloled in the calx.
Anotlier fpecies i^f the carduus, ca,led:in i nglifh
the lady's thilllc, gro\A s wild in many places, ani
has a lonjj thick fibtous root, and long biOiJ-Cnu-
CAR
ated leaves, crenated on their edges with many
hard, fhiniiig, ftnooth, ftiff prickles, of a light green
colour, and variegated with lines or ftripes of white.
The ftallcs come out as the other fort : thefe are
flreaked and covered with a hairy down ; the ten-
der leaves, after the prickles are taken ofF, are
eaten by feme as a fallad, and are faid to have the
fame virtues as the carduus benedictus ; the feeds
•are excellent for the pleurify, rheumatifm, and
pains in the breaft, and are given in emullions.
Carduus BenediSius^ holy thlftle, a pl.int with
lough, narrow, jagged leaves, terminating in folt
prickles, and large, hairy, branched ilalks, lean-
ing to the ground ; on the tops of which grow
large, fcalv, prickly heads,- including a number of
yellow flol'culi, which are followed by oblong llri-
ated feeds, inclofed in down. It is a native of
Spain, and fome of the iflands of the Archipelago,
and fown annually with us in gardens, l^his plant
is clafTed by LinnEus with the Cnicus, which fee.
The virtues of this plant feem to be little attend-
ed to in the prefent praflice. The naufeous decoc-
tion is fometimes ufed to excite vomiting, and a
ft-rong infufion to promote the operation of other
emetics : but this elegant bitter, when extradted
from the ofFenfive parts of the herb, may be ad-
vantageoufly applied to other purpofes. We have
frequently obferved excellent effeifts from a light
infufion of carduus, in weaknefs of appetite and in-
digeftion, where the ftomach was injured by irre-
gularities, and opprelTed by vifcid phlegm : nor
have we found any one medicine of the bitter kind
to fit fo eafily on weak ftomachs, or to heat io little.
Thefe infufions, taken freely, promote the natural
fecretions : drank warm in bed, they commonly in-
creafe perfpiration, or excite fweat ; and as they aft
with great mildnef-:, not heating or irritating con-
fiderably, they have been ufed, in this intention, in
acute as well as chronical difeafes.
Carduus Fullonum, a name by which the
dipfacus, or teazel, is fometimes called. See the
article Dipsacus.
CAREENING, in naval affairs, heaving the
fnip down on one fide by a ftrong purchafe applied
to her malls, which are properly fupportcd for the
occafion, to prevent their breaking with fo great a
ftrain.
Careening is ufed to heave the fhip's fide (o low
in the water, that her bottom being elevated above
its furface on the other fide, may be cleaned of any
filth which adheres to it during a long voyage, as
fhells, ooze, fea-weeds, &c.
This is performed by applying flaming faggots,
furze, or other fuch materials to the bilge ; and
the fire, thus catching on the tar, pitch, or other
llufF, which had formerly been laid on the bottom
to preferve it, continues burning till all the excre-
ment is loofened and falls off from the bottom ;
a.*"ter this it is covered with a compofition of tallow.
CAR
fulpHtir, turpentine, &c. and one fide being cleaned
in this manner, the other is heaved out for the fame
purpofe. When a fhip is laid on a careen, every
thing is taken out of her : a fhip is alfo faid to ca-
reen when £he lies down at fea, as preflcd with a
weight of fail.
CARET, among grammarians, a charafter mark-
ed thus A, fignifying that fomething is added on
the margin, or interlined, which ought to have
come in where the caret flaiids.
CAREX, in botany, a genus of plants: in the
male flower there ib no corolla ; in the female there
are no petals ; but the nectarium is of an ovato-ob-
long foim, inflated, bident^ted at the top : there is
no pericjrpium ; but the neiSlarium, growing large,
cojuains a fingle ovato-acute triquetrous feed, with
one of its angles lefs than the refl.
CARGO, in naval affairs, the merchant-goods
whutever fort with which a fhip is freighted, and
proceeds from port to port.
CARIA, in zoology, a fjecies of ant, common
in the Eart-Indies, and larger than thofe with us.
They are very niifchievous, living in large com-
munities, and throwing up hills of earth five or fix
feet high.
CARICA, in botany. See the article Papaw.
CARIES, in furgery, is properly a diforder in
which the bone, from whatever caufe, is deprived
of its perioffeum ; and having loft its natural heat
and colour, becomes fatty, yellow, brown, and at
length black ; this is the firft and lighteft degree of
the diforder, and is what, according to Celfus, the
ancients called os viticitum, and the iiigtities offtum^
But the greater degree of this diforder is where the
bone is eroded and eaten, and becomes uneven by
reafon of the number of fmall hole?, of which it
is is full, when it difcharges a filthy fanies, whofe
acrimony foftens, relaxes, and deflroys the flefhy
parts that grow round it. This is a true caries or
ulcer of the bone ; and every bone of the body is
fubje6f to this diforder : and though this ulcer m.ay
appear to be ever fo fafely or happily healed, yet it
too often happens, that after the cicatrix is formed,
and has been fo for fome time, a new abfcefs will
be made, the whole diforder will return afrefh, and
the acrimonious and corrupted matter, which con-
tinually iflues out from the various bones, being
colledted within, will produce many giievous fymp-
toms, and del^roy the neighbouring flcfli again.
Many methods have been attempted for the cure
of a caries ; the firft and mildeff is applied to the
fiighteft degree of the difeafe, and is performed by
the application of fpirituous remedies, fuch as fpirit
of wine, Hungary-water ; or by flight balfamics,
fuch as the powder of birlhwort, florentine iris,
myrrh, or aloes. Either of thefe powders is to be j
fprinkled on the part, after the fanies has been care- '
fully wiped away with dry lint, and this continued
till the cure is perfeded. In a caries that pene-
trates
CAR
trates fomewhat deeper, flrongcr remedies take
place, fuch as powder of cuphorbiuni, or its ef-
fuiice, made in well re(3ifi-id fpirit of wine ; or oil
of cloves, cinnamon, or guaiacum ; either of thcfc
may be touched on with a pencil, or laid upon dry
]int, and applied : feme alfo ufc the corrofive me-
dicines, the phagadenic water, and fpirit of vitriol,
or of fulphur ; and, in the place of thefe, a folu-
tion of quick-filver in aquafortis may be ufed with
great fuccefs. When by thefe means an exfoliation
of the bone has been produced, the buhncfs is then
to treat it with balfamics.
A fecond method of cure for a c^reatcr degree of
caries is perforating the bone with the trepan, and
drefling the part ai'tcrwards, either with balfamics,
or dry lint. By thefe means the exfoliation of the
bone is forwarded, and new veflels pufli themfelvcs
through the foraminula, which, joining with the
neighbouring flefh, make a new covering for the
bone.
The third method of cure is performed bv the
lafpatory, or chiflel, taking off the corrupted or
vitiated part of the bone, till ail beneath appears
white, or ruddy, and found : and the fourth,
which is the moft: ancient, and the rnoft fpeedy and
certain method, is by the actual cautery, burning
down the moft vitiated part of the bone. This
jnethod, however, is not neceflary, except in great
degrees of this diforder ; and in the performing it,
great care muft be taken not to injure the neigh-
bouring foft parts. For this reafon an afliftant
fhould always draw back the lips of the wound
both ways, while the operation is performed ; and
if the opening be not wide enough, it fhould be
previoufly opened and enlarged by (ponse tents, or
widened by the knife, till the bone lies fair, when
the part muft be carefully wiped with dry lint, to
cleafe it from the fanies ; and if there be any fun-
gous- flefh, that muft be alfo removed.
One application of the cautery, when the difor-
der is confiderable, will feldom prove fuflicient ; it
ufually requires to be repeated feveral times, at
proper intervals ; and if the caries be of fuch ex-
tent that one cautery will not cover it all over, the
iirft muft be applied to the middle, and the fucceed-
ing towards its edges. This operation is not at-
tended with anv great pain, if care be taken not to
injure any of the adjacent foft parts ; for the bones
are in themfelves free from any fenfe of pain.
Where the cranium is the feat of this diforder, the
cautery is attended with great hazard, as it is alfo
in a caries of the ribs, or fternum, from the neigh-
bourhood of parts of the utmoft confequence to
life. The carpus and tarfus alfo will very badly
admit of cauterizing, becaufe of the neighbourhood
of the tendons and ligaments, which it is fcarce
poffible to avoid injuring in the operation. After
cauterizing the part, it is to be drcC'ed with dry
25
CAR
lint only; or if the patient complain of great licit
in the part, the lint may dipped in fpirit of wins
before it is applied : afterwards balfamics are to be
applied till the pait exfoliate, and th-jo, if the cure
be perfedt, the vacuity will foon be filled with nc\v
found flefti. But if the bone remains bare, or ths
flelh it is covered with be fjft and fpongy, and docs
not adhere fufficiently to the fulijacent bone, or
where the bone remains difcoloured ; in either of
thefe cafes the cure v.'iH notftand, but the diforder
will break out again, unlefs prevented. In thefe cafes
therefore the work mull be all done over agaiii>
the fponsy flefti removed, and the actual cautery a-
gain applied, otherv/ife the cure can never ftand;
Hajicr^ i Surgery.
CARINA properly figiiifies the keel of a fliip.-
See the article Keel.
C.'\RiNA, in architeflure, a name given by the
ancient Roman?, to all buildings in tiie form of a
fliip, from carina, the keel of a ihip, as we ilill
ufe the word nave for nnvis, a fhip, th;; middle of
principal vault of our churches, becaufe it lias that
figure.
Carina, in anatomy, a term ufed for the fi-
brous rudiments or embryo of a chick, appearing
in an incubated egg.
The carina confifts of the entire vertebra?, as
they appear after ten or twelve days incubation.
Carina, or keel, inbotanv, the loweft petal of a
papilionaceous flower, often bipartite, placed under
the vexillum, and between the z\x, the lower part of
which runs into a claw of the length of the calyx,
and inferted in the receptacle.
CARIOUS, fomething partaking of the nature
of a caries. See Caries.
CAR LIN A, the Carline thiftle, in botany, a
genus ot fyngeneilous plants. The common foit
grows naturally upon fterile ground in many parts
of England j it hath long, narrow, with deep in-
cifures, and placed in a circle round the root. They
are rough and prickly like the other thirties, and of
a pale green colour. It hath a compound flower,
confiding of many hermaphrodite funnel-fhaped
florets. The feeds are pappous and downy at
top. The root is thick, fibrous, perforated witli
fmall holes, reddifh on the outfide and wbitifh with-
in ; the fmell is ftrong and fragrant, and the tafte
very penetrating and aromatic ; the other fpecies
grow in Italy and Germany, and flower in June.
Its root is moft in efteem, and recommended for its
alexipharniic qualities, in refifting infeiifion, aiai
expelling malignities; but the prefcnt medical prac-
tice takes little or no notice of it.
It is a native of the mountainous parts of Italy
.Tnd Germany, from whence the dried roots aye
fometimes brought to us. Thefe ate about an inch
thick, externally of a rufty or reddiih brown co-
lour, internally of a pale )clIowifli or brov.'nifn.
4 H. coirod.'i'i.
CAR
CAP.
corioded as it were upon the I'urfacc, and perforat-
ed with fmall holes, fo as to appear, when cut, as
if worm-eaten.
l^he roots of Carline thiftle have a moderately
flroiio;, not agreeable fmcll, and a weak, bitterifh,
fubacrid, fomewhat aromatic tafie. 'I'hey are fiip-
pofed to be diaphoictir, antihyfteric, and anthel-
mintic. They have been greatly efteemed by fo-
reign phyficians, in acute malignant as well as in
chronical difeafes ; and given in fiibftance from a
fcruple to a dram, and in infufion from one to two
drams and more.
CARLINE, or Caroline, a filver coin cur-
rent in the Neapolitan dominions, and worth about
toiir-pence of our money.
CARLINGS, i.'i naval architeflurc, fiiort pieces
of fquare timber ranging fore and afr, or length-
wife, between the beams of a fhip, into which they
are fcored.
CARMELITES, or White-Fri.^rs, are an
order of our Lady of Mount Carmel, m.aking one
ct the four orders of mendicants. They pretend
to derive tlieir original from the prophets Elijah and
Elifhi.
CARMINATIVES, in pharmacy, are medicines
appropriated to expel wind.
A great many (eem to be ftrang«rs to this term,
as it does not appear to carry in it any thing exprcf-
five of the medicinal efficacy of thofe fimpk-s which
pafs under its denomination. This term had cer-
tainly its rife, when medicine was too much in the
hands of thofe jugglers, who, for want of true
knowledge in their profeffion, brought religion in-
to their party ; and what through their ignorance
thr.'y were not able to do by rational prefcripticn,
they pretended to efre£l by invocation and their in-
terefl with heaven : Vv-hich cant being generally, for
the furprize fake, couched in fome iliort verfes;
the word carmen, which fignifics a verfe, was ufed
alfo to mean an enchantment ; which was frequently
made ufe of to fatisfy the people of the operation of
a medicine they could not account for. And as
thofe medicines now under this name are. of quick
efiicacy, and the confequenccs theieof, in many
inftances, furprlGng ; and the moft violent pains,
Ibmetimes ariling from pent-up wind, immediately
ceafmg upon its difperfion ; fuch medicines as give
relief, in this cafe, are more properly termed car-
minaiives, as if they cured by inchantment.
How thev expel wind may be conceived, when
we coiifider that all the parts of the body are per-
fpirable. Sanflorius, in his Medicina Statica, de-
te-mines all we call wind in the bowels, to be
fuch perfpirable matter as makes its ticapc through
the coats of the ftomach and inteftines. Between
the feveral membranes likewife of the mufcular
parts may fuch matter break out, and lodge for
fome time. Now whatfoever will rarefy and render
fuch collections of vapour thinner, muft conduce
to their utter difcharge out of the body; and con-
fequently remove thofe uneafinefles which arifc
from their detention. And as all thofe things that
pafs under this denomination are warai, and confift
of very light fubtile parts, it is eafy to conceive
how a mixture of fuch particles may agitate and
rarefy thofe flatulencies, (o as to facilitate their ex-
puifion ; efpecially confidering thofe grateful fenfa-
tions which i'uch medicines give to the fibres,
which cannot but invigorate their tonic undulations
fo much, that by degrees the obftrufted wind is
diflodged, and at laft quite expelled : but if the ob-
ftrudlion be not great, the rarefaftion of the wind,
upon taking fuch a medicine, is often fo fudden,
and likewife its difcharge, that it goes ofF like the
explofion of (gunpowder.
All the things under this clafs being warm and
difcufTive, are much ufed in the compofition of ca-
thartics, of the rougher fort efpecially : for the ir-
ritation occafioned bv thofe would be fcarce tolera-
ble, without the mitigation of fuch grateful ingredi-
ents. Many likewife of this fortment are in the
compofition of difcuilive topics.
CARMINE, a beautiful crimfon colour, form.ed
of the tinging fubllance of cochineal, brightened
with aqua- fortis by a procefs fimilar to that ufed for
dying fcarlet in grain. It is of great advantage in
painting, as well in water as varnifh, both on ac-
count of its beauty and ftanding well ; but it will
not mix with oil fo as to have the due efFeil in that
kind of painting.
The compilers of the new French Encyclopedic
have given two or three old recipes for the prepara-
tion of this colour ; and afterwards recommended
another, as preferable to them, taken from Kunc-
ktl, which on examination is only a procefs for
making bad lake of fcarltt rags : but rather than
infert fuch imperfefl inffruclion for the making an
article of great confequence, as may delude "thofe
who are earneft in their purfuit of this art into a
fruitlcfs expence of time and money, we choofe -to
be filent in this particular, inflead of leading them
into an error by groundlefs pretenfions to the con-
trary.
CARNATION, Diamhtis, in botany, a plant
whofe flower confifts of five petals, whofe ungues
are longer than the calyx; the cup is a cylindrace-
ous, tubulofe, ftriated, premanent, perianthium,
cut at the mouth in five parts ; the filaments are
avvl-fhaped, and ten in number ; thefe are the
length of the calyx, topped v/ith oval, oblong, com-
preifed anthera-. The germen is oval, and lupports
two fubulated ftyles longer than the flamina, which
are crowned with recurved acuminated (ligma ; the
fruit is a cylindraceous capfule of one cell, which
contains a number of comprefled angular feeds.
1 hcfe are the charaflers of the plain fingle flowers,
which among florifis are defpilt;d, none being ac-
ceptable but thofe which produce double flowers,
and
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and thefe are not noticed, except they have peculiar
appearances to recommend them. The principal
properties in a good carnation are as lollovv :
I. The ftem of the flower fhould be ftrong and
able to fupport the weight of the flower, without
lopping down. 2. The petals (or leaves) of the
flower ftiould be large, broad, flift", laying flat,
without any indentures on their edges; arifing from
the extremity to the center regularly, fu as to form
the whole as neatly hemifpherical as polTible. 3. The
pod ftiould be cylindrical, neither too fhort nor too
long, for if it is too fhort the cxtrenic petals will
fail down and much diminifti the beauty of the
flower, and if too long, the flower will be con-
tracted, which is difagreeable to a curious eye : it
is alfo eflcemed a good property if the flower ex-
pands without the pod burfiing, which it is very
apt to do ; to remedy which, fee the article Blow -
ING a Flower.
4. The colours fhould be bright, equally firiped,
on a pure white ground, for if there is one petal
f:,.gle coloured, it is called run, (in the florifts lan-
guage) and dcfpifed. The florifts clafs carnations
into five orders ; the firft they call flakes, thefe are
of two colours only, and the flripes are large, go-
ing quite through the leaves; the fecond are called
bizars, thefe have flowers ftriped or variegated with
three or four different colours ; the third are called
piquetees, thefe flowers fhould always have a white
ground, and at fpotted or pounced with different
colours; I'lC icurthare called painted ladies, hav-
ing f! eir I als of a red or purplifh colour, ftrip-
ed and ire white underntath ; the fifth fort are caii-
ed butilersj tlvefe, if managed properly, grow ex-
ceeding large, and makes a grand appearance ; a
kind of fecondary pod arifes in the middle, which
fliould be carefully taken out when the flower is
nearly expanded ; this fort is not fo much culti-
vated as formerly, the prefent tafte being chiefly con-
fined to (what the florifts call) whole- blowing car-
nations. Of each of thefe orders there arc nume-
rous varieties, and principally of flakes and bizars,
which are moft efteemed. To enumerate the varieties
of the chief flowers in any one of thefe orders,
would be almoft impofRble, fince every country
produces new flowers every year from feeds ; fo
that thofe flowers, which at their firft blowing were
greatly valued, are, when become common, little
.regarded, efpecially if they are defective in any one
.property : therefore where flowers are (o liable to
, mutability, either from the fancy of the owner, or
that better kinds are yearly produced from feeds,
(wliich it may be remarked does riOt often happen)
;they always take place of older, or worfe flowers,
which are turned out to make room for them.
Thefe flowers aie dignified with the greateft titles,
fuch as emperors, kings, princes, dukes, dutchefTcs,
.earls, countefles, barons, with gentlemen and la-
■dies out of number, which to enumerate (if it were
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pofiible) would require not a fmall folio. Thefe
floweis arc propagated cither frnm feeds (by which
new flowers are obtained) or from layers, for the
incrcafe of thofe forts which are worthy of prefer-
vation. The feeds fliould be colleded from the befl
flov.'cr?, and Town in the fpriiig in large pots, or
boxes, en light, rich earth, and covered about a
quarter of an inch with the fame. Thefe fliould be
fituated where they can receive the morning futi
Old)', obfcrving to water them when necefiary. In
about a .month the plants will come up, which will
be fit to tranfplant in July, taking, if pofTible, the
advantage of moift weather, placing them about
three inches diftance, in beds of light, rich earth,
and kept watered and fliaded in funfnine weather,
till they have got good rcoting. Here they may
continue till September, when every other one
fliould be taken up and tranfplanted into other
beds, in order to give room for the remainder ; here
they may remain till flowering, when the goodnefs
of them may be determined, obfcrving, if the win-
ter proves fevere, to cover them occafionally with
mats, &c. When they begin to blow, all the An-
gle flowers, and thofe of one colour, fhould be pull-
ed up, and none but thofe Vv'hich are good fhould
be refcrved, which, to increafe, may be laved
down as foon as pcflible, which is in June or July,
according to the condition of the fhoots ; the me-
thod of doing v.'hich, fee the article Laying.
Florifts tranfplant the layers, when they have got
ftrong roots, into pots, in the fize of which at firft
planting they differ. Some plant them in the large
pots they are defigned to blow in ; others in fmall
pots, which they ftiift in the fpring into larger.
This laft method appears the moft eligible, for if
they are in fmall pots they fland in lefs compafs,
and are more eafily protected from the feverity of
the w inter ; but thofe v^ho plant them in large ones,
fhelter them with pots, which are open ac the top
and made for the purpofe, for the cutting winds do
them the grer.teft injury. In thefe pots are generally
placed two plants.
Another method of increafing this plant, is bv
what is called piping (among; florifts ;) the opera-
tion is, to cut thellioots quite ofF through a joint,
and fticking them in rich earth, under a glafs air
tight : with fnme this praffice iuccceds very well,
but in general it is precarious ; however, the plants
raifed this way commonly fpindle higher than thofe
raifcd by layers.
When carnations begin to fpindle, tlu\ fhould
be rtmovcd on a flage made for the purpofe, which
generally have ciftcrns of water round each poftj
this is necefiary, in order to prevent infefts, parti-
cularly ear- wigs, from getting to the floweij, whith
if they are fuftcrcd to do, will foon deftroy them,
there being a fvveetiiefs at the bottom of the petals
which thci'c vermin are very fond of.
Koiwithftaiiding the moft valuable flowers are
planted
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planted in pots, yet there are many planted in bor-
tiers in t!ie flower-garden, where they arc fome of
its principal ornaments, during their continuance of
llower when properly intermixed.
S/>a?2//'Z) Carnation, a name ufed in the Weft-
Indies, for the poinciana of botanifts. See the ar-
ticle PoiNCIANA.
Carnation Colour, among painters, is under-
flood of all the parts of a piclure, in general, which
leprefent flefli, or which are naked and without
drapery.
CARNELIAN, farda, in natural hiftory, a pre-
cious ilone, of which there are three kinds, diftin-
guifhed by three colours, a red, a yellow, and a
white. Authors have attributed medicinal virtues
to this ftone, meaning the red carnclian ; this there-
fore is to be underftood the farda, or carnelian of
the fliops. It is very well known among us, and is
found in roundifh or oval mafTes, much like our
common pebble ; and is generally met wiih between
an inch and two or three inches in diameter ; it is
of a fine, compaft, and clofe texture ; of a glofTy
I'urface; and, in the feveral fpecimens, is of all the
detrrees of red, from the paleft flefli-colour to the
deepeft blood-red. It is generally free from fpots,
clouds, or variegations ; but fometimes it is veined
veiy beautifully with an extremely pale red, or with
white; the veins foiming concentric circles, or c-
ther lefs regular figures, about a nucleus, in the
manner of thofe of agates.
The pieces of carnelian which are all of one co-
lour, and perfeftly free from veins, are thofe which
our jewel.'crs generally make ufe of for fcah,
thou"h the variegated ones are much more beautifid.
The carnelian is tolerably hard, and capable of a
very good polifli : it is not at all affefled by acid
menftruums ; the fire diverts it of a part of its co-
lour, and leaves it of a pale red ; and a flrong and
long continued heat will reduce ic to a pale dirty
grey.
The hneft carnelians are thofe of the Eaft-Iiidies ;
but there are very beautiful ones found in the ri-
vers of Silefia and Bohemia; and we have fome not
delpicable ones in England.
CARNIVAL, or Carnaval, a time of re-
joicing, a feafon of mirth, obferved with great fo-
icnniity by the Italians, particularly at Venice,
holding from Twelfth-day till Lent.
CARNIVEROUS, arv ap pel latin n given to ani-
mals which naturally feed on ilrfh, and thence
called beafts or birds of prey.
The word is compounded of the Latin, cm-o,
flefli, and voro, to devour.
CARNOSITY, a term fometimes ufed for an
excrefcence, or tubercle, in the urethra.
CARO MuscuLosA Quadrata, in anatomy,
the fame with the palniaris brcvis. See the article
Palmakis.
•2
CAROB-Tree, in botany. See the article
Ceratonica.
CAROLOSTADIANS, in church hiftory, an
ancient branch of Lutherans, who denied the real
prefence in the eucharift. See the article Eir-
CHARIST.
CAROLUS, an ancient Englifh broad piece of
gold, ftruck under Charles I. Its value has of late
been at twenty-three fliiUings fterling, though at
the time it was coined, it is faid to have been rated
at twenty {hillings.
Carolus, a fmall copper coin, with a little
filver mixed with it, ftruck under Charles Vlil. of
France.
The carolus was worth twelve deniers, when it
ceafed to be current.
Thofe which are ftilT current in trade, in Lorrain,
or in fome neighbouring provinces, go under the
name of French fols.
CAROTEEL, in commerce, an uncertain weight
or quantity of goods : thus a caroteel of cloves is
from four to five hundred weight ; of currants, from
five to nine ; of mace, about three hundred ; of
nutmegs, from fix to kwen hundred and a half.
CAROTIDS, in anatomy, two arteries of the
neck, which convey the blood from the aorta to the
brain, one called the right carotid, and the other the
left : they arife near each other, from the curvature
of the aoTta, and run upon each fide of the arteria
trachea, between it and the internal jugular vein,
as big as the larynx, without any ramification ; each
of thefe is then ramified into two branches, one
named internal, the other external. The internal
carotid artery having pafTed the great canal of the
apophyfis petrofa of the os temporis, fends off a
branch through the fphenoidical filTure, to the orbit
of the eye, and foon afterwards another through
the foramen opticum, by which it communicates
with the external carotid. The external is the fmalt-
eft ; it runs between the external angle of the lower
jaw, and the parotid gland ; afterwards it afcends
on the fore-fide of the ear, and ends in the temples.
All the ramifications of the carotids are covered by
the pia mater, in the duplicature of which they are
difiributed, and fonn capillary, reticular textures,
in great numbers; afterwards they are loft in the
inner fubftance of the brain. See the article Ar-
tery.
CARUCAGE, or Caruage, a term in huf-
bandry for the ploughing of ground, either ordi-
nary, for grain, hemp, and flax ; or extraordinary,
for woad, dyers-weed, rape, &c.
CARP, in ichthyology, the Englifh name of
the cyprinus, with four cirri, or beards, and the
third rav of the back-fins armed with fmall hooks.
CARPENTER, an artificer in wood, defigned
for the purpofes of building.
iiZ'//) Carpenter, an officer appointed to ex-
araiHe
CAR
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amine into the condition of the fliip's hull and marts ;
and to keep the pumps in good order, which he is
frequently ordered to examine : he is likewife to ob-
ferve that the {hips decks and fides are well caulked,
and whether any thing gives way. It is alfo his
duty, in the time of battle, to watch up and down in
the lower apartments of the fhip, to Hop any holes
that may have been made by balls in the fides, with
fhot-plugs : and like-wife to filh, or otherwife fecure
the marts and yards.
As the carpenter and boatfwain (who generally
mefs together) are diftinguiflied, by their fingular
qualities, from the rert of the fea-officers in gene-
ral, fo are they from one another in particular : for
at the fame time that the latter is remarkable for a
favage tone of voice, the former is equally charac-
terized by a groveling inclination of his head, partly
occafioned by carrying every day at noon a large
quantity of ufeful timber out of the king's yards,
which he was dextrous enough to convert into fmall
pieces, and call his chips, and partly by not having
been taught to dance till he was inftrufted by the
fea-fchool-mafter ; who likewife taught him the ufe
of Gunter's-fcale, fince which time he has for ever
diftradted the boatfwain with talking" about the
fqiijT and cube- roots.
T'l^e carpenter is generally pofleflcd of a very
crock d .md perturbed fpirit, owing certainly to
havi.i'i been peftered with a variety of knotty im-
pediments, which greatly incumbered him, and at
length made his temper as fower as the purfer's
petty- warrant beer.
CARf'ENTRY, the art of cutting, framing,
and idining large pieces of wood for the ufe of
buildi:-,g. It is one of the arts fubfervient to archi-
tefture, and is divide'! into houfe-carpentry and
fliip-carpentry : the firft is employed in raifing,
roofing, flooring of houfes, &c. and the fecond
in the building of fhips, i^c. The rules in car-
pentry are much the fame with thofe of joinery ;
the only diftersnca is, that carpeirry is ufcd in the
larger coarfer "ork, and joinery in the fnialler and
curious. See Joinery.
CARPE r, a fort of covering of rtuff, or other
materials, wrought with the. needle or in a loom,
forming part of the furniture of a houfe, and is
commonly fpread over tables, or laid upon the
floor.
Perfian or Turky carpets are thofe moft crtcemed ;
though at Paris there is a manufactory after the man-
ner of Perfia, where they make them little inft-rior,
■not to fay finer, than the true Peifian carpets. They
are velvety, and perfectly imitate the carpets which
come from the Levant. There are alfo carpets of
Germany, f )me of which are made of woollen ftufFs,
as ferges, &c. and called iquare carpets : others arc
made of wool alio, but wrought with the needle,
and often embelliHied with filk ;. and laftly, there
are carpets made of dog's hair. We have likewife
25
carpets made in England equal to any brought from
the Eaft.
CARPINUS, horn-beam, in botany. See the
article Hornbeam.
CARPOBALSAM, in the materia medica, the
fruit of the tree which yields the true oriental balfam.
The carpobalfam is ufcd in Egypt, according to
Profper Alpinus, in all the intentions for which
the balfam itfclf is applied : but the only ufe the
Europeans make of it is in Venice-treacle and
niithridate, and in thcfe not a great deal ; for
cubebs and juniper berries are geneially fubftituted
in its place.
CARPOCRATIANS, heretics who fprung up
towards the middle of the fecond century, being a
branch of the ancient Gnoftics. They held a com-
munity of wives ; and maintained, that a man can-
not arrive at perfeiStion without having parted through
all criminal atlions ; laying down as a maxim, that
there is no aftion bad in itfelf, but only from the
opinion of men ; accordingly they are charged with
committing the moft infamous at their love-feafts.
They attributed the creation of the world to angels ;
they faid that Jefus was born in a manner like other
men ; they rejefled the refurreiftion of the body ; and
marked their difciplcs at the bottom of the right ear
with a hot iron, or with a razor.
CARPUS, the wrirt, in anatomy. See the ar-
ticle Wrist.
CARR, among the ancients, a kind of throne
mounted on wheels, and ufed in triumphs and other
folemn occafions.
CARRAC, the name of the veflels employed by
the Portuguefe in the Eaft-India and Rrafilian trade ;
they are very large, and fated for lighting as well as
for burden.
CARRAT, or Caract. See Caract.
CARRIAGE, a mechanical vehicle for convey-
ing, perfons, goods, or matter of what kind foever
from one place to another.
Their conrtruflions and form9 are difi'erent, ac-
cording to the purpofe for which they are required.
If for land-carriage, the machines chiefly ufed ia
Europe are coache.s, chariots, calalhes, berlins, wag-
gons, with four wheels ; chalfes, carts, and drays,
v/ith two wheels, all drawn by oxen, horfes, mule?,
buffaloes, &c. But thofe for water-carriage in ge-
neral are fhips, bark?, boats, &c. For the nature
and conflrudtion of each, iee their relpedlive name.
Letlcr or £/// a/" Carriage, a writing given to
a carrier or the mafier ( f any carriage, containing
the number and quality of the pieces, bales, &c of
meichandizes, which he is entrufted .• ith, that he
may demand the payment of^he carriage, and that
the perfon to whom they are acidri flird may fee whe-
ther they aie delivered in the fame nun.bcr, and in as
good condition at they were given to the cairier.
Carriage of a cannon, i.s a fort of cart or
dray, (fee Plate XXVII. y?j. 3.) compofed of two
6 I long
CAR
Jlons pieces of v'ood, called fides, or cheeks, wlilch
are made in a bending form, fo that, (Plate XXVII.
fg. 4.) onecnd of them h refts on the ground, and the
other a is fupported by the axis or axle-tree of the
wheels, from which it jets out about: a foot. The
cheelts are joined to each other by four pieces of
■wood, called crofs-quarters or tratjfoms ; the firft a
is called the tranfoni of the chace ; the fecond c the
tranfom of the bed ; the third d the tranfom of she
fight ; and the fourth g, which fills all the fpace
between thofe parts of the checks that reft on the
ground, is called the tranfom of the lunet, or eye-
hole. In the cheeks, between the part that is op-
pofite to the tranfom of the chace, and that which
is oppofite to the axle-tree of the wheels of the car-
riage, are two femicircular notches, in which the
trunnions of the cannon are placed;, on the three
firft tranfoms acd is placed a piece of wood of a
proper thicknefs, on which the breech of the can-
non refts ; this plank is called the bed of the
carriage.
When the cannon is to be carried into the field,
or removed from one place to another, the limber
(avaunt train) or fore carriage, is added to that
part of the cheeks where the tranfom of the lunette
is placed.
Befides the carriage now defcribed, which is the
mofl:. common, and called the wheel-carriage, there
are fort- carriages, fea-carriages,. and baftard-car-
riages, which have low folid wheels, that ferve to
move them on a rampart, or to and fro in other
places of fmall extent.
Cap^riage, in p.griculture, a furrow for the
conveyance of water to overflow and improve the
ground. It is difliiiguifhed into two forts ; the
main carriage, which ftiould be made a con-
venient defcent ; and the lefTsr carriages, which
ifliould be fliallow, and as many in number as
poflible.
CARROT, Dciuais, in botany, a genus of pen^
tandrious plants, producing umbelliferous- flowers.
'The principal umbel hath an involucrum, which is
polyphyllous and pinnated. The proper floweracon-
Jift each of five inflexed heart-lhaped petals, and
contain five capillary ftamina. Ti« germen fupports
{■u'o reflexed ilyles, topped with ob-ufe fliiTma, and
becomes afterward a (mall roundifh filiated fruit,
divided in tv/o parts, each having a finoje ked^
convex and furrowed on one lide, and plain on the
other.
The common manured carrot hathTeaves divided
into a irumber of narrow fegments ; and the root,
■which is f.efliy,. isfo v;el! known that it requires no
defcription. This plant is propagated by feed, and
delights in a warm,, Ifght, fandy foil,, which fhould
be pretty deep,, and well worked, that the roots
may more ealily run down ;■, for if they meet with
any obftruftion, they are very apt to glow forked,,
ap.d.filoot ou.t'latcxal.branche5j efpecialiy whcra the.
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ground is too much dunged the fame year that the
feeds are fown ; therefore the properefl: land for
carrots is ground that has been well dunged, and
cropped at leait a year before j (this is in refpecl to
kitchen-gardens ;) but where the foil is freOi and
fitting for carrots, dunging is not neccflary.
Carrots are fown at different times of the year,,
in order to be fit for ufe at various feafons : the firfl
feaCon is about Chriftmas,, on warm borders, &c..
The fecond is in February or March : this is de-
figned for the principal crop. ' For a third or au-
tumnal crop, June or July is the time : and at the
end of Auguft fome may be fown, in order to (tand
the winter, by which method there may be produced
early carrots in March following, before the fpring
fovv'ing is fit to draw. Previous to fowing the feeds,
they fhould be well rubbed in the hands, to prevent
their adhering together, which they are apt to do
by forked hairs on their borders : and at the time
for fowing, a calm day fhould be chofen for the
operation ; for they being very light, it would be a
difficulty to fow even, if the wind blew ffrong.
When the feed is fown, they, (bould be trod into
the ground, and afterward raked fmooth.
When the plants are come up, they fliould be
hoed out fingly, at the diftance of four inches.
This is abfolutely necefTary, as it not only deffroys-
the weeds, but alfo gives the plants which are left
good encouragement to grow.
The roots of carrots have been long cultivated iti
gardens for culinary ufes ; but has not till of late
years been much cultivated in the fields for cattle;
we {hall therefore fubjoin the following extraiSf,
from a pamphlet lately puhlifhed by Mr. Robert
Billing, farmer at Weafenham, in Norfolk, by
defire of the fociety for the encouragement of arts,
manufaftures, and commerce at London.
Mr. Billing fays, that the culture of carrots foP
the winter feed of cattls has been long praclifed m
the eaflern parts of Suffolk ; but never in the county,
of Norfolk, where turnips has hitherto been pre-
ferred. The premium offered by the fociety of arts
encouraged him to make trial of them in the latter
coiinty, and in 17.63, he fowed thirty acres and a
half in three fields ; one of thirteen acres, one of
half an acre, and one of feventeen acres. The
piece of thirteen acres was a cold,, loamy foil,,
fhallow, and underneath it a loamy gravel ; the
half acre a- mixed foil upon a moid: clay ^ and the
feventeen acres a light dry foil, newly improved
with a marie, fourteen acres of which were a flialr
low black fand upon a kind of imperfefl grit-flone,
called in that county carr-ftone.
Mr. Billing advifes plowing the land for carrots
early, before the winter begin,, thjt the ground:
may have all the benefit of the froft for mellowing
the foil, and fifing it in the fpring for the receptioQ-
of the feed. The grnup.d for carrots, every body,
knowi, cannot be matlc too fine.
Hfe
CAR
He Towed four pounds of feed upon an acre, in
the fanic manner as turnip feed is fowcd, only
paflinj^ it firft through a tine chaff lieve, to make it
feparatc.
He recommends late fowing as a means of check-
ing the weeds and lelFening the expcnce of hoeir.g ;
for as carrots lie long in the ground before coming
up, the weeds are apt to get the bcitur of them;
but this fcems to have little weight, the land being
well cleaned, early fowing, in March, is molt un-
doubtedly the molt proper feafon ; and every man's
experience muft diredl him in the hoeing of them.
He owns, that harrowing the weeds out, after the
carrots come up, will not hurt the carrots.
0( the carrots on the thirteen acres, many, when
dug up, meafurcd two feet long, and from twelve to
fourteen inches round, at the upper end. Thefe
Were fown on wheat flubble, dunged the year be-
fore; the half acre was clover laye dungtd for the
carrots, and there they grew confiderably bigger.
This thirteen acres and a half produced two hundred
and forty cart loads of carrots ; and the feventcen
acres about two hundred and feventy loads, iji all
five hundred and ten ; equal in ufe and effect to
near one thoufand loads of turnips, or three hun-
dred loads of hay, as experience has evinced, by
the various ways in which they have been tried.
The (eafon for drawing the carrots is a little after
Michaelmas. Mr. Bdling lays, that the befl way
cf drawing them is by a man with a four pronged
fork, who breaks the ground about fix inches deep,
and a little boy lollov/s him to pick them up ; but
this method being tedious in large plantalions, he
found it necffTary to plow them up with a narrow-
flicared wheel plow,- which going flow, turned them
up without injury to the carrots ; and the cat-
tle, being put into the field, eat them- up without
walte ; the firft plowing does not throw them
all up : but thi^fe thrown up by a fecond and third
plowing, are equally good with thofe thrown up at
firft.
With this crop of carrots Mr. Billing fatted
thirty-three neat beafts,. and forty-nine fhearing
weathers. At firft, he gave the cattle with the
carrots a mixture of cabbages, forty load of which
grew on half an acre of arable. This forty load of
cabbages he computes to be equal to eighteen loads
ef carrots ; the cattle were fondeft of thefe a' firft,
but having gradually taken to eat the carrots, they
foon preferred them. To the thirty-three neat
beafts, and forty-nine weathers, he allowed one
load of turnips when his cabbages were fpent, and
three loads of carrots each day, and they fatted as
faft upon thefe as upon feven loads of turnips, as
experience taught him. He computes the profits of
this fmall ftock to be about one hundred and twenty
pound.
He alfo fed fixteen working horfes with thefe
carrots, vathout h.iy or corn, during the winter,
CAR
except when they carried corn to Biancafter, at
fixtecn miles diftance, and to the team tmpl ijtd in
this fervice, he allowed only a buflu-l of oats a day.
Peafc-ffraw, chaft", and carrots yielded all their or-
dinary food. For the horfes, Mr. Billing had the
carrots waflied, their heads and tails chopped ofi",
which ferved the hogs, and fometimes they had a
cut or two liefides. The fixteen hoifes eat two
loads of carrots a week, equal to more than a load
of hav.
Mr. Billing has not given fo exa£f an account, as-
might be wifhed, of the manner of drawing his
carrots, and feeding his cattle, though the oniiffion
does not proceid from defign, but inadvertency. It
fhould fcem, that at firft he pulled up his carrots,
by a man and a boy, carried them to a feeding dole,
and dilperfed them about for the cattle to pick up ;.
but afterwards, finding perhaps, this way tedious,
he made ufe of his plow, turned his cattle into the
fame field where the cairots grew, and left them to
pick thera up, dirty as they were, for their own fub-
iiftence. This feems to be implied, but here we are
not told what quantity of ground he plowed up at a-
time ; whether more than the cattle eat in a day ; or
whether thofe the horfes eat were plowed up ftefh,
or whether he had any method of keepin^^ them for
future ufe after being dug or plowed up. It fh'ould,.
feem by fome expreiTions indeed, that he fuftered
them to continue in the ground all the winter, as, he
fays, they were difficult to be dug up, during a hard
froft ; but if car.'ots will keep without damage dur-
ing the winter, it were eafy to preferve a quantity
to provide againft the rigour of frofts, or other acci-
dents,, by the following method : about the becrin-
ning of November, when the green leaves are de-
cayed, they fhould be dug up, and laid in fand, in a
dry place, where the froft cannot come at them ;-
and take them out from time to time occafionally
as they are wanted.
Some of the largeft and ftraighteft roots may be
refcived for feed, which may be planted in the
middle of February, at about a foot diftance ; and
in Auguft the feeds will be ripe, when they fhould
be cut, and kept in a dry place till wanteds
Botanlfts enumerate fix other fpecies of carrot;
fome of them are refcrved by the curious for the
fake of variety. The common wild carrot grows
in many parts of England : the feeds of this foft
are ufed in n>edicine. It is efteemed as a diuretic,,
and good againft the flone and gravel : it is alfo
ufeful in uterine and hyfleric diforders.
Another fort, called candy carrot, the feed of
which is long and flender at both ends, fwellinw af
the middle, of a ple.ifant fmell, and fnarp hot tafte..
It grew origina'ly in Candia, and other places in
the Levant. The feeds only are ufed, being aperient
and good. in diforders of the kidneys. It is likewife
accounted a good alexipharmic, and proper againit
the bites of venomous creatures 3, whence it is -ars.
jiig!e-
CAR
ingredient in mithridate and Venice-treacle, This
laft is a fpecies of the athamanta. See the article
Spign'el.
CARROUSAL, a courfe of chariots and horfes,
or a magnificent entertainment exhibited by princes
on fome public rejoicing. It confifts in a cavalcade
of feveral gentlemen richly drefled and equipped,
after the manner of ancient cavaliers, divided into
fquadrons, meeting in fome public place, and prac-
tifing jufl-s, tournaments, &c.
CA RT, a vehicle, mounted upon two wheels,
drawn by one or more horfes, ufed for the carriage
of various forts of heavy things. The word feems
derived from the French charrette, which fignifies
the fame ; or rather the Latin carreta, a diminutive
of carrus.
A cart differs from a wain in that the former is
drawn by horfes, and has two fides called trills or
Ihafts ; whereas the latter is drawn by oxen, and
has a wain-cope.
Carts in London and Weftminfter are not to
carry more than twelve facks of meal, or one chal-
dron of coals, on pain of forfeiting one of the
horfes. The wheels are to be of a certain thick-
nefs, without iron ; and if any perfon ride in a
cart, not having another to guide it, he (ball forfeit
ten fnillings. The chief difficulty in conflruiiting
of wheel carriages, is properly fitting the wheels
and axle, which ought to be done in fuch a manner
that the carri::ge may move with the leaft power
polTible ; but by the prefent conitruftion of many
wheel carriages, one would imagine they iniended
their cattle to draw by the ears or tail, indead of
the proper place. See Wheel-Carriages, and
Waggon.
Cartel, in the marine, a fliip provided in
time of war to exchange the prifoners of any two
hoilile powers ; alfo to carry any particular requcft
or propofal from the one to the other : for this rea-
fon, {he is particularly commanded to carry no cargo
or arms, only a fmgle gun for firing fignals.
Our honert Americans, however, who have fo fore-
Iv grieved of late for paying a fmall part of the great
taxes ot this coiiiitry, although demanded for their
own particular proteftion, made not only no fcruple
to dilobey and defpife this regulation of cartels dur-
ing the late war ; but, en the contrary, gave con-
tinual ("upplies of provifions to our enemies in the
Weft- Indies, and thereby recovered them and re-
cruited their fallen fpiiics, at a time when they were
gafping under the weight of our arms. With fo
much addrefs, indeed, did thefe oppteffed and un-
fortunate traders cf'nduit this fclxrnie, that ten or
twelve cartels being laden at the fame time with
beef, pork, bread, flour, &c. lailed together for
the French iilands, .and, in order to evade the ftri<St
examination of our Ihips of war, were provided
with a guardian privateer, equipped by the fame
expert owners, tofeize their own veffels, and ditc(^t
2
CAR
their courfe to the places of their firft deflination ;
but if they were examined by our fhips of war, to
an Englifh port. But this clumfy trick did not long
efcape the vigilance of our naval-officers, who found
that the fellows fent abroad by way of commanders
or prize- matters were utterly ignorant, and incapa-
ble of piloting any (hip ; and of confequence only
fent to elude their fcrutiny.
The mofi: bare-faced piece of effrontery however
that was ever committed of this kind was the
feizing an armed veffel, fitted in Philadelphia, to
take thefe illegal cartels. She was commanded by
a gentleman, whom the majority of the mer- '
chants in that city joined to oppofe and diftrefs.
They employed a crew of ruffians, who feized his
veffel openly in the moft unwarranted and lawlefs
manner, and brought her up in triumph to the
town, when (he had only five men aboard : and lb
inveterate was their hatred to the commander, that
he was obliged to leave the country precipitately, as
being in danger of his life.
Cartel fignifies alfo a letter of defiance, or a chal-
lenge, to decide a controverfy, either in a tourna-
ment, or in a fingle combat. See the article Duel.
CARTESIAN Philofiphy, the fyftem of phyfics
advanced by Des Cartes, and maintained by his
difciples the Cartefians-
M. Dcs Cartes, in order to account for the ce-
leftial appearances, fuppofes that the matter of the
world was at fir(t divided by the Almighty into in-
numerable little equal parts, each endued with an
equal degree of motion, both about its own center,
and feparately, in fuch a manner, that this matter
conftituted a fluid. He alfo fuppofed, that feveral
colledlions of this matter were endued with a motion
about different points, as common centers ; which
points were placed at equal diftances, in fuch a man-
ner, that the matter round them conftituted different
vortices, as he calls them. He farther fuppofed,
that the fiift particles of matter became, by thofe
inteftine motions, of a fpherical figure, and confe-
quently compofod globules of feveral magnitudes ;
and thefe he calls the matter of his fecond element.
But the very fmall particles which were rubbed o&
by the afoiefaid motions, from the firft particles of
matter, and driven violently many different ways,
made up a new matter, which he calls his firft element. J
And fince there would be more of his firft element *
than was fufficient to fill the vacuities between the
globules of the fecond element, he fuppofes that the
remaining part would be driven towards the centre,
hy the circular motion of thefe globules, which did, -
for that reafon, recede from it : and this matter,
being there amaffed in a fphere, would, in the centre
of every vortex, produce a body like the fun ; which
fun being thus formed, and moving about its own
axis, with the common matier of tlie vortex, would
ncceffarily throw out fome parts of its matter,
through the vacuities of the globules of the fecond
element.
CAR
dement, conftituting the vortex ; and this efpeci-
ally, at fuch places as are the tanheft tVoni its pules,
receiving at the fame time, by theic poles, as much
as it lofes in its equatoriiil parts ; and by this means
it would be able to carry round with it thofe glo-
bules that are nearefl with greater velociiy, and
thofe that are remote with lels : Co that thofe glo-
bules, which Rn: ncarelt the centre of the fun, muft
be lead ; becaufe, were they greater or equal, tliey
would, by reafan of their velocity, hive a greater
centrifugal force, and reci.de irom ihe centre. A:id
fliou'd It happen that any of thefe fun-likc bodies in
the centers of the fcveral vortices Ihould be fo in-
crulfated and w;--akened, as to be carried about the
vortex of the t^ue (un ; fliould it happen to be of lefs
fulidiiy, or lefs motion, than the gkbules towards the
extremity of the (olar vortex, it would defcend to-
wards the fun, till it met with globules of the fame
folidity, and capable of the fame deg-ee of motion
witli itfejf ; and being hxcd there, it would for ever
after be carried about by the motion of the vortex,
without either approa< hing any nearer to, or reced-
ing farther from the (un ; and fo become a planet.
Supptifmg all this, we are next to imagine that
our fyltem was at riill divided into feverai vortices,
in the centre of each of which was a lucid fpherical
body ; and that fome of thef.', being gradually in-
cruftated, were fwaliowed up by ottiers, which were
larger and more powerful, till at lall they were all
deftroyed and fwallowed up by the bijigeft folar vor-
tex, except fome few, which were thrown oft" in
right-lines, from one vortex to another ; and fo be-
came comets : and from hence it appears, that thofe
planets which are nearcfl the fun, are lefs folid ;
and that is alfo Des Cartcs's reafon why we fee al-
wa)s the fame face of the moon ; becaufe the hemi-
fphere, which is oppofite to the fun and the earth, is
fomewhat more folid than the other ; as alfo, be-
caufe the matter of tlie firft element, which makes up
the body of the fun, moves with a greater velocity
the parts of the vortex, and the bodies fwimming
in it, than thofe that are remoter ; therefore thofe
planets which are nearer to the fun, muft finifh their
periods fooner than thofe which are more remote
from him. And the reafon why the planets revolve
round their axis is, becaufe, according to this hypo-
thefis, they were lucid, fun-like, and revolving bo-
dies before.
Yet, notwithftandint^ all this fine chimera, it is;
I. Certain, that a vortex, producid by the revolu-
tion of a fphere about its axis, muit be propagated
in infinitum, if nothing hinder it : and theietore,
fince there mutt be as many vortices as there are
fixed fears, one vortex would certainly run into
another, and every particle would be ailtuated bv a
motion compounded of that of all the central
fpheres ; which is abfurd, and contrary to that con-
ftancy, limitation, and uniformity, which is ob-
tervcd in the phenomena of the heavenly bodies.
2S
CAR
2. Since the motion of the parts of the vortices
nearert the centre is fwifier than that of the more
remote, they muft prefs upon the exterior parts,
anJ thereby perpetually iiii[iart foniething of their
motion to them ; and therefore thole exterior parts
of the vortex will be continually Icllening fonic part
of their motionj which being never reftored, thefe
parts muft IHII move flower and flower, till at laft
all the motion will be quite deftroyed.
3. According to this hypothefis, each plsnet is of
the fame dcnfity with the parts of the, voitex in
which it fv/ims, being governed by the fame laws of
motion, and is, as it were, only foine concreted
parts of the vortex. But the times of the perio-
dical motion of bodies, carried round by a vortex,
are in a duplicate ratio of their diftances from their
centre ; as Sir Ifaac Newton hath dcmonftrated iit
Sedl. IX. of his Frincip'a. Whereas the (quares of
the times of the periodical revolutions of the planets
a:e as the cubes of their mean diftance from the
centre, or'from the fun : wherefore the planets can-
not be carried round by a vortex.
4. It a vortex run out in infinitum, then would
a body carried round by it certainly defcribe a per-
fect circle, unlefs fomething folid hindered it ; and
therefore the greater the diftarfce between thofe folid
bounds, or the larger the bafon be which contains
the vortex, in refped of the orbit of the body car-
ried round in it, the nearer would this orbit be to a
circle; that is, the excentricity of the planets near-
eft the fun would be lefs than that of thofe which
are more remote. Whereas the direft contrary to
this is true in fa£f, the excentricity of i\lercury being
greater than that of Saturn.
5. A body, carried round in a vortex of the fame
denlity with it, v/ould neceiTarily defcribe a circle,
to whofe plane the axis of the central body, pro-
ducing the circulation of the fluid, would be per-
pendicular : and yet there is not one planet to the
plane of whofe orbit the fun's axis is perpendicular.
6. The comets have their orbits, not only oblique
to, but fometimes at right angles with, the plane of
the ecliptic ; fometimes the couife of thefe comets
is diametiically oppofite to that of the fun: they
perfcvere in their motion, without any change. By
lines drawn from them to the fun, they defcribe equal
areas in equal times ; and fometimes they enter
into the vortex of the fun. All which would be
impoffible, if the folar voitcx moved n und forcibly
enough to carry thefe vali bcdies of the planet
alonu; with it.
CARTHAMUS, baflard fafiVon, in botany, a
genus of plants whofe flower is compofld of fevcral
hermaphrodite floret'-', each of which are monope-
talous, and funnel -fliaped ; and contain five fhort
capillary filaments, topped with cyliitdrical, tubulofe
anthera; : it is deflitute of a pericarpium ; but the
calyx indoles a fingle, oblong, angular feed.
There are feverai Ipecies of cailhamus; but the
6 K tommoa
C A R
CAR
cr.wmor: fort impotteJ for ufe infwers the following
dticription. The plant is annual, and rifes with a
fliff ligneous ftalk, about three feet high, dividing
Ujiwards into many branches. Thefe are furniflied
with oval pointed leaves, which are entire, and
joined clofe to the flalk, (lightly ferrated, and prickly
«;bout their edges. The flowers are produced at the
extremity on each branch, of a fafFion colour, and
are fucceeded by fmooth white feeds.
This plant is a native of Egypt, and much cul-
tivated in Germany, for the ufe of dying and paint-
ing. It is fown there in open fields in the fpriiig,
and hoed out in the manner we do turnips. The
flowers are u(ed by the dyers, and the feeds in irie-
dicine. Thefe are accounted a pretty Urong ca-
thartic, bringing away ferous grofs humours ; and
is reckoned very good in the droply and jaundice ;
but being a naufeous medicine, the prefent p;adice
feldjm prefcribes it.
CARTHUSIANS, a religious order, founded in
the year ic8o, by one Bruno. Their rules arc very
fcvere. They arc not to go out of their cells, ex-
cept to church, without leave of their fuperior ;
nor fpeak to any perfon, v/ithout leave. They muft
not keep any portion of their meat or drink till
next day : their beds are of draw, covered with a
feh ; their cloathing two hair-cloths, two cowls,
two pair of hofe, and a cloak, all coarfe. In the
refedtory, they are to keep their eyes on the difli,
their hands on the table, their attention on the
reader, and their hearts fixed on God. Women
are not allowed to come into their churches.
CARTILAGE, in anatomy, is a pearl -coloured
fuhfhuice, which covers the extremities of bones
joined tooether by moveable articulations, increufes
the v.'jlun^e of fome of them after the manner of
epiphyfes, unites others very clofely together, and has
no immediate adhefion or connexion with others.
CARTILAGINOUS, fomething belonging to,
or pirtaking of, the nature of a cartilage.
Cartilaginous Fijhes, or thofe with cartila-
ginous fins, coiiilnutiiig a clafs or order of fiilTes,
otherwife called chondropterygious. See tlie article
Chon'dropterygious.
CARTC^N, or Cartoon, in painting, a defign
drawn on ftrong paper, to be afterward? calked
through, and transferred on the frefh plaftcr of a
wall t) be painted in frefco.
Carton is alfo ufed for a defign coloured, for
working in mofaic, tapeftry, &c. The cartons
formerly at Hampton-Court, but now at the queen's
palace, are de.lgDs of Raphael Urbin, intended for
tapefiry.
CaRTOUCHE, in architeflure and fculpture,
an ornament reprefcnting a fcroU of paper. It is
ufually a flat member, with wavings, to reprefent
fome inrcriptlon, device, cypher, cr ornament of
aimoury ; and are much the f.ime iii architeiiture
Ho mcdilioiiSj only theft: are fet' under the cornice
in wainfcotting, and thofe under the eaves of a
houfe.
Pcrhault fays, that cartouche is an ornament of
carved work, of no determinate form, whofe ufe iS'
to receive a motto or infcription.
Cartouche. See the article Gargouge.
Cartridge, in the military art, a cafe oF
pa&board or parchment, holding the exa(5l charge
of a fire-arm. Thofe for mufkcts, carabines, and
pifiols, hold both the powder aiid ball for the
ehaige ; and thofe of cannon and mortars ar«-
ufually in cafes of pafkboard or tin ; fometimes of-
wocd, half a foot long, adapted to the caliber oti
the piece.
Cartridge, in architedture^ the fame as car-
touche. See the article Cartouche.
Cartridge-Box, a cafe of wood or turned"
iron, covered with leather, holding a dozen mufket'
cartridges. It is wore upon a belt, and hangs a lit-
tle lower than the right pocket-hole.
CARUI, orC/^RAWAY, in botany, an umbel-
lifertuj plant, with ftnated branched (talks, two or
three feet high, and finely divided leaves, fet in pairs*
along a channelled lib, every two of which ribs or
pedicles cru(s- one another at their origin on the
flalk: the feeds are fma!!,. of a.brownifh or black—
i(h colour, flit on one iide, convex and ftriated oa
the ether. It is a native of the northern climates:
in this ki'itjdcni ic is rarejy found wild ; but com*-
monlv cultiViiJed in gardens for culinary and con-
fedtionary, as well as medicinal purpofes. It- is*
biennial.
Caraway-ferds are an useful ftoniachic and carmi-
native ; of a fifiicientlv afteeable aromatic fir.ell,,
and a moderatclv waini tafle : they are given, in-
fubffance, fro.n a fcrupie to a dram. The leaves'
have the fame kind of fiavour with the feeds, but'
are confiderably weaker and !e(s grateful. The
roots have a Iweeiiiij tafte, accompanied with a-"
flight warmth, and very Intle fniill
CARVE D-WCRK, in naval archtteflure, a
fpecies of various, irreLiular ornan.ents, the pro-
duclicn of a wayward defign, and a cluii'fy execu-
tion, awkv/ardly difpofed in feve.al p'aces of the
fliip J where it is very common to view the war-
like embiems of the Greek and Roman, blended
with the barbarous devices of theGoth and Indian,
and the defpicable trumpery of the t/1'enunate Afi-
atic. Nor do thefe monftrous mixtures appear to
be thus arranged by way of relation or contraft :
for in fuch fort of tablaturc, every idea of con-
nexion, dependence, and fubordinaticn, is generally
forgot ; and according tn the language of our great
poet, infiead thereof, appear a group of bacchsnals
and drunken goddcfi'cs :
^hominnble, unutterable, and-worfe
Than fitblcs yet have feign' d, orfearconceivd.:
Goi'^cns, and hydras, and ibiw.aas dire !
CAR-
GAR
CARVING, that branch of fculpture which re-
gards cutting in wood. See the aititlc Sculp-
ture.
CaRUVT. See Carui.
CARUNCULA, in anatomy, a term denoting
a- little piece of flelh, and applied to feveral parts
of the bodv, thus :
Caruncula Lacrymalis, a little eminence
fituated in the larger angle, or canthus of the eye,
vvhere there are alfo fomctimes hairs and certain little
glnnds. According to fonle anatomifts, they help
to keep the two puntia open when the eyes are (liut.
Caruncula! Mvrtiformes, fle(hy knobs a-
hout the fi7ie of a myrtle-berry, whicii owe their
origin to the bieaking cf the hymen, and therefore
not to be found in fuojefls in which that membrajie
exifts enlire. They are two, three, or four in
»umber, and are placed where the hymen was.
Caruncul;e PAPiiiLAREs, or Mamilla-
RES, little protuberances on the inlide of the pel-
vis of the kidne)s. See the articles Pelvis and
Kidney.
CARUNCULiE CuTicuLARES Al^e, the fame
with ns'mph;E. See Nymph;e.
CARUNCLES, in the urethra, proceeding from
a gonorrhoea, or an ulceration of the urethra, may
be reduced by introducing the bougie or wax-can-
dle. See tlie article Mcd'u-atedC\j^DhV..
CARUS, in medicine, a fudden deprivation of
fciife and motion, affciSling the whole b(^dy.
Hippocrates fays, that thougii a carus is a priva-
tion of fenfe and motion, yet tlie faculty of lefpi-
lation is not at all injured ; and that it is caufed by
an afFeftion of the fore-part of the br.iin only, the
middle ventricle of the hrani alio fuftering, by con-
fent of parts, fo as to difturb the atiiuns of the ra-
tional faculty : but if this cams or fopor opprtfles
refpiration to fo viulcirt a degree, as the patient can-
not breathu without- great eft'drts, as thole who (hoie
under a depp-ileep, it is called apoj.lexy ; the folu-
tion of whtih is generally fuccccded by a paraphle-
gy : but a carus is getier:illy fol!ow>;d by a good
Hate of hi.-dkh. It' is fometinus taken for a heavy
and profound fWep ; from which it is difficult to be
raiR-d. 'TW\i cams difFers little from a lethargy.
See the article Lethargy.
CARYATIDES, in architedliire, are certain fi-
gures of cjptrve women, dreft after the manner of
the Cari^n people, feiving inftead of columns to
fup,>ort the entabiem-ints. Thtfe are calleil, by M.
le Clerc, fy;Rboli<.al columns. The occafion of
them take as follwws.
The- ancient Greeks, to- pteferve the memory of
their viiflories^ had a- cu-ftom- in the columns of
their- public biiilduig.s, to add ii2;ur^s, in reprtletita-
tion of tl'ie enemies thay had fubdued. The wives
of the rebellious-Carians, w-hen reduced to obedi-
Ciiccj and the Pcrlians vanquiilied by the Lacedx-
44
CAR
monians at Plataea, were the firft fubicfls of thefe
cojornns, which have preferved to late poflciity,
both the glory of the vidors, and the diflionour of
the vanquiihed ; hence originally came the narnes
caryatides and Perfian columns, which have been
lince applied to all columns made in human figure?,
though with chara<Stcrs very diPicrcnt fiom one ano-
ther.
We don't now reprcfent the caryatides, as they
did formerly, with the marks of fervitude and fla-
very : fuch characiers were injuiious to the fair
fex, and for that reafon we give them others entire-
ly oppofite, never ufing them in buililing.;, but as
fingular beauties, and fuch as make the greatefl or-
naments thcreofi 'I'hey never make their appear-
ance in modern architedUire, but under the noble
fymbols of Prudence, VVildom, Juftice, Tempe-
rance, &c. The caryatides fhould always have-
their legs pretty clofe, the one a little athwart ths
other, with their arms either joined to the body or
to the head, or at leaft but very little afunder,
that as they do the office of columns, thev may as-
much as poflihle bear the figures of them : when,
they are infulated they fhould never have any great
weight to fupport ; a"d they ought alv/ays to ap"
pear in characters proper to the place they arie ufed.
in. Th(jfe, for inl'tance, whit h fupport the crown-
ing of a throne, ought to be lyinbois or reprefentai-
tii'ns of heroic virtu.:s: ihofe who ferve as columns
in a place of devotion, fiiould bear the tharaifers
of religion ; and thofe again in halls and bancjuet-
ting rooms,, carry the mark of gjadnefs and rcj-
joicing,
'lis not proper to ufe caryatides in the figures of
angel.s, except at altars.
CARYOCOSTINUM, in pharmacy, an eleo-
fuary chiefly prepared of cloves, white coiUis, gin-
ger, cummin- feeds, &c. much recommended fof
purging choler, and breaking away obiiriictions of.
cachedtic conftitutions ; alfo an excellent purge for
flrons: people.
CARYOPHYLLUS, in botany. See the arti-
cles DiAMTKUs and Pink.
CARYOPHVLLUsAROM;\Ticus,t!iec!ove-tree,.
common in feveral iflan-ds of the E-avt-Ii^dics. The-
cloves, v/hich- are the only, p^rt known to us,, are-
pioperly the- cups of the unopened- flowers; In.
fl'iape they f(>mewhat refenibJe a Ihort thick fquare
nail, of a rufty colour inclining to-black : in the
infide of each clove are found a ffylus and itamina,.
v.'ith their apices: at the larger end fhoot our, from
the four angJe-, four little po;!Us like a Jlsr, in the-
middleof v.hich is a round ball, -of a ligluer co--
lour than the reft, compoftd of four fmail f:a!cs on
leaves, wliich feem to be the unexpaiided petaLi of
the flower. The tree is-oiie of thofe, v/hofE flow-
er is produced abo\-e the rudiments < f the fruit;
the lipc fruit, fonictioies bio'.:ght iiuoE'orop? un-
dci'.-
CAR
CAS
^er the name of antophyllus, is maikeJ on the top
with ihe remains of the fltwer; it about the fize
and fliape of an oiive, and contains, under a tlim
blaekidi (hell, a hard kernel of the farjie colour,
wiiich liaa a deep longitudinal feam on one fide.
The cloves are Lid to be cured by expofing them
to finoke, and afterwaids diying them in the fun.
The clove has a lUong agreeable fmtli, and a
bittenfli, hot, very pungent tafte: it is one of the
hottefl: and niofl: acrjd of the fubftances of the aro-
mati: clafs, and as futh is often uftd, not only in-
ternally, but as an external flimulant. The anto-
phyllus has the fame kind of flavour with the clove
itfelf ; but being far we.;ker in (mell as well as in
tafte, it is very rarely applitd to any medicinal
purpofcs, and is now fcartely ever to be inet with in
the fhops.
The clove is remarkably difpoftd to imlibe hu-
midity ; and when robbed of its adtive parts, by
infulion in menftiua or diftiilation, and alterwards
mixed with frefii cloves, it regains fiom them a
■confiderable fliaie both of tafte and fmcll. 'J he
Dutch, through whofe hands this fpice is brought
to us, have often praiitifed this abufe ; which, h iw-
€ver, may be eafily difcovered ; for thofe cloves
which have once loft their virtue, continue always
not only weaker than the reft, but likcwife of a
much paler colour.
Tindtures of cloves in re<Bified fpirif, are of a
<lark reddifli brown colour, of no great fniell, but
of a highly acrid tafte : if the quantity of fpirit be
confiderable, it leaves the clove deprived of all its
virtue. On infpiflating the filtered tinflure, the
fpirit which diftils, is found to have very little im-
pregnation from the fpice : the remaining extraft,
neverthelefs, does not difcover fo much fmell as the
clove in fubllance, but its tafte is exceflively pun-
gent and fiery. The quantity of this burning ex-
trad amounts to about one- third the weight of the
clove.
Digefted or infufed in water, they impregnate
the liquor more flrongly with their fmell than they
do fpiiit, but not near fo much with their tafte :
after repeated infulion in water, they impart ftill a
confiderable tincture to reflified fpitit. In diftilla-
tion with water, they give over, very flowly, near
one-fixth their weight of eftential oil; when care-
fully diftilled, C'llourlefs; by age, changino; to a
yellow, and at length to a reddiih brov/n colour ;
when drawn with a ftrong fi'e, proving often of
this colour at firft ; fmclling ftrongly <f the cloves ;
but in tafte only moderately pungent, much lefs fo
than the fpirituous extrjdt. Neither the remaining
clove nor deodlion have any confiderable tafte; the
pungency of this fpice feeming to depend, not on
the volatile or hxed parts feparately, but on the
comhinatio:) of the two.
Caryofhvllus Ruber, the clove July-flower,
or gilli-flower, in botany, is tlie name of a plant
with many fmooth, round, joinled-ftalks, and grj-
mineoTis leaves of a bluifii-creen colour, ftanding
in pairs at the joints : the flower is compofed of five
petals, narrow at the bafes, broad and jagged at the
top, fet in an oblong cylindrical cup, which is co-
vered at the bottom with four ftiort fcales, forming
as it vi'ere a fecondary cup : after the flower has
fallen, the calyx becomes a covering to a number
of fmall, flat, wrinkled, black feeds. It is peren-
nial, an'i (aid to have been a native of Italy.
Several varieties of thefe flowers are cultivated in
gardens ; but the fort principally ufed in medicine
are of a deep crimfon colour, and of a pleafant a-
roniatic fmell, fonieiyhat refembling that of the
clove defciibed in the preceding article. They are
chiefly valued for the fine fmell, which is readily
extradled by infulion in water, and difli[>ated even
by light codiinn. Three pounds of the frefli flow-
ers, clipped from their heels, communicate, by in-
fufion in a clofe vcflel for a night, a grateful and
moderately ftrong fmtll, and a deep red colour, to
eight or nine pints of water; which, with a pro-
per quantity of line fugar, forms a very agreeable
t)n diftiliing the ftefh flowers with water, the
diftilled lic|uc:r proves confiderably impregnated with
their tragi ance. Rediified fpirit, digefted on the
flowers, receives a much paler tindture than the
watery liquors, but extradts the whole of their ac-
tive matter. In diftillation the fpirit elevates much
lefs than the w.iter.
CARYOTA, in botany, a genus of plants ; the
male and female flowers of which are produced in
feparate parts of the fame fpadix ; the corolla is di-
vided into three hollow, lanceolated fegments ; the
ftamina are numerous filaments, longer than the
corolla; the anthers are linear ; the corolla in the
female flower is divided into two very fmall acumi-
nated fegments ; the fruit is a round berry, con-
taining a fingle cell ; the feeds are two, large,
oblong, rounded on one fide, and flatted on the
other.
CASCABLK, the knob or button at the end of
the breech of a cannon. See the aniclc Cam-
no n.
CASCADE, a fleep fall of water from a higher
into a lower place.
CASCANS, in fortification, holes in form of
wells, ferving as entiies to galleries to give vent to
the enemies mines.
CASCARILLA, or Eleutheria. See the ar-
ticle Eleutheria.
CASE, Cafus, among grammarians, implies the
difi^erent inflexions or terminations of nouns, ferv-
ing to exprefs the different relations they bear to
each other, and to the things they repreflnt.
There is great diverfity among grammarians,
with regard to the nature and number of cafes ;
they generally find fix, even in nioft of the modem
Ian-
I
CAS
languages, which they call the nominative, geni-
tive, dative, accufative, vocative, and ablative ;
but this feenis in compliance with their own ideas
of the Greek and Latin, which they transfer to
their own languages. The termination is not the
fole criterion of a cafe ; for though fume authors
reckon five cafes of nouns in the Greek, and fix in
the Latin, yet fcveral of thefe cafes ait frtqucinly
alike : as the genitive and dative fingular of the
firft and fiftli declenfions of the Latin ; the dative
and ablative plural of all the declenfions, &;c. the
genitive and d:itive dual of the Greek, Sec.
The Engliih and many other modern languages
exprefi the various relations, not by changes in the
terminations, as the ancient?, but by the appofi-
tion of articles ; it is certainly wrong to fay, tliat
of a father is the genitive cafe of y. ther, and to a
father the dative ; for of and to are no part of the
vioi'l father, they are only articles or ri'.oditications,
which fhtw the different relation of the word
father.
Case, among printers, denotes a Hoping frame,
divided into feveral compartments, containing a
number of types or letters of the fame kind.
From thefe compartments the compofitor takes
out each letter as he wants it, to couipore a page
or form. Thus they fay a cafe of Pica, of Greek, &c.
Case- Hardening, a method of prepaiing iron,
fo as to render its outer furlace hard, and capable of
refitting any edged tool.
This is a lefler degree of fleel-making, and is
praiSlifed by baking, calcination, or cementation in
an oven, or other clofe veflel, ftratified with char-
coal and powdered hoofs and horns of animals, fo
as to exclude the air. See Steel.
Case-Shot, in the military art, muflcet-ball,
ilones, old iron, &c. put into cafes, and fhot out
of great guns.
CASEMATE, orCAZEMATE, in fortification.
See the article Cazemate.
CASEMENT, or Casemate, in architeilurc,
a hollow moulding, which fome architedts make
one fix'.h of a circle, and others one-fourth.
Cafcment is likewife the name of that part of
the window hung with hinges, and Vtihich opens in
.the fame manner as a door, before the invention of
.fafhes, and rtill to be found in moft antique buildings.
CASERN, in fortification, lodgings built in gar-
.rifon-towns, generally near the rampart, or in the
wafte places of the town, tor lodging the fwlJiers
pi the garrifjn.
There are ufually two beds in each cafern for fix
Xoldicrs to lie, who mouot the guard alternately ;
.the third part being always on duty.
CASES Reserved, in the polity of the Ro-
man church, atrocious crimes, the abfolution of
which is referved by the fuperiors to themfclves or
their vicars.
CASH, in the commercial ftyle, denotes the flock
26
CAS
of money any merchant, trader, or banker has at
his difpol'al, in order to trade.
Cash-Book. See the article Boo k-Keeping.
CASHEW-NUT, in botany. See the article
Anacardium.
Cashier, a perfon who is cntrufted with the
ca(h of fome public company. See the articles
Cash and Company.
CASIA, in botany, the fame with ofyris. See
OsvRis.
CASING of Tiniber-ivork, is plaiftering a houfc
all over on the outfide with mortar, and then fli ik-
ing it while wet by a ruler with the corner of a
trowel, or the like, to make it refemble the joints
of free-fione. This is chiefly, or ought to be done
upon heart laths, becaufe the mortar will decay
r ofe made of fap in a very little time ; and though
it i-J more work to lath it with heart-laths, yet it is
necciTary, becaufe the mortar requires the laths
cloftr together than loam. They commonly lay
the mortar on two thicknefies, viz. the laft before
the firft is dry.
CASK, a veflel of capacity for preferving liquors
of divers kinds, and alfo fometimes dry goods, as
fugar, almonds, &c.
A cafk of fugar is a barrel of that commodity,
containing from eight to eleven hundred weight. A
cafk of almonds is about three hundred weight.
A cafk in flaves, that of which all the flaves are
ready prepared, and want only to be joined and
hooped. They are often (hipped thus on board the
vcfitis defigned for the American iflands, becaufe they
take lefs room, and can be eafily made up there.
CASSAVI, or Cassada, the fame with the ja-
tropha of Linnsus. See the article Jatropha.
Of the root of this plant, which is oblong and
thick, the Americans make a kind of bread, faid
to be a wholefooie and nourifliing food.
CASSIA, Carsophyllata., the bark of a tree cf the
clove kind, brought from the ifland of Cuba, Ja-
maica, and other parts of the 'U'eft-Indies ; rolled
up in quills, like cinnamon, but fomewhat tl inner,
rougher on the outfide, and of a darker rufly brown
colour.
This bark is a w^arm aromatic, nearly of the
fame kind of fmell and tafte with the clove fpicr,
but weaker, and with a little admixture, as it were,
of the cinnamon flavour. It agrees nearly with
cloves alfo in regard to the folubility and volatility
of its active principles. Tinil^ures of it in rccli-
fied fpirit, fmell and tafte ftrongly of the bark : the
watery iiifufions are confiderably impregnated with
its fmell, but have very little of its tafte. On in-
fpifl'ating the fpirituous tinclure, t!;e fpirit which
diftlls has little or nothing of its flavour : the remain-
ing extraft fmells lightly of the baik, and pro\es \n
tafte very hot and pungent, though much lei's ii> than
the fpirituous exirailof cloves. \n diftillaiion with
water, it yields a very fniall portion of tfl'ential
6 L oilj
CAS
oil, nearly fimilar in flavour to oil of, clove?, but
more pungent than the genuine oil of that i'picc :
the remaining decoction is ungratefully autlere and
bitterifh.
A bark of the fame kind is fjmetimes brought
from the Eafb-Indies under the name of culitlawan,
or culilawan, a M.ilaccan compound vvord^ of
which the Latin cortex caryphyHoides, or clove bark,
is faid to be a tranflation. That diftinguiflied in
Europe by the name of calilawan, is thicker than
the other, and in colour approaches fomewhat more
to cinnamon, but fcarcely differs in fmell or
tafte.
The fame with this appears likewife to be the
carabaccium of Baglivi ; which he defcribes as be-
ing in talie like cloves, but very temperate and
grateful, and in colour having a great refemblance
to cinnamon ; and which, he fays, he made ufe
of with great benefit in decoction, for correfling
the acrimony and fcorbutic diflbluticn of the lymph,
and for ftrengthening the flomach and promoting
digeftion.
Cassia Fijlularis, a hard woody cylindrical pod
of a tree reiembling the walnut, which grows fpon-
taneoudy in Egypt and the warmer parts of the
Eafl-Indies, and has been thence introduced into
the Weft.
The pods or canes are about an inch in diame-
ter, and a foot or more in length ; externally, of
a dark brown colour, fomewhat wrinkled, with a
large feam running the whole length upon one fide,
and another lefs vifible on the oppofite one ; inter-
nally, of a pale yellowifh colour, divided by thin
tranfverfe woody plates into a number of little cells,
containing each a flattifh oval feed, with a foft black
pulp.
The pulp of cafiia, whether moifl: or dry, dif-
folves both in water and in reflified fpirit. It is
ufually extradled by boiling the bruifed pods in wa-
ter, and evaporating the ftraincd folution to a due
confiltence: the exhaling vapour carries off nothing
confiderable of the caflia. As it is very a])t to grow
iour in keeping, only fmall quantities Ihould be
prepared at a time.
Caflia, in dofes of a {zw drams, is a gentle laxa-
tive; of good ufe in coftive habits, in infiammatory
cafes where purgatives of the more acrid or irrita-
ting kind can have no place ; and, as Geofirey ob-
fcrvcs, in the painful tenfion of the belly which
fometimes follows the imprudent ufe of aniimoni-
als. It is rarely given in fuch dofes as to have the
full efFeiff of a cathartic ; the quantity ntceffary for
this purpofe, an ounce and a half, or two ounces,
being apt to naufeate the ftoniach, and produce fla-
tulencies and gripes, efpccially if the caflia is not of
a very good kind : mild aromatics, and dilution with
warm liquors, are the beft correctives.
Cassia Ligiea, the bark of a tree of the cinna-
mon-kind, brought from the Ealf-Indies ; cxadtiv
.' - 4 .
CAS
rcfembling cinnamon in appearance, but diftinguifh-
ablc by its breaking fliort or fmooth, while cinna-
mon breaks fibrous or (hivery, like wood.
This bark refeinblcs cinnamon in aromatic fla-
vour as well as in external appearance; out differs
in being weaker, or containing lefs a£live matter,
snd in its aboiuiding with a vifcous mucilaginous
fubftanse. Chewed, it diflblves as it were in the
mouth into a kind of flime > powdered and boiled
in water, it renders a confiderable quantity of the
fluid thick and glutinous, fo as to concrete on cool-
ing into the confiiience of a jelly.
Caflia lignea was employed by the ancients as a.
fuccedaneum to cinnamon, of which it was rec-
koned equivalent to half its own quantity. At pre-
fent it is not unfrequently mixed with that fpice irh
the ftiops, but is fcarcely ever made ufe of under its
own name.
CASSINE, the caflia-berry-tree, in botany, a
genus of plants, the flower of which is patent, di-
vided into five fuboval, obtufe fegments larger than
the cup; the fruit is a roundifli berry with three
cells, containing folitary fuboval feeds. This plant
is ufed in South America in the fame manner as
tea.
CASSIOPEA, in aftronomy, a confteltation of
the northern hemifphere, fituated next to Cepheus,
and oppofite to the great bear on the other fide of the
pole.
In the year 1572, there appeared a comet in this
conftellation, which continued vifible about eigh-
teen months and then'difappeared again. This co-
met appeared to the naked eye about the magnitude
and brilliancy of Jupiter, which made fome imagine
it only to be a new ftar that made its appearance
and then vanifhed again ; but fuch muft be very
fuperficial, or little pradticed in aftronomy or aftro-
nomical obfervations. However, it greatly alarm-
ed the aftronomers of that age, many of whom
wrote diflertations upon it, to prove that it was the
fame comet that appeared to the magi, or wife men
of the Eaft, at the birth of Cbrift.
In fabulous hiftory, we are told, that Cafliopea
was the wife of Cepheus and the mother of An-
dromeda, whom Perfeus married, and for his fake
was tranflated into heaven, as fome write. Others
fay, that her beauty being fingular, (he became fo
exceeding proud, that fhe preferred herfelf before
the Neriads, who were the nymphs of the fea ;.
for which caufe they placed her in the heavens with
her head downwards ; fo that in their apparent revo-
lution (lie might feem to be carried or hurled head.-
long, for an example to all iuch who Ihould, in
the pride of their hearts, advance themfelves above
their fuperiors.
We fancy were all the ladies in thefe days, that
are found guilty of this crime, placed in heaven \n
the fame pohiion, our aftronomers royal would
never be at a lofs for objedls to put all the un-
formed.
CAS
CAS
formed ftars into conftellations. T!ie ftars of this
conl^ellation, according to Ptolemy, are thirteen,
in Tyclio twenty -eight, and in the Britifh Ca-
t.dogue fifty- five, as follow, with tiitir places,
ice.
2
3
4
5
6
7
S
9
10
11
12
Ij
14
15
1 6
17
i8
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
2/
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
3*^
39
40
4'
42
T.J
44
45
46
47
^
7
6
5
5
6
6
6
6
6
3-2
6
6
5
4
6
4
3
6
6
6
6
6
4
5
7
3
6
6
5
6
6
4
6
7
5.6
3
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
b
5
5
Name.
ad
ichedir
■"2 ad
''•' ad
ad
Right
Afcenfion
144- 8
^4450
34S.22.
H8.38
353-5°
354-19
355-37
356-43
358. o
358-32
359.12
2 55
4.28
4.38
4-53
5.19
5-56
6-53
7- 9
7-31'
7.40,
7.51,
8.13
8.35.
8.47,
10.45.
10-37
12.31.
12.71.
I3-36-
14- 3
14. 1 8.
16.16.
.6.16.
17.17.
17.44.
18.24.
ig.36.
19.52.
21.17.
21.10
21. II.
21 49.
24 35-
2.4.23.
25.28.
4
34
13
4C
4c
-55
I
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35
47
33
45
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55
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51
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20
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35
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43
4
6
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37
34
34
21
40
5
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16
55
15
41
Diflanct
troiiiNor.
Pole.
31.52. IC
3'-57-37
32.38.46
29. 5. 8
32-4099
29. 6.47
33-49-53
35-3430
29. 2.49
27- 7-57
32.13.46
2929.38
24.48 29
36.48.
28.23.26
24-34-3^
37-34-38
34-50- n
40.48.31
44.17.22
1 6.20. 1 1
43- 1-24
16.28.37
33-27- 6
40.20.26
32-19-31
30-38-33
32- 6.43
26.16. 9
26.15. IC
2.30.15
26.15.16
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22.30 2C
'5 '■3-5 3-1
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36.
36.
37-
39-
42.
42.
43-
44-
44,
44-
45-
46.
47-
46.
47-
47-
48.
49
47-
47-
51-
47-
I.
48.
47-
50.
52-
50
52
52
53
53-
52
SI-
56.
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58.
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2
5
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Vjr. ir
Decli-
nation
19
19
19,
19,
19
.9
'9
19
19
19. 9
20.05
20. o
20.
20.
20.
20.
20.
19
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19
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Right
.'\fcenrion.
/
25.50.1 2
25.50.40
26.18.47
26.15.44
26.19.40
27.14.52
28 57-34
Diflance
IfomNor.
l\,!e.
'5- 340
18.45.15
16.34.56
26.46 19
26.16.21
'9- 35-49
24-37-17
Var.;.,
.•\f>cn
-.'..r.ir.
IXcli-
n.it.nn
71-7
66.0
69.5
59-5
60.0
66.2
63-1
17.8
17-7
17-7
.7.6
■7-5
17.4
17.0
CASSOCK, or Cassula, a kind of robe or
gown, woie over the reft of the habit, particularly
by the clergy.
The word cafTock comes from the French cafaqiie^
an horfeman's coat ; fume derive tliat again fronx
the garment of the Cofiacs.
CASSCWARY, in ornithology, makes a dif-
tinft genus of birds, of the order of the gallins ;
the chara£iers of which are thefe: its feet havceacfi
three toes, all placed forward ; and its head is or-
namented with a kind of bony comb and naked
wattles.
There is only one fpecies of this genus, which is-
a robuft, large, and thick bird, meafuring four feet
and an half v/hen it flretches out its neck.
CASSMUNAR, in the materia medica, is the
root of an Eali-India plant, of which we have no
certain account ; brought over in irregular flices of
various forms, fome cut tranfverfely and others lon-
gitudinally : the corticlepart is marked with circles,
and of a dufky brownifh colour: the internal part
is paler, and unequally yellow.
This root was introduced fome time ago by Mar-
loe, as a medicine of uncommon efHcacy in hyfte-
ric, epileptic, paralytic, and other nervous drfor-
ders. At prefent it is fometimes employed as a floma-
chic; but its ufe is not yet become fo general as it-
feems to deferve. It is an elegant mild aromatic,
moderately warm, lightly bitttriih ; in fmcll fome-
what refeniblinrr Kinder.
DOC: ^
CAS TANEA, the chefnut-trce, in botany, a
genus of trees, whofe charaiSters are : the fluwcris
of the amentaceous k-ind, being compofed of a
number of flamina, arifing from a five leaved, cup,,
and fixed to a flender capillanient, or a,\^s. Thefe
are tlie male flo-,vers, but the fruit grows on other
parts of the tree ; thefe are roundiih, echinaicd,.
and open into four parts, and contain chcfnuts witli
their kernels.
M. Tournefort has enumerattd four, and Mr.
Miller five fpecies of caltanea.
1 hefe- trees are propagated by planting them in
February, in beds of (refii, undungcd earth : tbc
bell nuts for fowiiig are fitch as are brought from'
l'oriuj;al and Spain, and are commonly fol.l in wio-
ter for eating, provided ihey are not kiln driej,
which.
CAS
•V'hich is generally the cafe of thofe brought from
abroad, which is done to prevent their fprouting or
rooting in their paflage ; therefore, if they cannot
be procured frelh from the tree, it will be much
better to ufe thofe of the growth of England, which
are full as good to fow, for timber or beauty, as
any of the foreign nuts, though their fruit are much
fmaller ; thefe (hould be preferved until the feafon
.for fowing, in fand, where mice, or other vermin,
cannot come to them, otherwife they will foon de-
ftroy them. Before you fct them, it will be proper
to put them into water, to try their goodnefs, which
is known by their ponderofity ; thofe of ihem that
fwim upon the furface of the water fliould be re-
jeiSted, as good for nothing ; but fuch as fii.k to
the bottom }-ou may be fure are good.
In April thefe nuts will appear above ground ;
you muff, therefore, obferve to keep them clear from
weeds, efpecially while young : in thefe beds they
may remain for two years, when you fnould re-
move them into a nurfcry, at a wider dillance.
Thebeft feafon for tranfplanting thefe trees is either
in Odfober, or the latter end of February ; but
Odlober is the beft feafon : the dillance they fhould
have in the nurfery, is three feet, row from row,
and one foot in the rows.
After having remained three or four years in the
nurfery, they will be fit for tranfplanting, either in
rows, for avenues to a houfe, or in quarters, for
wildernefs plantations ; but if you intend them for
timber, it is much the better method to fow them
in furrows, as is praflifed for oaks, &c. and let
them remain unremoved ; for thefe trees are apt to
have a downright tap root, which being hurt by
tranfplanting, is often a check to their upright
growth, and caufes them to fhoot out into lateral
branches, as is the cafe with the oak, walnut,
&c.
CASTANET, a mufical inftrument of the pul-
fative kind, wherewith the Moors, Spaniards, and
Bohemians, accompany their dances, farabands, and
guitars, ferving only to direct the time.
It confifts of tv.'o little round pieces of wood,
dried and hollowed, in the manner of a fpoon ; the
concavities whereof are placed one on another, faf-
tened to the thumb, and beat, from time to time,
with the middle finger, to dired their motions and
cadences : they may beat eight or nine times in the
i'pace of a mcafure, or fecond of a minute.
CASTELLAN, the name of a dignity or charge
in Poland : the caftellans are fenators of the king-
dom, but fenators only of the lower clafs, who, in
diets, fit on low feats, behind the palatines, or great
fenators. They are a kind of lieutenants of pro-
vinces, and command a part of the palatinate under
the palatine.
CASTILLAN, or Castillane, a gold coin,
current in Spain, and worth fourteen rials and fix-
;teen deniers.
CAS
CASTitLAN is alfo a weight ufed in Spain for
weighing gold. It is the hundredth part of a pound
Spanilli weight.
What they commonly call a weight of gold in
Spain, is always underflood of the caftillan.
CASTING, in foundery, the running of a me-
tal into a mould, prepared for that purpofe.
Casting of Lead, is the ufing a frame, or
mould, covered with fand, to caft the lead into
fheets.
Casting of Mdah^ of Letters^ Bclh, Figures,
he. Seethe article PoUNnEHY.
Casting in Sond and Earth, is the running of
metals between two frames, or moulds, filled with
fand or earth, wherein the figure that the metal ia
to take has been imprefled en crtux, by means of the
pattern.
Casting, among fculptors, implies the taking
cafts and imprcffions of figures, bufis, medals,
leaves, 6ic.
The method of taking off cafts of figures and
bufls, as at prefent praftifsd, is mofl geneiaily by
the ufe of plafter of Paris; or, in other woids, a-
labufter calcined by a gentle heat. The advantage
of ufing this fubflance preferably to others, confifts
in this, that notwithftanding a flight calcination
reduces it to a pulverine flate, it becomes again a
tenacious and cohering body, by being moilSened
with water, and afterwards fuffered to dry ; by
which means either a concave or a convex figure
may be given by a proper mold or model to it when
wet, and retained by the hardnefs it acquires when
dry ; and from thefe qualities, it is fitted to the
double ufe of making both cads and molds for
forming thofe cajis. 'I he plaHer is to be had ready
prepared for thofe who make it their bufinefs to fell
it ; and the only care is to fte that it is genuine.
CAS rLE-WARD, or Castle-Guard, a tax-
laid on fuch as dwell within a certain dillance of a
caftle, towards the maintenance of thofe that watch
and ward the caftle : the word is fometimes ufed for
the circuit itftlf inhabited by fuch as are fubject to
this feivice.
Castle-VVokk, fervice or labour done by in-
ferior tenants for the building and upholding of
caftles of defence, towards which fome gave their
perfonal affillance, and others paid their contribu-
tions. This was one of the three necelTary charges
to which all lands among our Saxon ancefiors were
exprefsly fubjedf.
CASTOR. See Beaver and Castoreum.
Castor, in aftronomy, the name of one of the
twins in the conftellation Gemini ; as likewife of
the liar marked alpha by Bayer in the fame con-
flellation, or the fixty-fixth, according to the Britifh
order. See the catalogue of Gemini for Caftor's
place.
Castor and Pollux, two meteors which fome-
times, in a ftorm at fea, appear flicking to fojne part
of
CAT
of the {hip, in the fliape of two fire-balls : when only
one is ll-en, it is more properly called Helena. The
two together are adju.lged to portend a celTation of
the ftorm ; but one alone portends ill, and that ihe
fevereft part of the tempcft is yet to come : both thcfe
balls are by fome Cdlled Tyndarides.
CASTORKUM, Castor, the inguinal glands
of the caftor or beaver, a four footed amphibious
animal, frequent in fevcral parts of Europe, and in
North-Amcrici. Thefe glat.ds are of dfFttent
fbapes and fizes, covered with a thick ftin, in-
cluding an un(Sluous liquid matter, which in kcepir.g
grows dry and hard : on cutting the dry coJs, as
they are called, they are found full of a brittle fria-
ble fubftance, of a brownifli red colour, inter-
fperfed wiih fine membranes and fibres exquifiiely
interwoven. The btft caflor comes from Ruffia, in
large round, hard cods ; an inferior fort, fmaller
and moifter, from Dantzick ; the worft of all from
New England, in lonjrifli thin cods.
Ruflla carter has a Itrong not agreeable fmell, and
a biting bitterifli naufeous tafte : the other forts are
weaker than that of Ruflla, yet more ungrateful.
It is generally looked upon as one of the capital ner-
vine, antifpafmodic, and antihyileric medicines : its
virtues have undoubtedly been much exaggerated;
but though they are not near fo great as they have
by moft writers been reprefented, they appear never-
thelefs to be confiderable. The common dole is from
two or three grains to a fcruple; though it has been
fometimes taken by drams, and thefe dofes very
often repeated.
Caftor is commonly joined in prefcription with the
deobftruent fetid gums, volatile alkaline falts, the
volatile oily fpirits, and other materials of fimilar
intention. The volatile oily fpirits are well adapted
alfo as inenflrua for difl'olving the acSlive matter of
the caftor, at the fame time that they prove in many
cafes excellent additions to its virtue, as particularly
in fome hyfteric diforders, and the feveral fymptoms
which accompany them : in this view, an ounce of
Ruffia caftor, and half as much afafetida, are di-
gefted about fix days, in a clofe vtfiel, with a pint of
the volatile fpirit.
CASTRATION, in furgery, the operation of
gelding. See Sarcocele.
CASU CoNSiMiLi, in law, a writ of entry
granted wheie a tenant, by courtefy or for life,
aliens either in fee, in tail, or for the term of ano-
ther's life. It is brought by him in reverfion againft
the perfon to whom fuch tenant does lo alien to
the prejudice of the reverfioner, in the tenant's
like-time.
Casu Proviso, in law, a writ of entry founded
on the ftatute of Gloucefter, where a tenant in dower
aliens the lands ftie fo holds in fee, or for life ; and
lies for the party in reverfion againft: the alienee.
CAT, Felisy a well known quadruped, of the
26
CAT
order of the ferx, or hearts of prey. See the article
Felis.
Cat, in the marine, a fort of taicle, or com-
plication of pullies, to draw the anchor perpendicu-*
laily up to the cat head.
Cat-Mint, in botany, the Englifli name of the
cataria of botanifts.
Cat of the Alountnin, Cntus Paiilus, an animal
of the cat-kind, about tlie fize of a maftifF, varie-
gated with longitudinal black flreaks en the upper-
part of the body, and black (pots on the under-part.
CATABIBAZON, in artronomy, the moon's
defcending node ; alfo called the dragon's-tail.
CATACAUSTICS, or Caustics, in the higher
geometry, are curves formed by refleded rays. Mr.
Mac Laurin defines them thus : rays of light being '
fuppofed to iftue from a given point, and to be re-
flected by a given curve, fo as to make the angle of
refleifticn equal to the angle of incidence, a curve
that touches all the refleded ravs, is called the cau-
ftic by refledion. Thus, let S (Plate XXX.
fg. 4 ) be the given point from which the rays ifiue,
which is therefore called the focus of the incident
rays; SL any incident ray, l?L,p the tangent at
L, L C the ray of curvature at L, L m the refleiaed
ray conftituting the angle CL« equal to C L S j
then, if the refledled rays always touch the curve
hmcy it is the cauftic by refleftion. Let SP, per-
pendicular to the tan;:rent LP, meet it always in P,
a point of the curve DP; let H M E be the curve
by the evolution of D P is defcribed, and let P M
touch H M E in M ; join S M, and produce it to
m; fo that S »/ be equal to Q_S M : then m fhall
be a point in the cauftic nf the curve B L, when S
is the radiating point. For, becaufe MP is per-
pendicular to the curve DP, the angle MPS is
equal to the complement of S L P, or to L S P,
and S L is bifefted by M P in K ; therefore Sot is
to S M as S L is to S K. L w is parallel to K M,
the tangent of H M E : but the figure h me is fimi-
lar to H M E, and ftmularly fitiiatcd ; therefore
L m is the tangent of /; m e. Becaufe L m is paral-
lel to PM, the angle OT LC is equal to MPS, or
LSP, orCLS; therefore, when S L is the inci-
dent ray, Lw is the refle£fed ray, and in is a point
to the cauftic.
Again, let L/be taken on the reflefl-ed ray equal
to L S ; and C R being perpendicular from the cen-
ter of curvature on this ray in R, bifect LR in q\
and qf y R, and qm /hall be in continued propor-
tion. Fory'y, /L and 2PM are in continued
proportion. Let CI be perpendicular to SL in I,
and I L be bifefled in Q_; when S is on the concave
fide of the curve, and LS is greater than L Q_,
P M is equal to the fum of PK (or S K) and
K M, and 2P M is equal to the fum of /L and
L m ; therefore/^ is to y L or y R as fh is to L .M,
or as f R is to y«. When S is betwixt Q_and L,
6 M aPM
CAT
CAT
aPM is equal to the difi'erence of hm and L/",
and fg is to q L, as y"L is to L?;;, or as ^L or g R
is to cj/n. In like manner it appears, that when S
is on the convex iide of the curve fq, y R or y I-,
and q !n are in continued proportion. When the
incident ray is perpendicular to the curve (as in
Jig. 5 ) the refiedled ray coincides with the incident
T^y, /viith S, R and C, and q m, qC, qS are in
Cijtitinued proportion. In general the reiSfangle
Jqm is equal to the fquare of y R or i^L; and when
ihe incident rays are parallel, the point rr.uil coin-
cide with q and hm, and be equal to one half of L R.
When LS is equal to one half of LI, and S is on
the concave fide of the curve, / coincides wi h q,
and the refledied ray Lot becomes an afymptote of
the cauflic.
Again, let BL he a circle, (Jig 6.) C the center,
C B the radius that pafles through S, the radiating
point; bifetSt EC in q. Let q S, qC, and qH,
be in continued proportion : uhvrn C S is lefs than
one half of C B, the curve DP has no point of
contrary flexure, and the cauflic has no afymptote.
V/hen CS is equal to one half of C B the diame-
ter, through S is the afymptote to the cauftic.
When CS is greater than one half of CB, but lefs
than C B, the cauftic meets C B produced beyond
B, the part of the curve DP, adjoining to B, is
convex tovfards S; P is a point of contrary flexure,
when S L is one fourth part of the chord LZ that
palfes through S, and the refleiEled ray is then an
afymptote of the cauflic.
Again, let S A (fg. 4.) be a right line given in
pofition, and L/« Ihall be to S L as the fluxion of
the angle A S L to the fluxion of 2 ASP — ASL.
Hence Lw is to S L in an invariable ratio; be-
caufe the angle A S L is to A SP in an invariable
ratio, only, in the parabola ; S being the focus
the fluxion of ASL, is equal to the fluxion of
2 A SP, and the refledled rays are parallel to each
other, and to the axis of the figure. It may not be
amifs to give an cxanjple of defcribing the cauflic
by refletflion to a given curve.
Let the curve be the logarithmetic fpiral as repre-
fented by A C D, (fg. 7.) and fuppofe the rays of
incidence to ilTue from the luminous point A its
center, and let it be required to defcribe the cata-
ciuftic AFK by reSeflion.
Let the line C H he drawn perpendicular to the
curve in the pt>int C, and AH perpendicular to the
ray of incidence A C, then the point H will be in
the evoluta of the curve, and confequently A C
will be equal to^ tiie abcifl'a of the curve, which is
equal to a ; whence C F =
a y
■J
will be equal
to_y, and the tiiangle AC F will be an ifofclcs tri-
angle ; and bccaufe the angle of incidence A C V
is equal to the angle of refiecSlion FCS; therefore
the angle A F C is equal to A C V ; and this angle
A C V, bsir.g a ccnflar.t quantity, by the nature of
the curve ; therefore the angle AFC will be a
conftjnt quantity, and the cauflic bv refle^lion
AFK will be a logarithmetic fpiral, differing from
the given fpital only in pofition.
When the giren curve is a geometrical one, the
cauilic will be fo too, and the cauftic will always
be rciftifiable. 'llie cauftic of a circle is a cycloid,
formed by the revolution of a circle along a circle.
The cauftic of the vulgar fcmi-cycloid, when the
rays are parallel to the axis thereof, is alfo a vulgar
femi- cycloid, formed by the revolution of a circle
on the faaie bafe.
CATACHRESIS, in rhetoric, a trope which
borrows the name of one thing to exptefs another.
Thus Milton, detribing Raphael's de.'cent from the
empyreal Heaven to Paradife, fays,
" Down thither prone in flight
" He fpeeds, and through the vaft ethereal fky
" Sails between worlds and worlds."
CATACOMB, a grotto or fubterraneous place
for the burial of the dead.
The term is particularly ufed in Italy for a vaft
aflemblagc of fubteranneous fepukhre?, three leagues
from Rome, in the Via Appia, fuppofed to be the
fepulchres of the ancients. Others imagine thefe
catacombs to be the cells wherein the primitive
Chriftians hid themfelves. Each catacomb is three
feet broad, and eight or ten high, running in form
of an alley or gallery, and communicating with
one another.
Some authors fuppofe them to have been the pu-
ticuli mentioned by Feftus Pompeius, into which
the Romans threw the bodies of their fiaves, to
whom they denied the honours of burying : and
Mr. Monro, in the Philofophical Tranfadions,
gives it as his opinion, that the catacombs were the
burial-places of the firft Romans, before the prac-
tice of burning the dead was introduced ; and that
they were dug in confc;quence of thefe opinion^
that fhades hate the light, and love to hover about
the places vi'here their bodies were laid.
CATACOUSTICS, an appell.ition given to the
doflrine of reflefled founds. See Echo.
CATADiOPTRICAL Telescope, that 0-
therv/ife called a refledfing one. See the article
Telescope.
CATADROME, an engine like a crane, ufcd
by builders in raifing weights.
CATADUPA, a water-fall, or catarafl. See
the article Cataract.
Hence the inhabitants about the cataracts of the
Nile were called catadupi by the ancients.
CATAFALCO, in architedure, a decoration
of fculpture, painting, &c. raifed on a timher-
fcafTold, to fliew a coffin or tomb in a funeia!
folemnity.
CATALEPSY, Catalcffts, in phyfic, a kind of
apoplexy; or a difeafe wherein tlie limbs are eafily
lkxible»
CAT
CAT
flexible, and continue in whatever pofition they are
phiced.
riis word is derived from «aTa^a//,3a^■:<;, to k'ue,
or inteirupt.
The natural caufes which generally bring on the
paroxyfms of a catalepfis, are a peccancy of the
thick and vifcid humours, and intenfe cold ; and
the accidental are violent commotions of the mind,
grief, terror, joy, fear, and fadnefs.
As to the progiioftics of a catalepfis, if it is pro-
duced by the pailions of the mind, or profound me-
ditations, it is feldom attended with dangerous con-
fequcnces : but, on the contrary, when it proceeds
from a thick, vifcid, and impure blood, or fiom a
fuppreiTion of accuftomed evacutions of blood, it
is higlily dangerous ; for it either terminates in me-
lancholy, or is changed into an epilepfv ; or, laftly,
terminates in a violent apoplexy, and kills the pa-
tient. Nor is the congelation brought on by ex-
treme cold of lefs danger ; fmce, if feafonable relief
is not afForded, fudden death enfues.
In the cure of this terrible diforder, two curative
intentions are principally to be regarded. The firft
is to relax the fpafmodic ftriiflure of the fmall ner-
vous fibres in the brain. The fecond is cautioufly
to remove the material or fccondary caufes which
contribute to the produiiion of this conlliiilion.
The former is principally to be anfwered during
the paroxyfm, but the latter when the perfon is out
of it.
CATALLIS Captis Nomine Districtio-
Nis, in law, a writ which lies where a houfe is
within a borough, for rent iffuing out of the fame :
and this writ warrants the takin'i of doors or win-
dows by way of diftrefs.
Catallis Redendis, a writ that lies where
goods being delivered to a perfon to keep until a
certam day, are not on demand delivered on that
day.
CATALOGUE, a lill or enumeration of the
names of feveral books, men, or other thing?, ac-
cording to a certain order.
Catalogue of Stars, an enumeration of the
conflellations, with the flars belongii^g to each,
put down in a lift: according to their place, or or-
der of pafTing the meridian, with their number,
hath formed and unformed, as likewife their mag-
nitude, variations, &c. or whatever may be of ufe
to the pradlical aflnmo ner, for his more readily ap-
plying any, or fuch of them as is moft fuitrfble, to
adjufl the motions of the planets, comets, &c.
Pliny informs us in his Natural Hiftory, that
Hipparchus of Rhodes, obferving the appearance of
a new ftar, began to think there might be changes
a.mo;igft the fixed liars ; he therefore began to con-
ftruifl a catalogue of them, that in time to come, if
^ny new flats fliould appear, or any of thofe already
obrcrved flioiild vami]\ -or d minifh, fuch changes
■ could not cfcape unnoticed to after-a^es.
-y
The moft ancient catalogue is that of Ptolcnr)',.
which contains 1026 ftars. Thefj weie chiefl/
copied from Hi.tparchus, only he corrected their
places by his own obfcrvations, mide in the begin-
ning of the reign of Antoninus Pius, about the
year 140.
According to the learned Hyde, the Arabians-
were the next after Ptolerriy, wh'j made a catalogue
of the ftars; he mentions feveral, and publilhed the
moft confiderable among them in Arabic, with a
Latin tranflation : it was made by Ulug Beigh,.
grandfon to Tamerlane, from his own obl'crvations
made at Scamercand. The number of ffats in this
catalogue were 1022, and their places fettled to the
year 1437.
The third, who made a catalogue from his own
obfcrvations, was Tycho Brahe, who determined
the places of 777 ftars for the year i6oo : which
Kepler, from other obfervations of Tycho's, after-
wards increafed to 1000, which he publifhed wit.*!
the Rudolphine tables.
At the fame time, William, landgrave of HefTc,
with the afliftance of Rothmannus and Juftus Byr-
gius, fettled the places of 400 fixed liars by his
own obfervations, which Hevilius prefers to thjfe of
Tycho. Ricciolus, in his Aftronomia Reformata,-
determined the places of loi ftars. for the year 1700,
from his own obfervations. Dr. Halley, in the year-
1677, at tlie illand of St. Helena, obferved 350
fouthern ftars, not vifible in our horizon. The
fame labour was repeated by F. Noel in 17 10, who
publifhed a new catalogue of the fiime ftars, fettled
for the year 1687. The next was J. Hevclius, who
made a catalogue of 18S8 fixed ftars, whereof 050
had been obferved by the antientj, 350 by Dr.
Halley, and 603 by himfelf.
_ The largeft and moft: complete is the Britifh ca-
talogue conftru6led by Mr. Flamftead ; it contains
2936 ftars, their places being reiSlifietl to the year'
1689; but in thi.- Difbionary to the year 1770,.
and from more accurate obfervations.
Bayer, in his Uranometria, publiftied a catalogue
of 1 160 ftars, though not fiom his own obfervations,.
but chiefly compiled from thofe of Ptolemy and •
Tycho. What makes this catalogue valuable is,,
that each ftar in every conftellation is marked vvitli-
foine letter ; fo that .the b'ggeft ftar in every con-
ftellaiion is denoted by the firft letter of the Greek
alphabet, atid the next biggcft by the fecond, &c.-
but if the conftellation cor-.tains a greater number
of ftars than there are leiters, than thofe that re-
main are marked by the Roman alphabet: by this
means every ftar is eafily diftingtiiftied.
CATAiMENlA, in med-.cinc, the fame with
menfes. See Menses.
CA TANANCHE, in botany, a genus of plants
producing compound flowers. The projjer flower
is monupetalous, ligulated, linear, longer than the
. calyx, trL!!:cated and quinqncdcntatcd. The ger—
CAT
CAT
men is ntuateJ beiow the flower, and becomes
afterv/arJs a folitary conipreflTcd feed, crowned with
a little cup of four or five hairs.
CATAPACTYME, a feftival kept by the Peru-
vians in the month of December, in honour ot the
fun ths father, the fun the fon, and the fun the
brother.
CATAPAN, a name given by the Greek em-
perors to the governor of Puglia and Calabria in
Italy. They fucceeded the exarchs of Ravenna ;
and Du Cange is of opinion, a chronDl.)gical table
of thcfe 2,overnors mii^ht be very ferviceable for un-
derft-anding the Byzantine hiflorians.
CATAPASlVI, among ancient phyficlan', figni-
fies any dry medicine reduced to powder, in order to
be ufed by way of infpiration in the whole body, or
any part of it. Some catapafms are appropriated to
ulcers, fome to the fkin : the former cicatrize, the
later are deterfive. Vv'e learn from Pliny, that ca-
tapafms of rofes were ufcd to rtftruin fweat, and to
drv the body after bathing.
C ATA PHONICS, the fcience which confiders
the properties of refledted founds. See the article
Echo.
CATAPHORA, in medicine, the fame as coma.
See the article Coma.
CATAPHRACTA, in antiquity, a kind of coat
of mail, which covered the foldier from head to
foot.
Hence cataphraftl were horfemen armed with the
•cataphra(£fa, whofe horfes, as Sallufb fays, were
covered with linen full of iron plates difpofed like
feathers.
CATAPHRYGTAN3, ancient heretics, who
took their name from the country of Phrygia,
They fuppofed the Holy Spiiit had abandoned the
church, and therefore that Montanus, as a prophet,
■and Prifcilla and Maximiila, as true prophetelles,
were to be confulied in every thing relating to reli-
gion. See the article Montanist.
CATAPLASM, in pharmacy, an external foft
kind of medicine of the confiltence of pretty thick
panada, and prepared of ingredients of difFcrent
virtues, according to the intention of the phy-
fician.
The word is formed from ua.Ta, with, and
mT^aa-a-oj, to anoint.
CA rAPULTA, in antiquity, a military engine
contrived for throwing of arrows, darts, and ftones
upon the enemy. Some of thefe engines were of
fuch force, that they would throv/ ftones of an
hundred weight. Jofephus takes notice of the fur-
prifmg cfl'eifs of thefe engines, and fays, that the
llones thrown out of them beat down the battle-
ments, knocked off" the angles of the towers, and
would level a whole file of men, from one end to
the other, were the phalanx never fo deep.
CATARACT, in hydrography, a precipice in
the channel of a river, caufed by rocks, or other
obftacles, flopping the courfe of the fiream, from
whence the water falls with a great noife and im-
petuofity : fuch are the catarafls of the Nile, the
Danube, Rhine, and the famous one of- Niagara in
America.
Cataract, in medicine and furgery, a diforder
of the humours in the eye, by which the pupiila
that ought to appear tranfparent and black, looks
opaque, grey, blue, brown, &c. by which vifion
is varioufiy impeded, or totally deftroyed.
l^he ordinary and moft common caufe of catarafls,
is from an opacity in the cryifalline lens ; it appears
that it may fi'metimes be caufed by a membrane in
the aqueous humours, which caule was the only
one afcribed to catarads till the p;efent century.
Cjtaradts have been diftinguifhtd by furgeons
and oculifts into various fpecies, as into recent and
inveterate, incipient and confirmed, mature and
immature, fimple and complicated, immoveable
and (hakiiig, miikv and purulent, true and fpuri-
ous, and into curable and incurable. There is
fcarce any diforder, the event of which is more
uncertain than that of a cataradt : medicines will'
generally have little or no effedt when the diforder
is confirmed, or inveterate, notwithftanding what
fome may boaft of their wonderful arcana for this
purpofe : almoft the fole relief is therefore had from
the furgeon's hand and inftruments. For the pro-
cefs of this operation, fee the article Couching
of CatwaSis,
Though moft people rejetS all methods of treat-
ing catara£fs by medicines as ufelefs and trifling, yet
there are fome cafes in this diforder which ought to
be recommended to the care of the phyfician, who
by dircifting a proper regimen and courfe of phyfic,
adapted to the patient's habit, age, and ether cir-
cumftances, may by the afTiftance of nature remove
catara£ls beyond expeflation.
CATARRH, in medicine, a diftillation or de-
fluxion from the head upon the mouth and afpera
arteria, and through them upon the lungs.
The caufe of this diforder proceeds from the
lymph, or mafs of blood, moft frequently in the
winter time, as it commonly arifes from a cold. If
it is attended with a fever, as it almoft always is, in
fome degree, it is called a catarrhous fever.
The catarrhus fufFocatius is a violent and fufFo-
cating cough, excited either by an excelTive catarrh,
or cold ; by the rupture of a vomica in the lungs ;
by a polypus driven from the heart in the pulmo-
nary artery ; or fometimes by a fpafmodic conllitu-
tion of the nerves, as it happens in fome hyfleric
cafes.
Catarrhous diforders, as well as all other feverifh
indifpnfitions, are to be treated in a mild and gentle
manner ; and the patient is to be kept moderately
warm, either in bed, or by means of a fire : he is
to abftain from medicines which are too hot, draftic,
and produdtive of commotions ; as alfo from a hot
CAT
regimen. The diet is to be fpare, and the drink
tepid and wholefome : the moft proper is excorti-
cated barley, with fliavings of hartfliorn, raifins,
and liquorice root.
When the efFervefcence is violent, a few grains
of nitre may be advanta2;eoufly mixed with the
bezoardic powders ; and emulfions miift be plenti-
fully drank: when during this diforder, the fsces
aie indurated, and the patient coflive, befides water-
gruel, decodlions of manna, &c. are to be drank;
and nothing is more proper than emollient clyllers.
Some diftinguifii catarrhs into three kinds, call-
ing it bronchus, when the humours of the head fall
upon the jaws ; coryza, when they fall upon the
noftrils ; and rheum, when they fall on the breaft.
Seethe articles Bronchus, Coryza, and Rheum.
CATASTASIS, xararacrij, in poetry, the third
part of the ancient drama, beinz that wherein the
intrigue, or action, fet forth in the enitafis, is fup-
ported and carried on, and heightened, till it be
ripe for the unravelling in the catattrophe. Scaliger
defines it, the full growth of the fable, while things
are at a ftand in that coniufion to which th'e poet
has brought them.
CATASTROPHE, in dramatic poetry, the
fourth and laft part in the ancient drama, or that
immediately fucceeding the cataftafis: or, according
to others, the third only ; the whole drama being
divided into protafis, epitafis, and cataflrophe ; or,
in the terms of Arifttjtle, prologue, epilogue, and
exode.
The cataftrophe clears up every thing, and is
nothing elfe but the difcovery or winding up of the
plot. It has its peculiar place, for it ought entirely
to be contained, not only in the laft aft, but in the
very conclufion of it ; and when the plot is finiihed,
the play fliould be fo alfo. The cataflrophe ought
to turn upon a fingle point, or flart up on a fudden.
The great art in the cataflrophe i>, that the clear-
ing up of all difficulties mav appear wonderful, and
yet eafy, fimple, and natural.
It is a very general, but very prepofterous artifice
of fome writers, to fliev.' the cataflrophe in the very
title of the play. Mr. Dryden thinks that a cata-
flrophe refulting from a mere change in fentiments
and refolutions of a perfon, without any other
machinery, may be fo managed as to be exceeding
beautiful. It is a difpute among the critics, whe-
ther the cataflrophe fliould always fall out favoura-
bly on the fide of virtue, or not. The reafons on
the negative fide feem to be the ftrongefl. Ariltotle
prefers a fhocking cataflrophe to a happy one. The
cataflrophe is either fimple or complex ; the firft is
that in which there is no change in the ftate of the
principal perfons, nor any difcovery cr unravelling,
the plot being only a mere paffage out of agitation
into quiet repofe. In the fecond, the principal per-
fons undergo a change of fortune, in the manner
already defined.
26
CAT
CATCH, or Catches, in mechanics, thofc
parts which lay hold of others by hooking or catch-
ing hold of them.
Catch-Fly, in botany, a perennial plant,
producing gramineous leaves, which come out of
the root without order, and lay near the ground :
between thefe come up ftraight fingle geniculated
ftalks, about a foot and a half high ; from each joint
come out two leaves placed oppofite, and like the
lower ones ; the ftalk is terminated in a loofe fpike
of red-purple flowers: thcfe appear in May or
June.
The double fort of catch-fly is very common in
gardens : it is a plant which will bear the feverefl:
of our winters ; and is eafily propagated by parting
the roots in autumn. For the generical charaiSlers
of this plant, fee the article Lychnis, of which
it is a fpecies.
Catch-Word, among printers, that placed at
the bottom of each page, being always the fiifl
word of the following page.
CATECHISM is defined in the Liturgy of the
church of England, an inflitution to be learned of
every perfon before he brought to be confirmed by
the bifliop.
The catechifms of the primitive church ufually
began with the doftrine of repentance and remiflion
of fins, the neceflity of good works, and the na-
ture and ufe of baptifm ; then followed the expla-
nation of the feveral articles of the creed, to which
fome added the doftrine of the immortality of the
foul, and an account of the canonical books of
Scripture.
The time appointed for catechizing are Sundays
and holidays. Every paifon, vicar, or curate, ate
enjoined upon every Sunday and holiday, to teach
and inftrudl the youth, and ignorant perfons of his
parifh, in the catechifm fet forth in the book of
Common-Prayer ; and that under the penalty of a
fliarp reproof for the firft omifllon, fufpeiifion for
the fecond, and excommunication for the third.
CATECHIST, an ofEcer in the primitive Chrif-
tian church, whofe buf nefs it was to inftrudt the
catechumens in the firft principles of religion, and
thereby prepare them for the reception of baptilm.
This office might be performed by an ecclcfiaflic
of any order, and it was fometimes done by the
bifliop himfelf.
CATECHU, in the materia medica. See
Te R R a Japonica.
CATECHUMEN, a candidate for baptifm, or
one who prepares himfelf for the receiving thereof.
The catechumens, in church hiftory, were the
loweft order ofChriflians in the primitive church.
They had fome title to the common name of Chrif-
tian, being a degree above pagans and heretics,
though not confummated by baptifm. They were
a^lmitted to the ftate of catechumens by the impo-
fition of hands and the fign of the crofs. The
(, N children
CAT
CAT
cMluren of believing parents were admitted cateciiu-
niens as foon as ever they were capable of inftruc-
tion : but at what age thofe of heathen parents
mi^ht be admitted is not fo clear. As to the time
of their continuance in this flate, there were no
general rules fixed about it ; but the practice varied
according; to the difterence of times and places, and
the readincfs and proficiency of the catechumens
themfelves
CA TEGOREMA, among logicians, denotes
much the fame with predicament or category. See
the article Category.
CATEGORICAL, whatever partakes of the
nature of a cates^ory. Thus, a categorical order
requires the fubfta.nce to go before the accident.
And categorical anfwers are pertinent and precife
replies to tlie h&s or objedfions propofed. See the
article Category.
CATEGORY, naTnyo^ix, in logic, a ferics or
order of all the predicates or attributes continued
under any genus.
The fchool philofophers diftribute all the objefts
of our thoughts and ideas into certain genera or
dalles, not fo much, fay they, to learn what they
do not know, as to communicate a diflinct notion
of what they do know ; and thefe clafles the Greeks
called categories, and the Latins predicaments.
Ariftotle made ten categories, viz. quantity,
q'lality, relation, a£lion, pafHon, time, place, fi-
tuation, and habit, whicji are ufually expreiled by
the following technical diffich :
yfrbor, fix, fervos, ardor, refrigerate tijlos
Riirl crasjlabo, nee tunicatui p'o.
But as the feries of categories is entirely arbi-
trary, fome philofophers think all nature may be
better confidered under thefe feven things ; fpirit,
matter, quantity, fubflance, figure, motion, and
reft : and others make but two categories, fubltance
and accident.
CATENARIA, the name of a curve line, formed
by a rope hanging freely from two points of fufpen-
fion, v/hether the points be horizontal or not. The
nature of this curve was fought after in Galileo's
time ; but litt!e was done concerning it till the year
i&go, when Mr. Bernouilli propofed it as a pro-
blem to the mathematicians of Europe. This cate-
nary is a curve of the mechanical kind, and cannot
be exprefTed by a finite algebraic equation.
If you fuppofe a line heavy and flexible, firm-
ly fixed to the points AB (Plate XXX. f.g. 8.)
the extremes thereof, then its own v/eight will
bend it into the curve ACB, called the catenary,
whofe fundamental property will be this, viz.
he : Bd : : a : CB, when DB, de, are parallel to
the horizon CD, perpendicular to AB, and Bb
parallel to CD, and the points D and d, infinitely
near to one another, and a be any given quantity.
The demonflration of this property, as alfo of
many others, may be fcen in what was publifhed
by Dr. Gregory in the year i6g6 : fee alfo its con- «
ffruftion and nature by Mr. J. Bernoulli, in the
Afta Eruditorum, 1691, page 277.
Mr. Cotes, in his Hsrmonia Menfurarum, gives
the following concife, and yet plain, account of
tiie nature of the catenarian curve. Let B.A.C
(Plate XXX. JiT. g.) be a very flender chain, or ra-
ther mathematical line, flexible throughout by any
fmall force, which can neither be extended or con-
trafted. This fufpcnd by its ends B, C, by the
force of its own weight, equally diffufed through-
out all its equal particles, is ftretched into the curve
BP/)AC, it is required to find any points of this
curve.
If a plane be fuppofed to pafs through both it5
ends, B, and C, perpendicular to the horizon, it is
evident that all the points of the propofed curve are
fituated in this plane, and fo that each will defcend
as low as it can. Through its lovveft point A
draw AQ_ perpendicular to the horizon, and let
PoQ_dra\vn from any point P be perpendicular to
it, and through p, beina; the nearefl point to P pofli-
ble, let po be drawn parallel to AQj call AQj=i x,
PQ_-=:y, and the arch AP := z ; then will the very
fmall lines pa, a P, and/iP, be to one another, as
X, y, ~. Then becaufe the arch AP is fuftained in
equilibtio, by the force of its weight, whofe direc-
tion is parallel to the line op, by the force of the
contiguous arch AC, drawing according to the
direction of the tangent at A, parallel to the little
line p 0, and by the force of the contiguous arch
PB, drawing in the direfiion of the line/iP ; it is
evident from mechanics, that thefe forces are to one
another as op, 0?, and P/>, or as .v, v, i. There-
fore if the weight of the arch AP be exprefTcd by
its length z, and the given force drawing the arch
AC, be compounded by a given length a, it will
he X : j : : x: : a ; and {o x : V xx -\-jy z= i : : 2;
v/ aa + 2Z. I Therefore .v = =
d fo
a -\-xz= \' aa -^ %% ; wherefore % -zz V a-\- a-! — aa
z= v' 2iix + A-A-. ^Vherefore, if the right-line
QA be continued downwards to D ; fo that DA
bez=.a, and the tangent AE be taken ■=. to the
arch AP and DE be joined, this will be equal to
DQi Wherefore if AE, the length of any arch,
AP, be given ; as alfo AQ; the height of the faid
arch ; there will be given AD =: a, by joining QE,
and bifedfing the fame at right-angles ; for the per-
pendicular will pafs through the point D in the line
QA continued, and AD being given, we from
thence can find the line AE, the length of any arth
AP, whofe altitude AQ_is given, by defcribing a
circle from the center D, with the radius QA,
which cuts AE in E ; and thefe are the mutual re-
lations of the parameter AD, the arch AP, and its
altitude AQi The next is to determine its breadth ;
and
CAT
and from what has been already advanced, we find
V =z — =: , and the fluent of this lafl
exprcffion will be a hyperbolic fpace, which fpace
may be meafured by the logarithms : fo that PQ.
will be the logarithm of the ratio between DE -f- EA
and DA, or of AP + AQ.to AP— AQ, which
ratio is equal to the former, when the lengtii of the
line AD is equal to o, 43429448 1 903. So that
AD being given or found as above, if any point Q_
be taken in the axis AQ, fo many correfpondent
points P of the curve will be had.
CATERPILLAR, Eruca, in zoology, the name
of the buttcrfly-clafs of infefls, in their reptile or
worm-flate.
It is well known that all winged infedfs pafs
through a reptile fiate, before they arrive at per-
fection : this great change from a worm to a fly, or
butterfly, was formerly efteemed a real metamor-
phofis of one animal to another ; but later dif-
coveries have put it beyond all doubt, that the em-
bryo butter-fly, with all the lineaments of its pa-
rent, is contained within the external cafes, or co-
verings, of the caterpillar. When the included
animal has acquired a fufficient degree of ftrength,
thefe coverings are throv.m off, and it appears in its
genuine or niofl: perfedf form of a fly, or butter-fiv.
See Fly and Butter-Fly.
It is neceiliry, however, before the animal can
get rid of thefe coverings, that it pafs through a
ifate of reft, called by naturalifts the nymph or
chryfalis-ftate. See the article Nymph.
Whoever defires to have a more full account of
thefe animals in their reptile and chryfalis-ftate,
may confult the fecond volnme of Reaumur's Hiftory
of infers.
Caterpillar-Eaters, fmall worms bred
from the eggs of certain flies, lodged in bodies of
larger caterpillars.
Caterpillar-Smell, the Englifli name of
the verrucofe turbo, with a broad and deprelFed
mouth. See Turbo.
Caterpillar-Plant, in botany. See the
anicre Scorpiurus.
CATESB^A, in botany, a fnrub which grows
naturally in the Bahama iflands. It rifes with a
branching ftem to the height of ten or twelve feet,
which is covered with a pale ruffet bark. The
branches come out alternately from the bottom to
the top, and are furnifiied with fmall leaves like
ihofe of the box-tree, coming out in ciufters round
the branches at certain diftaiices. The flowers,
♦vhich are of a dull yellow colour, come cut firigle
from the fide of the branches, hanging downward.
Each of thefe are about fix inches long, mcnopcta-
lous, and funnel-ihaped, very narrow at their bafe,
but widening upward towards the top, where it is
<iivided into four parts, which fprcad open,- and is
I
CAT
reflexed backward. The germen is roundifh, and"
when the flower is decayed, becomes an oval flefhy
berry, with one cell, containing feveral angulated
feeds. This plant is raifed here from feeds ; but
being tender, it requires a hot-houfe in this climate
to preferve it.
CATHy^RETICS, in pharmacy, the fame with
farcophagous medicines, or thofe of a cauftic na-
ture, ferving to eat oft" proud flefli.
CATHARINE, cr Knights cf St. Catharine,
a military order, inftituted for the feciirity of travel-
lers who come to vifit the tomb of this faint. The
knights received, as a badge cf their dignity, a
broken wheel with a fword ftained with blood.
They took vows to guard the body of this faint,
to fecure the roads for pilgrims, to defend the rights
of the church, to obey their fuperiors in all things,
and follow the rule of St. Bafil.
CATHARISTi^, inchurch-hiftory, a branch of
the IManichees, fo called from certain purifications
which they were obliged to praflife : they are alfo
faid to have held it unlawful to eat fiefh.
CaT-HARPINGS, in naval afl^airs, ropes which
draw in the flirouds parallel to the yards, that the
yards may be mere eafily braced ftiarp for a fide-
wind. See the articles Brace and Close-
Hauled.
CATHARTICS, in medicine, remedies which
promote evacuation by ftool. They are the fame
with what are commonly called purgatives.
Cathartics may be divided into two clafles ; I. The
eccoprotic or milder. 2. The draftic, or rougher.
See EccoPROTic and Drastic.
They are likewife divi Jed according as they are fup^
pofed to purge bile, pituita, meiancholy, and ferofiiies,
into cholagogues, phlegmagogues, melanagogues,
and hydragogues. See Cholagogues, he.
Cathartics operate by vellicating and irritating the
fibres and membranes of the ftomach and inieftines.
As the pcriftaltic motion of the guts is fuch as pro-
pels continually their contents, from the pylorus
down to the redum, every irritation either quickens
that motion, in its natural order, orocca&ons fotne
little inverfion of it ; in both, what but fiightly ad-
hercs to the coats, or inner membranes, will be
loofened and fhoolc off", and carried forwards with
the contents 5 and, being alfo more agitated, will be
rendered more fluid : hence it appears how a cathar-
tic haftens and increafes the difcharge by fi-ools. But
the fame manner of operation carries its ctTecifs much
farther in proportion to the force of the ftimulus j for
where it is great, the appendices of the bowel?, and
even all the vifcera in the abdomen, will by a con-
fent of parts, that is, a communication of nerve',
be pulled or twitched, fo as to alTeifl their refpecSivc
juice?, in tl>e fame manner as the intcllincs their-
felves afted their contents. The cunfcquences-,
therefore, muft be, that a great part will be djained
back into the ititeftine?, and make a p.n: of vph;\t
CAT
C A
liicy difcUirge. Another way or promoting die
dilch.irges by iloo], and from iufion, is to mix fucli
pirticles with them as prevent their running into
vifcid cohefions, and by degrees divide and break
them when in contaft ; whence they are rendered
li:ter to run off by the inofl convenient outlets.
CAT-HEAD, in naval architedure, a fort of
fquare beam of oak, projcdling like a crane over the
/liip's bows, fo as to keep the anchor clear of the
{hip when it is drawing up by a tackle, the block
of which is called the cat-block : the rope which
pafles through the feveral (heaves of the block is
called the cat-fall.
CAl'HEDRA, among ccclefiaftical writers, de-
notes a bifliip's fee, or throne.
CATHEDRAL, a church wherein is a bifhop's
fee or feat.
A cathedral was originally different from what it
isnow, the Chriftians, till the time of Conftantine,
having no liberty to build any temple. By their
churches tliey only meant their affemblies ; and by
their cathedrals, noihinj more than confiftories.
CATHETER, in furgery, a fiffulous inftru-
ment, ufually made of filver, to be introduced into
the bladder, in order to fearch for the ftone, or dif-
chnrge the urine when fuppreffed.
The catheter may be introduced with much more
eafe in women than in men, as the urethra in the
firfl: is much fliorter, wider, and in a flraighter
courfc.
In both fexes, however, this inflrument cannot
be eafily ptfT.d, but by one that is previoufly ac-
quainted with the anatomical ftru£lure of the parts.
To prevent repeating the operation of paffing the
catheter when the retention of urine will follow in a
fhort time, modern furgeons hnve, inflead of the
common or rigid catheter, provided a flexible cathe-
ter, made of flatted Giver, convoluted in a particular
manner to give a continual paffage to the urine.
CATHETUS, in geometry, a line falling per-
pendicularly on another line or furface : thus the
catheti of a right-angled triangle are the two fides
that include the right-angle, or more properly that
fide or leg which is iuppofed to be perpendicular
to the horizon, or that which is called the perpen-
dicular, vv'hich is always determined by its po-
fition.
Cathetus, in architefture, a perpendicular, or
plumb line, falling from theextremity of the underfide
of the cimatium of the lonick capital, thro' the center
of the volute : or, in other words, that which is fup-
pofed to pafs dire£lly through the middle of a cylin-
drical or round bodv, as a balufter, or column, &c.
Cathetus of Incidence, in catoptrics, a right
line drawn from a point of the obje£l perpendicular
to the refiecSling line.
Cathetus of RefeSlion, or of the Eye, a right
line drawn from the eye, perpendicular to the re-
fledling line.
CATHOLIC, in a general fenfe, denotes any
thing that is univerlal or general.
Catholic Church. The rife of herefies in-
duced the primitive Chriftian church to aifume to
itfclf the appellation of Catholic, being a charadler-
i(Hc to diftinguiH-i it from all fedis, who, though
they had party-names, fometimes Iheltered them-
feives under the name of Chriflians.
The Romifli church diflinguifhes itfelf now by
the name of Catholic, in oppolition to all thofe who
have feparated from her communion, and whom fhe
confiders as only heretics and fchifmatics, and her-
felf only as the true and Chriftian church. Li the
flritt fenfe of the word, there is no Catholic church
in being ; that is, no univerfal Chrlflian commu-
nity.
Catholic King, a title which hath been he-
reditary to the kirgs of Spain ever fince Alphon-
fus.
CATHOLiCON, in pharmacy, a kind of foft
purgative eleftuaiy, fo called, as being fuppofed an
univerfal purger of all humours.
CATKIN, Katkin, the fame with an amen-
taceous flower. See Amentaceous.
CATLIN, among furgeons, a knife for cutting
off corrupted parts of the body.
CATOCHE, or Catochus, in medicine, a
difeafe by which the patient is rendered, in an in-
flant, as immoveable as a ftatue, without either
fenfe or motion, and continues in the fame pofture
he was in at the moment he was feized. The proxi-
mate caufe of this difeafe is the immobility of the
common fenfory, from the time of the firft attack,
and therefore is an abfolute reft of the blood in the
brain, of the glands of the brain, and of all its
emiffories. This difeafe is generally preceded by
obftinate intermitting fevers ; by a dry, lean, me-
lancholy temperament of body ; by a retention of
the metifes and haemorrhoids ; by fudden frights ;
by a profound, conftant, and fixed r^editation on
one fubjeft. It is often cured by exciting a copi-
ous hnemorrhage from the nofe ; but the particular
method of cure is various, according to the diffe-
rent caufes : the patient fiiould be excited with
things that greatly ffrike the fenfes, fuch as light,
noife, flimulating things, volatile falts, pain, fric-
tion, continual agitations, by promoting the men-
ftrual flux, by fternutatories, and emetics, by blif-
ters, by iffues, by fetons, by a moiftening diet.
It feldom changes to any other difeafe, and fome-
times it has been fucceeded by an epilepfy, convul-
fions, madnefs, or an atrophy, which have ended
in death.
CATOPTRICS, is that part of optics that
treats of reflex vifion, and explains the laws and
properties of refledfion, chiefly founded upon this
truth, that the angle of refledion is always equal
to the angle of incidence; and from thence deduc-
ing the magnitudes, fhapes, and fituation of the
appear-
CAT
appearances of objeiSs feen by the reflection of po-
liflied fuf faces, and particularly plane, fpherical,
conical, and cylindrical ones.
Catoptric Cistula, a machine, or appara-
tus, whereby little bodies are rcprefented large, ai d
near ones extrenielf wide, and difFuled throui.ii a
vaft fpace, with other agreeable phrsnomena, by
means of mirrors, dilpiilcd by the laws of catop-
trics, in the CK)nca i'y of a kind of a cheft.
Of thefe there aie various kinds, accommodated
to the various int-ntions of the artificer : fome
multiply the objtd, fome deform them, fome majr-
nify, &c. The lirucaire of one or two will (uf-
ficieiitly fhew how an infinite variety may be made.
To mnke a catoptric cijlula to reprefent feveral diffe-
rent jcenrs of objeiis, wlkn looking at different fora-
mina or poles.
Provide a poiygonous ciftula, or cheft of the fi-
gure of the multilateral prifm A B C D E F, Plate
XXX. ^^. 10. and divide its cavity by diagonalplanes
EB, FC, DA, interfedting each other in the cen-
ter into as many triangular locules or cells as the
chefl has fides. Line the diagonal planes with plane
mirrors; in the lateral planes make round holes,
thro' which the eye m ly peep into the locules of the
cheft. The holes are to be covered with plane
glafTes ground within fide, but not polifhed, to pre-
vent the objeds in the locules from appearing too
diltindly.
In each locule are to be placed the difFerent ob-
jeds, whofe imjgis are to be exhibited ; then co-
ver up the top of the cheft with a thin tranf-
parent membrane, or parchment, to admit the light
properly, and the machine is compleat : for, from
the lau's of rtfiedion, it follows, that the images
of objeds placed within the angles of mirrors are
multiplied, and appear fome more remote than o-
thers ; whence the objeds m one locule will appear
to take up more room than is contained in the
Vvhole cheft : therefore by looking through one
hole only, the objeds in one locule will be ften,
but thofe multiplied and diffiifed through a fpace
much larger than the cheft : thus every new hole
will afford a new fcene. According to the different
angles the mirrors make with each other, the re-
prefentations will be difterent ; if they be at an
angle greater than a right one, the images will be
monftrous. The parchment that covers the ma-
chine may be made pellucid by wafting it f(veral
times in a very clear lye, then in fair watvr, and
bracing it tight and expofing it to the air to dry.
If it be defired to throw any colour on the objeds,
it may be done by colouring the parchment.
Zahnius recommends verdigrcafe ground in vinegar
for green ; decodion of brafil wood lor red, &c.
He adds, it ought to be varniflied to make it more
pellucid.
26
C A V
To mah a catoptric cijlula to reprefent the ohjeBs
within it prodigioufly multiplied, and diffufed through
a vajl fpacc.
Make a poiygonous ciftula, or cheft as before,
but without dividing the inner cavity into any a-
p.irtmcnts or locules, (Plate XXX. fg. 1 1.) line the
lateral planes C B H I, BHLA, ALMF, &c. with
plane mirrors, and at the foramina or apertures,
pare off^ the tin or quickfilver, that the eye may fee
through; place any objed in the bottom MI, as a
bird in a cage, &c. Here the eye looking through
the aperture /; /, v.'ill fee each objed placed at bot-
tom vaftly multiplied, and the images removed at
equal diftanccs from one another. Hence, were a
large multangular room in a prince's palace lined
with large mirrors, over which were placed pellucid
glaflcs to admit the light, it is evident the efFed:
would be very furprizing and magnificent.
This is a very di/erting and ufeful part of know-
ledge: the phiBiiomena arifing from ihe efFeds of
the inftruments that have been invented in this art
are furprizing, even to thofe who knew the rcafons
of the phasnomena they exhibit : but many of thofe
who are ignorant thereof, have thought that thofe
wonderful phenomena were produced by divina-
tion; and thofe crafty knaves, called conjurors or
cunning men, have often had recourfe to catoptric
inftruments, to help on the bufinefs of more pro-
foundly deceiving ignorant people that came to them
to foretel events.
Catoptric Dial, a dial that exhibits objeds
by refleded rays. See Reflecting Dial.
Catoptric Telescope, a telefcope that ex-
hibits objeds by refledion. See the article Re-
flecting Telescope.
CATTLE, Pecora., an order of quadrupeds,
for the charaders of which, fee the article Pe-
CORA.
i?/fff,f Cattle, the fame with the ox kind. See
the article Bos.
CATUS-PARDUS, or Catus Montanus,
in zoology. See the i:rticle Cat of the Almn-
tain.
CAVA, or Vena Cava, in anatomy, a vein
arifing with a l.^.rse finiis from the riiiht auricle of
the heart. It there fends out a vein to the heart it-
felf, called the coronary vein, and is divided into
two trunks, a fuperior and an inferior; f;om the
fuperior trunk of the vena cava there arife the fol-
lowing veins ; the azvgns, the bronchial, the me-
diaftinal, the fuperior diaphragmatic, and the fub-
clavians : the inferior trunk ot the vena cava is re-
markable for the valves, and from this arife the
daphiagmatic, or inferior phrenic veins, the rei-
nal veins, the fpermatic, the ficra, and the iiiacs.
See Vein, and each of thefe under its proper
head.
6 O CA-
C A V
CAVALIER, in fortification, an elevation of
earth, of difFerent fhapesj fituated ordinarily in the
gorge of a baftion, bordered with a parapet, and
cut into more or lefs embrafures, according to the
capacity of the cavalier.
Cavaliers are a double defence for the faces of
the oppofite baftion : they defend the ditch, break
the bcfiegers galleries, command the traverfes in
dry moats, fcour the faliant angle of the counter-
fcarp, where the befiegers have the counter-batte-
ries, and infilade the enemies trenches, or oblige
them to multiply their parallels : they are likevvife
very ferviceabie in defending the breach, and the
retrenchments of the befieged, and can very much
infommode the intrenchments which the enemy
make, being lodged in the baftion.
Cavalier, in the manege, one that under-
ftands horfes, and is praiSlifed in the art of riding
them,
CAVALRY, a body of foldiers that charge on
horfeback, and may properly be called the right
arm of the army : they are of great fervice in dif-
turbing the enemy by their frequent excurfions, in
intercepting convoys, and deftroying the country.
The cavalry is divided into kjuadrons, and en-
camp on the wings of the army. Too gieat a
number of cavalry may prove prejudicial to an ar-
my ; for as they confume a great dial of forage,
they may oblige a general to decamp from an ad-
vantageous poft.
CAVAZION, orCAVASioN, in archite(nure,
the hoUov/ trench made for laying the foundation
of a building, which, according to Palladio, ought
to be one-fixth part of the whole building.
CAUCALIS, in botany, a genus of plants, the
unlverfal flower of which is diffiirm and radiated ;
the proper flower of the difk is male, fmall, com-
pofed of five inflexocordated equal petals; the proper
flavour of the radius is hermaphrodite, and compoffd
of five inflexocordated unequal petals, the exterior
one being larger than the reft: and bifid : the fruit
is of an oblato-oblong figure, ftriated longitudi-
nally, with rigid fcabrous briftles : the feeds are
two, oblong, convex on one fide and armed with
prickles in order of the ft rise, and plane on the other
llde.
There are feveral fpecies of this genus, five or
ftx of which grow wild in England, and are moft
of ^hem biennial.
CAUDA, in a general fenfe, denotes the tail of
»n animal. See the article Tail.
Cauda Draconis, in aftronomy, the dragon's
t?.il, known by this char.:cter tS, which is the
name of the moon's dtfcending node. See the ar-
ticle Node.
Cauda I/Eonis, the lion's tail in adronomy,
a ftar of the fiift magnitude in the conftellation
Jlo. S-e the article Leo.
CAVEA,. or Caveek, or Caviary, the fpawn,
C A V
or liard roes of fturgeon, made into fmall cakes,
an inch thick, and of an hand's breadth, falted,
and dried in the fun. This fort of food is in great
repute throughout Mufcovy, becaufe of their three
Lents, which they keep with a fuperftitious exafl-
nefs ; wherefore the Italians fettled at Mofcow drive
a very great trade in this commodity throughout
that empire, becaufe there is a prodigious quantity
of fturgeon taken at the mouth of the Wolga, and
of the other rivers which fall into the Cafpian fea.
There is a pretty large quantity of this commodity
confumed in Italy ; and they are very well ac-
quainted with it in England and France, where it
is reckoned no defpicable difli.
The French and Italians get the cavear from
Archangel, but they feldom get it at the firft
hand, for they commonly buy it of the Englilh and
Dutch.
CAVEAT, in law, a kind of procefs in the fpi-
ritual courts, to ftop the proving of a will, the
granting letters of adminiftration, &c. to the pre-
judice of another. See Probate.
It is alfo ufed to ftop the inftitution of a clerk to
a benefice.
CAVEATING, in fencing, is the fliifting the
fwoid from one fide of that of your adverfary to
the other.
CAVEDO, in commerce, a Portuguefe long'
meafure, equal to 27, tI'c*. Erglifh inches.
CAVERNOSE, among anatomiits, an appella-
tion given to feveral parts of the body, on account
of their (pongy ftiudiuie : thus the cavernofa cor-
pora of the penis are two fpungy bodies, made up
of a number of fmall caverns or cells. Thefe are
the two bodies which c< nftitute the penis j they
arife diftindl: and feparate on cachfide of the olTa pu-
bis, as it were from peculiar thalami : after this they
join, and, in thiit original llate, aiecairied into the
glans. If anv liquid niai'cr be impelled into thefe,
or if they be inflated, the penis becomes rigid.
Thefe two budies are alfo termed corpora fpon-
gioOi.
CAVESON, or Cavezoh, See the article Ca-
VEZON.
CAVETTO, in architecflure, a round concave
moulding, which has a quite contrary effect to the
quarter round ; the workr en call it mouth, when in
its natural fituation; and tliroar, when turned upfide
down. The cavetto is but half a fcotia, and there-
fore fliould not be confounded with it, as lome
architedfs do.
CAVEZON, in the manege, a fort of nofeband,
either of iron, leather, or wood, fometin es flat,
and at other times hollow or tv/iffed, cUppcd upon
the nofe of a horfe, to wring it, and fo forward
the fupplying and breaking of the horfe.
An iron cavezon is a.femicircle or band of iron>
confifting of two or three pieces joined by hinges,
and mounted with a hcad-ftall, a throat- land, and
'.V.'O
C A U
two ftraps or reins, with three rings ; one rein paf-
fcs through the middle ring, when we mean to
make a horfe woric round a pillar; through the two
fide-rings we pafs the two reins, which the rider
holds in his hand, or makes faft to the (addle, in or-
der to keep the horfe's head in rubje<51:ion, &c.
CAVIN, in the military art, a natural hollow,
fit to lodge a body of troops : if there happen to be
any near a place befieged, it is of great ufe to the
befiegers ; for by the help of fuch a place they can
open the trenches, make places of arms, or keep
^ards of horfe, without being in danger of the
enemy's fhot.
CAUK, or Cawk, a term ufed among miners,
for a coarfe fparry ftone, of a white colour, found
in the lead-mines. See the article Spar.
CAUL, in anatomy,' a membranaceous part of
the abdomen, covering the greateft part of the guts,
ufually furnifhed with a large quantity of fat, placed
under the peritonjeum, and inunediately over the
inteftines, called by fome authors rete, or reticulum,
irom the number of holes appearing in it, when
railed, and giving it the refemblance of a net : but
it is moft frequently cslled omentum. See the arti-
cle Omentum.
Caul is alfo a little membrane, found on fome
children, encompaiTing the head when born.
Some take this to be only a fragment of the mem-
branes of the foetus, which generally break at the
birth of the child.
CAULICOLES, orCAULicon, are eight lef-
fer branches or flalks in the Corinthian capital,
fpringing out from four greater or principal cauls,
or Iblks.
The eight volutes of this order are fuflained by
four cauls, or primary branches of leaves, and from
which thefe caulicoles, or leffer foliages arife.
CAULIFEROUS, an appellation given to fuch
plants as have a perfeiSl caulis, or flem. See the
article Caulis.
CAULIFLOWERS, in gardening, a much cf-
tcemed fpf cies of the braffica, or cabbage. Thefe
plants, like the cabbage, are propagated from feed,
aad are produced here in great quantities in May,
June, and July, far fuperior to thofe raifedin any
other part of Europe ; alfo conliderable numbers
are produced in autumn, which if the feafon proves
mild continue good till December. The feafon for
fowing is the month of Augufr, even on a particu-
lar day with, fume, generally the tv/entieth ; for if
the feeds are fown a week fooner, it is a great
chance if they do nut run before the proper feafon
for flowering, and if fown fo much later, they will
be too fmall at t')e feafon for planting out. An old
CLicu^nber, or melon bed, is heft to receive the feeds,
)in;htly covering them with rich earth, obferving to
Water and fliade ihem in hot weather, to promote
{heir vegetation. In about a week the plants will
appear, v/hcn the coverings flioulu be taken oft" by
C A U
degrees, for they fiiould not be expofed to the fun
too much at firif. In about a moiitli after fowing,
the plants will be fit to be pricked out on another
old bed, at the diftance of about two inches, ob-
ferving to water.and (liade them till they have got
frefh root, after which too much wet fhould be a-
voided, as it would greatly damage thetn. On this
bed they may continue till the middle of Odlober,
when they fliould be removed to where they are to
ftand the winter. Thofe for the firfl crop arc ge-
nerally planted under bell or hand-glafTes, two un-
der each. Others are referved under cucumber
frames, and tranfplanted in a good rich land, about
the latter end of Eebruary, and fome are placed un-
der a fouth wall, where, if the winter is not very
fevere, they efcape pretty well in coinmon. Thefe
muft be planted out in the fpring, at about two feet
and a half afunder, which is the proper diftance for
the others..
In the month of January, it is not amifs to fow
on a flight hotbed, hardening the plants by de-
grees : thefe make not a bad I'ubftitute, when the
others might either by running, or other accidents,,
have failed ; but in cafe it has not fo happened^,
thefe will come in after the others, whereby their
feafon is leno-tbened.
The time for fowing cauliflower feeds, which
are to be expelled in autumn, is about the middle
of May, which being tranfplanted. Sic. will pro-
duce very good flowers, from Michaelmas until
Chriftmas, if the feafon is favourable.
When cauliflowers begin to fruit, they muft be
carefully watched, and fome of the inner leaves
broke over them, in order to (hade them from the
fun, which would otherwife turn them )ellow.
Some of the cloleft and largeft fliould be referved
for (ied, and when they flioot out for blowing,,
fhould be faftened to (Hcks to prevent their being
blown down,, and when the feed is ripe, fhould be
cut,, dried, and laid bv till wanted. Eor the gene-
rical characters of this fpccies, lee the nrticle Cab-
bage.
CAULINE, in a general fcnfc, denotes any-
thing belonging to the caulis or ftalk of plants. Sec
the article Caulis.
Cauline Leaf, among, botanifts, that grow-
ing from the ftalk of a plant.
CAULIS, among botanills, denotes the ftalk of
herbaceous plants : thi--, in trees,, is called ccrMleXy._
or trunk ; and, in grafies, culmus., or ftem.
CAULKING, amongft fliipwri;j,hts, tlie aft of
driving a quantity of oakum, i. e. old ropes untwift-
ed and foftened, into the feams of the planks, or
between them where they are joined, in order to-.
keep out the v^ater : after the oakum is driven very
hard into thefe feams, it is covered with hot melted
pitch, to prevent the water from rotting it.
CAUSA Matrimonii Pr^locuti, in com-
mon law, a writ th.it lies where a v.-oman ^ives
lind, ■
C A U
land to a man in fee, to the intent he fhall marry
her, and he refufes to do it in a reafonable time,
being thereunto required by the woman : and in
fuch cafe, for not performing the condition, the en-
try of the woman into the lands again has been ad-
judged lav/ful.
The hufband and wife may fue this writ againft
another v/ho ought to have married her.
Causa IJobis Significes, in law, a writ di-
reded to the mayor of a town, &e. who being by
the king's writ commanded to make feifin of lands
to the king's grantee, delays fo doing. This writ
requires him to fhew caufe why he makes delay.
CAUSALTY, among metaphyfscians, the ac-
tion or power of a caufe in producing its efFeift.
It is a difpute among the fchooi-philofophers,
whether and how the caufaky is diftinguiflred from
the caufe and the effedl ? Some hold it a mode or
modal entity, fuperadJed to the caufe, &c. others
contend for its being the caufe itfelf. See the arti-
cle Cause.
Causalty, among miners, denotes the lighter,
fulphureous, earthy parts of ores, carried ofF in the
operation of waihing.
This, in the mines, they throw in heaps upon
banks, which, in fix or feven years, they find it
worth their while to work over again. See Ore
and Washing.
CAUSE, Caufa, that from whence any thing
proceeds, or by virtue of which any thing is done:
it flands oppofed to efleiV. We get the ideas of
caufe and ettecff, fays Mr. Locke, from our obfer-
vation of the viciffitude of things, while we per-
ceive fome qualities or i'ubftances begin to exift,
and that they receive their cxiftence from the due
spplication and operation of other beings. That
which produces is the caufe, and that which is pro-
duced, the efTeft : thus fluidity in wax is the effecSl
of a certain degree of heat, which we obferve to
be conftantly produced by the application of fuch
heat.
Firjl Cause, that which afts of itfelf, and of its
own proper power or virtue : God is the only firfl:
caufe in this fenfe.
Second Causes, are thofe which derive the power
and faculty of a£lion from a ^u9i caufe : thefe ate
improperly called caufes, in regard they do not,
ffridly fpeaking, aft at all, but are aded on : of
this kind are all thofe that we ter.m natural
caufes.
Philofophers are divided as to the aftion whereby
fecond caufes produce their effe£ls : lome maintain,
that the caufalty cannot be produced, fmce it is
that which produces : others will have tliem to ad
truly by their adion ; but they are atalufs ftill a-
hout that adion : fome do not allow that corporeal
fubftanccs can produce any thinir but accidents :
the fyftem of Avifenna i=, that God produces, \m-
mcdiately, a moft perfed fpiritual fubftancej this
4
C A U
produces another, lefs perfed ; that, a third ; and
thus to the laft ; which laft producesall the corporeal
fubftances ; and thofe corporeal fubftances, acci-
dents : as to the manner of the agency, fome
maintain, that the fubftantial form of fecond caufes
produces forms, and the accidental ones, acci-
dents : others, that forms produce other forms ;
and others, that accidents alone are capable of pro-
ducing accidents and form'.
Caufes are diftinguiflied, by the fchools, into ef-
ficient, material, final, and formal.
Efficient Causes are the agents employed in thak-
produdion of any thing.
Alaterial Cavs'zs, the fubjeds whereon the a-
gents work, or the materials v»hereof the thing is
produced.
FinalCAVSF.s are the motives inducing an agent
to ad ; or the defign and purpofe for wnich the
thing was done.
Lord Bacon fays, that the final caufe is fo far from
being ferviceable, that it corrupts the fciences, un-
lefs it be reflrained to human adions : huwever,
continues he, final caufes are not falfe, nor unwor-
thy of inquiry in metaphyfics : but their excurfions
into the limits of phyfical caufes hath made a great
devaflation in that province ; otherwife, when con-
tained within their own bounds, they are not re-
pugnant to phyfical caufes.
Formal Cause, the change refulting from the
adion ; or that which determines a thing to be
this, and diflinguiflies it from every thing elfe :
thus, the foul is held the formal caufe of man.
Caufes are again diftinguifticd into phyfical and
moral.
Physical Cavse, that which produces a fenfible
corpoieal efic-d; as the fun is ilie phyfical caufe of
light ; others define it, that which produces its ef-
fed by a phyfical virtue.
The Cartelians refolve all phyfical caufes into oc-
cafional ones.
Occq/ionti/ Cavses, therefore, are only the occa-
fions, not the dired caufes of their effeds. See the
article Occasion.
The foul, fay thefe philofophers, is not able to
ad on the body, nor the body reciprocally on the
foul : to keep up an intercourfe between them,
God, on occafion of the motion of the body, im-
prefles a fc-nlation on the foul, and on occafion of
a fentiment of the foul, impreffes a motion on the
body : the motions therefore of the foul and body
are only occafional caufes of what pafics in the one
( r in the other : thus, fay they, the flroke or per-
cuflion is only the occafional caufe of the motion
produced in the bndy flruck : it is God who is the
dired cfKcient caufe, &c.
Aloial Cause, that which produces a real cfFcd,
but in things immaterial ; as repentance is the caufe
of forgiventls. A moral caufe is alfo defined, that
which determines us, though not neceflarily to do,
or
C A U
or not to <3o any thing; as advice, intreatles, com-
mands, menaces, &c.
It is to be obferved, that in this fenfe, a moral
caufe is only applicable to a free intelligent agent :
it is alfo obfervable, that the latter notion of a phy-
flcai, as well as a moral caufe, is the moft juft, clear,
and difliniSl.
Caufes are again diftinguiflied into univerfiil, or
particular ; principal, or inftrumental ; total, or
partial; univocal, equivocal, &c.
Cause, among civilians, the fame with aiSlion.
See Action.
CAUSEWAY, or Causey, a maflive body of
ftones, flakes, and fafcines ; or an elevation of fat
vifcous earth, well beaten ; ferving either as a road
in wet marfliy places, or as a mole to retain the
waters of a pond, or prevent a river from over-
flowing the lower grounds.
CAUSTICS, in phyfic, an appellation given to
medicines, of fo hot and fiery a nature, that being
applied, confume, and, as it were, burn the tex-
tarc of the parts like hot iron.
Cauftics differ from cauteries, in that they per-
form their effcdts flower, and with lefs force and
pain : they are ufed to eat off proud fungous flefli ;
ther alfo penetrate within hard callous bodies, and
liquifv the humours ; and are particularly applied in
abfcefles and impofthumatitjiis, to tat through to
the luppurated matter, and give it vent ; fomi;times
alfo to make iliues, in parts where cutting is, difficult
or inconvenient.
Cauftics are generally divided into four forts, the
common ftronger cauftic, the common milder
caultic, the antimonial caultic, and the lunar
cauflic.
'I'he flronger cauflic is prepared, by boiling to a
fourth part any qumtity of the lees of almond-
foap, adding lime, that has been kept in a veflel
pretty clofe ftopt for feveral months ; the lime is a
to be added till all the liquor is abforbed, and the
whole reduced to a parte, which is to be kept in a
veflel well ftopt.
The common milder cauftic is prepared, by
taking equal parts of foft foap, and frefh quick-
lime, and mixing them at the time of ufing.
The antimonial cauftic is prepared thus : take of
antimony one pound, of corrofive fublimate, two
pounds ; and being reduced feparately into powder,
mix them well, and diftil them in a letort with a
wide neck, in a gentle heat of fand ; let what
afcends into the neck of the retort be expofed to the
air, that it may run into a liquor.
The method of preparing the lunar cauftic is as
follows: diflbive pure fdver by a fand-heat, in about
twice its weight of aquafortis ; then dry away the
humidity with a gentle fire ; afterwards melt it in a
crucible, that it may be poured into proper moulds,
carefully avoiding over much heat, left the mailer
fiiould (^row toa thick.
i6
C A U
Caustic Curve, in the higher geometry, a
curve found by the concourfe or coincidence of the
rays of light, reflected from fome other curve. Sec
Catacaustic and Diacaustic.
Caustic Glasses, the fame with burning-
glafles. See Burninc-Glass.
CAUSUS, or Burning-Fever, a fpecles of
continual fever, accompanied with a remarkable
inflammation of the blood. The principal fymp-
toms are a heat almofl: burning to the touch, the
breath extremely hot, a drynefs of the whole fkin,
the tongue parched and rough, and an unquencha-
ble thirft. See Fever.
CAUSWAY, or Causeway. See the article
Causeway.
CAUTERIZATION, the application of cau-
teries to any part of the body. See the next ar-
ticle.
Cauterization with moxa is wonderfully extolled
by fome as the moft efFetStual means to extirpate the
gout ; but it is at prefent in difufe, and not without
rcafon ; for, befides the acute pain which it creates,
it is frequently found to have little or no efFeft.
This cauterization, however, is faid to be at prefent
in ufe among the Arabians ; and the Japonele and
Chinefe have it in fo great efteem, that it makes one
of their chief remedies.
CAUTERY, in furgery, a medicine for burn-
ing, eating, or corroding any folid part of the
body.
Cauteries are diftinguifhed into two claflcs, adlual
and potential : by actual cauteries are meant red-
hot inftruments, ufually of iron, which are applied
to many parts and diforders : and by potential cau-
teries are underftood certain kinds of corroding
medicines. See the atticle Caustics.
Cauteries have manifold ufes ; for they not only
deftroy the dead parts of carious bones, remove
cancers, fchirri, excrefcencies, carbuncles, and mor-
tified parts; but they^are alfo ufed to make iillies
and fetons, to (Inp h.-Emorrhages in wounds and am-
putations ; and, laftly, to remove an amaurufis, epi-
lepfy, fciatica, with pains in the teeth and other
parts.
For the right application of cauteries, various ob-
fervations are neceffiry: i. The fize and figure of
the cautery fhould correfpond to that of the difor-
dered part. 2. It is neceflary to fecure the found
parts from the cautery, to prevent giving more tha;>
necefl^iry pain. 3. When the inltrument is fuffi-
ciently hot, it is to be applied, and ftrongly im-
prefled upon the difordered part, till tl.e bottom of
it appears found. To eftVct this ntore fpccdily, it
will be neceflary to have feveral cauteries in readi-
nefs, a caution more efpecially to be obferved in ctii-
ous bones and large hsmorrha^es.
Several phyficians have obferved, that cauteries
have fucceeJcd in apoplexies, when all other rcnied;es
have failed. But for the part to which the cautery
6 P is.
C E D
I^ to be applied, there are various opinions ; fome
prefer the occiput; fome the nape of the neck, be-
tween the firft and fecond vertebrte ; fome the meet-
ing of the coronal and fagittal futures ; and others
pitch upon other parts. Miftichellius, an Italian
writer, affert:, that no part can be fo proper for
cauterizations in apoplexies, as the foles of the
feet.
CAUTINGIRON, in farriery, an iron with
which farriers cauterize or fear thofe parts of an
horfc that require burning.
CAUTION, Cr.utio, in the civil and Scotch
law,- denotes much the fame with what, in the law
of England, is called bail. See the article Bail.
CAUTIONE Admittenda, in law, a writ
which lies againft a bifhop that holds an excommuni-
cated peifan in prifon for contempt, after he has
offered fuflicient caution or fecurity to obey the or-
ders of the church. On receipt of this writ, the
fheriff warns the bifhop to take caution,
CAXOU, among miners, denotes a cheft of any
ore ready prepared for refining.
CAZEMATE, or Casemate, in fortification,
a certain retired platform in the flank of a baftion,
for the defence of tlie moat and face of the oppofite
baftion. Sometimes there are three fuch platforms
one behind another, the uppermoft of which is on
the tcrre plein of the bafrion, which makes the other
two be called places hoffcs, or low places. They are
covered from the enemy's batteries by a work of
earth added to the angle of the flioulder, of a cir-
cular and fometimes of a fquare form, called
ihoulder, orillon, or cpaulement. SeeORiLLON,
kc.
It is very feldom that cazemates are ufed now
a-days, becaufe the enemies batteries are apt to bury
the cannon they contain under the ruins of their
vaults ; befides that, the fmoke with which they are
continually filled, renders ihem infupportable to the
engineers. It is for this reafon that the latter en-
gineers make them open at top, contenting them-
felves with fortifying them with a parapet.
CASEiMATE is alfo ufed for a well with feveral
fubterraneous branches dug in the palTage of the
baftion, till the miner is heard at work, and air
given to the mine.
CAZERN. See the article Casern.
CEANOTHUS, in botany, a genus of pentan-
drious plant?, whofe flower confilfs of a monophyl-
lous turbir.ated calyx, with five roundifh equal petals,
which fpread open, and are lefs than the cup. It
contains five eredl fubulated filaments, topped with
roundifh anthers. The fruit is a dry berry, with
three cells, each containing an ovated folitary fecJ.
Cedar o/Barbadoes. See Juniperus and Ma-
HOGONV.
CEDAR ofBufaco. See the article Cupressus.
Cedar of Virginia and B(rmudas. See JuNi-
rERUS.
C E D
Cedar of Lilanus, a large coniferous tree, which
puflies out branches at the diftance of ten or twelve
feet from the ground : thefe are large and fpreading.
Its leaves are acute and ever-green, {landing up-
right. The fruit, which grows ereift, are like
thofe of the pine-tree, of which it is a fpecies ;
except that it is more obtufe, and its rind thinner
and fmoother.
There are ftlll fome cedars on- mount Libanus,
but in fmall number, above and to the eaft of Biblos
and Tripoli. There are none to be feen any where
clfe on thofe mountains. But it is very prob.^ble
that there were a great many more formerly, fince
their timber was ufed in fo many confiderable works.
There are fome ceJars alfo growing in feveral parts
of Africa, in the Ifle of Cyprus, and in that of
Crete or Candia. Jofephus, the Jewifh hiflorian,
afferts, that Solomon planted fo large a quantity of
cedars in Judea, that they were as numerous as the
fycomore- trees, which are very common in that
country.
Mr. Miller obfervesj that what we meet with in
the Scripture of the lofty cedars can be no ways
applicable to the ftature of this tree; fince by the
experience of thofe we have now growing in Eng-
land, as alfo from the teftimony of feveral travtllers
who have vifited thofe few remaining trees on Mount
Libanus, they are not inclined to grow very lofty,
but, on the contrary, extend their branches very far :
to which the allufion made by thePfalmifl agrees very
well, when he is defcribing the flourifliing ftate of a
nation : " They fliall fpread their branches like the
" cedar trees."
The wood of this famous tree is accounted proof
againff all putrefadtion of animal bodies. Thia
wood is alfo faid to yield an oil, which is famous for
preferving books and writings ; and the wood is
thought ro continue above a thoufand years found.
It is likewife recorded, that, in the temple of Apollo
at Utica, there v/as found timber of near two thou-
fand years old. And the ftatue of the goddefs, in
the famous Ephefian temple, was faid to be of thi»
material alfo, as was moft of the timber-work of
that glorious flru61ure.
This fort of timber is very dry, and fubjefl to
fplit ; nor does it well endure to be faffened with
nails ; therefore pins of the fame wood are much
preferable.
Bajfard Cedar, in botany, the Englifh name of
the theobroma. See the article Theobroma.
JVhite Cedar, a name given to a fpecies of
cupreiTus. See Cupressus.
CEDRELA, in botany, a genus of pentandrious
plants, whofe flower is pentapelous, and funnel-
fhaped, with five fubulated filaments, topped with
oblong anthera;. l^he fruit is a roundifh woody
quinquelocular capfule, with five deciduous valves,
and contains a number of flsfhy feeds.
CEDRIA, among phyficians, the gum or refin
which,
C E L
which Iffues from the cedar. Its good qualities con-
fift in its being fat, thick, tranfparent, and that,
when poured out, it falls by equal drops.
CEGINUS, in aftronomy, a fixed ftar of the
third magnitude, in the left fhoulderof the conftella-
tion Bootes. For its right afcenfion, declination,
variation, &c. fee the conftellatioii Bootes.
CEILING, in architedure, is the lathing and
plaiftering at the top of a room, upon the under-
lide of the joifis, put up for that purpofe, and called
ceiling-joifts, if it be in a garret. Thefe plaiftered
ceilings are much ufed in England, beyond all other
countries, and they have thefe conveniences with
them ; they make the room much lighter, are
excellent againft raging fire, they flop the paffage of
the duft, and lefl'en the noifes overhead, and in
fummer-time they make the rooms fomewhat cooler.
CELANDINE the Greater, ChelidQuium, in bo-
tany, a plant with fibrous hairy roots. The leaves
are of a bright green colour on the upper fide, and
bluifh underneath ; thefe are longifli and divided to
the rib into rouiidifh indented portions, of which
thofe at the extremities are much hrger than the o-
thers: thefe leaves contain a bright yellow juice, as
does likcvvife the {talks, which are knotty, fiftu-
lous, brittle, and branched, with leaves alternately
placid. The flowers are yellow and tetrapetalous,
coming out in chillers. The fil.iments are plain and
numerous, topped by oblong, comprefTed, twin an-
therae ; and the fruit is a cylindraceous pod of one
or two valves, containing a number of ovated,
fliining, black feeds. This plant flov/ers in May,
and grows naturally in many parts of England ; it
is by all alhnved to abound with a fharp acrid fait,
and is tlieiefore recommended as a powerful aperi-
ent and attenuant : it is judged to be a fpecific a-
gainft the jaundice, fcurvy, and all obftrudlions
and difurders of the vifcera.
Half a dram, or a dram of the dried root in
powder, or an infufion in wine or water of a dram,
or a dram and a half of the frefh root, or three or
four drops of its fafvron-coloured juice, in any con-
venient vehicle, are directed for a dofe ; but great
caution is requifite in the internal ufe of a medicine
fo acrimonious and irritating.
Among us it is chiefly ufed by common people
for fome external purpofes, as the deflroying warts,
cleanfing foul fores, and removing clouds, films,
and fpecks from the eyes. For this laft intention
the juice fhould be largely diluted in milk, it being
of itfelf much too fliarp to be applied wiih fafcty to
fo tender an organ.
Celandine the Lejpr, or pilewort, in botany,
a fmall plant with roundifh, fmooth, fliining, green
leaves, fet in long pedicles, and flender procumbent
fialks, bearing bright gold coloured flowers. The
root confifls of flender fibres, with a number of
tubercles, or little knobs among them. It is peren-
nial, flowers in April, and grows wild in hedges
C E L
and moid meadows. The leaves of this plant are
reckoned antifcorbutic, and the roots are celebrated
as a fpecific againft the piles, though perhaps with-
out any good foundation. For the genericai cha-
raders of this plant, fee the article Ranunculus,
of which it is a fpecies.
CELARENT, in logic, a mode of fyllogifm,
wherein the major and conclufion are univerfal ne-
gative propofitions, and the minor an univerfal af-
firmative. As
Ce No man tiiat is a hypocrite can be
faved :
LA Every mnn who with his lips only cries
Lord, Lord, is a hypocrite :
RENT Therefore, no man who with his lips
only cries Lord, Lord, can be faved.
CELASTRUS, in botany, a genus of plants,
whofe corolla confifts of five equal, oval, patent,
feflile petals, with their ends turned back: the fruit
is a coloured, oval capfule, obtufely trigonal, gib-
bous, formed of three valves, and containing three
cells, in each of which ate fmall, oval, coloured
feeds, fmooth, and half covered by a calyptra,
which is alfo coloured, and has an unequal rim, di-
vided into four fegments.
CELERIAC, in botany, a fpecies of the apium.
It differs from the common celery, by having a
turnip-ftaped root, which is the part ufed in cook-
ery : alfo it is diflinguilhed by the colour of the
fialks, which are brown ; whereas thofc of com-
mon celery arc green when not blanched.
CELERY, Jpiuni, in botany, a well-knowrj
plant, much ufed in foups, and for other culinary
purpofes, propagated by feeds, which fliould be
fovvn at two or three different times. The firll:
fovving may be in IVIaich, on a gentle hot bed, the
next in April, and the laft fowing in May. When
the plants of the firft fowing are of fuffi;ient fize
to prick out, fome beds of rich earth fliould be pre-
pared to receive them. Here they may continue
until May or June, when they may be tianfiilanted
into trenches, (well prepared with rotten dung)
where thej' are to perfeiSl themfelves for udi, thele
trenches fhould be made about three feet ai'under,
and as the plants advance in height, the earth
fhould be carefully laid up againft them at different
times, in dry weather, in order to whiten and m«ke
them more tender, ohferving not to cover their
hearts. Thofe of latter fovving are to be managed in
the fame manner, allowing tor the diiicrent time.
This plant is a common winter fallad, and much
cfteemed for its 2;enerical charaflcrs. See the arti-
cle Parsley.
CELERITY is the velocity or fwiftntfs of any
body in motion; and it is defined to be an aflVciioij
of motion, by which anv moveable bridyruns thro'
a given fpace in a given time. See VELOtiTV and
Motion.
CI'.LESTIKS,
C E L
C E M
CELESTINS, in cliurch-hidory, a religious or-
der of Ciitiftians, reformed from the Beriiardins by
p!,ipu Celellin V. Their rules are divided into
three parts; the firft, of the provincial chapters,
and the eledions of fuperiors ; the fecoiid contains
the regular obfervanccs ; and the third, the vifita-
tion and correftion of the monks.
The celeftins rife two hours after midnight to fay
mattins : they eat no flcfli at any time, except
when they are fick : they fafl every Wednefday
and Friday, to the feall of the exaltation of the
Holy-crofs ; and from that feall to Eafter, every
day.
CELIAC, or Coeliac Passion, a furt of di-
arrhxa, or flux of the belly, wherein the aliment
comes away either crude or chylified, inftead of
excrements. See the article Coeliac.
CiiLIBACY, the Hate of unmarried perfons,
to which, according to the doftrine, or at leaft: the
d'lfcipline, of the church of Rome, the clergy are
obliged.
In the church of England, the marriao;e of the
clergy was generally pradlifed to the end of tlie
tenth age, and in a great rjieafure to the beginn/ng
of the twelfth.
That celibacy has no pretence of divine or apof-
tolical inftitution, feems no difficult point to prove:
whence it is, at firft, hard to conceive from what
motive the court of Rome perfifled fo very obfti-
nately to imnofe this inftitution on the clergy. But
we are to obferve, that this was a leading ftep to
the execution of the projeil fonned of making the
clergy independent of princes, and rendering them
a feparate body, to be governed by their own laws.
In effeft, while priefts had children, it was very
difficult to prevent their dependence upon princes,
whofe favours have fuch an influence on private
men ; but having no family, they were more at li-
berty to adhere to the pope.
CELIODOGRAPHY, x.,m;, a fpot, and ypcttpc,,
I defcribe. See Sun, Moon, &c.
CELL, Cc'i'a, a little apartment or chamber,
fuch as thofe wherein the ancient monks, folitaries,
and hermits lived in retirement.
Cells are ftill retained in divers monafleries.
Thus the dormitory is frequently divided into fo
many cells. The Carthufians have each a feparate
houfe, which ferve them as a cell.
l^he hall wherein the Roman conclave is held
is divided by partitions into divers cells for the feve-
ral cardinals to lodge in.
Cells are alfo the little divifions in honey-
combs, which are always regular hexagons. See
Comb.
Cells, in botany, the hollow places between
the partitions in the pods, hufts, and other feed-
vefTels of plants. According as there is one, two,
three, ice. of thefe cells, the vefTel is faid to be
wnilocular, bilocular, trilocular, &c.
Cells, in anatomy, little bags or bladders where
fluids or other matters are lodged, called loculi, cel-
luls, &c.
CELLAR, the loweft room in a houfe, the
arches of which are moftly level with the furface of
the ground on which the houfe ftands, or but very
little higher. In ancient writers, cellar denotes the
fame with cella, viz. a confcrvatory of eatables or
drinkables. A ciUar differs from a vault, as the lat-
ter is fuppoftd to be deeper than the vault. See
Vault.
CELOSIA, in botany, a genus of plants, the
flower of which confifts of five lanceolated, acu-
minated, ereff, rigid, and permanent petals ; the
fruit IS a globofe capfule, furrounded with a corol-
la, with one tell opening horizontally, and con-
tainina feveral roundiili emarginated (ceds.
A ipei^ies of this genus is the amaranthus cox-
comb, a well known be.iutitul plant ; it is a native
of China, and is heie one of the principal orna-
ments of the flower-garden. As the raifing and
management of this differs- fo little from the a-
maraiuhu":, we muft refer the reader to that article.
See Amaranthus.
CELSIA, in botany, a genus of plants, the flow-
er of which is monopetalous, with a plain limb
and roundifli fegments : the fruit is a roundifh cap-
fule, comprefled at the top, acuminated, auhering
to the cup, with two cells, containing feveral fmall
angulated feeds.
CELTJS, the lote or nettle-tree, in botany, a
genus of polygamious plants, whofe flowers are
male, hermaphrodite, and apetalous. The herma-
phrodite confifts of a monophyllous calyx, divided
into five parts, and contains five fhort filaments
topped with thick quadrangular antheras. The
fruit is a globofe, unilocular drupe, inclofing a
roundifh nut.
CEMENT, or Cjement, in the general fenfe,
any glutinous fubftance capable of uniting and keep-
ing things together in clofe cohefion.
Cements require to be of various compofitions,
and different with refpedt to the nature of the in-
gredients, according to the different manner in
which they are to be applied, and the fubftances
they are to conjoin. The kinds of cement ufed
for common purpofes pafs under the denomination
of glue, fize, paffe, and lutes. See Glue, Size,
Paste, and Lutes.
CEMENTATION, or Cjementation, in a
general fenfe, the corroding of metals in a dry
form, by means of the fumes of acid falts.
It is performed in the following manner. After
the copper has been feparated as much as poffible
by copelling, a ftratum of falts of about half an
inch in thicknefs is fpread in the bottom of the ce-
ment-pot ; over this are laid thin plates of gold,
then another ftratum of falts, and fo on alternate-
ly, till the pot be filled within half an inch of the
brim.
C E N
brim. This being done, the pot is <:ov^rcd up,
and enconipaffcd with fire, which fliould be made
gradually ftcrcerand fiercer ; and in fixteen or twen-
ty hours after they have been red-hot, entirely re-
moved, that every thing may cool by degrees. Then
tlie pots are to be opened, the falls taken out, and
•if it is grown too hard, to be foftened by a fprink-
Jing of liot water. The plates of gold mull be
waftved in hot water, and the water renewed, till
it be free from all faline taHe ; for the falls, toge-
ther with the metal they have corroded, v.'ill be
■contained in the ^ilates of gold. The gold muft-
be tried with the touch-ftone, or fome more cer-
tain method, to know if it lias the degree of fine-
nefs required ; and if it is not pure enough, it mufl:
he cemented a fecond time, and, if neceffary, with
flronger falts.
CEMETERY, Coemcterium, a place confecrated,
or fet apart for burying the dead. See the article
COEMETERY.
CENEGILD, an expiatory mulct that was for-
merly paid by one who killed another, to the kin-
dred of the deceafed.
CENOBITE, or Coenobite. See the article
Coenobite.
CENOTAPH, KfvoTa<piov., in antiquity, a mo-
nument erefled in honour of the dead, but not
containing any of their remains. Of thefe there
were two forts. One ere<3ed fof fuch perfons as
had been honoured with funeral rites in another
place; and the fecond fort, for thofe that had never
obtained a juft funeral.
The fign whereby honorary fepulchres were dif-
tinguifhed from others, was commonly the wreck
of a (hip, to denote the deceafe of the perfon in
fome foreign country.
CENSER, a facred inftrument made ufe of in
the religious rites of tlie ancients. It was a vafe,
containing incenfe to be ufed in facrificing to the
gods. There is the reprefentaiion of one in Mont-
taucon's Antiquities, under the figure of a (hallow
cup with a lid to it, and chains running through
fmall handles. Cenfers were likewife in ufe among the
Jews, as we lind in i Kings vii. 50. " Solomon, when
" he prepared furiiiture for the temple of the Lord,
•' among other things made cenfers of pure gold."
The cenfer is alfo ufsd in Romifh churches.
CENSOR, in Roman antiquity, a niagidrate,
whofe bufinefs it was to reform the manners, and
to value the cftates of the people.
There were two cenfors fir(l created in the 311th
)'ear of Rome, upon the fenate's obferving that the
confuls Were generally fo much taken up in military
atiiions, as to have no leifure to attend to private
affairs. At firft they were clroftn out of the fe-
nate, but after the plebeians had got the confulate
open to them, they foon arrived at the ccnforfhip.
The cenfors degraded fenators upon occafion, made
the princeps Jinaiiis, infpeiled the management of
*7
C E N
private families, relating to education and expencei
and, in fliort, had authority to reprimand and cor*
reft: any irregularity, and to take care that perfons,
both in public and private capacity, behaved them-
felves in a becoming manner. Cicero reduces their
functions to the numbering of the people, the cor-
rection and reformation of manners, the eftimatiiig
the eJFefls of each citizen, the proportioning of
taxes, the fuperintendence of tribute, the exclufion
from the temples, and the care of the public places.
The office was fo confiderable, that none afpired
to it till they had pafTed all the reft ; fo that it was
looked on as furprifing, that Craflus (hould be ad-
mitted cenfor, without having been either conful or
pretor. It was held at firft five years 5 but Mamer-
cus /^milius fhortened the term to eighteen months.
After the cenfors were ele£led in the comitia cen-
turialia, they proceeded to the Capitol, where they
took an oath not to manage either by favour or dif-
. affection, but to a(S equitably and impartially
through the whole courfe of their adminiftration :
and notwithftanding their great authority, they
were obliged to give an account of their rnanage*
ment to the tribunes and sediles curules. In pro-
cefs of time, the dignity of this office dwindled
very much ; under the emperors it funk to nothing,
as their majefties engrofTed all the branches of that
jurifduStion. The republic of Venice has at this
day a cenfor of manners of their people, whofe of-
fice Ia(fs fix months.
Ceusorso/ Booh are a body of dcxflors or others
eftabli(hed in divers countries to examine all books
before they go to prefs, and to fee they contain no-
thing contrary to faith and good manners.
CENSURE, a judgment which condemns fome
book, perfon, or action, or more particularly a re-
primand from a fuperior. Ecclefiaftical cenfures
are penalties by which, for fome remarkable mifbe-
haviour, Chriftians are deprived of the communion
of the church, or prohibited to execute the facer-
dotal office.
CENSUS, among the Romans, was an authentic
declaration, made by the feveral fubjedle of the em-
pire, of their refpedtive names and places of abode,
before proper magiftrates in the city of Rome, call-
ed cenfors, and in the provinces cenfitors, by whom
the fame were regittercd.
This declaration was accompanied with a cata-
logue, or enumeration, in writing, of all the ef-
tates, lands, and inheritances they pollcfled ; their
quantity, quality, place, wives, children, tenants,
domeftics. Haves, &c.
The cenfus was inftituted by king Servius, and
was held every five years. It went through all the
rankii of people, though under different names «
that of the common people was called cenfus, or
lullruni ; that of the knights, cenfus, reccnfio, re-
cognitio ; that of the lenators, ledlio, reledtio.
Hence, alfo, cenfus came to fignify a perfon who
6 Q, had
C E N
C E N
had made fuch a declaration ; in which fenfe It was
uppofed to incenfus, a perfon who had not given in
his eftate or name to be regifteied.
The cenfus among the old Romans was held, as
is commonly thought, every five years ; but this
muft not be taken to be precifely true : on the con-
trary. Dr. Middleton has fliewn, that both the cen-
fus and lulirum were, for the moi\ part, held irre-
gularly and uncertainly, at very different and vari-
ous intervals of time.
The cenfus was an excellent expedient for difco-
vering the ftrength of the ftate : by it they learned
the number of the citizens, how many were fit for
war, and who for offices of other kinds ; how
much each was able to pay of taxes towards the
charge of the Wir.
The cenfus, according to Salmafius, was pecu-
liar to the city of Rome. That in the provinces
was formerly calk-d profcffio ; but this diftin£tion is
not every where obferved by the ancients themfelves.
CENT, from centum, a hundred, ufed in com-
merce, to exprefs the profit, iofs, intereft, broker-
age, &c. Thus, a merchant, or tradefman, we fay,
gained five, ten, or twenty per cent, by fuch a com-
modity, which means nothing more, than that he
gained five, ten, or twenty pounds by every hun-
dred pounds he laid out in that commodity. Like-
wife, when a perfon lends out a fum of money upon
intereft, it is ufgal to fay, he has lent it out at five
per cent. &c. which is nothing more than that the
lender is to receive five pounds per year for every
hundred pounds he lends, and in proportion for any
other quantity. Again, when we employ a broker,
tador, .5cc. to negociate any bufinefs, &c. itisufual
to allow fuch factor, or broker, a fee or pcrquifite
of one-eighth per cent, one-fourth per cent. &c.
according to agreement 5 which fignifies, that the
broker is to receive one-eighth of a pound, viz.
2 s. 6d. for every hundred pounds henegociates on
your account, &c. We likewife fay, the exchange
of fuch a country is fo much per cent. Thus we may
fay, the exchange at Baroadoes at pyefent is thirty-
five per cent, which means, that the currency of
that ifland differs from fterling thirty-five pounds in
the hundred.
CENTAUR, or Hippocentaur, in ancient
poetry, denotes a fabulous kind of animal, half
man, half horfe.
The Thefialians, who firfl: taught the art of break-
ing horfes, appearing on horfe- back to make only
one body with tiie animal on which they rode, gave
rife to the fiiilion of the hippocentaur.
Centaur, or Centaunu, in aflronomy, a con-
ftellation of the fouthern hemifphere near cbe Wolf,
and by fome joined with the Wolf, and called Ct!2-
l/iitrus cum hupo, but we (hall give them feparate.
In fabulous hiflory we have various opinions with
regard to this conftellation. Some will have it to
be Typhon j others Chiron, the fchoolmafter of
thofe three excellent men, Hercules, Achilles, and
/Efculapius : unto Hercules he read aftronomy, to
Achilles mufic, and to ^^fculapius phyfic, and for
his upright life, they fay, was turned into this con-
Itellation. However, Virgil calls Sagittarius by
the name of Chiron, and we rather think it is that
fign into which Chiron is tranflated. Near the hind
feet of this conftellation are four ftars, forming by
their pofition a crofs, and by failors are called the
Crofiers ; thefe are not vifible in England, nor are
many of thofe in the Centaur. The five below
are all that have been obferved with any accuracy at
the Obfervatory, though there are more that rife
above our horizon, yet they are fo fmall, and it is
commonly fo hazy in this climate near the earth,
that they become invifible.
-a
c
bD
Name.
S
4-5
2
4-5
3
4-5
4
4-5
5
2-3
Right
Afcenfion
/ j202.59.59
^i203-5i-57
k 204.28.39
/; ,204.50. c
« ',208. 8.38
Didance
from Nor.
Pole.
121. 48. 56
123. 14.3c
121.47-33
120.43.46
125. 9. 4
Var.ir
^'^ar.io
Right
Decli-
\km
nation
48.2
18.8
48.7
18,7
48.7
18.0
48.5
,7.8
50.2
17-5
CENTAURIUM Mnjus, great centaury, iii
botany, a large plant, with the leaves compofed of
oblong ferratcd feg.ments fet in pairs on a middle
rib, which ' is edged, in the intermediate fpace?,
with a ferruted margin : the ftflk divides, towards
the upper-part, into feveral branches, bearing on
the tops round foft fcaly heads, from which come
forth bluifh fiofculi, followed by down inclofing the
feeds. It is perennial, a native of the fouthern
parts of Europe, and raifed with us in gardens.
The root of this plant, of a dark blackifli co-
lour on the outhde, is internally reddilL, and yields,.
when frefh, a juice of a deep red. It has a flight
fmell, not agreeable; and in chewing difcovers a
vifcous fweetnefs and roughnefs, with Ibme degree
of acrimony. It is reckoned aperient and corror
borant, and fuppofed to be particularly ufeful in ai-
vifle fluxes ; in which intention it has by fome been
greatly recommended, though' apparently much in-
ferior to the root, v.'hofe place it was employed to
fupply, to wit, the true rhapontic. Among us it
has long flood difcarded from pr.i(5lice, and is now
dropped by the colleges both of London and Edin-
burgh.
Centaurium AZ/n//.', leffL-r centaury, in botany^
a fmall plant, with three-ribbed, fomcwhat oval
leaves, fet in pairs on the (lalks ; which divide, to-
wards the top, into feveral branches, bearing um-
bel-like cluftcrs, of bright red, funiiel-ftiaped flow-
ers, cut into five acute fegmcnts, followed by little
gblong capfules full of very fmall feeds. It is annual^
grows
I
C E N
C E N
grows wild in dry pafture grounds, and flowers in
The leaves and tops of centaury are flrong bit-
ters, of fcarcL-Iy any fniell or particular flavour.
The feeds alfo are very bitter ; the pctala of the
flowers, and the roots, a!mo<l inlipid. The flow-
cry tops are generally made choice of, and are of
confiderabic eltimation in the prefcnt pratSlice as
corroborant ftomachic bitters.
CENTER, or Centre, in a general fenfe, 'fig-
nifics that point which is equally dirtant from the
extremities of aline, fuperficies, or folid.
The word is formed from the word KivTfoi; a
point.
Center pf AttraHio'i^ in the new aflronomy,
is that point towards which ihe revolving planet or
comet is impelled or attracted by the impulfe of
gravity.
Center of a Circle, is a point within the fame,
from whence all lines drawn to the circumference
are equal.
Center of a Conk Seifion, is the point where
all the diameters meet.
Center of a Dial, is that point in the dial
where a line drawn parallel to the axis of the earth
interfe(5ls the dial planes.
Center o/'rt^z Ellipfe, is that point where the
tranfverfe and conjugate diameters intetfeit each o-
iher.
Center of the Equant, in the old aftronomy, is
a point in the line of the aphelion, being fo far
diftant from the center of the eccentric tov/ards the
aphelion, as the fun is from the center of the ec-
centric towards the perihelion.
Center of gravity is that point about which all
the parts of a body, in any fituation, balance each
other, or are in equilibrio. The particular properties
of the center of gravity are as follow :
P'ifff, If a body be fufpended by this point, as the
center of motion, it will rem.ain at reft in any pofi-
ti'jn indifferently. 2. If a body be fufpended by
any other point, it can red only in two pofuions,
viz. when the center of gravity is cxadlly above
or below the faid point ot iiifpenfion. 3. When
the center of gravity is fuppotted, the whole bcdy
is kept from failing. 4. ikcaufe this point has a
con.ltant endeavour to dcfcend to the cent-er of the
earth ; therefore, 5. When the point is at liberty
to defcend, the whole body inuli defcend, or fall
either by Aiding, roiling, or tumbling down.
6. The centci- of gravity in regular, uniform,
homogenial bt;dijs, as fquares, circles, fphcres, &c.
ia the midle point in a hne, conneiSting any two
oppolite points or angles. 7. In a triangle, it is in a
line, dr-iwn t'roni any angle bifcdting the oppofite,
one third of the length of that line, dillant from
the fide, or bafe bifeiSted. 8. In hum^in bodies,
the center of gravity is fituated in that part which
4:
is called the pelvis, or ia the middle between the
hips.
Hence the folutions of many very curious phoeno-
will be evident, with the leaft attention ; an<i as the
center of gravity is of the greateft confcqucnce 10
be well underflooti, being the fole principle of all
mechanical motion, it may not be aniifs to fliew
the method of finding that point in any line, figure,
or body, which we fhall fiift do theoretically, and
then a few examples of performing the fame me-
chanically.
LetMN (Plate XXX. /^. 10.) be any figu-jc
or folid body, regular or irregular ; C it's center of
gravity; and fuppofe it to be fufpended in C upon
the horizontal Ime SC, and the axis of fufpen-
fion to pafs through S, parallel to the horizon and
perpendicular to S C. Let all the infinitely fmall
particles of the body be reduced to the line S C,
fituated refpedfivcly in planes perpendicular to SC j
and let the magnitude of every two particles of the
body taken on different fides of C (as a and g,
b and h, d and /, ^c.) be reciprocally as their
diflances from C ; then is C ftill the center of gra-
vity of each correfponding tv/o, as it is of the
whole MN. Therefore we have Co X a =:C^Xf%
that is 6 C — 'i, a y, a ^=. 'i> g — S C X ^1 or«-)-^X
'^Q =^ ?i a y. a ■\- ^g y. g. In like manner
h -h / ; X SC = S^ X i -1- SA X A, and
/-f-/xSC=:S,5^Xi!^-f- S / X u ^' c- whence
7+'M-'^~+~7-f g -f-ir+l -f. k X S C =
S(7Xfl+ S^x^, -|-Si/xi^-j-Sfx^-|-
S .? X i: -1- S A X /j -f S / X i + S ^ X ^, &c. confe-
, f,^ SaX«-f Sp-X ?4-S^X *-|-S/' X A&c.
quently t>C= ; ^—. ; ; ; r-r-T
Now if any one of the variable diflances, as S ^ be
called .V, the body M N, s; then will Si x i •=zxi\
and the fum of all the S ax (7 -f- Si X w t^c. =::: fum of
all the xi, or the fluent of jri : and the fu.m of ail
the a ■\- h -\- g hz. =: fum of the /, or the
fluent of i that is the body M N j therefore SC ==
_i!:i!lLlllL-. Therefore
body IVl N or j
To find the center of gravity ; let ; m line,.
furface or folid : inul ij)ly tlie fluxion of the linci
furface, or folid ( ^ ) by the diflance (of the center
of gravity of the generating point, line, or plane]j
from the axis of fufpenlion ; and hnd the fluent z ;
then — = diftance of the center of gravity from
the point of furpcnfion.
Example I. Let S B be a right line or cylinder,.
S the point of fufpenfion ; S B = a-; then x. ■=. x x^
and s r: i x x \ therefore -— = \ .v, for the dif-
tance of the center of gr.ivity SC.
Example U. In the triangle S Q_D, (fig-lx).
wl'.ofe point of fufpenlion is bj. let ixE bULi5l; the
op^iofits
C E N
tjppofite fide Q:D, then the center C is In fiie line
SF; draw AE parallel, and SG perpendicular
to op, put SF = a, SB = r, SI = v, SG = /;,
•Q_D = b, A E = J. By fimilar triangles v =:
-— . and -v z= , yz= — ; then z =. x yv =
a
b I? x'-x
a a
b h X X
and z =:
bh
a
bhx^
Alfo 5 :=: yv =^
and s =
-: Therefore — = -f- *,
and when x =r a, — = 4 « =: S C.
s
Example III. Let A M (Jfg. 13.) be the arch of
a circle, s its center, A D =: i, SE =: r, S B = *-,
A M — . V, B M = >>. It is evident the center of
gravity of any arch AEG is in the line SE that
biffeas it. Whence s: c= A- -i- = (by the nature of
the circle) — rj ; and z = — ry ; and the
fluent corrected is z = by — ry
r b — »■ V
Whence — ^ =:
^ r b c C
• , and when v = o, — = — o '^j
the diftance of the center of gravity of the arch
AEG from S.
Example IV, For the feiflor of a circle M //; S,
(fig. 14.) whofe center and point of fufpenfions S ;
let arch M.m = c, radius S M = r, M « = <», S Q,
= X, Q.D qz=.v. Then Q.J = -^, and by the
laft example, the diftance of the center of gravity
of the arch Q D^ from S is = -^^, therefore -
a x^
a A.'
and z =:
2 a r
3'- ■
2 a X
3f
therefore — =:
s
; and when a- = r,
then SC =
3 c
Example V. For the circular area P Q^D,
(fig. 15.) Let S D or S E = r, S Q^—b, P 0.= c,
SB = A', PA = i>, A B = y, by the nature of
the circle^ v= Vrr — x x ; then z=z yxx =
■xs/
rr
■ X X, and z-=. — f X rr — x x\ ^ ;
cor-
re£led z =; ■
r—bM''- — ■
3
Alfo s = area P A B Q.=
<-3 y!
'V r X X y — c /}
3
Alfoj=ateaPABQ.=
i!i -\-xy — c6
whence — = 4 X
= S
And
'V r -\- X y — c b
the diftance of the center of gravity of the whole
PAD Qfrom S is = 7-
Again in refpe(fl of the axis of fufpenfion SD ;
Ciice the center of gravity of the defcribing line y.
C E N
is in the middle of E A, therefore % r^-^y-y. y x -sz.
r r X — x'- X , r'- X x^ _
:, whence z = — . But
2 ' 2 3 _
(in Q, »• = ^, z =: o) the fluent corre£led is
%rr X — ■\r'rb — xi •\- b'i , ^ a;
z — : — ! ; therefore — =:
X
3?* AT — ■^r'^ b — a-'-f.^'
; and when at =: r,
"^ '^ 'J r -^ xy — cb
2 >-i — ■!,r^h-\-b'^ ,.„ . . ^ .
i == diftance of the center of
ir 'u — I c b
gravity of the femi-fegment PADQ_from Q_p.
Example 6. In the parabola tat =:_)'j, (fig.it.)
let S P -zz. X, Vyi z=. y, then in refpect of the axis
of fufpeniion ST, z,z=:.yxx::zxx \/~^ . and
z =: ~ X xV r X : and s -zz ^ xy t=. \ x s/ r x \
therefore ~ z=. \ x the diftance of the center from
ST. '
Again in regard to the axis of fufpenfion S P,
becaulb the center of gravity of the defcribing line
is in the middle of MP, therefore kz=.\ yy x ■==.
y
and thence z =
4'-
and s zzi
Zyi
Therefore -^ = |-;', the diftance from SP.
Example VII. For the hyperbolic area B C M P,
(fifr.i-].) between the afymptotes. Let S P =: ^,
hCz=:c,S? =x,?M=y, cb=xy. Then in
regard to the a.xis S D, i.z=.yxx z= cbx, and
z z=. c b X, but in B, AT ;= b, therefore by corr'ec-
-, .,=: cb X X — b
b. And — = „ ., . , „ t
s area B C M P
Again for the axis of fufpenfion SP, i. z=. ^ y y x
c c b b _ , — c c b b _ — c by
~ 2
tlon %z=. cb x X
for the
• .V, and z =
cor-
Z X X
refled z ■=. x c
2
2 X
and — =:
■b Y. c — ■
2 arcii BCiVlf
Example VIIL Let AMB (fig. 18.) be an
ellipfis, S the center, AS=:<7, SB=:i, S Q_=y,
Q,!VI 7=i X =1 —r^bb — y y., then for the elliptic
fpace, k = xy y zz.
V bb
r- Y.bb'
■ yy\ "^^ correfled z =:
y y ; and z =:
ah b a
""3 3^
ab": — /? X bb y yl"'
3 ^ X area S A IVJ Q_
Likewife for the diftance from 'i>V>,k=.\xxy-zz.
aay^y ^_^^ ^ ayy « a y'
2
X b b — ;';]•: Thence —
Iftanc
and z
a ay
2
20 b
O b b
3 h b a"--
7yi
whence -^ = -^y ^ ^^^^ ^^ M c^'
Example IX. Let SMP (fig. 16.) be the
hyperbolic fpace, tranfverfe zz za, conjugate =
2 b, SP = A-, P M = j>' = — ■/ 2 a A • + A- .r,
whenc
C E N
vhence xx::z2aa -i — tt yy
b b
2 ti a
'/bb+yy.
a n
XX = , , yy —
a ay y
bb
>">/ b^
ay y^ y
yy
■ ; whence jc z=.yxx
bb ^ ^' b^ bb-\-yy
•, and % z=.
a ay'
TTT
'}•
^bb + yy +
a a b
X 2.30258 log.
2 b . ^ ^ . 2
\ 4- t/ b b 4- yy:, whence — = ^7- — rr
J ~ > T^ / / » J area 6 M P
=z diftance from S T.
Then for the diftance from S P, we have 2 =
y V -V b b .'
2
fluent z =
2 u a
h b X X
X 2 a X -{- X X, and the
+
b b .v'
; therefore
z b ' baa
■i, n b b X X -\- b b x>
"" b a ii X. area S P M
Example X. For the furface of a right cone,
(Jig. 19.) let S D = y, <r = circumference of the
bafe, axis SB — d, S Al = v, S F = ;*•. Then
it is plain it's center of gravity is in the axis S B.
■ =: circumference of the circle M Q^; and
by fimilar triangles v =
fx
; therefore z. =
C X' -v
d
C X '-J
cfx^ X
dd
c/kx
; and 2;
C f X
alfo
idd '
- : therefore -^ = 4 ■*• = S C.
z 2 d d /
Example XI. For the cone (or pyramid) SDE,
(Jig. 19.) let the bafe =z b, the reit as in the laft
example ; then the circle M Q_ =: — ^r- ; and
dd
b x^ X
dd
, and 2 =
b .v+
TTd'
alfo
^ dd
therefore — =: i ^c z= S C the diftance of the cen-
ter of gravity from S.
Example XII. LetSMD (fig. zo.) be a fphere,
S P = y, radius z=. r, c ■=. 3.1416, then y ==
S/ %r X — X x^ 2.ni\ i.z=. cy~ X X ■=. % c r X X X —
■^ c r x'^ £■ A !
: and s
3 4
, , z %r X — 1.x X
= cr x'^ — • ; therefore — = -•'
3 s \z r — ^x
for the diftance of the center of gravity from
s.
Example XIII. For the fpheroid S M D, (fig. 20.)
whofe center is C, let S C =1 <■;, C F =: i, S P == x,
P M = y, c = 3.1416, then yy = X
■bh
c x^ X ; therefore z =1
<-A-5
2 a X — x X ; and z. ■:=:. c y y x x z=.
chb
la XX — x^ X ; and z = X 4 « •* ' — i
aa ^
27
C E N
and
8 a ;
ebb
a a
^x X
X «■«■*
and — ^
f
12 a — 4 jf
E;- imple XIV. To find the center of gravity of
the f.ilid S B D ;/7, (fig. 21.) generated by a par-
tial t- volution of the parabola S M D about the
axis :; B. Let s be the point of fufpenfion, let
SB=rr/, BD=-^, SP = a-, PM=y, ax=:yy,
arch D ^ = f ; then arch M to = —f~ ; therefore
b
jy
2b
2b
therefore -
and z =:
bb
the diftance
c a X
and s z=. 7-
40 i - '
from ST.
Example XV. Let the hyperbola C M (fig. 22.)
revolve round the afymptotc S P, and defcribe art
hvperboloid C M B : let S B ~ b, B C = ^,
S'P = .V, PM = y, f = 3, 1416. bd = xy,
, . . h b d d c X ■ .
and c =: cyyxx =z , whence z =
bbddc log. .V : and correfted 2: = bhddc log.
X ,^ . . c b b il d X ,
—r- : alfo s :=. c yy X ■=. ; and f = —
b " "
cbbdd
therefore -^ =
and correfled j =: cbbdd X
bx
x—b
— b
X log.
~ =: diftance
b
of the center of gravity of the folid from S A.
To find the center of gravity of bodies mechani-
cally. Firft let AB (Plate XXXL fig. i.) be a
body whofe center of gravity is to be found. If it
be fufpended by any part, as A, fo as to move freely
on the pin at A, and a plumb-line A P hangs from
the fame pin, its center of gravity muft be under,
or rather behind that line, becaufe it will fall below
the center of motion A. Let the line A B, (fig. 2.)
be marked upon the body as in figure, and then
fufpend the body of any other part, as F, provided
that the center of motion be not in the line A B,
hang on the plummet at F, and the line F D under
the plum-line, FP will cut the line A B, and fliew
the center of gravity to be at C ; for fince it muft
be both in the A. B, and in the line F f), it can
only be in the point C, where they interfeft.
Let it be remarked, that we have not here confi-
dered the thicknefs of the bodyj but if we fuppofe
it a piece of board, as the figure reprefents ; then
we muft only make the experiment on the other
fide, and as we fhall find another point C, juft op-
pofite to the firft point C. The line which joins
thefe two points is called the axis of gravity, and
the middle of that line the center of gravity.
Any body that we confider in mechanics, is only
an aggregate of fevcral other bodies or parts ; fo
that the center of gravity of a body, is only the
common center of gravity of all the parts ; and
6 R confe-
C E N
C E N
confequently feveral bodies are united in any ma-
chine; or if there be any combination of bodies to
be full.iined, regard is no longer had to the particu-
lar centers of gravity of the feveral bodies which
make up the compound, but only to the common
center of gravity of the whole. Thus a windmill
muft be fupported under the common center of
gravity of all its parts, and its line of direclion
muft (all along the axis of the poft round which it
moves : and crane upon a wharf, or a dock, where
the whole machine turns round, mufi: have the line
af direction in its axis.
Let the line A B, ^g. 3, prefent an even rod or
wire, divided into two equal parts at the point C,
its cen'er of gravity will bi at C ; anJ if two equal
bodies, equally heavy, be thruft on ai each end, fo
as to have their centers of gravity at the fame dif-
tance from C, they will be in equilibrio at the faid
point C, wliich will then become the common cen-
ter of gravity, and continue fo, whether the bodies
approach nearer to, or recede farther from it, in pro-
portion to their maffes. The fame will happen if
the bodies arc unequal, as A and I/, f.g. 4, whofe
mafles are to each other as two and one, pro\ ided
that the greater body be at A, twice as near to the
common center of gravity c, than the klTer body b.
And c will be the center of gravities of thofe bo-
dies, though they fhould move to immenfe diftances
from each other, provided their diflances from the
faid point c, are reciprocally as their maffes, as we
faid before.
So that when two bodies approach toward?, or
recede from each other, with velocities reciprocally
proportionable to their mafles, their center of gra-
vity will remain at reft. And if the bodies being
made fad: upon the wire, the center of gravity be
fuftained on a pivot, how fw^lft foever the bodies be
made to turn round the center of gravity, and each
ether, the center of gravity will remain at reft-, and
the bodies will defcribe fimilar circles about it and
each other, as in the figure, the one never overpower-
ing the other. If they be carried forward in any
manner by any external force adfing upon them, in
proportion to their malTes, their centers of gravity
will go forward uniformly in a right line, and move
juft as if the two bodies were united in one at the
faid center. And if they be projcifled, their center
of gravity will move in the fame curve as projec-
tiles do, whether in their motion they turn round
each other, or not. This is evident in the motion
of an arrow, of achain-fliot, or bar-fhot, and of a
flick thrown from the hand, the center of gravity
of any of thofe bodies moving in the fame manner
as a fingle ball would do. So the moon and earth,
in their motion round the fun, do neither of them
defcribe the magnui orbis ; but their common cen-
ter of gravity defcribes it in the fame manner that
they would do if they were both united in that
point, or in the fame manner that the earth alone is
fuppofed to do it, when thefe inequalities cf rrico
tion are overlooked ; and provided that ih.i.'r dif-
tances from the common center of gravity be re-
ciprocally proportionable to their maffes, their dif-
tances from each other may be greater or lefs ir.
any proportion. If there were no other bodies in
our fyftem but the earth and moon turning round
each other, their center of gravity would always
remain at reft.
But fince the large body of the fun, by the power
of atirailion, commands the earth and moon to
revolve about itfelf, it will follow, that the point c,
(fig. 5.) (I'uppofing A the earth, and B the moon)
is that which mutt defcribe the magiius orbis about
the fun, becaufe no o:her point between A and B
can keep at the fame diflance from the fun, on ac-
count of the mutual revolution of thofe bodies a-
bout that point, at the fame time they are carried a-
bout the fun.
But to illuftrate this farther, let S (Plate XXXL
Jig. 5.) be the fun, and CDEF, a part of the
eartlv's annual orbit, A and B the earth and moon
in her conjunftion at C, in her quadrature at D, in
her oppofition at E, and in hor lad quarter at F.
During all thefe motions from C to F, it is evi-
dent that the center of the earth defcribes an irregu-
lar curve A D A F, but the center of the moon one,
much more fo, as being at very unequal diftances
from the fun S, continually increafing and decrea-
fing, and that the point C is that alone which is at
an equal diftance at all times, and therefore de-
fcribes the circular orbit about the fun.
If three or more bodies united to, ora£ling upon
one another, in any maimer proportionable to their
maffes, be carried about their common center of
gravity, that point will be at reft for the fame rea-
fon, as it will happen in refpedl of two bodies;
becaufe any number of bodies may, in this refpecl,.
be reduced to two. Thus, in our fyftem, wheie
the fun and our planets move round their common-
center of gravity, that center is at reft in the mid-
dle of the fyftem. Though we commonly confider
the fun as immovable in the middle of the fyftem^
becaufe as it has vaftly more matter than all the
planets together, that center will be always very
near the fun's center ; which may eafily be found
by comparing their quantity of matter and dif-
tances, thus. Let ABC (fg. 6.) reprefent the
fun's body on I its center. Now fince the bulks
and diftances of the four firft planets, viz. Mer-
cury, Venus, the Earth, and Mars, are very in-
confiderable in regard of the fun, they would not,
if placed in the right line C G, remove the com-
mon center of gravity between the fun and them-
felves far from the center of the fun fuppofe to L»
But when we come to Jupiter, his bulk and dif-
tance give him a confiderable momentum, which
well, if placed in the fame line C G, remove the
center of gravity from from L to I, a point without
the
C E N
the furfjce of the fun's body. I^aftly, if we con-
fider Saturn placed in the line C G, with all the
reft, his momentum from his great diftance and
bulk, will be confiderable enough to bring the com-
mon center of gravity from I to FI, at fuch a dif-
tance C K, from the fun's furface as is equal to
eiiiht-tenths of the fun's feniidiametcr S C, or S C :
CK: : 10 : 8. Now it is this point K, which is
the fixed and immovable center of the fyflcm, a-
bout which the fun as well as all the planets move.
Thus we fee the center of gravity of any body, or
fyftem of bodies, is not within the body itfclf, or
any one of the combined bodies ; yet we are to
have the fame regard to its fupport, defcent, or
motion, in any dire£tion, as if it was.
Several odd phsenomena depend upon the prin-
ciple of the center of gravity. As for example,
the double cone or fpindle AC BD, (Plate XXXI.
fg. 7.) being laid on at E, upon the lower parts
of the rulers E F, will, of itfelt move towards E F,
though tho'e ends are raifed up to the heights FG
by the tv.o fcrevvs F G, and by that means will
leem to move upwards. How high FG may be
in proportion to the bignefs of the fpindle A BCD,
is eafily denionflrated from the rules already laid
down.
Again, let A B, {fig. 8.) be a rolling lamp,
that has within it the two moveable circles DE and
and F G, whofc common center of motion is at K,
where their axis of motion crofs one another, there
point is alfo their common center of gravity. If
to tlK- inward circle you join within fide the lamp
K C made pretty heavy and moveable about its axis
H I, and whofe center of gravity is at C, the com-
mon center of gravity of the whole machine will
fall b'^tvv^rn K and C, and by reafon of the pivot
A,B, D, k,H, i, will be always at liberty to de-
fcend ; and therefore let the whole lamp be rolled
along the ground, or moved in any manner, the
flame will always be uppernioft, and the oil can-
not fpilL Thus are the compafies hung at fea, and
this ihould all the moon lanthorns be made that
arecariied before coaches or carriages that go in
the niglu.
Upon the table T / T, fig. 9, which has a flit
from X to .*•, fet the little image D M in fuch a
manner, that the faw c, which is fafter.ed at one
end to tne hands of the image, and has a weight
W fixed at the other end, may pafs through the
flitXjf, and the image will ftand in an upright
p> fture: then if the head of the image be brought
down to A or B, it will imitate the motion of faw-
ing, and vibrate fevetal times in the arc AaB,
whiHt t'ne weight W , does in the fa.Tne manner de-
fcribe the aic V WV, the center of motion of the
whole, (that is, of the image, faw, and weight)
being at M. The common center of gravity K,
does likewife dcfcribe the arc L K L, till (after
C E N
having feveral times dcfcended from L on cither
fide) it comes to fettle at K, juft under the center
of motion. If the image had no faw, it would
ftand upright when fet on the table, becaufe its
center of gravity C, would then be juft over the
center of motion M, and fome of the image, which
is in the line of diteflion O would be fupported ;
but the Icaft alteration of pofition that Ihould move
c from over M would throw down the image. Then
if the faw c be added, fince its center of gravity is
at c, the common center of gravity of the man
and faw will be at L, and in that cafe the image
with its faw will fall towards X ; but if by means
of a curved wire, the heavy weight W be joined to
the faw, the conmion center of gravity of the man,
faw, and weiglit, will be at K, and the line of di-
rection will again be O ij, therefore the image will
ftand in its upright pofition. If now the image be
inclined forwards or backwards, it will, after feve-
ral vibrations, return to its firft pofition, becaufe
the center of gravity always endeavours to defcend
to K, in doing which it will bring the image up-
right.
Again, upon the ftick S .t, [fg. 9.) which of
itfeirwould fall from the table, becaufe its center
of gravity hangs over, fufpend the pail p, fixing
another ftick qp, one end in a notch at p, and the
other againft the infide of the pail, clofe to the
bottom,''and the pail, without any other help, will
be fupported on the fticks S;, which will not fall
from the table, though the pail be afterwards filled
full of water, provided the handle of the pail be
pretty near the table, and the llick pq long enough.
to puih the pail a little out of the upright.
When the ftick SS [fig. 10.) is horizontal to
the table T ^ B, c is the common center of gravity
of the two fticks S S, and P Q., the pail D Q_E>
and the water contained in it, all uhii;h taken to-
CTCther, are to be looked upon as one body, whofe
hne of dircflion is O O ; and 23 tlie part of S S,
which is a little behind the bale, or handle B, is
in the line of direction, and fuftained upon the edge
of the table, the whole body above-mentioned can-
not fall, for if it did, the part B S muft rife at the
end S into the pofition Bj, and PS defcend inta
the pofition ps, which cannot happen unlefs the
pail rife, into the pofition dqe, bring up the com-
mon center of gravity to c in the arc C <: D, which
is impoflible from gravity alone, without the action
of an extrinfical agent.
But if the pail D E be lifted up under the table,
and the ftick S S inclined above it, fo that the whole
machine comes into tiie pofition s s, p e, qd; and
the ftick ssh fmooth as v.'cll as the table, if then it
be left fo itfclf, the whole machine will flide dowir,
and fo fall from the table; ss moving in the diiec-
tion ips, and the common center of gravity <: E,
tangent to the arc D <• C.
Here
C E N
C E
.IJcrc it is obfervable, that as a » is now the line
of cIlre>ltioii, no part in the faid body is fup-
ported.
Thcfe are a few of the curious phxnomena that
depend on the principles of the center of gravity,
and they who are denrous of feeing more, may con-
fult Delagulier's Experimental Philofophy, where
they may find great variety, and from whence we
have tilcen fome of the above, and likewife fome
from Mr. Emerfon's Fluxions.
Center of AJagnitude^ is that point which is
equally diftant from all the external parts of any
body.
Center of ALflon, is that point round which
a body or machine moves, or endeavours to move,
when it cannot or does not move quite round ; and
in that cale all the points of the Ijody defcribe cir-
cles, or arcs of circles about the center of motion.
This center may be taken any where, accoiding to
the make of the machine.
Center cf Ofiillation, is the point in the axis
of a vibrating body, in v;'hich, if a fmall body or
particle be placed, it Ihall perform its vibrations af-
ter the dme manner in the fame time, and with the
fame angular velocity as the whole body. From
the above definition of the center of ofcillation, it
is eafy to underftand that it is the very fame with
the center of percufilon, in the body or rod A B,
(Plate XXXI. fg. II.) for fince the point G is that
in which the forces of all the particles are united to
generate motion in the body, and the center of per-
percuflion, is that in which alone the motion of
the body can be deftroyed, it neceilariiy follows
they are both one and the fame point ; and there-
fore if A B be of an uniform figure, it will be ifo-
chronal, or vibrate in the fame tin^e with the com-
mon pendulum FC=:AG=:4AB. Therefore,
fince the center of ofcillation and the center of pcr-
cuffion is the fame, we fliall give a general rule
with fome examples for finding the faid central
point, under the article Center of PercuJJion,
which fee.
Center of Percuffun, is that point in the axis
of a vibrating body, which ftriking againft an im-
moveable obflacle, the body fliall incline to neither
fide, but refl: as it were in equilibrio in that point.
This percuilive force arifes from three fources, viz.
ift, from the mafs of matter in the percutient bo-
dy. 2d, From its gravitating force, in regard to
its diftance from the center of motion ; and 3dly,
From the aflual velocity of the motion itfelf.
The two firfl: make the momentum, and this
compounded with the latter, conftitutes the percuf-
five force.
To find the center ef percujfion, ofcillation, and the
center of prejfure of any plane immerfed in a /.uid,
and containing that fluid.
As the above three centers are each in the fame
point, they confequently are found by the fame me-
thod, therefore we fhall firft give one general me-
thod fo' finding the faid point, and then givi' a fev/
examples for finding the fame in particular bo-
dies.
Through the point of fufpenfion C, (Plate XXXI.
fig- 12.) and center of gravity, draw the axis of
the body CO; and fuppufe O to be the center of
percufli;.n, ofcillation, prcflure, ice. required. Thro'
C O draw the plane in which the center of gravity
moves, and imagine the body to be divided into
innumerable fmall prifms, all perpendicular to this
plane, and lee them be fuppofed to be reduced tOj
or fituatcd in the points, where they interfedl the
plane, and let p be one of thofe fmall prifms. Drav/
/)/ perpendicular to C O, and p d perpendicular to
C/> ; then pd will be the direeflion of p'i motion,
as it revolves about C, and the body being {topped
at O, p wiH urge th ■ point d forward with a force
proportionable to its magnitude and velocity, that
is as p y.C p, therefore the force wherewith p acts at
d, in a direcUon perpendicular to C O, will be /> X
Cf, and the force by whi^h p endeavours to turn
the body abciut O, will be Sipx^/Xdo; or
*xC/xCO — Cd, that is, zs pxCfxEO — />X
Cp'. Now fince the fum of all thefe forces to
turn the body about O, muft be = o, therefore all
the p X C/X Co — p X C p^ = 0, or all the /> x
C/x C O = all the /) X C />S Therefore C O =
Sum of all p xC p^
Sum of all p X Cf
Therefore if s be equal the body, C /> = *•, Cy
= ■y, dpz=i z, then the fum of all the C/^^ X /> =
fum of A-'- / = the fluent x'^ s, and the fum of Cf
X/>=:the fum of i; j' =z fluent o{ v s. And the
fum of dp^Xp=: fum of z'^i'r:: fluent of 2,*jj
1 r ry r^ Fluent of a-^ J Fluent of jr'/
therefore C U =
= Cd+L^
Fluent of 'V j
Fluent of z- s
C a X body A D
Therefore if we fup-
X body A D
pofe the body to be defcribed or generated by a
plane perpendicular, to the axis of the body, or
parallel to the axis of motion we fliall have the fol-
lowing.
Rule. Firfl: multiply the fluxion (or if the cafe
require the fecond fluxion) of the body, by the
fquare of the generating plane from the axis of mo-
tion, and find the fluent once or twice, as there is
occafion by help of the equation of the figure,
which call F. Secondly, Multiply the fluxion of
the body by the diftance of the point of fufpenfion,
to the point where the generating plane (or line,
&c.) cuts the axis of the body, and find the fluent
which call M ; and let d be equal the diftance from
the point of fupenfion to the center of gravity,
F F
and B := the body, then ^ot ~ will be the dif-
tance
C E N
tance of the center of percufio, ofcillation, or cen-
ter of prtfTure, &:c. from the point of fufpenfion.
We fhall give a few examples, to ftiew the
ufe of the above general rule in particular bo-
dies, &c.
Example I. Let C B be a right line, [fig. 13.)
C B := ^, then f = a* x., and F := — ; alfo m =
3
v'- F
X X, and M = — ; whence — =: | *• := C O.
Example II. In a parallelogram, {fig. 14.) where
the axis of motion is in the plane of the figure,
C B = A-, B D = />, then f = ^ a-^ a-, and F =
b x^ ... , , , - b X- F
J alfo M = hxxi and JVI = — ; whence -r-
3 2 ^"
= 4y=CO.
Example III. Let A D be the arch of a circle,
[fig. 15.) the center C the point of fufpenfion, and
the axis of motion perpendicular to its plane ; let
arch A B D = J, cord A D = r, C B = r. Then
F =: r r J ; d -z:.
therefore •
r s
c
F
Example IV. Let A D be a right line, {fig. 16.)
the action of motion perpendicular to the p lane paf-
fing through it. CB = rt', BA =>>, then F=(^<^ + >'>'
X 2 )', 2.nA Y ■=! % d d y ■\- \ y^ ; alfo M = 2 ^ ;< ;
whence — = — — 2^- = (/ + '^•
M z dy 3d
Example V. For the periphery of a circle, (fig.
17.) let CD me/, radius A D =: r, circumference
z=. c. If the axis of motion be perpendicular to its
plane, then G :=rrc , and d 4- —— =: (i -| — r— =
a a a c
r r
1'
Example VI. For the periphery of the circle,
{fig. 17.) parallel to E D, radius D B =:7-, B A z=
!>, D L = z, C D = «', then 6 =422-^=:
4 z^ -^ ^ ^^j ^^ whole fluent G := i then
dJ^'!l=.dV~=dVS
■ Cr 2 d C ' 2 a
Example Vlf. In an ifoceles triangle, {fig. 18.)
where the axis of motion is parallel to the bafe, let
C D = ff, C A = A-, B E =/, then I K =-^, and
/a! V , „ /•.V+ ,r . /a' X ,
F = -^ ; whence F =-^ — ; alfoM — > and
a A a a
M =■ — ; therefore — = |- x = -\ a.
3 « M * ■^
If the axis at C be perpendicular to the plane of
the triangle, 1st A Q,= v, then F= x x -^vvX
tXj< X f X \
k "v, and F =: x"^ x v •\- — '- (becaufe v ■=. —
3 " /
• \- J whence F = \- ■ =
« « i 4 a 4. « >
27
C E N
■' -I-^ — J therefore --r = ' X — -—'
4 M. * a
In the parabola, {fig. 19.) C A F, A C =i A",
A F = ;>, A Q_z= V, a x-zzy y ; let the axis in C
be parallel to A F, then F =.yx'^x, = a-* a- v/ a_x^
and F = ^^ x^ V~ax ; andM=:>A'A = ;<;i:/fl*'»
F
and M = I A= ^ (J X. Therefore ^ = i, x.
If the axis be perpendicular to its plane; then
. 1/' «
r ^.x X -{- V V y. ic i, and F = a* v x -\ — -
^/T.
-jwhence
rr^-A-^^f + -i =: x^ x V «.*-{""
F = I A? v^TT + xV « .v* ♦^T^. Therefore
F
Example IX. Let A B be the furface of a fpherc,
{fig. 30.) A B = J, B E = z, radius A D = r, f
= circumference. Then the circumference ot B E
cz , . c x.^ s c z.^ rz
whence G
2 f )■'
2 c r!
3
2 f r'
c
3
V^ r r — z 2
And B = rc\ therefore d -\- -To^= d ■\-
2 )•»•
~v
Example X. Let A B Q_D be a parallelepipidon,
{fig. 21.) the axis of motion perpendicular to the
plane A B Q_ D ; let A B = 2 (?, A D = 2 /^
Breadth = c, GS = a-, SZ=^; then c =
xx-i^yyy.i^c xj, and g = /[c x'^ y x -{ -_
= 4 r ^ A^ A- 4. * f // i : Therefore G = t c h xi
+ ^c P X =±cha3 + *cPa; alfo B =4ac/; :
Therefore d + — — = ^-^ -; — •
' d B id
Example XI. In a cylinder, {fig. 22.) letC A =>
A', A D = r, A f = J, C H = a, the axis of mo-
tion parallel to A B ; then f = a- a -^ y y\y^x y
V r ?• — y y and the whole fluent f == —
— 3 — . And I- = : which corrcdt-
» ' a
, . „ r f at' — r c a' , y'> i x — )"
ed drives f* =:
B=.
r r X -
2 A-' -
6
2 .v'
-, and
— ax — , then will -— - z= —
4 a a I X
r r a 4 v A-
d B \ x — , a a
-f- 4 a A- -[" 4 "^ '» "i~ .V '■
+
: a a
b X -f 6 <■!
Example Xll. Let CKB be a pyramid, (fig.
23.) wliofe bafe is a parallelogram, and axis of
motion in C perpendicular to the plancCEF; let its
altitude =a, AB =zfi, A D z^ c, C H = a-, H L
6 S =j.
C E N
= /, thenKI=— , andEF=^, and f =
a "
■ ; and F =
> !<->iryy X
c .\ .iy , . cx'i X , c X x_v'
u a ^ 12 «+ 5 <j <j ' ton*
Alfo M = -i ^, and M = - — i whence — rz
a a 4 <j a "*
Example XIII. In a right cone, [fg. 24.) letC A
■ZT.g, altitude :=ff, radius of tlie bale = /, AB=;
X, R I -z::. z, c :=! 3.1416, the n BE or B D =
fx , ,, / t'fx x , . , ~"^
<— , lh:= -^ ^ -z z ; thenF=^ + x
I J XX
- zz, and y '=i-g-\->
+ '-^ — '-T~i confequently F = \ ggc
u u.. 4 iJ"*"
^/A'
■ , and M =: : -^ ^ f .V + i f .
X
'^ ; Whence I = ^°.^^+ ^°^-+ '^^«4- 3//
Example XIV. Let A D be a paraboloid, {fg.
25.) CA=a, AB = Ar, BD=jN_BI = z, <: =
3.1416, r A- =r j;-. Then F = : fl +_<_+ ^'^ • ^
4.v2;Xv^^>' — zz; therefore r =: a -\- x Xcyy x
+ — A- =. a + ^ X'^r;f;i:4--ifr^A-* a:; whence
A». Alfo M = fl+*'X'^>''^ = « — xXcrxx,
and M = -J. f tf r ^* + t "" " '• Therefore — =:
(^ a^ -\- ?• a X ■\- r X + '3 X X
o rt -|r 4 •«■
dm ER of a parallelogram, or Polygon, the point
in which its diagonals interfedl.
Center of prejfure is that point againft which a
force being applied equal the fum of all the pref-
fures, fliall juft fuftain them, fo as the plane fhall
incline to neither fide.
This center of preffure is the fame with the
center of ofcillation and percuffion ; and confe-
quently is to be found in tlie fame manner. See
the rule under the article Center of Percuf-
f:on.
Center of a Sphere, a point in the middle,
from which all lines drawn to the furface are
equal.
Hermes Trifmegiftus defines God an intelleflual
iphere, whofe center is every where, and circum-
ference no where.
CENTESIMATION, a milder kind of military
C E N
punifhment, in cafes of defertion, mutiny, and the
like, when only every hundredth man is executed,
CENTIPES, in zoology, the fame with the
fcolopendra. See Scolopendra.
CENTNER, among metallurgifts and aflayers,
denotes a weight divifible firft in an hundred, and
afterwards into other kfler parts. However, it is to
be obferved, that the centner of metalhirgifts is the
fiime with the common hundred weight; whereas
that of afTayers is no more than one dtam, to which
the other parts are proportional, and neverthelefs
pafs by the names 100 Ife. 64 lb.
CENTO, in poetry, a work wholly compofed
of verfes or pallages, promifcuoufl)' taken from
other authors, only difpofed in a new form and
order.
Proba Falconia has written the life of Jefus Chrift
in centos, taken from Virgil : Alexander Rofs has
done the like in his Chriftiados, and Stephen de
Pleure the fame.
Aufonius has laid down rules to be obferved in
compofing centos : the piece, fays he, may be
taken from the fame poet, or from feveral ; and the
verfes may be either taken entire, or divided into
two ; one half to be cnnne£ted with another half
taken elfewhere : but tvifo verfes are never to be
ufed running, nor much lefs than half a verfe
taken.
CENTRAL, fomething belonging or relating to
center. See the article Center.
Central Farces, the power which caufes a
moving body to tend towards, or recede from the:
center of motion.
A body in motion continues its motion in a-
right line, and will not deviate from it, unkfs it
be afled upon by a new impulfe ; after the impulfe
the motion is compounded, and out of thefe two,
there atifes a third (till in a right line. If therefore
a body moves in a curve, it is a6led upon every mo-
ment by a new impulfe ; for a curve cannot confifl:
of ftraight lines, unlefs fuch as are infinitely fmall..
We have one example of fuch a motion in the
projedtion of heavy bodies ; and another in all mew
tions about a point taken as a center.
A body that is continually imjielled towards fome-
center, when projected in the dire£\ion of a right,
line, not pafling through that center, will deferibea.
curve ; and in all points thereof endeavours to.
recede from the curve, in the diredlion of its curva-
ture; that is, in a tangent to the curve ; fo that if:
that force fhould fuddenly ceafe from adion, the
body would continue its motion in a right line aJong,
that tangent,
A ftone turned, run in a fling, defcribesa curve v;
the fling does, as it were, every moment draw the
ftone back towards the hand ; but if you let the
l^one go, it will fly out. in a tangent to the curve.
Therefore^.
Tha
I
C E N
C E N
The force with which a body, in the cafe above-
mentioned, endeavours to fly from the center, fuch
as is the force, by which the firing in motion is
flretched, is called a centrifugal force.
But the force, by which a body is drawn, or
impelled towards that Center, is called a centripetal
force.
Thefe forces, by a common name, are called
central forces.
In every cafe, the centrifugal and centripetal
forces are equal to one another : for the former is
the refidence of the body, while it is drawn by the
centiipetal force. Here it may be applied whatever
has been faid of a refiflance from inactivity.
A body is kept in a curve by a centripetal force,
and endeavours to Ry from it by a centrifugal force.
The fling in motion is equally flretched both ways,
and the Hone endeavours to fly from the hand, with
the fame force that the hand liolds it; that is, it is
drawn towards the hand.
Central forces are of great ufe in natural philo-
fophy ; for all the planets move in orbits, and moft
©f them, if not all, revolve about their axes.
When a body laid upon a plane, does in the fame
time and above the fame center revolve with that
plane, and fo defcribes a circle ; if the centripetal
force, by which the body is drawn or impelled every
moment towards that center, fhould ceafe to a£t,
and the plane fhould continue to move with the
hme velocity ; the body will begin to recede from
the center, in refpe£l of the plane, in a line which
pafTcs through the center. 1 he body indeed en-
deavours to fly ofF in a tangent ; but the point of
the circle to which it anfwers, is moved with the
body and the motion along the tangent of the circle
at reft, in the firft moment, is agitated by the radius
pf the circle moved with the fame velocity as the
body.
When a body projefled is a£led upon by a force
tending to fume center, it moves in that plane which
paHes through the diredlion of the projection, and
the center of the forces.
When a body moves about a center, if in its
motion it comes nearer to the center, its motion is
accelerated; hut on the contrary letarded, if it
recedes from the center.
This acceleration and retardation is fubje£l to the
following law.
A body that is retained in a curve by a forca,-
tending towards a center, defcribes areas about that
center proportional to the times.
Let there he a given body defcribing the curve
A B D E, (Plate XXXI. Jig. 26.) in which it is re-
tained by a central force tending to G; if lines be
drawn at pleafare, as AC, B C, DC, EC, the
area of the mixed line triangle ACB will be to
the area DCE, as the time in which the body
moves through A B is to the time in which the
kody moves through D E..
The propofition being the inverfc of this, is alfo
true, viz. That a body which is moved in any curve
in a plane, and defcribes areas about fome point pro-
portional to the times, it is turned out of the rij^ht
line, and urged by a force tending to that point.
We fhall now fhew how to compare central forces
with one another ; for which purpofe we are to con-
fidcr a centripetal force, as a preflure adting upon a
body. Becaufe the body is turned out of a flraight
line in every point, the deflection of a right line
every moment is the immediate efFedt of a prelFurc;
fo that what has been demonflrated of the aclions of
powers upon obflacles left to themfelves, may be
applied here.
The greater the quantity of matter in any body
is, the greater is its centrifugal force, all things elfe
being alike; fince the inadtivity being greater, it is
drawn towards the center with more difficulty.
If fluids of equal quantities, but unequal weights,
be included in a determinate fpace, fo that the heavier
cannot recede from the center, unlefs the lighter
comes towards it, and they be fo difpofed, that by
their weight the heavier comes to the center ; upon'
moving the whole about that center, the lighter fluid
will be carried towards the center, and the heavier
ones will fly from it.
If a folid with a fluid be included in a determi-
nate fpace ; if it be lighter than the fluid, it will
come to the center; if heavier, it will recede from
that center i all of which proceeds from the heavy,
bodies having the greater centrifugal force.
Central forces do not only differ with refpe£l to
the quantity of matter, but the diftance from the
center does alfo caufe an alteration ; and likewife
the velocity with which the body moves about :
there is nothing elfe can make a difference in thefe
forces : and thefe are all the things to be confiJered:
when we compare them together.
When the periodical times are equal, and the
diftances from the center are equal, the central-
forces are to one another, as the quantities of
matter in the revolving bodies.
When the quantities of matter in the revoKing
bodies are equal, and the peiiodical times are equal,,
the central forces are as their dillance^ from the
center.
When the periodical times are equal,, but the-
diftances from the center, and the quantities of
matter in the revolving bodies aie different, the
central forces are in the ratio, compounded of the '
quantities of the matter, and of the diftances ;.
which follows from the two laft propoGtions. And j
to determine this compound ratio, the quantity of
matter in each body, muft be multiplied by its
diftance from the center, and the products will have
the ratio required.
The differences of central forces, arifmg from the
different diftances from the center and ttie quan-
tities of m:;^tter3 . may have a. mutual comp.enfation ;
and.
C E N
and fuppofiiig the quantities of matter in the re-
volving bodies, to be in the inverfe ratio of the
diftances from the center, the central forces will
be equal ; as much as one force is greater than ano-
ther, with refpe£l to the quantity of matter, fo
much does this exceed that, becaufe of the greater
diftance.
This cafe of the propofition takes place, when
two bodies joined by a thread revolve about the
common center of gravity ; for the diflances from
this center are in the inveife ratio of the weights
of the bodies, and therefore the central forces are
equal. One body is drawn to the center with the
fatne force that the other endeavours to recede from
it ; and becaufe of the equality of the forces, they
mutually keep up each other, and continue the mo-
tion. If they revolve about fome other point, they
will not continue in motion ; and that body, whofe
centrifugal force prevails, will recede from the
center, and the one body will carry the other along
with it.
The difference of central forces, may alfo be
determined from the periodical time.
When the quantities of matter of the bodies
moved round, and the diftances from the centers are
equal, the central forces are in an inverfe ratio of
the fquares of the periodical times ; that is, dire£lly
as the fquares of the revolutions performed in the
fame time.
However the centra! forces differ from one ano-
ther, they may from what has been already faid,
be compared to one another ; for they are in the
ratio compounded of the quantities of matter in the
revolving bodies, and the ratio of the diftances from
the center, as likewife in the inverfe ratio of the
■fquares of the periodical times. If you multiply
■ the quantity of matter in eacli body, by its diftance
fiom the center, and divide the produdl by the fquare
•of the periodical time, the quotient of thedivifion
will be to one another in the faid compounded ratio ;
4hat is, as the central forces.
When the quantities of matter are equal, the
■diftances themfelves muft be divided by the fquares
of the periodical times, to determine the proportion
between the central forces.
In that cafe, if the fquares of the periodical times
be to one another as the cubes of the diltances, the
quotients of the divilion will be the inverfe ratio of
the fquares of the diftances ; and in this ratio are
alfo the central forces.
When the bodies be unequal, and central forces
of the fame nature with gravity adt upon them, it
matters not what the mailes of the bodies be, or
how they move, they are drawn towards the center
in equal moments, fpaces v/hich are proportional
to thofe forces, and the laft proportion takes place
even in unequal bodies.
A body may defcribe feveral forts of curves by a
Central force.
C E N
Georhetrlcians call an ellipfis an oval line, whofe
generation is this; let A a (Plate XXXI. fg. 27.)
be a right line ; C the middle point thereof ;
F, / points equally diftant from C ; KG/ a
thread whofe ends are faftened in F, f, and length
equal to the line A a. Then if the thread be
ftretched, an ellipfis may be defcribed in the fame
plane wherein is A a, by the motion of a pin G.
If a cone or a cylinder be but by a plane, the
feflion will often be fuch a line. The points F, f,
are called the foci, C the center, A a the greater
axis, and B b pafTmg through the center, perpen-
dicular to A a, and terminated both ways by the
curve, is the leifer axis.
Let us fuppofe the force, mentioned in the laft
proportion, adting upon bodies in motion, juft as
upon thofe at reft, which is equal at equal diftances
from the center, but at different diftances is inverfely
as the fquare of the diftance; the body by this force
would move in an ellipfis, one of whofe foci coin-
cides with the center of the forces ; fo that a body
may defcribe a curve running into itftlf, and in every
revolution will once come towards the center of
forces, and once go farther from it. In the recefs
the velocity of the body is lefl'ened, and indeed (oy
that the central force, although that be leffened it-
felf, it bends in the path of the body, and makes its
endeavour to come towards the center. In the
accefs the velocity will be fo augmented, that al-
though the force be augmented, the body again
recedes from the center.
A circle belongs to thefe kind of curves, when
the foci coincide with the centre. And fuppofing
a body, as we here faid, to defcribe an ellipfis,
another body will be retained by the fame force
about that center, if this be projefled with a juft
velocity perpendicularly to the line pafling through
the center. If the diameter of the circle be equal
to the greater axis of the ellipfis, the body will be
urged with that velocity, whereby the body moves
in an ellipfis in that moment, as it pafTes through
cither of the ends of the lefler axis ; and both
thefe bodies will make their revolutions in equal
times.
A body may be projefled with fuch velocity, that
the force in the recefs from the center, which upon
the augmentation of the diftance is leflened, is not
futficient to bend in the body's path, fo that it may
return again : in this cafe the body will defcribe
another of the conical feftions, either a parabola or
hyperbola.
If the central force as you go from the center
decreafes in any other proportion, the body will not
defcribe a line returning into itfelf, and fomewhat
dift'ering from a circle.
But if the force decreafes in a proportion a little
diftercnt from that, the curve defcribed by the body
may be taken as a moveable ellipfis, whofe axis will
move with an angular motion in the plane in which
the
Pr^Tjr. -rrprn
Ky-acY/i^ Central •.-yiae/ufu.
(_/.<- -^^/tn/ar i^imA''
C E N
the body revolves, the focus remaining in the center
of the forces. But the motion of the axis tends
the fame way with the motion of the body, if the
force decrcufcs fwifter upon augmenting the dif-
tance, than in the iiiverfe ratio of the fquare of the
dillance.
But if the force be flower ; that is, decreafes le(s
as you go on from the center, the motion of the
ellipfis will be the contrary way.
A body will alfo defcribe an ellipfis, if the central
force, as you go from the center, increafes and is
every where in the ratio of the diil^ance from the
center, which in that cafe coincides with the center
of the ellipfis.
If alfo a force increafes in any other ratio, the
curve will not return into itfelf, but may often be
referred to an ellipfis, moveable in a plane about a
center: whence it follows, that an excentrical curve
returning into itfelf, can be defcribed by no central
force ; that is, one whofe center does not coincide
with the center of the forces, and a fmall matter
differing from a curve, except an ellipfis, in one of
whofe foci the center of the forces is, and that the
central force in this cafe is inverfely as the fquare of
the diftance.
But it eafily appears that a circle whofe center
coincides with the center of the forces, may be
defcribed by a force increafing or decreafing in any
given ratio J fuppofing it to aiSt equally at equal
diftances.
Central-Rule, isarule, or method dlfcovered
by our countryman, Thomas Baker, whereby we
are enabled to find the center of a circle defigned
to cut the parabola, in as many points as an equa-
tion to be conftruiSed hath real roots. Its principal
ufe is in the conftruclion of equations, which he
has applied with good fuccefs as far as biquadra-
tics.
The central-rule is chiefly founded on this pro-
perty of the parabola : that if a line be infcribed in
that curve perpendicular to any diameter, a reft-
angle, formed of the infcript, is equal to a reclangle
made of the intercepted diameter and parameter of
the axis.
The central rule hiis the advantage over Carter's,
and De Latteres's method of conrtrudting equations,
in that both thefe latter are fubjett to the trouble of
preparing the equation by taking away the fecond
term. This we are freed from in B.iker's method,
which fliews us how to conftiuiSt all equations not
exceeding the fourth power, by the interfe£fion of
a circle and parabola, without the omiflion or change
of any terms.
CENTRAL Machine, a machine invented to
Ihow the laws of the centra! forces experimentally,
of which take the following defcription, as given by
Dr. Defagullers.
(Plate XXXII. fi^. I.) The machine for
central forces confiRs of a ftrong wooden frame
27
C E N
CABDHGKEF triangular at top and bottom.
On the horizontal piece G a at top is a wheel CJ,
which (by means of the firing GKHG) when
turned round, gives circular motion to the pullies
and fpindles K L and H I, fo as to move them either
with equal velocities, or with velocities that are as
2 to I, as 3 to I, or as 3 to 2 ; becaufe in the pul-
ley K there are two grooves, one of 3, and one of
2 inches diameter ; and in the pulley H there are
alfo two, one of 6, and one of 3 inrhes diameter.
There are two pieces M N, ;/; n (which we may call
planet-bearing pieces) of about 30 inches long, to
be fcrewed upon the pullies K, H, fo as to turn
round with them. Thefe pieces have each of them
an open fquare tower S, s, with a little pulley at top
and bottom to conduct a firing from the weights S
and s, to the brafs balls P and />, (which we muft
here call planets) fo that when F and p go towards
N or «, the weights are drawn up from their bafes,
■which is about an inch above the bottom of the
towers, and rife within the towers till the weight-
carrying piece ftrikes the top of the tower ; each
ball having two littie wings with holes in them to
Aide eafily along little wires that go from one end
to the other of the planet-carrying piece, pafBng
through the two perpendicular brafs planes M and
N, alfo through the towers at about the diftance
of one fourth of an inch from the furface of the
planet-carrying piece. N. B. Only one of the
wings and one of the wires is here drawn upon each
piece to avoid confufion. There are alfo brafs col-
lars at H and K, in which the necks of the fpindles
(which are of fteel) turn ; and iron fcrews headed
with brafs at L and I, with little holes to receive
the bottoms of the fpindles.
The fecond figure reprefents fomething more than
half of one of the planet-bearing pieces divided
into inches both ways from the center. B i is the
perpendicular brafs plane at one end, through which
the horizontal wires W ty, W w pafs, to carry the
planet P by its perforated wings L L, whilft the
ftrino; that goes through the middle of the planet is
made fait, by thrufting in the little pin p to give
the planet any certain diftance from 1 the center of
its motion before it is moved round by turning the
wheel G (in fig. i.) Si reprefents the fection of
the brafs tower faftened to the wood by a crofs pin,
whofe head is feen at s. T is the bafe or plate
which is to fiipport the weight-carrying piece, v.'iiich
is reprefented at {fig. 4) and confifts of a circular
plate and hollow ftcm of tv,o ounces weight, a^nd
on which may be flipped f^veral leaden weights like
X [fig. 5) 'At T.^lfo {fig. 2.) maybeYeenthe
litt'e pulley under which the firing goes.
The 3d figure is a vertical fc£lion of one of the
fquare towers S s, with the weight X, and weight-
ciirrving piece Xa- in it, and part of the planet-
hearinffpiece, pulley and fpindle under it, marked
MN. "One little pulley is faftened to the wood at
6 T T under
C E N
C E N
T under the plate on which the weiglits ftand ;
another isfuftained by an iron arm V S over an hole
S in the top of the tower. So that the flrina; com-
ing; from the planet P goes firft under the pulley T,
thtn through the hollow flem tif the weight-carrying
piece, and fo through the hole in the top of tire
tower, then over the pulley S, fo down again to
the top of the ftem of X, where it is faftened. By
obferving this figure, one may eafily fee that if the
planet P be moved ever fo little in the direflion of
P Q_ the weight-bearing piece X will be railed up
towdrds S.
The whirling table which we have already men-
tioned for making feveral experiments, is beft turned
round by fcrewina; on to the top of either of the
fpindies L K or I H, inftead of the planet-bearing
piece M N or tn n.
The fixth figure reprefents the feflion of the
wheel and part of the horizontal piece, the upper
part of the frame which carries the wheel, and the
upper end of the piece that fupports it marked
LLL, the wheel's axis and fquare-fliding collar ^,
which is moveable on the fquare horizontal iron
H I faftened to the wood by a nut and pin at I, and
two wood-fcrews H h. N. B. There is a fcrew in
the Aiding piece g to fix the center of the wheel,
when it is brought forwards or backwards.
Tho' it be of no confequence of what bignefs the
machine above defcribed is made, provided its parts
are proportional ; yet for the fake of thofe who
would have fuch a machine made, I give here the
meafures of the principal parts of mine in Englifh
inches.
(Plate XXXII. fig. I.) The thicknefs of the
wood every-whe-i about i inch, except the feet at
A and D, where it is 2 inches thick.
M N = 7K/Z =: 30 inches.
K H 33U6 inches.
KL=:1H=8U5 inches.
A D := 34U9 inches.
AC = CD = 27L2 inches.
BCz=24L!^ inches.
Diameter of the groove of the wheel G = 14
3 inches.
Breadth of the planet-bearing piece MN ok mn
= 21,3 incl.es.
Grooves of the pulley K, the one 2 and the other
inches.
Grooves of H, the one 6 and the other 3 inches.
The heigit AK = HD=: 13 inches.
Height of the towers S or i above the board MN,
mn 5l_8 inches.
Breadth of the towers ■=. 23 inches.
There are 4 brafs planets made ufe of, two of
which weigh each 2 ounces Troy, and the two
other 4 ounces Troy each.
The weight-carrying plate and Item weighs 2
ounces, and each leaden weight (as reprefented by
fig. 5.) weighs 2 ounces alfy.
JVl)at is to he confidered in the ufe of the machine.
g. The weights in each tower are to reprefent the
fun, whofe attraflion is fliewn by the force with
which the weight refifts the adtion of the ball P ox p,
(reprefenting a planet) that endeavours to raifeitby
the ftring PTS a- [fig. 3.) when it receives a cen-
trifugal force by turning tbe wheel G. So that by
putting equal or unequal weights in the towers ; by
ufing equal or unequal planets, as P, or /> ; and by
havmg their diftances equal or unequal in different
proportions; and the periodical times equal or un-
equal (asthewheel-ftring goes round equal or unequal
pullies) we may by experiments fliew thofe laws of
central forces, which Sir Ifiiac Newton has mathe-
matically demonftrated in his Principia.
In confidering the central forces of bodies (for
example, of the primary planets in refpeft of the
fun, and of the moons in refpeft to their primary
planets) which move round other bodies that have
an influence upon them ; we are to obferve three
things. ifl-, The periodical time, or times in
which the bodies perform their revolution. 2dly,
The quantity of matter in the revolving bodies.
3dly, The diftance of the bodies from the center
of the revolution.
Exper. I. Firft, make the periodical times equal,
by putting the wheel ftring into the 2 inch groove
of each pulley, crofting it before each pulley to give
it the more force to move the pullies, but fo that the
pullies may both turn the fame way that the planet-
bearing pieces may not unfcrew. , Then put only
the weight-carrying piece into each tower : and
hiftly, faften to their ftrings a 2 ounce brafs ball, as
P and p, at the diftance of 12 inches from the cen-
ter on each planet-bearing piece. So you will have
the periodical times, the quantities of matter, and
diflances from the center equal. Give circular mo-
tion to the wheel G, and the planets by their cen-
trifugal force will raife the planets S and s at the very
fame inftant of time ; which fhews, that in this
cafe the centrifugal forces are equal. N. B. If upon
each weight-carrying piece you put on one or two,
or more equal weights (fuch as are exprefled by
fig. 5.) the planets will always raife them at the
fame inftant, provided the wheel be turned propor-
tionally fafter as there is more weight.
Exper. 11. Secondly, Inftead of p put on a 4
ounce ball, and double the weight in the weight jyj
then turn the wheel, and both weights will rife at
once. This fhews, that when the quantities of
matter are unequal, but the diftances and periodical
times ftill remain equal, the centrifugal force is pro-
portional to the quantity of matter.
Exper. III. Thirdly, take off the 4 ounce ball,
and make ufe of ^ again> but put it only at 6 inches
from the center. Take the additional weight from
s and add it to S ; that is, let the weight S, which
has P at 12 inches diftance, be=: 4 ounces ; and the
weight s^ which has /> but at 6 inches diftance, be
= 2 ounces :
I
C E N
= 2 ounces : then upon turning the wheel, they
will both rife at the fame time. Hence it is plain,
that if the periodical times, and the quantities of
matter continue the fame, but the didances are dif-
ferent, the centrifugal forces will be as the dif-
tances,
Exper. IV. Fourthly, at the diftance of 6
inches, where p was laft, change /> for a 4 ounce
ball, and put equal weights in the two towers ; then
when you turn the wheel, both weights will rife at
once ; which fhews, that when the periodical times
are equal, and the diftances from the center recipro-
cally as the quantities of matter in the planets, the
centrifugal forces are equal.
Exper. V. Laftly, Change the firing on the
pulley H, putting it into the groove of 6 inches dia-
meter, fo that the periodical time of the planet P,
which lad will then move twice as faff, if its diffance
be the fame from the center, which it muft be in
this experiment. Put 8 ounces in the tower S Q_,
and only 2 in the tower $q, the equal planets P and
/> being then each at 12 inches dillance from the
center. Turn the wheel, and both weights will
rife at once. This fhews, that planets, that have
an equal quantity of matter and the fame diftance
from the center, but different periodical times, have
their centrifugal forces reciprocally as the fquare of
tlieir periodical times ; that is, directly as the fquare
of their velocities.
Coroll. Hence follows, that if the fame planet
changes in velocity in the fime orbit, its centrifugal
force will increafe or decreafe according to the fquare
of the velocity which the planet has in that orbit.
Scholium. When we compare the laft experi-
ment with the 3d experiment, and find that the
planet {p going round in a circle of 12 inches ra-
dius at the fame time that P went round in a circle
of 6 inches radius,) rsifed twice the weight becaufe
it had twice the velocity ; it will appear ifrange, that
in the lafl experiment, where/) (going twice through
a circle of 12 inches radius, whilil: P goes once
through fuch a circle) has but double the velocity of
P, it fhould now rail'e four times more weight. But
this proportion (which is of very great ufein explain-
ing the motions of the heavenly bodies) will be
verv clearly deduced from a confideration of the
firfl law and what we have faid upon it.
CENTRIFUGAL Force, is that whereby a
body revolving round a center, endeavours to recede
from it.
Dr. Defaguliers, in his Experimental Philofophv,
gives various experiments, to fliew and illuflrate the
nature of centrifugal and centripetal forces, from
which author the following experiments are coliedfed.
Exper. 1. (Plate XXXII. /v. 7.) A BCD
is a round table which may be fwiftly turned upon
a pivDt, as at F (the fame that is reprefented by the
the firft figure on this plate.) There is a little brafs
pipe fcrew'd in at the center C, into the top of
C E N
which the firing of the leaden bullet B Is thrufl fo
as to go out at an hole in the fide of the faid fliort
brafs pipe ; thence it is carried under the table thro'
the hole h, and fo faflen'd to a pin in the fide of the
table at A. When the bullet is laid at B, if the
table be turn'd fwiftly round, it leaves the bullet be-
hind at firft:, which thereby appears to have a mo-
tion contrary to that of the table, till by the rough-
nefs of the furface of the table, it gots round at Tall
along with the table on the fame part of the table ;
then if the table be ftopp'd on the fudden, the bul-
let goes on feveral turns, till having communicated
all its motion to the rough furface of the table, it
comes to reft at laff. This illuftrates the firfl law
of nature ; for as the part of the table under the
bullet leaves it behind for awhile, becaufe it endea-
vours to continue in its ftate of reff, it would for
ever leave it where it was at firft, if the table was
perfectly fmooth: and when the bullet is once in mo-
tion it would for ever go round on the table, if (be-
fidcs the fmoothnefs of the table) the firing that
holds the ball had no fridfion at the center C. It
is alio to be obferved, that the firing, which is
flack at C B, is alv/ays ftretched as at Q b by the
motion of the bullet ; and this fhews the centrifu-
gal force.
If we fcrew a forked prop toward the edge of the
table as at D, and put the firing of the bullet into
its flit fo as to let the bullet hang down as at i, the
force of the bullet's gravity may be fo overcome by
the centrifugal force, which the whirHng of the table
produces, that the bullet (hall rife to 3, the firing
3 d becoming horizontal : as the table turns flower
and flower, the ball comes down to 2 and fo to i at
lafi, gravity becoming fenfible as the centrifugal
force diminiflies.
Exper. II. (Plate XXXII. fig. 8.) If a firing
be tied round the brim of a pot lull of water, and
the pot be whirled round fwiftly about the hand or
center K in a circle or curve of which ACB is an
arc, the water acquiring .1 centrifugal force greater
than that of gravity, will not be fpillcd when the
mouth of tlu' pot is downwaids. If infitad of the
pot, the glafs WC {fig. 9.) containing liquors of
different fpecific gravities be whirled round the cen-
ter K, (after they "have been confounded together
by fiiaking) they will all recover their places and
tranfparency, even fooner than if the glafs contain-
ing them had been hung up and at reft. The reafon
h, that as the different fubflaiices in the glafs have
the fame \elocitv given them by the centrifugal
force, their momentum will be as their fpecific gra-
vities, that is, their momentum will be made up
of the different quantities of matter, which they
contain under equal bulks multiplied by the com-
mon velocity which the centrifugal force gives thtni
in the line K C from the center of the mcjtion to-
wards the circumference. Therefore the glafs
beads among the liqaors weighing more than the
dmps-
C E N
C E N
drops of any of the liquors, will have the greatefl
mometituin, and confeqiiently go to the part G
molt remote from the center of motion K. Then
the dropi of oil of tartar (which is the heaviefl of
the liquors contained in the glafb) having for the
fame reafori more momentum than the drops of the
other liquors (tho' lefs than the glafs beads) will
take up the fpace T next to the beads, and alfo fill
their interflices, The next liquor which is oil of
Peter, wiU fill up the fpace P. And laflly, the fpi-
rit of wine, whofe drops are the lighteft, will (not-
withftanding its own centrifugal forcej be brought
nearer to the center of motion, and occupy the fpace
W ; becaufe the beads and all the other liquors
having more momentum, drive it from the end C,
to which it has a tendency all the while. N, B. The
tube is hermetically fealed at both ends.
The glafs beads, and difFerent liquors, fettle in
their proper places when the tube is hung up; be-
caufe, as all bodies tend downwards with the fame
velocity, the momentum of particles of equal bulk
mufl be as their refiieftive quantities of matter in
.their defcent : and that the liquors will not be fo
foon fettled in this cafe as when the tube is whirled
round, is becaufe vv'c can give as great a velocity as
we pleafe in the diredlion K C, by a centrifugal
force ; whereas that which is owing to gravity is al-
ways the fame.
CoroU. Hence it follows, that a bottle of any
liquor (which after having been muddy is by !eng:h
of time become fine, and is again made foul by
fliaking) may fooner be brought to be fine by a
centrifugal force, than by being fet upright at reft.
Exper. III. (Plate XXXII. fg. io.)7o'n, by a
firing, the two balls T. and M. whofe weights are
to one another as 4 to 2 (here we ufe a two-ounce
to a four-ounce ball) and pafs the firing through
the oppofite fide-holes of the little pipe C; let the
length of the firing, meafuring from center to cen-
ter of the balls, be 18 inches, and the diftances of
the centers of the balls from the table be recipro-
cally as their mafles ; that is, the center of the
two-ounce ball M muft be at the diflaiice of 12
inches from C, and the center of the four-ounce
ball T at 6 inches from C. Let the two little
fquares, or retSlangulnr pieces Sjand V v be fixed
on the table at the diftance of about I inch or 2
behind the balls to flop them from flying oft' of the
table, and the long fides of thofe pieces fo fixed al-
ternately, that when the table is made to turn in
the diredtion marked by the dart, the balls may not
be left behind, but immediately put into motion.
Now let the table be whirled round with any velo-
city, and the balls will remain at the points T and
M, and defcribe round their common center of
gravity unequal circles in a reciprocal proportion of
the mafTes, the momenta given the bodies by the
centrifugal force being equal, and (becaufe of their
contrary diredions) dellroying another. But if ei-
ther of the balls be removed farther from C than in
the reciprocal proportion above-mentioned, that ball
will gradually recede from the center of motion, and
draw the other along with it, till it be flopped by
the end of the piece V v or Ss. So the earth and
moon turn round one another, and round their com-
mon center of gravity, as has been already ob-
ferved.
Exper. IV. (Plate XXXII. /^. 11.) On a piece
of board AE K, which has a p:ece under it acrofs
to raife up its broadel'c end AE to the angle of 15
or 20 degrees above the horizontal pofition, are
fattened 3 tubes AK, CK and EK, fliut up at
both ends. In the firft there is a fmall cylinder of
cork, which can eailly Aide up and down the tube :
in the tube CK there is a little cylinder of lead
moveable in the fiime manner : and in the tube E K,
there is an inch or two of quickfilver fhut up. This
board has a fcrew under it, which going through
one of the holes of the table (fuch as are marked
A and B Hn Plate XXXII. _fig. 7.) is fa'iened by a
nut fo as to join the board of tubes firmly to the
table. Then vihen the cork, lead, and quickfilver
are in that part of the tube next to the center of
motion K ; let the table be whirled round, and
thofe bodies will after a few turns be carried to the
ends of the tubes which are fartheft from the cen-
ter, though 3 or 4 inches higher than the ends at
K. Put on the tubes BK and DK, the firft of
which being filled with water has a cork cylinder
moveable in it ; and the other has in it an inch or
two of oil, the other part of it being full of water.
At firft (when the table is at reft) the cork and the
oil will be at B and D the higher ends of the tubes
and fartheft from the center ; but when the table is
whirled round, the cork and the oil will go towards
the center to K, becaufe the greater centrifugal
force of the water (being greater than either that
of the cork, or that of the oil) muft give the cork
and the oil a centripetal diredlion, as has been ex-
plained in the experiment of the diiFerent liquors in
in the glafs of /ig. 9.
Centrifugal Machine, a very curious ma-
chine, invented by Mr. Erfkine, for raifing water
by means of a centrifugal force, combined with the
preflure of the atmofphere.
It confifts of a I^rge tube of copper, cic. in the
form of a crofs, which is placed perpendicular in
the water, and refts at the bottom on a pivot. At
the upper part of the tube is a horizontal cog-wheel,
which touches the cogs of another in a vertical pofi-
tion ; fo that by the help of a double winch, the
whole machine is moved round with great velo-
city.
Near the bottom of the perpendicular part of the
tube is a valve opening upwards ; and near the two
extremities, but on contrary fides of the arms, or
crofs part of the tube, are two other valves opening
outwards. Thefe two valves are, by the afliHance
of
C E N
of fprings, kept fhut till the machine is put in mo-
tion, when the centrifugal velocity of the water
forces them open, and difcharges itfelf into a ciftcrn
or refervoir placed there for that purpofe.
On the upper part of the arms are two Iioles,
which are clofed by pieces fcrewing into the metal
of the tube. Before the machine can work, thcfc
holes muft be opened, and water poured in through
them, till the whole tube be full : by this means all
the air will be forced out of the machine, and the
water fupported in the tube by means of the valve
at the bottom.
The tube being thus filled with water, and the
holes clofed by their fcrew caps, it is turned round
by means of the winch, whence the water in the
arms of the tube acquires a centrifugal force, opens
the valves near the extremities of the arms, and flies
out with a velocity nearly equal to that of the ex-
tremities of the faid arms.
The above defcription will be very eafily under-
ftood by the figure we have added on plate XXXII.
fig. 12. which is a perfpeiflive view of the centrifugal
machine, ere£ted on board a fhip.
A B C is the copper tube.
D, a horizontal cog-wheel, furnilhed with twelve
cogs.
E, a vertical cog-wheel, furnilhed with thirty-fix
cogs.
F, F, the double winch.
a the valve near the bottom of the tube.
J, Zi, the two pivots on which the machine turns.
f, one of the valves in the crofs piece ; the other
at </, cannot be feen in this figure, being on the other
fide of the tube.
e, e, the two holes through which the water is
poured into the machine.
G H, the ciftern, or refervoir.
I, I, part of the {hip's deck.
The diftance between the two valves c, d, is fix
feet. The diameter of thefe valves is about three
inches ; and that of the perpendicular tube about
feven inches.
If we fuppofe the men who work the machine can
turn the winch round in three feconds, the machine
will move round its axis in one fecond ; and confe-
quently each extremity of the arms will move with
a velocity of 88. S feet in a fecond. Therefore a
column of water of three inches diameter will iflue
throjgh each of the valves with a velocity of 18.8
feet in a fecor.d : but the area of the aperture of eaih
of the valves is 7.14 inches; which being multi-
plied bv the velocity in inches z:z. 225.6, givts
1610 784, cubic inches, the quantity of water
dilcharged through one of the apertures in one
ftcond i fo that the v.'hole quantity difcharged in
that fpace of time through borii the ajierturcs
».■- =1 3221.568 inches; or 19329408 cubic inches
in one minute. But 6c8l2 cubic inches make a
tun, beer mcdfuie; con.lquenth', if we fuppofe
27
C E N
the centrifugal machine revolves round its axis in
one fecond, it will raife nearly three tuns forty-four
gallons in one minute; but this velocity is certainly
too great, at lea.t to be held for any confiderab'e
time; fa that when this and other dificiencies in the
machine are allowed for, two tuns in a minute is
nearly the quantity that can be raifed by it in one
minute. And that this computation is n-ar the
truth appears from an experiment made on the I4tli
of .May lafl, on board the Princcfs Mary at Wool-
wich, when the centrifugal machine was found to
exceed the chain pump, at the rate of nineteen
tuns and a half per hour ; both being woikcd by art
equal number of men. Now a good chain-pump
will extraci fomething more than a ton and a
half in a minute, or about ninety tons in an
hour.
It will perhaps be unneceflary to obferve, that as
the water is forced up the perpendicular tube by the
prtfTure of the atmofphere, this machine cannot
raife water above thiriy feet hit»h.
CFN TRIPETAL Force is that force by which
any body moving round another is drawn down or
impelled towards the center of its orbit ; and is
much the name with gravity, whereby bodies tend
towards the center of the earth; the nugnetical at-
tradlion whereby it draws iron ; and that force,
whatever it be, whereby the planets are contiiuially
drawn back from right lini-d motions, and made to
move in curves.
The centripetal and centrifugal force of the f.ime
revolving body, in the fame point of the curve it
delcribes, are always equal and contrary.
To determine what the law of centripetal force
muft be, is a problem of the greateft importance,
and may be f.lved either by lineal, geometry, or
by fluxions. In the fiift method it Ii.ts been often
done ; but it is much more j^eneral and expeditious
by the latter ; therefore we fhall give a general
rule for determining the law of the cencnfug^l
force.
Let B (Plate XXXIII. /V. i.) be the place of the
body moving in the orbit B F by a force directed to the
given point C. Drav/ the tangent B Y, and the radius
C B, CQ_. infinitely near each other, Q_R parallel to
C B, and C Y, Q_M perp.-ndiculars to B Y. Let the
dillance C B == D, perpendicular C Y = P, then
the infinitely fmall line Q_R will be as the force
and fquare of the time conjunilly, that is as the
force and fquare of the area C B (j; therefore the
,. Q_R QK
force IS as - — or ■^:;; —
(becaufe P : D : : Q_« : Q_R =
(Iji X n
the point E, and the fair.e radius is a'fo
6 U
that IS
A 1'-
(Iji X D \
as
= radius 01 curvature in
D IJ
1^ '
where
C E N
C E N
Wrherefore the force is as
P!D
— that is fuppofing
— I
p to be given) by the fiuxion of — —
Therefore to find the law of centripetal force, let
D z=. diftance from the center of force, P.:=: per-
pendicular en the tangent : compue the val.ue of P
in terms of D, by the nature of the curve; then
find the fluxion of , making D = I, and
then expunge all the quantities as far as poffible, ex-
cept D, and you will have F, the law of centripetal
force required. See the anicles Central FoRcr.s
and Centrifugal Force.
CENTRO BARYC, in mechanics, is the me-
thod of determining the content of a fuperficies or
folrd, by means of the center of gravity.
This method was firlt taken notice of by Pappus;
but after him the jcfuit Guiklinus fet this method in
its full light, and fhewed its ufe in a variety of ex-
amples.
Since Pappus and Guildinus, feveral orher geo-
meters have alfo ufed it in meafuring folids, gene-
rated by a rotation round a fixed axis; efpccially
before the method of fluxions was invented, which
has in a great meafure rendered this centre- baryc
method of little ufe. However, the two follow-
ing theorems, with the demonffrations and the co-
rollaries, being part of a paper in the Mathematical
Trarifadtions, delivered in by Mr. Samuel Clark,
tn;iv not be unacceptable to fome of our readers.
Theor. I. Let G ( PlateXXXlI./^. i 3.) be thecen-
ter of gravity of the rpaceABC,contained by the right-
lines A B, BC, comprehending a right- angle, and
the curve-line ADC of any kind vvhatfoever :
FromG, draw G X parallel to B C. Now if we
conceive the f.iid fpace to be divided into an infi-
nite number of equal parts, by the lines F D, F D,
F D, &c. drawn parallel to B C, then will the
fum of the fegments A F D, A F D, &c. be
equal to the whole figure A BCD A, multiplied
byXB.
Demonftration. Put w for the number of equal
parts into which A B is divided, at the points F FF,
&c. z the fum of the orJinates F D, F D, F D,
&c. or area of the whole fpace, and let the parts
AFD, F D, F D, &c. wherein the fmall letters
a, h, c, d, e, &c. are placed, be reprefented by
thofe letters ; then B X the diilanceof the center of
gravity, from the point of fufpenfion B, will, by
the principles of mechanics, be ex prefll-d by
»a-}->7^^i x/-4-«— 2Xf-4-/; — ;Xg',&c. —r, ^^^
« -^_ Z. -f- <: -1- ^, &c. - - - « = A B C
a + b ^ c -[- d, &c. - - - H — I = A F D
a+ b+c + (/, &c. ---n — 2 = AFD
Whence the fum of t he infi nite n umber of feg-
ments equal to«« -\- 11 — 1X^ + " — 2 X c -\-
l
n — 3 X fl, &c. continued until the number of
terms is k, and is evidently equal to the above va-
lue of B X multiplied by Z. i^. E. D.
Theorem II. Things remaining as before, let
the fpace A B C be made to revolve ab:.ut the ordi-
nate B C as an axis by which a folid will be form-
ed, whofe content will be equal to the area of the
faid fpace, multiplied by the circumference of that
circle, which the center of gravity G defcribes
during one entire revolution of A B C about the
axis B C.
Demonftration. The folid formed by the cir-
cumvolution of A B C about the axis B C, may
be confidered as made up of the upright furfaces of
an infinite number of cylinders, whofe peipendicu-
lar heights are the ordinates F D, FD, FD, &c.
this being premifed, let i to r cxprefs the ratio of
the diameter to the circumference of a circle, then
will the fum of fuch upright furfaces be equal to
7.na r •\- n ■ — 1 y.^rh -\- n — %y^i r c ■\- n — 3
X2r d, &c. - - - n. But B X, the diffance of the
center of gravity from the ordinate BC, is equal to
na -\- n — iXb -{- n — 2 X c, &c. - - - n ...
. ■ ; which
z
being multiplied by 2 r, gives the periphery of the
circle defcribed by the center of gravity ; this again
multiplied by z, the area of ABC, produces
2«(2r-4-«-iX2ir + «-2X2rc-f;/-3X2rfl', &c.
X z, which is certainly equal X.oin ar -\-n — I X
2 i r -f n — 2 X 2r c -{- n — 3 X 2 r (/, &c. the
content of the folid formed bv the revolution of
AC B about the axis BC. ^.'E.D.
From thefe theorems the following corollaries are
deduced.
Corollary I. The area of the fpace ABC, mul-
tiplied by GX, the diftance of the center of gravity
from A B, is equal to the fum of all the fegments
made by dividing ABC into an infinite number of
equal parts, by right-lines drawn parallel to A B.
Cor. II. If the figure ABC revolves about the ab-
fcifia A B as an axis, the folid fo formed will be e-
qual to the area of the fpjce ABC, multiplied by
the circumference of that circle whofe radius is GX,
the diftance of the center of gravity from A B.-
CoroII. III. By having the area, and place of
the center of gravity, of any curved or right-lined
fpace given, we can cube the folid formed by the
circumvolution of that figure, about either the or-
dinate or abfcifTa.
Coroll. IV. Having the magnitude of a folid,
and the place of its center of gravity_given, we can
eafily determine the area of the fpace by the circum-
volution of which the faid folid was produced.
CENTRUM, in geometry and mechanics, the
fiime as center. See Center.
Centrum Phonicum, in acouftics, the place
where
CEP
C E R
where the fpeaker ftands, in polyfyllabic and articu-
late echoes.
■ Centrum Phono-Campticum, the objeft
or place that returns the voice in an echo. See the
article Echo.
Blancanus fays, that no fyllablc can be diftinflly
and clearly returned, under the diftance of twenty-
four geometrical paces.
Centrum Tf.ndinosum, in anatomy, a point
wherein the tendons of the niufcles of the diaphragm
meet.
CENTRY-BOX, the fame with the guerritfe,
only the farmer is of wood, and the other of ftonc.
CENTUNCULUS, in botany, a genus of
plants, whofe flower is monopetalous and rotated,
the tube being globofe, and the limb divided into
four oval fegments. It contains four filaments,
top'd with fimple antherae. The fruit is an unilo-
cular globofe capfule, containing a great number of
fniall roundifh feeds.
CENTURION, among the Romans, an officer
in the infantry, who commanded a century, or an
hundred men.
CENTURY, in a general fenfe, any thing di-
vided into or confiding of an hundred parts.
Century, in chronology, the fpace of one
hundred years. Church hiftory is chiefly com-
puted by centuries, beginning from our Saviour's
birth.
CENTUSSIS, in Roman antiquity, a coin con-
taining an hundred aflls.
CEPA, the onion. See the article Onion.
CEPHALANTHUS, in botany, a genus of
plants whofe flowcts are colle6led into a fpherical
head ; each flower is monopetalous, and funnel-
Ihaped. There are four filaments inferred in the
corolla, which are (horter than the tube. The
fruit is a globular hairy capfule of one cell, inclo-
ilng one or two oblong .nngular feeds ; feveral of
thcle grow together, and foim a round head.
CEPHALIC, in a general meaning, fignifies any
thing belonging to the head or its parts.
Cephalic MfDiciNES, are remedies for dlfor-
ders of the head.
Cephalic Vein, in anatomy, creeps along the
arm between the fliin and the mufcles, and divides
it into two branches ; the external goes down to
the wrift, where it joins the bafilica, and turns up
to the back of the hand : the internal branch, to-
gether with a fmall one of the bafilica, makes the
mediana.
CEPHALOPHARYNG.^I, in anatomy, the
firft pair of mufcles of the upper-part of the gullet,
which proceed from befide the head and the neck,
and are fpread more largely upon the tunic of the
gullet.
CEPHEUS, in aftronomy, a confltllation of
the northern hemil'phcre, whole flar?, in Ptolemy's
catalogue, are thirteen ; in Tycho's t!e\en ; in
Hevellus's, forty ; and in Mr. Flamftead's, thirty-
five.
CERASTES, the horned fnake, in zoology, is
the name of a fpecies of ferpent, with two protu-
berances on its forehead, hard as a fhell, and from
which it has its name.
CERASTIU.VI, in botany, a genus of plants,
v/hofe flower confifts of five bifid obtufe petals,
with ten filiform ftamina, which arc fliortcr than
the corolla: thefe are terminated with roundifh an-
therae. The fruit is an ovato-cylindraceous cap-
fule, of one cell, opening at the top, and contains
a great number of roundifh feeds. This genus is
the fame with the myofotis of Tournefort,
CERATE, in pharmacy, the name of one of
the forts of topical medicines, fofter than a plafler,
and harder than an ointment.
CERATOGLOSSUM, in anatomy, the name
of a pair of mufcles, ferving to draw the tongue di-
re(?cly into the mouth ; but if only one of them adts,
it draws the tongue to one fide of the mouth.
CERASUS, the cherry-tree. Sec the article
Cherry.
CERATONI A, the carob-trce, in botany, a plant
which produces a petalous flower ; the fruit is a
comprefTed pod, of about a fpan long, divided by
tranfveife partitions, each having a roundifh com-
prefTed feed, contained in a brown-coloured fwect
pulp, which is ufed by the Egyptians and Ar.ibians
for the iame intention as fugar.
This tree is very common in Spain, and in fome
parts of Italy, asalfo in the LevajJ, where it grows^
in hedges, and produces great quantities of pods.
Thefe are many times eaten by the poor inhabitants,
when they have a variety of other food, but they
aie apt to loofen the belly, and caufe griping? of the
bowels. Thefe pods are direfted by the college of
phyficians to enter fome medicinal preparations ; for
which purpofe they are often brought from abrrad.
With us it is raifed in the gardens of the curious :
the leaves are evergreen ; and as they differ in fhape
from mofl other plants, they make an agreeable va-
riety in the green-houfe. This plant i; heie propa-
g.Tted from fi:c^]s : thev fhould be (.nvn in the (prinii,
on a hot- bed : when the plants are up, they iliould
be tranrplanted into pots, and ;!fterwardj injred by
degrees to the open air, as the fummer advances.
This plant is the fame with th.e filiqua of Tourne-
fort.
CERRERA, in botany, a genus of pentardrious
plants, whofe flower confifts ci a pentaph_\ Hous acu-
minated calyx ; the corolla is monopeta'ous and
funnel fliaped, havino; a long tube open at {]}e top,
and divided into five large fegments ; in the middle
of the tube are placed five liibulated filamerits,
topped with ere£t anthcrne. The fiuit h a. large
round fieOiy drupe, marked with a lonijitudinsl hir-
row on the fide, and coiitaininji, two crll;, in each (;f
whit.li is a fini^le large compr'.flld nut.
1 here
C E R
T"!kic ate ihice fpecies in this goiu,':, one cf
\vhici\ grows in the Braiils and the Spuiini Weft-
IiiJ es in ^Tlciity ; alTo fome in llie Britifli iflands in
Ame ic.i. riiis fort liTcs wiih ;in iriegulyr Oem to the
ii; iJiit of ciglit or ten fcef, fending out many crooked
iliff'uCtd branches, whi>.h toward their tops are fur-
iiilhcd with thick fuccu'ent leaves, about three
inches long and near two broad, of a luciJ green,
fniooth, ai;d very full of a milky juice, as is every
[.Mit of the tiee. The flowers come out in loofe
bunches at the extremity of the branches, and are
of a CI earn colour. The wood of this tree ftinks
molt intolerably, and the kernels of the nuts are a
deadly poifon, lo that the Indians always caution
their children againil eating them, for they know
of no antidote to expel this poifon : nor will any of
theui ufe this wood for fuel; but tht-y take the ker-
ne's out of the fhells, into which they put fm.dl
ILuies, then bore a hole through each (hell, and
Ihing them, thcfe they tie about their legs to dance
with as the moirice-dancers ufe bells with us.
L'ERCIS, the Judas-tree, in botany, a plant
which grows naturally in the fouch of France. In
Spain and Italy it lifcs with an uptight trunk to the
height of twelve or fourteen feet, covered with a
dark reddifh bark, and divides upward into many
irregular branches, which are furnifhed with round,
Iietrt-fhaped fmooth leaves, placed irregularly on
the branches, with long foot-llalks : thefe are of a
pale green on their upper, and of a greyifh colour
on their under- fide, and are deciduous. The flow-
ers come out on every fide of the branches, and
many times from the ftem of the tree inclufters;
thefe are of a bright purple colour, papilionaceous,
and ftand on fnort foot-iblks; the corolla of the
flower confirts of five petals inferred into the calyx ;
the fruit is an oblong obliquely acuminated legu-
men, having one cell, containing a row of roundilh
feeds, annexed to the upper furture.
This tree is ufually planted with us among other
flowering trees and Ihrubs for the ornament of the
flower-garden, and blolToms in May ; it is propa-
gated by fowing the feeds in the fpring upon a bed
of light earth, and afterward tranfplanted into the
nurfery.
The wood of this tree is very beautifully veined
wl>h black and green ; it takes a fine polifii, and
may be converted into many uf s.
There is another fpecies of cercis, which Is a na-
tive of North America, where it is called the red-
bud-tree.
CERBERUS, the name of a dog, with three
heads, whom the poets made to be the porter of
the infernal regions.
CERDONIANS, in church hiftory, ancient he-
retics, who maintained mod of the errors of Simon
Magus, Satiirnel, and other Gnoftics.
CEREALIA, in antiquity, the facred rites of
the goddefs Ceres, iniUtuced by Triptoleaius.
C E R
CEREBELUM, in anatomy, the hinder part of
tl;e brain. See the article Br.mn.
CEREBRUM, in anatom.y, denotes the brain.
See the .Trticle Brain.
CEREMONY, Cercmonla, an afiemblage of fe-
veral adtions, forms, and circumftances, feivingto
render a thing more magnificent and folemn ; parti-
cularly ufed to denote the external rites of religious
worfhip, the formalities of introducing ambafladors
to audience, &c.
CERES, a Pagan deity, the inventor, or goddefs
of Corn.
CEREUS, the torch-thiftle, in botany, a genus
of plants, whofe flower is compofed of a number of
narrow pointed petals, which ate radiated : in the
bafe of the petals are inferted a great number of
declining ftamina. T he fruit is an oblong, fuccu-
lent berry, wih a prickly (kin, filled with fmall
feeds, inclofed in a pulp.
There are divers fpecies in this genus, fome of
which grow upright, others trail on the ground ;
but are all fucculent, ard without lea\'es.
The large ujiright torch- thiitle has fix large angles,
which are far afjndcr. Their edges are armed wiih
fliarp fpines, which come out in cluflers at certain
diftanccs, fpreading like a ftar. The outer fub-
flance of the iiem is foft, herbaceous, and full of
juice J but in the center there is a (trong fibrous
circle, running the whole length, which fecures the
fiem from bciig broke by the winds.
This plant will rile to the height of thirty or forty
feet, provided their tops are not injured. The
flowers come out from the angles on the fide of the
ftem, on a thick flefhy footltalk, which is fcaly,
round, channeled, and hairy. The duration of
thefe flowers is very fliort.
As this plant is houfed in winter, when it is got
fo high that the place cannot contain it any longer,
it may be cut off near the bottom in the fummer, ■
and laid in the ftove to heal the place of incifion, "
after which it may be ftuck in the bark-bed, where
it will foon and readily take root ; when it may be
planted in a pot : the other part will put forth from
the top frefh plants, which is the only method to
increafe them. This plant is not fo tender as the
other forts, therefore may be kept in a common
green-houfe in winter ; but they fliould have fcarce
any water, for unlefs they aie placed in a hot-houfe,
where the moifture is foon evaporated, the wet will
occafion them to rot. This fpecies grows naturally
at Surinam, from whence it was firft brought to
Holland, and is now very common in England.
Oi the creeping or trailing forts, there is one
which opens its flower in the evening, is fully ex-
panded at midnight, and the next morning decayed.
This is large and radiated.
Another fort, which is now pretty common, pro-
duces very beautiful flowers, of a rich pink colour.
The petals are not fo numerous j and the tube of
the
C E R
C E R
the flower is longer than tliofe of the other fpccies ;
and contrary to all the other forts, keep open three
or four days, provided the weather is not too hot.
During the continuance of thcfe flowers, which
may be a fortnight or tlirec weeks, as they do pot
all come out together, they make a moft beautiful
appearance in the houfe. This fort has very (lender
trailing branches, which fome train up to IHcks,
which. being turned in ferpentine order, have fome-
what the appearance of fnakes ; others let them
hang down the fides of the pcits. This plant for the
oddity of its appvarance, and the great plenty of its
beautiful flowers, msy be placed among the firft clafs
of exotic plants. It is very eafily propagated by
cuttings in the fummer months, which fhould be
laid in a dry place to heal for about a fortnight, and
afterward fl;uck in the tan-bed, where they will
eafily take root ; after which they may be potted,
and kept in the hot-houfe in winter, though they
may be preferved with care in a good green-houfe ;
but mufl have very little water.
This genus of plants are claiTed by Linnasus with
tlie melon, thiftle, Indian-fig, &c. under the gene-
ral name ca61us : but though the flowers may agree,
yet as the plants are fo very different from each other
in their appearance, we theretore thought it necef-
fary in this work to explain them by the names they
are m.oft generally known by.
CERINTHE, honey-wort, in botany, a senus of
plants, the flower of which confifts of a Tingle pe-
tal ; the tube is fhort and thick, the limb is thicker
than the tube, and Ibmevvhat bellied : it is divided
into live fegments, and the mouth is open and per-
vious : the fruit confifts of two hard olleous bodies
of an oval figure, gibbous on the outfide, plane
within, acute, emarginated, and containing two
cells : the feeds are lingle, round ifh, and accumi-
nated.
Botanifts enumerate five fpecies of this genus,
which are all natives of foreign countries.
CERINTHIANS, chriftian heretics, followers
of Cerinthus, who lived, and publiilied his herefy,
in the time of the apoftles themfelves ; for Epi-
phanus places him in the year of Chrift So, in the
reign of Domitian. He had been circumcifed, and
was probably of Jewifh extraction.
The particulars in which the herefy of theCerin-
thians confided were thefe : they did not allow that
God was the author of the creatures ; but f.iid, that
the world was created by an inferior power : they at-
tributed to this creator an only fon, but born in
time, and different from the word. They admitted
feveral angels and inferior powers, as filence, depth,
fulncfs : in which they were afterwards followed by
the Valentinians. They maintained that the law
and the prophets came not from God, but from the
angels ; and that the God of the Jews was only an
angel.
As to our Saviour, the Cerinthians diftinguiflied
28
between Jefus and Chrift : they faid that Jefu3 wal
a mere man, born like other men, of Jofeph and
Mary; but that he excelled all others in juftice,-
prudence, and wifdom : that Jefus being baptized,
the Chrift of the fupreme God, that is, the holy
fpirit, defcended upon him; and that, by the affift-
ance of this Chrift, Jefus performed his miracles :
that Jefus fuffered, and rofe again, but that the
Chrift had before left him, and returned to heaven.
CEROPEGIA, in botany, a genus of pentan-
dfious plants, whofe flower is compofed of a fmall
quinquedented calx, with a monopetalous corolla,
large and globofe at the bafe, with a cylmdraceous
tube, and a fmall limb, cut in five fegments : iti
the bafe of the corolla is placed five fmall incurved
ftamina. The pericarpium is compofed of two
cylindraceous pointed folliculi unilocular, and of
one valve. The feeds are numerous, imbricated,
oblonE, and crowned with down.
CERTIFICANDO de Recognitione St.-v-
PULJE, a writ iffued to the mayor of the ftaple,
commanding him to certify to the lord-chancellor a
ftatute-ftable taken before him, where the party re-
fufes to bring it.
CERTIl'ICATE, in law, a writing made in
any court, to give notice to another court of any-
thing done therein. The clerks of the crown,
alFize, and the peace, are to make certificates into
the King's-Bench, of the tenor of all indidments,
convidfions, outlawries, Sic.
CERTIFICATION 0/ Jfize of novel Dljfeifm^
a writ granted for re-examining pafled-by aflizes,
before juftices. This writ is ufcd where a peifon
appears, by his bailifi^, to an aflize brought by ano-
ther, and has loft the day.
CERTIORARI, a writ which ifTues out of the
chancery, dire(Sfed to an inferior court, to call up
the records of a caufe there dependinc, in or-der
that juftice may be done: and this writ is obtained
upon complaint that the party v.ho feeks it has re-
ceived hard ufage, or is not like to have an impar-
tial trial in the inferior court. A certiorari is made
returnable either in the King's--[jench, Common-
Pleas, or in Chancery.
CERT-MONEY, a fine paid yearly by the re-
fidents of feveral manors to the lord thereof, and
fometimes to the hundred, pro certo Ictc ; that is,
for the Certain keeping of the leet.
Ci'-RViC.AL Nerves, in znatomv. arc eight
pair of nerves, fo called, as having their origin in
the neck. SeeNEK\E.
Cervical Vessels, in anatomy, denote the
arteries, veins, c^c. Vvhich pafs through the verte-
bra;, and mufcles of the neck, up to the fkull.
Cervicales Descenden'i es, a pair of muf-
cles, antagonifts to th_- f.icro-lumbares, coming
from the third, fourth, fifth, and fixih vertebra of
the neck.
CERVIX, in anatomy, deno:es properly the.
6 X hinder
C E S
hinder part of the neck, as contradiftinguifhcd from
the fore part, called jugulum, or the throat. See
Neck.
Cervix of the Uterus, or the neck of the uterus,
that oblong canal or paffage between the internal
and external orifices of the womb, which receives
and iiiclofes the penis, like a flieath ; whence it is
alfo called vagina. See the articles Uterus and
Vagina.
CERUMEN, ear-wax, or that natural excre-
ment collefted in tlie meatus auditorius, and dif-
charged from the glands of thofe parts through the
membrane which lines ihem. It is fluid on its firft
difcharge, but by its continuance it becomes thicker,
more folid, vifcid, of the confiftence of clay, and
of a bitterifh tafte.
CERUSE, or Ceruss, white-lead, a fort of
calx of lead, made by expofing plates of that metal
to the vapour of vinegar.
Ceruss of Antimony, a medicine prepared by
difliiling powdered regulus of antimony with fpirit
of nitre, till no more fumes arife; what remains in
the retort, being pulverifed and waflied, makes the
ccrufs of antimony, which is efleemed a powerful
Jiuretic.
CERVUS, the flag or deer-kind, in zoology, a
genus of quadrupeds of the order of the pecora ;
the charaders of which are, that they have deci-
duous horns, at firft hairy, and afterwards naked
and fmooth ; add to this, that there is only one
dog-tooth on each fide of the upper jaw, and that
placed at a diftance from the other teeth.
Under this genus are comprehended the camclo-
pardalis, the alee or elk, the rangifer or rein-deer,
fhe capreolus, and the ifag and fallow-deer. See
the articles Camelo-Pardalis, &c.
Cervus Volans, in zoology, the name of
the ftag-horned beetle, a remarkably large fpecies
ot beetle, with its horns deeply jagged or ramified,
fomewhat like thofe of a flag.
CESARE, among logicians, one of the modes
of the fecond figure of fyllogifms, the minor pro-
pofition of which is an univerfal affirmative, and
the other two univerfal neguives : thus
Ce. No immoral books ought to be read :
sa. But every obfcene book is immoral :
RE. Therefore no obfcene book ought to be read.
CESSION, in law, an ad by which a perfon
furrsnders and tranfmits to another perfon, a right
which belonged to himfelf.
CESSION, in the ecclefiaftical law, is when an
ecclefiaftical perfon is created a bifhop, or when a
parfon of a parifh takes another benefice without
(lifpenfation, or being otherwife qualified. In both
thefe cafes their firft benefices become void by cef-
fion, without any refignation,
CESTRUM, in botany, a genus of plants, the
£ower of which is monopetalous, of a funnel-form,
4
GET
with a cylindrical and very long and /lender tubf,
and a plane plicated limb, divided into five equal
ovated fegments ; the fruit is an oblong oval berry,
with one cell, containing numerous roundifh feeds.
CESTUS, among ancient poets, a fine embroi-
dered girdle faid to be worn by Venus, to which;
Homer afcribes the faculty of charming and conci--
liating love.
CETACEOUS, an appellation given to a clafs
or order of fifties, otherwife called plagiuri. See
the article Plagiuri.
CETERACH. See the article Asplenium.
CETUS, or the Whale, in aftronomy, a con-
ftellation of the fouthern hemifpliere, containing,,
according to Ptolemy, 22 ffars, Tycho 21, but
in the following catalogue 97. ' The poets tell
us that this is that monftrous filh that would have,
devoured Andromeda ; but, being overcome by Per-
feus, was afterwards tranfiated into heaven by Ju-
piter, for the hugenefs of its bulk.
l-
c
-0
Name.
6
§
1
6
2
4-5
3
6
4
6
5
6
6
5
7
5
8
3
9
6
10
6
II
6
12
6
13
6
14
6
'5
6
16
3
17
5
I™" ad
18
6
19
5
2"^ ad
20
6
21
6
22
5
7"'' ad
23
5
4" ad
24
b
25
6
26
6
27
6
28
6
29
6
3c
6
3'
3
32
6
33
6
Right
Afcenfion
356.14.27
357.-51.2c
35S. 2.10
359. 6.4c
359-I3-4?
359.46.
0-36-33
1.46.56
2.38-31
3-35- t
4-22.53
4.26.21
5.42.48
5.47 22
6.27.21
7.52.47
8. 1.29
8.2055
9.32. I
10. 1.37
10.32.37
10.59.57
11.41.45
12. 9.5.1,
12.46. I
I2-53-39
13.23.42
'3-30'32
13.54.56
13.55.22
14. 7.49
14.32.24
■14.33.56
Diftance
from Nor.
Pole.
107.10.
IC9.40.
101.50
93-53
93-47
106 47
no. 16
ICO. 9
103.32
91.23
92.26,
95.17,
94 55
94-49
91.50
109.18
101.56.
104. 1 1.
101.56.
92.27.
100. I.
102.34.
(02. 40
85.38.
96. 7.
89.55.
101.15.
101. 8.
89.15.
loi. 3.
101.27.
ICC.I I.
88.50.
44
42
56
16
II
.20
. 6
•45
•55
.10
•57
•31
•25
4'
II
■35
u
, 2
36
22
39
31
54
5
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39
59
4
41
20
55
•5
16!
Var.
Right
Var.ia
Decli-
Afi
tv.
nation.
/y
,^
44.
7
20.0
44.
5
20.0
44.
2
20.0
44-
20.0
44-
2
20.0
46.
i3
20.0
44.
5
20.0
46.
4
20.0
44-
20.
44.
20.0.
44.
20.0
44.
20 0.
44.
19.9
44-
199.
44.
19-9
45-
5
19.9,
44-
19.8
43-
5
19.8
4.3-
5
198
44.
19.8
43-
5
19.8
43-
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19.7
43-
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19.7
44.
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19.7
-)4.
19.7
44-
5
19.7
43-
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19.7
43-
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19.7
44-
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19.7
43-
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19-7
43-
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19.61
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C H A
Name.
i""* ad
i""' ad
z^* ad
I"" ad
[nPeflore
Mova
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Right
Afceiifion.
Dirtance
from Nor,
Pole.
15.55. 2
15. 4. q
15.10.34
15-3+-25
15.39.12
iti. 6.19
j6. 9.49
16.24.24
16.53.59
I7-3515
17.57. t)
18. 0,31
18.27.20
18.45.28
19.30.28
20.43.30
21. 4-31
22. r4.
23-I5-32
24.26.
24.4«^-5i
24.54
26.21.26
27. 7
27.12.10
27.10. .
27.43-2
27.52.59
29.14.34
29 36.10
29.40.-30
30. 4- 4
30. 6.49
31.13.22
31.48.27
32-25-I4
32.28.44
33.12. 11
3335-3^
33.50.22
34- 1-5.''
34.58.58
35.10.2j
35.42.12
35.48.58
35'4S^-59
36. 2.12
36.23.45
36.48.29
37. 0.10
37-I3-47
(7.2421
37-43'i4
37.58.40
9.3-3 '-55
89.48.
98.. 4-
99.13.52
92.1449
93.46.11
93.3-2.21
98.56
91.4641
91.43.54
99.15.38
99.25.58
105. 51. II
104.18.41
"3'52-37
106.54.44
10637. 2
85.45.11
107.13.18
101.52.5
80. 8.54
101.31.55
113.42. 8
112. 1.33
93 14.52
112. r4. 2/
91. 2.41
91.30.32
93.28.54
92.58. 5
82.33.20
82.17
93-3I-29
97.32.r5
94. 4.17
90.42.50
91.58.3c
93 52-39
103.22.47
82.37-39
112.54.44
92. 6.45
106. ]8. I
98.55. 8
85.26.54
94.35.28
98.53.20
94.27. ic
92.43.28
102.5341
91.44.13
80.17.53
87.47.3c
80.55.14
Var. in
Righi
Afccn.
43-
44.
43-
43-
44-
43-
43-
43-
44-
44-
43-
45-
42.
42-
40.
42-
42.
44-
41-
41-
45-
41-
40.
40.
43-
40.
44.
44.
43-
43-
45-
47-
43-
42.
45-
44-
43-
43-
41.
45-
40.
43-
41-
42.
45-
43-
42.
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43-
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46.
44-
6.
Var. in
Decli-
nation.
T
7
•9-5
19.5
5
'9-5
2
19.4
19.4
7
'9-4
7
'9-3
5
19-3
19.2
19.2
19.2
15
19.1
5
19 1
5
19.1
6
19.0
190
19.0
5
18.9
18.9
5
,8.9
2
18.8
5
18.8
5
187
7
18.7
5
18.6
5
i8.6
18.5
18.5
5
18.4
5
18.3
2
18.2
2
18.1
5
18.0
5
18.0
4
17.9
'7-5
/
170
2
16.9
5
16.8
2
.6.5
16.5
7
16.4
.6.4
2
16.4
16.3
16.2
2
16. 1
16.0
16.0
7
15.9
15-5
15.0
5
15.0
14.9
u
-0
to
Name.
88
S
6
89
4-3
90
8
9'
4
92
2
93
6
9+
6
95
6
96
5
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97
4
2"" ad
Right
Afcenlion
38. o.
38. 10. 22
38.28.27
41.42. 5
42.26.21
42.27. 2
45. 8.12
46 31.25
46.40.54
47.17.59
Diftance
from Nor.p^;;r
rule. Al.eii
78-34-
'04 53-
109.36.
80. 4.
86.52.
86.37.
92. 6.
9149.
87.21.
87.12.
26
46 5
41.0
40.0
46.0
46.7
44-7
44|43-7
43-7
45144-5
44-5
Vur
in
Dec
1-
IdtKiJl
,
14
8
'4
8
'4
7
'4
7
'4
7
14-
5
'4
3
'4
2
14
T.
'4
CEV^ADILLA, in botany, Indian cauftic barley,,
the feed veffel of a Mexican plant, refembling in its.
form and ftru(Slure a barley ear, but with fmaller
feeds, not above the fize of linfeed.
CH.EROPHYLLUM, chervil, in botany, an
umbelliferous plant, with winged leaves fomewhat,
like thofe of par/ley, producing fmooth longim feeds,,
fhaped like a bird's beak. It is a native of the
fouthern parts of Europe, and fown annually wiih
us in gardens.
CHAFERY, a forge in an iron-mill, where-
the iron is hammered out into complete bars, and'
brought to perfeiSlion.
CH.AFE-WAX, an officer in the chancery, who
fits the wax for fealing writs, patents, and other in-
llruments iflued out from thence.
CHAFF, in hufbandry, the refufe or ftraw that
is feparated from corn, by fcreening or winnowing
it.
CHAFFERCOUNCES, prin<ed linen manu-
faftured in the Mogul's dominiorrS, and imported
to Europe by v/ay of Surat.
CHAFFEZS, in our old records, fignify wares^
or merchandize ; and hence the word chaffering is-
ufed for buying and felling.
CHAIN, Catena, a long piece of metal compofeds
of feveral links, or rings, engaged the one in the-
other.. They are made of divers metals,, fnme
round, fome flat, others ftj^uare ; fome fingk, fome
double; and ferve for fo many ufcs, that it would
be tedious to give a particular account of them.,
all.
Ch-i^in alfo implies a firing of gold, filver, or
fleel-wire, wrought lik« a tiifue, which ferves 10-
hang watches, tv.-eezer cafes, and otlier valuable,
toys upon. The invention ot thefe piece of work-
manfliip was derived originally from England,.
whence foreigners give them tlie name of chains-
of England.
Chains, in naval affairs, ftrong plates or links-
of iron bolted to the timbers on each fide of all (he-
maftf, by whicli the fljrouds of the mads aradrawnt
ti^ht and faftensd. Inhere, is a broad plank or thick.
fcalToid^
C H A
fcafFold, called the channel, placed edge-ways on
the fliip's fide, through which they pafs in order to
keep the fhrouds off the upper-rails and gunnels ;
that is, the upper part of the fhip's fide.
Chain- Shot, in artillery, is formed by having
a fhoit chain which fallens two cannon-balls toge-
ther. Thcfe are more particularly ufed in the fea-
fervice for cutting and mangling a Ihip's rigging,
and carrying away her mafts.
Chain Pump. See the article Pump.
Chain, in furveying, an inftrument ufually made
of iron-wire, but fometimes of brafs, divided into
an hundred equal parts, called links, and is uf^d in
meafuring lengths in furveying of land ; and if
other proper inltruments for taking or meafuring an-
gles are wanting, it may be ufed with great pro-
priety for that purpoie, and rather preferable to any
other for expedition, accuratenels, where the bear-
ings are not required, or an accurate plot is not
wanted, but only the true content of a piece of
land. Thefe chains are of different or various forts,
viz.
1. A chain of lOO feet long, each link confe-
quentlv one foot long; at each tenth foot there is a
plate of brafs with a figure engraved upon it, (hew-
ing readilly how many links arc from the beginning
of the chain ; and for more cafe in reckoning,
there is, or flioulJ be a brafs ring at every five
links, that is one between every two plates.
2. A chain of i6^- feet long, and made fo as to
contain a hundred links, with rings at every tenth
link. This chain is molt uftful in meafuring gar-
Jens or orchards by pole or perch zneafure.
3. A chain of four poles or perches in length,
calied Gunter's chain, being fixty-fix feet, or twen-
ty-two yards, which being divided into one hun-
dred parts, or links, each link confequently mull
contain 7,92 inches. It is ufual to put pieces of
brafs at every tenth link, and that at the fiftieth
link is round, but all the refl are forked, or cut
with points. Thus at ten links, from the begin-
ning, is a piece of brafs with one horn or point;
at twenty with two, at thirty with three, at forty
with four, and at fifty a round piece. Likewife it
mufl he remarked, that it does not proceed from
from fifty to fixty, but from each end to fifty. This
chain is what is commonly ufed by furveyors, and
is of all others moft ufeful. Sometimes inffead of
the forked poi-nts ab ivementioned in the pieces of
brafs, they are all made round, with each a proper
n-umber of holes to diilinguifli them, but thefe are
not fo good, the holes being apt to fill with dirt,
and caufe miffakes, which in every thing ought ,
carefully to be avoided a-s much as poffible.
When any line, fide of a field, &c. is to be 1
meafured with this chain, you need not regard
any oiher denomination but chains and links, which
fct down in the fame manner as decimals : thus, if
the fide or line meafured be 7 chains, 47 links, you
C H A
mufl write it down thus, 7.47, which Is nbthing
more than exprefling it decimally feven chains, and-
for feven one-hundiedths. Again, if it was fifteen,
chains nine links you had to put down, write it
thus, 15 07, always remembering, if the links to
be writ down are under (en, to place a cypher be-
fore the quantity, as in the laft.
The method of furveying a field or piece of land
wi;h the chain, wefhall fliew by the following ex-
ample, viz.
Let A B C D E F reprefent the field, whofe con-'
tent is required. Firff, Draw a rough f]:etch of
the outlines of the place by the eye, likewife of
the pricked lines, as reprefented in the figure. Se-
cond, Set off with the chain any convenient num-
ber of links, as 30, 40, or 50, from A to c, and
the fame from A to J; then nieafure from the point
c in the line A C to the point d in the line A F,
and you have the ihord c d oi the angle A d Third,
Meafure the line A a wiih the chain. Fourth, Mea-
lure <7 B, fo that it fliall be perpendicular to A C,
which you may eafily do with a crols-flaff; then
proceed to meafure the line a C, C D, D ^, // E, (in
the fame manner as a B) and i F, and you will
have all the dimenfions required for either plotting
the field, or finding the true content ; the nature ot
which, and every other requifite, (hall be given
under the artif !e Surveying.
CHAIR, Cathedra, was anciently the fuggeftum,
or pulpit, whence the prieft or public orator fpokc
to the pec^ile. See the article Cathedra.
Curuk Qhaik, an ivory feat placed on a car,
wherein were feated the chief magiftrates of Rome,
and thofe to whom the honour of a triumph was
granted.
Chair-Man, the prefident or fpeaker of an
afTembly. See President.
CHALAZA, among naturalifts, a white knotty
fort of firing at each end of an ege, formed of a
plexus of the fibres of the membranes, whereby
the yolk and white aie connefled together. See
Egg.
CHALCEDONY, Chakcdonlus, in natural hif-
tory, a genus of femi- pellucid gems, of an even
and regular, not tabulated texture ; of a femi-
opake, cryftalline bafis, and variegated with diffe-
rent colours, difperfed in form of miffs and clouds ;
and, if nicely examined, found to be owing to an
admixture of various kinds of earths, but imper-
fectly blended in the mafs, and olten vifible m dif-
tin£t moleculs.
CHADCIDICA, or Chalcidicum, in anci-
ent architedfure, a magnificent hall belonging to a
tribunal or court of juitice.
CHALCITIS, the name given by the ancients
to the brownifh-red chalcanthum, of a foft and fri-
able fubftance, and fhcwing a very irregular fur-
face when broken ; being compofed of five or fi,\
fcfics of fliort, waved, and undulated Arise.
CHAL-
C H A
C H A
CHALDRON, an Englifh dry meafure, coni
fifting of chirtyfix bufliels, heaped up according to
the fealed bufhel kept at Guildhall, Londqp : but
On fhip-board, twenty-one chaldron of coals are
allowed to the fcore.
CHALICE, the cup or veflel ufed to adminifter
the wine in the facrament ; and by the Roman ca-
tholics in the mafs.
CHALK, in natural hiftory, the Englifh name
of the white, dry marie, with a dufty furface, found
in hard maffes, and called by authors, ada, and
terra creta.
Black Chalk, among painters, denotes a kind
of ochrcous eaith, of a clofe ftrufture, and fine
black colour, uftd in drawing upon blue paper.
Red Chalk, an indurated clayey ochre, com-
mon in the colour-fhops, apd much ufed by pain-
ters and artificers.
Chalky-Land, that lying on a chalky bottom,
whereby it is ftrongly impregnated with the virtues
of the chalk.
CHALLENGE, a cartel, or invitation to a duel,
or other combat. See the article Duel.
Challenge, in law, is an exception made to
jurors, who are returned to a perfon on a trial.
CHALYBEAT, in medicine, an appellation gi-
ven to any liquid, as wine or water, impregnated
with particles of iron or fteel.
CHAMADE, in war, a fignal made by beat of
drum for a conference with the enemy, when any
thing is to be propofed ; as a ceflation of arms to
bring off the dead, or a fignal made by the befieg-
ed when they have a mind to deliver up a place
upon articles of capitulation : in which cafe there is
a fufpenfion of arms, and hoftages delivered on both
fides.
CHAM.EDRYS, in botany. See Teu-
CRIUM.
CHAM/ELEON, Chamaho, in zoology, a fpe-
cies of lizard with a (hort rounded tail, five toes on
each foot, two or three of which adhere together.
See Lizard.
CHAMiEMELUM, camomile, in botany, a
plant with finely divided leaves ; and moderately
large flowers, {landing folitary on the tops of the
ftalks, upon long naked pedicles : the flower is
compoied of a number of white petala, fet round a
yellow convex difli.
The leaves and flowers of this plant have a
flrong, not ungrateful finell ; and a very hitter nau-
feous tafte.
CHAM^PITYS, ground-pine, in botany, a
low, hairy, .creeping plant, with fquare ftallts ;
whitifli clammy leaves, cut deeply into three long
narrow fegments, like thofe of the pine-tree, fet in
pairs at the joints; and yellow labiated flowers,
without pedicles, and wanting the upper lip. It is
annual, grows wild in fandy and chalky grounds
in fome parts of England, and flowers in July.
28
CHAM^,ROPS, the dwarf palm or palmetto,
in botany, a plant which has no ftem, but the foot-
ftalks of the leaves rife immediately from the root,
and are armed on each fide with ftrong ("pines ;
they are flat on their upper furface and convex un-
derneath. To the ends of thefc foot-ftalks the
center of the leaves are faflened, which fpread open
like a fan, having many foldings, and at the t:)p
are deeply divided like the fingers of the hand {
when they firrt come out they are clofed together
like a fan when (hut, and are faflened together by
ftrong fibres, which run along the borders of the
leaves ; when the leaves fpread open, thefe fibres
or firings hang from the fides and ends ; the bor-
ders of the leaves are finely fawed with narrow
edgings ; thefe leaves fpread out on every fide of
the plant.
f>om between the leaves comes out the fpadix or
club which fuftains the flowers : this is covered with
a thin fpatha or hood, the flowers are male and her-
maphrodite ; the petals are cvated, eredi, acute,
and inflcifled at the top. The fruit confifts of three
round berries with one cell, containing folitary glo-
bofe feeds.
The corolla of the male flower is the fame as the
hermaphrodite.
This plant grows naturally in Andalufia, where
in fandy land the roots fpread, and propagate very
faft, as fern does in England. The leaves of this
plant are ufed as brooms to fweep with. Another
fort of palmetto grows naturally in the Weft-In-
dies, which differs chiefly in the fize, and are with-
out fpines.
CH.'\MANIM, in Jewifti antiquity, idols ex-
pofed to the fun upon tops of houfes, according to
Rabbi Solomon : others will have the chamanim to
be the fame with what the Greeks call pyrasa ; that
is, portable chapels, or temples, made in the form
of chariots, in honour of the lun. See the article
Pyrjea.
CHAMBER, in building, any room fituated be-
tween the lowermoft and the uppermoft rooms : in
moft houfes there are two, in others three, or more
ftories of chambers.
Chamber, in policy, the place where certain
afl'emblies are held, alfo the afiembiies themfelves.
Of thefe, fome are eftablillied fjr rhe aclminillra-
tion of juftice, others for co.^lmerciil aft..irs.
Chamber of a CaniJO!., in artillery, that part of
the bore of a cannon which receives the powder with
which it is charged. See the articleCANNON.
It is evident that the greater the quantity of pow-
der which takes fire at the fame inltant, the greater
its tfFedt will be upon the bullet. This gave rife
towards the end of the laft centiiry, to a new coii-
ftru£lion of the bore of ciniion, by making a cavi-
ty in the form of a fphere a liitU Jlatted. The
touch-hole being placed pretty near the middle of
this cavity, which was larger than any othir pa.i <.f
6 Y the
C H A
C H A
the bore, fired a greater quantity of powder at the
fame time than if the bore had been uniform, and
then the powder finding itfelf, as it were, bound
up, and confined in this cavity, a<Sfed upon the
bullet with more force and impctuofity than in the
common pieces.
The defign of this contrivance was to throw a
bullet from a piece fhorter, lighter, and more eafy
of carriage, than others, with the fame degree of
force as from (hofe before ufed. Experience prov-
ed that the conffruction of thefe pieces anfwcred the
end propofed ; fur though much fhorter than other
cannon, and charged wilh a lefs quantity of pow-
der, they produced the fame efFedt. But as it was
difficult to clean the chamber after the piece had
been fired, there frequently remained fome fparks
behind ; fo that when it was necefTary ;o fire the
pieces as fad as poffitile, many cannoneers had their
arms fliot off as they were charging them ; and be-
fides, as the powder, before it forced itfelf out of the
chamber prefTed on all fides with great violence
and impetuofity, in a very litle time the carriages
were broken to pieces, and rendered unferviceable ;
and by a frequent repetition of this violent agita-
tion, the piece acquired a very confiderable recoil,
and the diteiSlion of the bullet became uncertain.
For thefe reafons this contrivance was entirely laid
afide, and the greateft part of thefe pieces found in
the arfenals and fortifications were re- caft ; fo that
the cannon now ufed have a bore of the fame di-
ameter in all parts.
The pieces with fpherical or oblong cavities,
were called fpherical chamber-pieces ; and thofe ufed
before and fince that invention, are called cylindri-
cal chamher- pieces.
We have already faid, that the bore of cannon
is in every part of equal diameters, but it muft be
obferved, that this is not ffri&ly true at prefent,
except in twelve, eight, and four pounders ; for in
twenty-fourand fixteen pounders, ihereis made atthe
bottom of the bore a little cylindrical chamber a, b,
in Jig. 1. Plate XXVII. which holds about two
ounces of powder.
Chamber, of a AJine, the furnace or cavity at
the inner- end of the mine that receives the charge
of powder, by which it is blown up. See the arti-
cles Charge, Gallery, I^.Iine.
'The defign of mines is to blov/ up and dcftroy
whatfoever lies over their chambers ; and in order
to this, it is necefl'ary that the powder ihey con-
tain fiiould meet with lefs refiftance in this part
than towards the gallery, othtrwife it would not
blow up.
When the quantities of powder requif.te to charge
the mine is known, what ought to be the dimen-
fiins or capacity of its chamber is to be thence
^ifcertaincd.
The chamber muti be of a fize juft fufficient to
contain the ch.irge it is to rective, that the powder
being more confined, may, when inflamed, have
a ffronger effeff. It muft alfo be of the figure of a
cube, that is, a folid terminated by fix equal fquares,
becaufe the powder taking fire in the middle of this
folid, a£ts more equally on all parts of the chamber
of the mine, than if it had any other figure, ex-
cept it could be made circular, which would be
ftill better, but the conflrudfion of it in this fio-ure
is too difficult.
The proper dimenfions of the chamber may be
eafily determined by geometry, knowing only the
weight of a cubic foot of powder, which is found
to be about eighty pounds; as, for inftance, if a
mine is to be charged with eighty pounds of pow-
der, its chamber muft be equal to one cubic foot.
It may however be made about one-third larger
than the fpace filled by the powder, becaufe, to
prevent the powder from growing damp in the
chamber, or furneau, it is covered all round with
facks, planks, ftraw, &c.
To fix then the proper dimenfion of the chamber
of the mine, for which we have above afcertained
the proper charge, let us fuppofe, that to ninety-
three pounds and an half, the quantity given by
the calculation, feven pounds and a half be added,
there will then be one hundred pounds complete for
the charge. Now if eighty pounds of powder oc-
cupy one cubic foot of fpace, one hundred pounds
will occupy one cubic foot and one quarter ; add
to this three quarters of a foot for the facks, planks,
ftraw, &c. which are to be placed in the mine,
and two cubic feet will be given for the whole ca-
pacity of the chamber. So that nothing more is
requifite than to find the fide of a cube, containing^
two cubic feet, which appears by approximation,
to be about one foot three inches ; and then giving
for the bafe of the chamber a fquare, whofe iide is.
equal to that juft found, and making its height alfo
equal to the fame, it will have exadfly the dimen»
fions required. It may not be amifs to obferve,
that a rigorous exaftnefs is not abfolutely necefTary
in this fort of calculation.
Chamber of a Mortar., is fituated in the fame
phce, and deftined fur the fume purpofe, as the
chamber of a cannon explained above. See the ar-
ticles Bomb and Mortar.
Some mortars have cylindrical chambers, which
they call old fajlnon ; fome have fpherical chambers,,
others chambers in the fhape of a pear; there are
others with chambers fhaped like the fruftum of a
cone.
The mouths of mortars are from fix to eighteen,
inches diameter; the chambers are bigger or lefs,
according to the fize of the piece, and they contain
from two to twelve, and even to eighteen pounds of'
powder.
Chamber of a Pump. Sec the article Puii p.
CflAMBRANLE, among builders, an ornament
of ftc-ne or wood bordering the three fiJes of doors,
v/indowsj.
C H A
windows, and chimnies. It is different, according to
the feveral orders, and confifts of three parts, viz.
the top called the traverfe, and the two fides, the
afcendants.
CHAMFER, or Chamfret, in architeflure,
an ornament confiding of half a fcdtia, being a
kind of a fmall furrow or gutter on a column, call-
ed alfo fcapus, ftria, Sic,
CHAMf KRING, in architeflure, a term ufcd
for the cutting the under edge of any thing allope
or level.
CHAIMOIS, or Charmois Goat, in zoolo-
gy, the name of the rupin capra, a creature of the
goat-kind, with ereiSt and fnort but hooked horns.
It is from the fkin of this animal that the chamois
leather is made.
CHAMPADA, in botany, a genus of trees, pro-
ducing polypetalous flowers, which are fucceeded
by a large fruit refembling a melon, much prized
by the people of Malacca; it is v/hen ripe twelve
or fourteen inches long, and as much in circumfe-
rence where broadeft.
CHAMPAIN, or Point Champaign, in he-
raldry, a mark of difhonour in the coat of arms of
him who kills a prifoner of war, after he has cried
quarter.
CHAMPARTY, or Champerty, in law, a
contradl made with either the plaintiff or defendant
in any fuit at law, for giving part of the land,
debt, &c. fucd for, to the party who undertakes
the procefs at his own proper chaiges, provided he
fucceeds therein.
CHAMPIGNON, a plant of the fungus kind ;
it is Itfs than the mufhroom, pitted all round, and
of a whitifh red or brown ; it is hollow on the in-
Her fide, and feems to be fprinkled with a fort of
mealinefs ; though it is fmooth, it differs from the
common mufhroom, not only in the fize, but by
tiie cavities, as well as by the colour of the under fide.
The pedicle is entirely white, hollow,, and fur-
nifhed at the end with flender thready roots. The
champignon, as well ftefh as dried, has a fweetlfh
tafie, and is prepared in various manners for the
l.ihle. GeofFioy afHrms, it excites the appetite, in-
creafcs the motion of the blond, and re(lc>res the
lUeiigth, though it yields but little nounfhment.
They are in great elleem among the, French, ihough
fome think all fungufes are bad.
Champignons arc found in meadows, and on
commons in divers parts of England, and ficqucnt-
ly grow in circles.
CHANCE, in a general fcnfe, a term applied to
events, not necellaiily produced, as the natural ef-
fedls of any proper foreknown caufe.
Chance is more particularly ufed for the proba-
bility of an event, and is greater or Icfs, according
to the number of chances by wliich it may happen,
compared with the nurriber of chances by whi> h it
laiay either happen.cr.faik
C H A
I Doifr'me «/ Chance, or Laws of Chance, is
that art or method, by which (from certain rules)
we difcover the probability that any event has of
happening or failing. Thus, fuppofing it were re-
quired to exprcfs the probability of throwing either
an ace or duce at the firft throw with a finijle die j
then there being in all fix diiT'erent chances or ways
that the die may fall, and only two of them for the
ace or duce to come upward, the probability of the
happening of one of thofe will be J, or y, and that
of the contrary jj, or A.
Or more generally, fuppofing there be a, chan-
ces for the happening of an event, and 6 chances
for the contrary j then the probability of happen-
ing will be — , — , and that of failin:^ = i
a-\- i> a — i
r. From hence it appears, that if the pro-
bability of the happening of an event, be fubtrafl-
ed from the unity, the remainder will be the pro-
bability of its failing ; and vice verfa.
The expe<5hition on an event, is confidered as
the prefent certain value or worth, of whatever
fum or thing is depending en the happening of that
event, and is compofed of that fum, and the proba-
bility of obtaining it. Therefore if the expedation
on an event be divided by the value of the thing ex-
pedfed on the happening of that event, the quotient
will be the probability of happening. For example,
fuppofe A to throw once with a fingle die, on con-
dition, that if either an ace or duce comes up, he
fliall be entitled to twenty rtiillings ; then the pro-
bability of his receiving the faid fum is i x 20 s. op
\ of 20S. will be the expe8ation in this cafe.
Again, fuppofe it was required to find the proba-
bility that two affigned events (hould both happen.
Let the probability of the happening of the firlt of
the two events be cknoted by — -— -, and that of
a 'Y b
the fecond by ; and fuppofe the happening of
both to entitle a perfon B to the fum S. Nov.' if
the fiift of thefe (hould happen, it is manifefl, that
from t.Hat time till the fecond is determined, the ex-^
peflation of B will be ~— X S, or fo much is tho
'' + ^
(um that he might in that circumflance receive as
an equivalent for his chance of obta'ning that fjm S.
But his probability of getting into this ciicimulance,
or being entitled to the value x S, beinc; onlv
T) this expcdiation therefore, before either of:
a -^ b
the events is decided, can be only , part of.
a -|- b
rJTa X s, or '
_ X , X S ; therefore the re-
ft c + u
quired..
C H A
-quired probability of receiving it, or o( both the
C H A
-p, that
events happening, is only
the probability tliat any two afligneil events fliall
bjih happen, will be equal to the produft of the
probabilities of the happening of thofe events con-
ftdrred feperately.
Coroll. Wherefore fince the probability of the
happening of each of thefe events may be com-
pounded of the probabilities of the happening of
two others, as well as that of receiving the fum S
is of them two, &c. it follows, that the probability
of the happening of any given number of events,
i. e. that they fhall happen, is equal to the produifl
of all the probabilities of happening of thofe events
confidered fingly.
For the manner of applying the do£^rine of
chances to gaming and annuities, fee Gaming and
Interest.
CHANCEL, a particular part of the fabric of
a Chriftian church ; or that pare of the choir be-
tAfcen the altar and the balultradc that inciofes it,
where the minifter is placed at the celebration of
the comninnion.
Chancel, among us, is alfo the reflor's free-
hold and part of his glebe, and therefore he is obli-
ged to repair it ; but where the rectory is impro-
priate, the impropriator muft do it.
CHANCELLOR, an officer fuppofed originally
to have been a notary or fcribe under the emperors,
and named cajuellarius, becaufe he fat behind a lat-
tice, called, in Latin, cancclius, to avoid being
crowded by the, people.
Lord High Chancellor of Gre.n Britain, or
Lord Keeper of the Great Sea/, is the highefl honour
of the long robe, being made fo per traditionern
magni figilit, per dominum regem, and by taking the
oaths: he is the firft perfon of the realm next after
the Icing and princes of the blocd, in all civil af-
fairs ; and is the chief adminiftrator of jufticenext
to the fovereign, being the judge of the court of
chancery.
Chancellor of a Cathedral, an ofHcer that
hears lellbns and lediures read in the church, either
bv himfelf or bis vicar ; to corrc^f and fet right the
reader when he reads amifs; to infped fchools ; to
hear caufes ; apply the feal ; write and difpatch the
letters of the chapter ; keep the books ; take care
that there be frequent preachings, both in the church
and out of it ; and aflign the ofHce of preaching to
whom he pleafes.
Chancellor of a Diocefe, a lay officer under a
bifhop, who is judge of his court. See the article
hisHov's- Court.
Chancellor of the Dulchy of Lancajler, an
officer appointed chiefly to determine controverfies
between the king and his tenants of the dutchy-
Jand, and otherwife todire<fl all his majefly's aft'aus
belonging to that court, Sec DuxcHy-Cffv;/.
ChaN'CELlor of the Exchequer, an officer who
prcfides in thatcourr, and takes cars of the intereft
of the Clown.
Chancellor of the Order of the Garter, and
other military Orders, is an (fiiccr who feals the
commifiions and mandates of the chapter and af-
fembly of the knights, keeps the regifter of their
proceedings, and delivers a<Ss thereof under the feal
of their order.
Chancellor rf anUniverftiy, is he who feals
the diplomas, or letters of degrees, provifion, &c.
given in the univcrfity.
CHANCERY, the grand court of equity and
confcience, inftitutcd to moderate the rigour of the
other courts that are bound to the ftri(5t letter of the
law.
///«/?»/(> Chancery, a court in the church of
R"nie, belonging to the pope.
CHANCRE, in furgery. See the articles Shan-
KET< and ITlcer.
CHANDELIER, in fortification, a kind of move-
able parapet, confilUng of a wooden frame, made
of two upright fhikes, about fix feet high, with
crofs planks between them; ferving to fupport fa-
fcines to cover the pioniers.
The chandelieis differ from blinds only in this,
that the former cover the men only before, whereas
the latter cover them alfo above.
They are ufed in approaches, galleries, and mines,
to hinder the workmen from being diiven from
their {}atir>ns.
CHANERIN, in the manege, the fore-part of
a horfe's head, extending from under the ears along
the interval between the eye-brows down to his
nofe.
CHANGES of Quantities or Numhers, &c. in
arithmetic, the fame with what commonly in books
of arithmetic is treated under the word permutation.
See the article Permutation.
CHANNEL, in architedure, the foffit of a cor-
nice, which makes the pendant mouchette of the
larmer.
Channel of the Io>iic Capital, is that part which
is under the abacus, and lies open upon the echinus
or eggs, which has its centers or turning on every
fide to make the volutes or fcrolls.
Channel of the Volute, in the Ionic capital,
the face of the circumvolution, inclofcd \>'j a
liftcl.
Channel, in geography, is a narrow pa/Tagc
which feparaies two continents, and is the commu-
nication between a gulf and a fea, or between two
feas, or between a continent and an ifland. Suih
are the Britifli channel, St. George's channel, &c.
Channel of a River, the bed of a river. See
the article River.
Channel, in hydrography, is the deepefl part
of a river, harbour, or ilreight, v/hicb is rendered
mod convenient for the tradl of fliipping.
Channel,
C H A
Chasnel, in naval architcdurc, a broad thick
plank, placed edgeways on a fhip's fide, abreaft of
all the mads : they are ufed to extend the fhtoud by
which the mall is fecured to a proper width. See
the article Chains.
Channel of the Mouth of a Horfe^ that conca-
vity in the middle of the lower javv, appointed for
a place to the tongue ; which being bounded on
each fide Hy the bars, terminates in the grinders.
It (hould ihould be large enough not to be prefl'ed
with the bit mouth.
CHANTLATES, in building, are pieces of
boards nailed or fattened to the ends of the rafters,
to fupport two or three rows of tiles, to make an
eve to carry the rain water from the fides of the
building.
CH.^NTOR, a finger in the choir of a cathe-
dral. The word is almoll grown obfolete, cho-
rifler or ftnging-man being commonly ufed inftead
of it.
Chantor is ufed by way of excellence for the
prxcentor or matter of the choir, which is one of
the firft dignities of the chapter.
CHAN TRY, or Chauntry, a church or cha-
pel endowed with land?, &c. for the maintenance
of one or more pr.efts to fay mafs for the fouls of
the donors. Hence,
Chantry-Rents, are rents ftill paid to the
crown by the purchafers of thofe lands.
CHAOS, that confufion in which matter lay
when newly produced out of nothing at the begin-
ning of the world, before God, by his Almighty
word, had put it into the order and condition
wherein it was after the fix days creation.
CHAPE, among fcabbard-makers, denotes the
metalline plate fixed on the end of a fcabbard, to
prevent the point of the fword from piercing
through it.
Chape, among fportfmen, fignifies the tip of a
fox's brufh.
CHAFEAU, in heraldry, an ancient cap of dig-
nity worn bv dukes, being fcarlet-coloured velvet
on the outfide, and lined with a fur.
It is frequently borne above an helmet inftead of
a wreath, under gentlemen's crefts.
CHAPEL, or Chappel, a place of divine wor-
fliip, ferved by an incumbent under the denomina-
tion of a chaplain.
Chapel is alfo a name given to a printer's wotk-
houfe, in which {i.\\{e. they fay, the laws of the
c'lapel, the fecrets of the chapel.
CHAPERON, a covering for the head, formerly
worn both by men and women. Hence it became
the name of thofe little fliields, containing death's
heads, and other funeral devices, placed upon the
foreheads of horfes t1iat drew hearfes at pompous
funerals.
Chaperon of a Bit Mfuth, fignifies the end of
28
C H A
the bit that joins to the bianch jutt by the banquet.
In fcatch mouths chaperon is round, in others it is
oval.
CHAPITERS, in architeflure, the crown, or
upper part of a pillar. See Capital.
CflAPLAlN, an ecclcfuttic who ofTciates in
a chapel.
CHAPLET, a firing of beads ufed by the Ro-
man catholics to count the number of their prayers.
The invention of it is afcribed to Peter the hermit,
who probably learned it of the Turks, as they owe
it to the Eait-Indians.
Chaplet, in architeclure, a kind of baguette,
or fmall ornament, cut, or carved into olives, beadi,
&c.
CHAPPE, in heraldry, the dividing an efcut-
cheon by lines drawn from the center of the upper
edge to the angles below, into three parts, the fec-
tions on the fides being of a different metal or co-
lour from the reft.
CHAPTER, Ccpitulum, in ecclefiaftical policy,
a fociety or community of clergymen belonging to
cathedials and collegiate churches.
Chapter, in matters of literature, a divifion
in a book for keeping the fubjed treated of more
clear and diftindl. St. Auguftine compares theni
to inns, inafmuch as they refrefh the reader, as
thefe the traveller.
T^he three Chapters, a famous phrafe in eccle-
fiaftical hiftory, fignifying a volume by Theodorer,
an adherent of Neftorius, againft St. Cyril.
CHAPTRELS, in arthiteflure, the parts on
which the feet of an arch ftand, the fame with im-
port. See Impost.
CHARACTER, icfpaxtyip, in a general fenfe,
denotes any mark whatever, feiving to reprefent
either things ar ideas ; thus, letters are charaders,
types, or marks of certain founds, words, of ideas,
&c. See the article Letter, }\C.
Characters in Jlgthra. 'i'he firft letters of
the alphabet, as a, />, c, d, C-'e. are generally the
characters of the given quantities ; and the laft
letters, as .v, v, z, isfc. the charadlers of the quan-
tities fought. Some however ufe the confonaiits
to reprefent the known, and the vov/els to repre-
fent the unknown quantities.
w, n, >", s, t, isfc. jre the chara(Elcrs of indeter-
minate exponents, whether ratios or powcis. Thus
x'", )', z'', isfc. imply undetcrniined powers of dif-
ferent kinds ; mx, II y, r z, different muh:ples, or
fubmultiplcs, of the quantities x, v, z, according
as m, ri, r, are either whole numbers or frac-
tions.
-f- pli/s, or mere, is the fign of real exiftenc? of
the quantity it ftands before, and is called an aflir-
mative or pofitive iign. It is alfo the n'ark o! addi-
tion : thus a -f l>, or 6 -f 9, implies that a is 10 be
added to b, or 6 added to 9.
. 6 Z — • riii:Ls,
C H A
— minus, or hfs, before a Tingle quantity, is
the fign of negation or negative exiftence, (hewing
the quantity to which it is prefixed to be lefs than
nothing. But between quantities it is the fign of
fubtiadtion ; thus, a —b, or 8 — 4, implies l> fub-
traifted from a, or 8 after 4 has been fubtra£led.
= egunl. The fign of equality, though Des
Cartes and fome others ufe this mark » ; thus,
c :zz li fignifies that c is equal to b. Wolfius and
fome othero ufe the mark = for the identity of
ratios.
X into, or with. The fign of multiplication,
fliewing that the quantities on each fide the fame
are to he multiplied bv one another, as iJX.b is to
be read a multiplied into b; 4x8, the product of
4 multiplied into 8 Wolfius and others make the
fign of multiplication a dot between the two fac-
tors ; thus, 5 . 4 fignifies the produfl of 5 and 4.
In algebra the fign is commonly omitted, and the
two quantities put together; thus, bd exprefl'es
the produft of Zi and d. When one or both of the
faflors are compounded of feveral letters, they are
diftinguifhed by a line drawn over them ; thus,
the fa£lum o( a + b — c'mtod, is wiotedxa + b—c.
Leibnitz, Wolfius, and others, diftinguifli the
compound faftors, by including them in a pa-
renthefis thus (a+b — c). d.
■r- by. The fignof divifion ; thus, <v-^-i denotes
the quantity a to be divided by b. In algebra the
quotient is often exprefled like a fraftion, thus —
denotes the quotient of a divided by b. Wolfius
makes the fign of divifion two dots ; thus, 12:4
denotes the quotient of 12 divided by 4 = 3. If
either the divifor or dividend, or both, be com-
pofed of feveral letters; for example, a-^b-^c,
inftead of writing the quotient like a fradion,
*--—, Wolfius includes the compound quantities
in a parenthefis, thus (a-\-b) : c.
^ involution. The charafler of involution.
vv tvolution. The charafter of evolution, or the
extracting of roots.
> or tr are figns of majority ; thus, ayb ex-
f refles that a is greater than b.
< or ~a are iigns of minority ; and when we
would denote that a is lefs than b, we write a<b,
or a~2h.
c« is the charafler of fimilitude ufed by Wol-
fius, Leibnitz, and others : it is ufed in other au-
thors for the difference between two quantities,
while it is unknown which is the greater of the two.
; fo is. The mark of geometrical proportion
di.'-ju!i(3, and is ufually placed between two pair of
equal ratios, as 3 : 6 : : 4 : 8, Ihews that 3 is to 6 as
4 is to 8.
-rf the mark of geometrical proportion continued,
implies ihe ratio to be ftilj carried on without inter-
ruption, as 2, 4, 8, t6, ^2, 64 -T. are in the fame
wninteriupted propoitioii.
C H A
*/ irrationality. The charafler of a furd root,
and fhews, according to the index of the power
that is fet over it, or after it, that the fquare, cube,
or other root is extradled, or to be extracted ;
thus, V 16, or v''' 16 or >/ (2) 16, is the fquare
root of 16. ^ 25, the cube root of 25, &c.
This charadler fometimes afFedls feveral quanti-
ties, diftinguifhed by a line drawn over them thu.<!,
>i/ b •\- d denotes the fquare root of the fum of b and
d. When any term or terms of an equation are
wanting, they are generally fupplied by one or more
afterifms : thus in the equation
f^fy-^ IPl^lX =0, the term ±py vanifti-
~py — kp 1 ' ■~'^^
ing, is marked with an aft^erifm, as^** — IP^ + ?•
Characters ufed in Ajhonomy.
Charafters of the planets.
\i Saturn O Sun B Moon
% Jupiter S Venus © Earth
i Mars g Mercury
Of the figns.
«V» Aries Si Leo i Sagittarius
b Taurus nji Virgo Vf Capricornus
n Gemini sO: Libra ~ Aquarius
25 Cancer "l Scorpio K Pifces
Of the afpefls.
(5 or S C»njun£tion A Trine
SS Semifextile Bq Biquintile
* Sextile Vc Quincunx
Q_Quintile S Opijofition
n Quartile £3 Dragon's head
Td Tredecile £S Dragon's tail
Of time.
A. M. ante meridiem, before the fun comes upon
the meridian.
O. or N. noon.
P. M. poji meridiem, when the fun is paft the me-
ridian.
Befides the above charaflers in aftronomy, there
are a few more which were uftd by the late royal
profcflbrs of aftronomy, Dr. Bradiy, and Mr. Blifs,
in their Aftronomical Obfervations, the knowledge
of which may be of fome importance to thofe into
whofe hands the obfervations may fall, as they are
expedled in a little time to be made public.
The firft is two dots placed after any obfervation,,
thus, :, which fignifies that this obfervation is »
little doubtful, and not to be depended upon. The
fecond is four dots, pafTed after an obfervation :.
thus : :, which fignifies that the obfervation is very
dubious, and muft not be made ufe of for determin-
ing any motion in the heavens. The third is E C,
in obfervations of the moon's ^titude on the merir
dian, which fignifies that the moon's center was-
eftimated, or its altitude taken as near as poff.ble,
both the upper and lower limb, at that time being
invifible from its near proximity to the fun at the
time of obfervation.
Laftly,
C H A
Laftly, N, Q_, G, which fignifies clock, which
ftands near the tranfit quadrant and old obfervatory.
When any two of thefe are found joined together
with any quantity of time after them, thus, Q_N
o' 40", fignifies, that when the quadrant clock,
and clock at the tranfit were compared together by
a good ftop-watch with a fecond hand, that Q_was
fatter, or before that time forty feconds.
It may not be amifs to remark here, that aftro-
nomers not only ufe the feven following characters,
as has been (hewn above, but likewife to exprefs
the days of the weeks ; O Sunday, D Monday,
^ Tuefday, ? Wednefday, U Thurfday, ? Fri-
day, b Saturday.
Characters in Geometry and Trigonometry.
II The charader of pa- ^ equiangular, or fi-
rallelifm milar
A triangle J, equilateral
n fquare < an angle
[] □ redangle L right angle
O circle. J. perpendicular
" denotes a degree; thus 45° implies 45 degrees.
' a minute ; thus, 50', is 50 minutes. '\ "\ "'\
denote feconds, thirds, and fourths : and the fame
charadters are ufed where the progrelSons are by
tens, as it is here by fixties.
Characters ufed in the Arithmetic of Infinites.
A dot over a letter is the oharadler of an infinitefi-
fimal or fluxion ; thus, *•, ^, fcff. exprefs the flux-
ions or differentials of the variable *• and y ; and
two, three, or more dots denote fecond, third,, or
higher fluxions. Mr. Leibnitz, inflead of a dot,
prefixes the letter d to the variable quantity, in or-
der to avoid the confufion of dots in the difFerenc-
ing of differentials. See the articles Fluxjons
and Differential Calculus.
Characters in Grammar., Rhetoric y Poetry^
F. R.S. fellow of the royal
fociety.
SS. T. D. doctor in divi-
nity
V. D. M. minifter of the
word of God
JAj. ]). dotSlor of laws
* car€t and circumflex j. V. D. do(Sor of civil and
*' quotation canon law
t J and * references M. D. doctor in phyfic
§ fedion or divifion A.M. mafterofarts
<[ paragraph A. B. bachelor of arts
For the other chara(5ters ufed in grammar, fee
the articles Comma, Colon, Semicolon, &c.
CH>ARACrERS among the ancient La-VLjers, and in
andent Infcriptions.
§ paragraphs C. code
ff digefts C. C. confus
Scto fenatus confulto T. titulus
E. extra P. P. D. D. propria pecu-
S.P.Q^R. fenatus popu- nia dedicavit
C H A
( ) parenthefis.
[ ] crotchet
- hyphen
' apodrophe
' emphafis or accent
" breve
" dialyfis
lufque Romanus D.D.M.donodeditmo-
P. P. pater patrix numentum
Characters in Medicine and Phaifnacy.
R recipe M. manipulus, a hand-
a, aa, or ana, of each alike ful
lb a pound or a pint P. a pugil
^ an ounce P. JE. equal quantities
5 a drachm S. A. according to art
9 a fcruple q. s. a fufficient quantity
gr. grains q. pi. as much as yoa
fi or fs, half of any thing pleafe
cong. congius, a gallon P. P. pulvispatrum, the
coch. cochleare, a fpoon- jefuit's bark
ful
Characters ufed in mufic, and of muficaL
notes, with their proportions, are as follow.
tq charafler of a large 8 f crochet *
q a long 4 P quaver -j
D a breve p femiquaver -f^
o a femibreve i, g demii'emiquavet^^
P minim ^
tt charadler of a fharp note : this charafler at
the beginning of a line, or fpace, denotes that all
the notes in that line are to be taken a femitone-
higher, than in the natural feries ; and the fame-
affeJls all the oftaves above or below, though not
marked : but when prefixed to any particulae notC;,.
it fhews that note alone to be taken a femitone
higher than it would be without fuch chara£ter.
b ori, charaiSler of a flat note : this is the coni-
trary to the other above, that is^ a femitone-
lower.
tl charaiSer of a natural note : when in a line or
feries of artificial notes, marked at the beginning:
bor:tf, the natural note happens to be required,,
it is denoted by this charadter.
(o charadler of the treble cliff,
p. charadter of the mean cliff.
O : bafs cliff.
|, or ♦, charadlcrs of common duple time, fig-
nifying the meafure of two crotchets to be equal
to two notes, of which four make a femibreve.
C (|^ ^,. charadters that dillinguifh the move-
ments of common time, the firfl implying flow,,
the fecond quick, and the third very quick.
I, I, i, I, y'^, characters of fimple triple time,
the meafure of which is equal to thrt^ femibreves,,
or to three minims.
$, or l; or T«, charadlers of mixed triple time,,
where the meafure is equar to fi.x crochets or fix;
quavers.
|, or ?, or^'^, or I, or |, charaflers of compound.;,
triple time.
-.*f » tV> 4a> or tVi or -rV, charaflers of that
fpecies of triple time called the meafure of twelve
times. See Triple.
iVi:v«fr<7/ Ch.'^racters, ufed to exprefs- num-
bers, are either letters or figures.
The Arabic charadler, called alfo the comnioni
one.
C H A
one, becaufe it is ufed almofi; throughout Europe in
all forts of calculations, confifls of thefe ten digits,
J. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, o.
The Roman numeral chara£ter confifts of feven
majufcule letters of the Roman alphabet, viz. I, V,
X, L, C, D, M.
The I denotes one, V five, X ten, L fifty, C a
hundred, D five hundred, and M a thoufand.
The I repeated twice makes two, II ; thrice,
three. III ; four is exprefied thus IV, as I before
V or X takes an unit from the number exprefied
by thefe letters. To exprefs fix an I added to a V,
VI ; for feven, two, VII : and for eight, three,
VIII: nine is exprefied by an I before X, thus
rx.
The fame remark may be made of the X be-
fore L or C, except that the diminution is by tens ;
thus, XL denotes forty, XC, ninety, and LX fix-
ty. The C before D or M diminiil'.es each by a
hundred.
The number five hundred is fometimes exprefied
by an I before a C inverted, thus, I3; and inftead
of M, which fignifies a thoufand, an I is fume-
rimes ufed between two C's, the one direft, and
the other Inverted, thus C13. The addition of
C and 3 before or after, raifes ClO by tens, thus
<^CI30 exprefifes ten thoufand, CCC1333, a
hundred thoufand.
The Romans alfo exprefl"cd any number of thou-
fands by a line drawn over any numeral Icfs than a
thoufand; thus, V denotes five thoufand, LX fixty
thoyfand : fo likewife M is one million, MM is
two millions, &c.
Character, in epic and dramatic poetry, that
which is peculiar in the manners of any perfon, and
diftinguilhes him from all others.
CHARACTERISTIC, in a general fenfe, a pe-
culiar mark or charafler whereby a perfon or thing is
difiinguiftied from all others.
Characteristic cf a Logarithm, the fame
with its index or exponent.
Characteristic Triangle of a Cmve, in the
higher geometry, is a reiStilinear right-angled tri-
an"gle, whofc hypothenufe makes part of the curve,
rot fenfiblv difi^erent from a right line.
It is fo called, becaufe curve lines are ufed to be
diftinguifiied hereby.
Suppofe, for example, the femiordinate, p m,
(Plate XXXIII. /^. 2.) infinitely near another PM,
then will ? p be tlie diilerei tlal of ihe abfciire ; and
letting fall a perpendicular M R = P/>, RM will
be the difi!"erential of the femiordinate : draw there-
fore a tangent T M, and the infinitely fmall arch
Mot will not difi"er from a right line. Confequcnt-
!y M mK is a re£lilinear right-angled triangle, and
conftitutes the charadteriftic triangle of that cuive.
CHARAG, the tribute which the Chriilians and
Jews pay to the Grand Sionior.
C H A
CHARBON, in the manege, that little biacTc
fpot or mark which remains after a large fpot in the
cavity of the corner teeth of a horfe : about the fe-
venth or eighth year, when the cavity fills up, the
tooth being fmooth and equal, it is faid to be
raifed.
CHARCOAL, a fort of fuel confifiing of wood
chared or half burnt.
There are confidcrable differences in the coals of
difFeient vegetables, in regard to their habitude to
fire : the very light coals of linen, cotton, fome
fungi, &c. readily catch fire from a fpark, and foon
burn out ; the more denfe ones of woods and roots
are fet on fire more difficultly, and burn more /low-
ly : the coals of the blackberry-hearing alder, of
the hazel, the willow, and the lime-tree, are faid
to anfvver beft for the making of gunpowder and
other pytotechnical compofitions, perhaps from their
being eafily inflammable: for the reduiSlion of me-
tallic calces thofe of the heavier woods, as the oak
and the beech, are preferable, thefe feeming to con-
tain a larger proportion of the phlogiftic principle,
and tha', perhaps, in a more fixed Ifate ; confidered
as common fuel, thofe of the heavy woods give the
greateft heat, and require the moil plentiful fupply
of air to keep them burning ; thofe of the light
woods preferve a glowing heat, without much
draught of air, till the coals themfelves are con-
fumed ; the bark commonly crackles and flies about
in burning, which the coal of the wood itfelf very
feldom does.
Charcoal, in burning, is fuppofed.to emit a pecu-
liar vapour, which confined, and accumulated in a
clofe room, proves poifonous to animals : there are,
indeed, too many examples of fatal confequences
from the burning of charcoal in clofe places ; not,
however, from the charcoal giving out any perni-
ciaus matter, but from the quality of the air of the
room being altered by the fire : air that has pafled
through burning fuel is no longer capable of fupport-
ing either fire or the life of animals.
CHARCjE, in artillery, the quantity of powder,
fhot, bombs, grenadoes, with which a cannon or
mortar is loaded for execution. See the article
Cartridge.
Cannon are charged by putting down into the
bottom of the bore, firft a quantity of powder, one
third, or one half the weight of the ball. This is done
with an inftrumentfl, Plate XXXIII. /ig.a. called a
ladle, which is a iort of fpoon, generally made of
copper, fixed to the end ot a fiaft'rf, which is called
its handle. Upon the powder is put in a wad of
hay, prefled or beat down very well with the infiiu-
nient e, called a rammer. Upon this hay is put the
ball, to fecure it in its place, another wad is well
rammed down upon it : the touch-hole of the piece
is then filled with powder, from the upper part of
which a little train is laid that communicates with
it. The ufe of this train is to prevent the explofion
4 of
J^ATEXWir.
r ,/i7i/'»^ Charge.
^Jry./.' 'y /a/// {^ /ht/t
W
TTTTT
HU
AVt
III III i'ii_ mil III I Ill Mill r
r R re, ±
l#^ IMllMlllu «2i-
M 1 1 1 1 fHii i / i J ^'^y^tji.l/ffifMii'C/// crane
1\
^
%
u n
, ^ai. Z. (Jiiirru'fer itf'i
,w
I? « /
f X—^Vn^-r t/rti^.
• * -•* t '.* fc r*j » I.t4j|,«»j*"f'»«4» ^ i - tN- r*sh'*-- .. ,
C H A
cf the powder that fills the touch- hole from opera-
tin" iliredlly upon the in(irumcnt ufcd to fire the
piece, which in th s cafe niiglit be forced out of the
hand of the gunner ; an inconvenience whicli is pte-
vcnttd by fetting fire to the end of the train.
In the modern pieces, a little gutter or channel is
made, about a line deep, and l\x wide, to pi l vent
the wind from difperfing or blowing away tie train.
Tills channel reaches from the touch-hole to the
Ihield, on which is carved the king's arms. See
Plate XXXVII. fg. i.
The cannon being pointed at the place which the
bullet is intended to flrike, the train is fired, and
the fire .•iiimed:ately communicated to the powder
in the touch-hole, by which it is further commu-
nicated to that in the piece ; and ihis powder being
kindled, dilates fo as to occupy a much greater
quantity of fpace th.m when in grams ; and being
thus dilated, it m. ke an effort on every fide to force
itfelf out : the bullet making lefs refilVance than the
fides of the piece, upon which the powder prefles
at the fame time, is driven out by its whole force,
and acquires that violent motion, the effect of which
ii well kiiOwn to the world.
In Plate XXXIIl. all ihe inflruments neceffary for
charging cannon are reprefented. Befides thofe al-
ready defcribcd, there is the maulkin, or fpunge, h,
which IS ufed to clean the piece after firing, and to
extinguifh any fparks that may remain behind.
This is a fort of brufh, fixed to the end of a ftaif.
To fpunge a piece is to put in this inftrument, and
with it clean well the cavity, at the fame time
{topping the aperture of the touch-hole.
The figures^, h, /', reprefent maulkins or fpunges
of a different kind, made of flieep-fkins, fixed to a
proper handle.
The wad-hook /, called alfo a worm, ferves to
draw the charge when neceffary.
The picker or priming-iron g, ferves to clear the
infide of the touch-hole, and render it fit to receive
the prime, and is a kind of large iron needle.
The lint-ftock ;/i, is a long ftaff, to the end of
which is fattened a match to firs the piece.
The chapiteau n^ is a fort of little pent-houfe,
made by two thin pieces of board, joined together
at top, (o as to form an angle of about one hundred
degrees. This is fet up over the touch-hole, to pre-
vent the prime from being carried away by the wind,
or wetted by the rain.
All the inftruments above-mentioned, ufed in
charging and managing a cannon, are called cannon
furniture.
To charge a mortar (as in charging cannon)
many inftruments are neceffary.
The principal are, a rammer of the fame diame-
ter as the piece, to ram in and beat down the wad-
ding and turf which cover the powder; an iron
fcraper, to clean the boie and chamber of the mor-
tar, and a little. fpoon to clean more particularly the
28
C H A
powder chamber; a wooden knife, of about a foot-
long, to force the earth clofe in round the fides of
the bomb ; there is need alfo of primingrirons,
aiming wedges, and two lint-flocks.
The officer v.ho dirctSts the charging of the mot-
tar, having afcertained the proper qusm'.ity of pow-
der, Ciufes it to be put into the chamber of the mor-
tar, and then to be covered with a wad, well beat
d'lwn with the rammer. Over thefe are put two o^
three fliovel-fulls of earth, which are alfo well beat
or rammed down ; after which the bomb is placed
upon this earth, as ne.ir the middle of the mortar as
pofTible, with the fufc, or touch-ho!e, uppermolt ;
more earth is then put in, and preifed down clofe all
round the bomb, with the wooden knife juft men-
tioned, fo as to keep the bomb firm in the fituation
it is placed in. All this being done, the officer
points the mortar, that is, gives the inclinatioit
neceffary to carry the bomb to the place defigned.
When the mortar is thus fixed, the fufe is opened,
the picker is alfo paffed into the touch-hole of the
mortar to clear it, and it is then primed with thq
fineit powder. This done, two foldiers, taki.g
each one of the lint-flocks, the firft lights the fule,
and the other fires the mortar. The bomb, throwrt
out by the explofion of the powder, is carried to the
place intended, and the fufe, which ought to beex-
haulfed at the moment of the bomb's falling, ftts
fire to the powder it is charged with ; thi^, imme-
diatel) , by its explofion, burllb the bomb into fplin-
tcrs, which are thrown off circularly round the
point the bomb f.dlb upon, and do confiderable,
damage on every fide.
Charge, in heraldry, is applied to the figures
reprefented on the efcutcheon,by which the bsaiings
are diftinguifhed from one another : and it is to be
obferved, that too many charges are not fo honoura-
ble as fewer.
Charge, in the manege, a preparation, or oint-,
ment, of the confiftence- of a thick decodtion, ap-
plied to fhoulder-fplaits, inflammations, and fprains
of horfes : the parts affedted are rubbed, and chaffed
with this compofition, after which they fhould be
covered with finking paper.
Ch.'\rge, or Ov£RcHARGE, in painting, an
exaggerated reprefentation of any perfon, wherein
the likenefs is preferved, but withal ridiculed : few
painters have the genius to fucceed in thefe charges.
The method is, to pick out and heighten fomething
amifs in the face, whether by way of defedt or re-
dundancy ; thus, if nature has given a man a nofea
little larger than ordinary, the painter falls in with
her, and makes the nofe extravagantly long ; and fo
in other cafes.
Charge of Lead denotes a quantity of thirty-fix
pigs.
CHARGED, in heraldry, a (liield carrying fome
imprefs or figure is faid to be charged therewith j
'fo alfo when one bearing, or charge, has ano-
7 A ther
C H A
ther figure added upon it, it is properly faid to be
charged.
CHARGING, in military affairs, an afTault made
by an army, or any party of men on the enemy.
See Attack.
CHARIOT, a half coach, having only a feat be-
hind, with a ftool at mofl before.
Triumphal Chariot was one of the principal
ornamenrs of the Roman celebration of a vidory.
See Triumph.
CHARISIA, in heathen antiquity, a noaurnd
feftival, kept in honour of the graces, and confiding
chiefly of dancing; only that fweet-meats, called
llkewife charifia, were diftributed among thofe pre-
fent.
CHARITY, among divines, one of the three
grand theological virtues, confifiing in the love of
God, and of our neighbour; or the habit and difpo-
Jition of loving God with all our heart, and our
neighbour as ourfelves.
. Charity, among moralids, is ufed for the effeiSl
of a moral virtue; and confifts in fupplying the
iieceflities of others, whether with money, council,
ailiftance, or the like.
CHARLES's-WAIN, in aftronomy, k\e.r\ ftars
fo fituated in the conltellation Urfa Major, that they
fomethins^, or by fome have been fuppofed to, repre-
fent the figure of a wain.
CHAR'LOCK, the Engllfh name of a plant called
by botanifts, finapis. See the article Sinapis.
Charlock is a very troublefome weed in corn-fields,
where we find two fpecies of it very common, viz.
one with a yellow flower, and the other with a white
one. To prevent its growth the farmers mix horfe
duniT with their cow dung ufed in manure, as the lafl:
is very apt to breed the charlock. When a field ot
barley is much infefled with it, they mov/ it down in
May, when in flower, taking care only to cut it fo
l)w as juft to take off the tops of the leaves of the
barlev.
CHARM, a term derived from the Latin, car nun,
H veri'e, and ufed to denote a magic power, or fpcll,
by which, with the alTiflance of the devil, forcerer,
and witches, v/ere fuppofed to do wondt:rful things,
far furpaffing the power of nature. Tliefe things
aie now fuff.ciently exploded,
CHARNEL, or Charnel House, a kind of
portico, or galkry, ufually in or near a church-yard,
over which were anciently laid the bones of ihedead,
after the flelh was wholly confuined.
CHARRE, or Gilt-Charre, a truttaceous
fifti, called by many carpio, and reckoned by Attedi
a fpecies of falmon, lefs than a foot in length, with
li-ve rows of teeth in its palate.
/?«^ Charge is likewife a fpecies of falmon,
called by authors umbla minor : it is much of the
fame fize with the foimer, with the belly-fin red,
and the under-jaw a luUe longer than the upper-
oae.
C H A
CHART, or Sea-Chart, is a hydrographical
map, or a projection of (ome part of the earth's fu-
perficies in plane, for the uk of navigators.
Charts differ very confiderably from geographical
or land maps, which are of little or no ufe in navi-
gation 1 nor are fea-charts all of the fame kind, be-
ing conftrufted on very different principles ;iand
are chiefly diftinguiflied by the following names ;
plane-chart, mercator's-chart, and globular-chart.
Planc-CiiAK'TS are fuch wherein the circles of
latitude and longitude are laid down parallel, and
every where of equal diftance. Thefe are verv in-
correiSt, and ought not to be put in ufe, unlefs they
only reprefent a fmall piece, and that near^ the line ;
becaufe they give the fame extent or number of miles
to a degree in thofe parallels near the pole, as thofe
near the equator, which is fo well known to every
failor to be erroneous, that there will be no occafion
here to expatiate upon it.
I'o conitrudt a plane chart, that fhall contain from
five degrees north latitude, to five degrees fouth la-
titude, and from feven degrees eafi:, to fevcn weft
longitude ; draw the meridi.in A B, (Plate XXXII T.
fig. 3.) at pleafure, with a pencil ; then from the
point A, fet off ten equal parts (taken from any con-
venient fcale) towards the point B ; which ten paits
will be equal to the ten degrees of latitude, and will
determine the point B. At right angles to the meri-
dian A B, draw the lines A D and B C, which will
reprefent the parallels of five degrees fouth latitude,
and five degrees north latitude ; and from A and B^
in each line AD and B C, fet off a quantity of
equal part?, (taken from the fame fcale from which
your degrees of latitude were taken) equal to the
number of degrees in longitude your chart is to
contain, and you will then determine the point
C and D, which join by drawing the line CD. '
Through the feveral degrees, or equal parts before
fet off in the line A B, draw as many lines parallel-
t.j BC and AD : likewife through each divilion, in
the line B C and AD, draw lines parallel to A B
and C D, which wdl reprefent fo many paralkls of
longitude, and lo many meridians.
If yuu divide the right angles A, B, C, D, into
eight equal parts, and draw lines from the angular
points thereof through the feveral divifions of the
arshes, they will reprefent the rhomb lines upon the
chart, ywhich are of ufe in finding the bearings of
places frc.ni each other. But to avoid the confufion
which attends fuch a multiplicity of lines, we have
here only extended them to the divifions in each;
quadrant, which will be found equally ufeful in
finding, the bearings of different places: for bv lay-
ing a parallel-ruler on the two given places, and ex-
tending the other part to two of the quadrants, you
will eahly difcover to which of the lines the ruler is
parallel, which will be the bearing of the two places
required. For the ufe of this chart, fee Platia
1 Saii-ikg.
Riducedi
C H A
Reduced Chakt, or Chart of ReduSl'ion, is that
wherein the meridians are rejirefcntcd by ri2;ht lines,
parallel to one another, but unequal ; thcfe there-
fore, it appears by conftruiilion, muft correal the
errors of the plane charts. liut fmce the parallels
fliould cut one another at right angles, thefe charts
are def'eiStive, inafmuch as they exhibit the parallels
inclined to the meridians.
Hence another kind of reduced charts has been
invented, wherein the meridians are parallel ; but
the degrees thereof unequal. Thefe are c.Jled
Mercator's charts.
Mercator's Chart is tha: wherein the meridians
and parallels are reprelented by parallel right lines;
but the degrees of the meiidian are unequal, fiiil
increafing as they approach the pole, in the fame
proportion as thofc of the parallels decreafe ; by
means whereof the fame proportion is preferred be-
tween them ds on the c,lobe.
This chart has its name from the author, who firft
propofed it for ufe, arid made tlie flrft chart of this
projeftion, N. Mercator : but the thought was not
originally his own, as having hcen hinted at by
Ptolemy near two thoufand years before: nor is
the perfcftion owing to him; our countryman, Mr.
Wright, being the firft who demonflrated it, and
fhewed a ready v/ay of conflrufling it, by enlarging
the meridian line by the continual addition of fecaiits.
For the conftruiSion and ufe of Mercator's chart,
fee Alercator's Sailinc.
Globular Chart, a meridional projeflion, where-
in the diftance of the eye, from the plane of the
meridian, upon which the projeftion is made, is
fuppofed to be equal to the fine of the angle of 45°.
This projeftion comes the neareft of all to the nature
of the globe, becaufe the meriJians therein are placed
Et equal diflances ; the parallels alfo are nearly equi-
diftant, and confequen;ly the feveral parts of the
earth have their proper proportion of magnitude,
diftance, and fituation, nearly the fame as on the
globe itfelf.
Chorogrcphic Charts, defcriptions of particular
countries. See Chorocraphy.
Heliographic Charts, defcriptions of the body
of the fun, and of the macula?, or fpots, obferved
OT it. See Heliography.
Hydrogrjphlc CHARTS, fheets of large paper,
whereon feveral parts of the land and fea are del'crib-
ed, with their refpecl.ve coafts, harbours, founds,
flats, rocks, fhelves, fands, li<z. together with the
longitude and latitude of each place, and the points
of the compafs. See the article Mercator's CAar/.
Selenographic Charts, particular defcriptions of
the fpo:s, appearances, and maculae of the moon.
See the article SELENOGRAPHif.
Topographic Charts, draughts of fome fmall
parts of the earth only, or of fonie particular places,
without regard to its relative Ikua'.ion, a^ London,
York, &c.
5
CHE
CHARTER, in law, a written inflrumenf or
evidence of things acted between one perfun and
another.
Great Charter, MagnaCil^rta. See the
article M ac n a-Ch arta.
Charter af the King is where the king makes a
grant to any perfin or body politic, as a charter of
exemption, of privilege, pardon, &c.
Charter-Land, fuch land as a perfon holds
by charter; that is, by evidence in writing, other-
wife termed fieehold. See the article Free-
hold.
Charty-Party, in commerce, ad.ed or writ-
ing indented ; that is, ninde between merchants arid
fea- faring men, concerning their nveichandile aiiJ
maritime afrairs.
A charter-party of affreightment, fettles the a-
greenient in relation to the freight of a fliip and
cargo, betvveccn the merchant and commander or
mafter of the veflel. It bmds the tnafter to delivec
the cargo in good . condition at the place of dif-
ciiarge, 3cc.
In thofe charter-parties, if the dangers of the fea.
are excepted, it has been adjudged that fuch excepticjrv
extends as well to any danger upon the fea frorrv
pirates or men of war, as to common dangers by
Ihipwreck, tempefl-, &c.
CHARTiS Reddendis, in law, a writ that
lies againft a ocrfon, who havina; charters of feof}"-
nient delivered to him to keep, afterwards refufes to.
deliver them.
CHARYBDIS, a rock in the ftrcigbt of Meffina,.
between Italy and Sicily, much celebrated in the
writings of ancient poets.
CHASE, a great quantity of ground lying open
and privileged for wild beafls and wild fowl. Such is
Enfreld-chafe.
A chafe difFers from a forefl, inafmuch as it may.
be in the hands of a fubjedf, which a foreft in its
proper nature cannot ; and from a park, in that it is
not inclofed, and hath more officers,
CHASING «/ Gff/a', Silver, is'c. See the article
Enchasing.
CHASTE-Tree, in botany. See the articles.
Agnus Castus and Vitex.
CHASTISEMENT, in the manege, the feverCL
and rigorous efFedt of the aids ; for when the aids
are given with feverity, they become punifliments..
See the article Aids.
CHECK, or Check-Roll, a roll or book,,
wherein is contained the names of fuch perfons as
are attenda;u and in pay to the king, or other great
perfonages, s s the houfhold fer\ ants.
Cleri of the Check, in the king's houfhold, ha&
the check and controulment of the yeomen of the.
guard, and all the ufncrs belonging to the royal
family, allowing their abfence or defe£ls in atten-
d.ince, or diminifhing their wages for the fame, &:c..
He ah'o, by himklf or deputy, takes the view of
tliofa-
CHE
thofe that are to watch in the court, and has the
fettlns of the watch, Sec.
Clerk of the Check, in the kind's navy, is alfo
the name of an officer inverted with the hke pov/er
at the feveral dock-yards.
CHECK Y, in heraldry, is when the fliield, or a
part tht-reof, as a bordure, he. is clisquered, or
divided into chequers or fquares, in the manner of a
chefs-board,
'I'his is one of the moft nobk and ancient figures
ufed in armory ; and a certain author fays, that it
ought to be given to hone but great warriors, in
token of their bravery ; for the chefs-board rcpre-
fents a field of battle, and the pawns of men, placed
on both fides, reprefent the foldiers of the two
armies, which move, attack, advance, or retire,
according to the will of the two gamefters, who are
the generals. i
This figure is always compofed of metal and co-
lour : but fome authors would have it reckoned a-
mong the feveral forts of furs.
CHEEK, in anatomy, that part of the face
fituated below the eyes, on each fide. Wounds of
the cheeks, if fmall, may be cured by the dry fu-
ture ; but if large, the bloody one muft be ufed.
See the article Suture.
Cheeks, among mechanics, are aimed all thofe
pieces of their machines and inftruments, that are
double, and perfe£lly alike ; as the cheeks of a mor-
tar, which are made of ftrong wooden planks, of a
fenii-circular form, bound with thick plates of iron,
and fixed to the bed with four bolts : thefe cheeks
rife on each fide the mortar, and ferve to keep it at
what elevation is given it : the checks of a printing-
prefs are its two principal pieces, placed perpendicu-
lar and parallel to each other, and ferving to fuflain
the three fommers, &c.
Cheeks of the Majl, in naval affairs, certain
projefting parts fituated on the upper-end of the
mall: for fuftaining the weight of the top-maft which
re,^ upon them below, and is kept fleady above by
the cap. See Cap and Trussel-Trees.
CHEESE, Cajeus, a fort of food, prepared of
curdled milk, purged from the ferum of whey, and
afterwards dried for ufe.
There is likewife a kind of medicated cheefe,
made, by intimately mixing the exprefled juice of
certain herbs, as fage, baum, mint, &c. wiih the
churd, before it is fafhioncd into a cheefe.
Cheese-Ruknet, in botany, the fame with
the gallium of authors. Seethe article Gallium.
Cheeslip-Bag, that in which houfewives pre-
pare and keep their runnet for making cheefe. See
Runnet.
CHEIRANTHUS, in botany, a genus of plants
whofe flower confitis of four cruciform petals, with
fix fubujated parallel flamina. The fruit is a long
comprelltd bilocuLu pod, opening with two valves,
and filled with cumprclled feeds. This genus of
CHE
plants comprehends the wall-flower, fiock-gilli-
flower, and dames violet. See the articles Wall-
flower, Stock, &;c.
CHELIDONIUM. See the article Celan-
dine.
CHELONE, in botany, a genus of plants pro-
ducing ringent monopetalous flowers. The tube of
the corolla is cylindric, and very ihort ; tlie mouth
is inflated, oblong, convex above, and plane below ;
the upper lip isobtufe, and emarginatcd ; the lower
is ahnofl: equal with the higher, liglitly cut in three
fcgments. The fruit is an ovate bilocular capfule,
and contains many flat roundifh feeds, covered with
a membranaceous margin.
Botanifts enumerate three fpecies of this genus,
which are all natives of North America.
CHEMA, or Cheme, in antiquity, a meafure,
among the ancient phyficians, containing two fpoon-
fuls : it was the fifth part of the cyathus or cup :
full of oil, it weighed two drams, and feventeen
grains.
CHEMIN DES RONLES, in fortification, a
fpace between the rampart and low parapet under it,
for the rounds to go about the fame.
CHEMISE, in fortification, the wall with which
a baftion, or any other bulwark of earth, is lined
for its greater fupport and ftrength : or it is the foli-
dity of the wall from the talus to the ftcne-row.
/'/r^ Chemise, a piece of linen-cloth, fteeped
in a compofition of oil of petrol, camphor, and
other coinbuftible matters, ufed at fea, to fet fire to
an enemy's veflel.
CHEMICAL Laboratory, or Elaboratory, the
place where chemical procefles are performed.
CHEMISTRY, xnfna, is an art that teaches
us how to perform certain phyfical operations, by
which bodies that are difcernible by the fenfes, or
that may be rendered fo, and that are capable of
being contained in veffels, may, by fuitable inilru-
ments, be fo changed, that particular determined
efteiffs may be thence produced, and the caufes of
thefe effefls underftood by the effefts themfelves, to
the manifold improvement of various arts.
CHENOPODIUM, in botany, a genus of plants
whofe flower is apetalous, and contains a premanent
concave pentaphyllous calix, with five fubulated fila-
ments, topped with roundifh double antherae. The
cup fupplies the place of a pericarpium, and contains
an orbicular deprefled feed. There are feveral fpecies
in this genus, one of which is called Botrys or
Jerufalem oak. This plant grows naturally in many
parts of America : it has a fmall white root, from
which arifes feveral ftalks : thefe are round, fliff",
creft, hairy, and furniflied with many leaves of a
light green, and fomewhat like thofe of the oak s
the flowers come out from the wings of the leaves,
on the upper part of the branches, in loofe fpikes j
thefe appear in July, and the feeds ripen in Septem-
ber, The whole plant has a ftrong but not difagreea-
■ ble
CHE
ble fmell, and the tafte is fubacrid, aromatic, and
rcfinous.
This plant is propagated by fowing its feeds when
ripe, which is in autumn. It is reckoned to be
good agiinft choHcs that proceed from wind ; but
in the pre(ent medical practice is not much ufed.
CHEQ, orCHERiF, the prince of Mecca, who
is, as it were, high-prieft of the law, and fovcreign
pontiff of all the Mahometans, of whatfoevef feci
or country they be. See Caliph.
CHEREM, the Jewifli antiquity, the fecond and
greater fort of excommunication among the Jews.
CHERLERIA, in botany, a genus of decandri-
ous plants, whofe flower is apetalous ; but contains
five very fmall, roundifh, emarginated ncdariums,
placed in a circular diredtion, with ten fubulated
filaments, topped with fimple antherae. The fruit
is an ovated, trilocular capfule with three valves,
containing two remform feeds.
CHERRY-TREE, Ceraf//s, in botany, the name
of a well known genus of trees, the flower of which
is rofaceous, or compofed of five roundifh concave
petals, arranged in a circular form. When the
flower is decayed, the gernien becomes a roundifli
or heart-fhaped flefliy fruit, containing a roundifli
{tone.
This genus is clafled with the prunus or plumb, by
Linnasus, but as they differ fo much in the fruit, and
are generally underftood to be a diftindf genera, it
was therefore in this work thought necefiary to keep
them fepar.ite.
The cherry-tree. It is faid, is a native of Pontus,
a province of Alia Minor, from whence it was
brought into Italy by Lucullus, the Roman, Anno
Rom. 680 ; and about one hundred years after was
introduced into England, where there are various
forts cultivated at prefent, fuch' as the Flemifli-
cherry, Kcntifh-cherry, Mjy-duke, arch-duke, red-
heart, white-heart, black-heart, amber- heart, ox-
heart, bleeding heart, carnation, morello, and fome
others.
The feveral forts of cherries are propagated by
budding or grafting the different kinds into flocks of
the black or wild red cherries, they being fuppofed
to be of longer duration than the garden forts.
Cherry-trees are raifed in great quantities in the
nurfery gardens, both ftandarJs and dwarfs : the
ftandards for planting orchards, particularly in Kent,
where there are large plantations. The ufudl diltance
allowed for their llanding is about forty feet each
way. Thefe flandard trees ftiould be planted in a
fituation defended as much as poflibie from the eaft
and wellern winds; the one being likely to defl:roy
their blofloms in the fpiing, and the other by its
violence is very apt to break their tender branches :
this occafions thei-- gumi/i^, and is very prejudicial
to them. The forts bell approved of for an orchard
are the Kentifh, flcmJlh, duke, and common led
cherry.
28
CHE
Cherry-trees may alfo be planted againft walls in
any expofure : the IVIay-duke being generally planted
againd a fouth afpcdtcd wall, though it is not amifs
to have fome againft a north wall, which will con-
tinue their feafon the longer ; and the fame may be
done with the other forts. The morello -cherry is
generally planted againfl walls fronting the north.
This fruit is commonly ufed in prefer viiig : yet
where they are planted to a better afpe(5l, and fuf-
feied to hang on the trees till they arc thoroughly
ripe, they are not a bad fruit for the table ; for by
long hanging it lojfes moft of its acidity or fower-
nefs.
The lefs cherries are pruned, the better they like
it ; but, however, where weak or luxuriant branches
happen, they mull be governed by the knife. When
cherry-trees take to bearing very early, and grow but
little, it is befl to pull off moll of the bloom, and
fliorten the branches, which will caufe the tree to
flioot with frcfh vigour.
The black-cherry is fuppofed to be a native of
England, it being frequently found in the woods, it
grows large; and the timber is ufed by turners and
other artificers in wood. From this fort the black-
coroon-cherry is fuppofed to have been produced.
Cherry-trees thrive befl in a dry hazely loam. In
a gravelly foil they are very fubje£t to blights, and
feldom fland long good.
The Kentifli-cherries are a very v/holefome fruit,
and grateful to the flomach ; but the black only are
ufed in medicine: they are prefcribed in all difeafes
of the head and nerves ; and by fome are alfo ac-
counted diuretic, efpecially the water diflilled from
them.
Cherry with dnihle Jioxvcn, a fpecies of the
former. It m propagated for the beauty of its
flowers, which are extremelv fine. Thtle are pro-
duced in large bunches, which makes it one of the
mofl beautiful which come out in the fpring.
Cherry-Barbadoes. See Malpighia.
Cherry-Cornelian. SeeCouNus.
Cherry-Winter. See Alkenengi.
CHERT, among miners, denotes a kind of flinty
ftone, found in thin ftrata in quarries of lime- (lone.
CHERUB, or Cherubin, a celeftial fpirir,
which in the hierarchy is placed next to the fera-
phini. See Hierarchy.
CHESNUT-TREE, the Englifli name of the
caftanea of botanills. See the article Castanea.
CHEST, in commerce, a kind of meafure, con-
taining an uncertain quantity of feveral commodi-
ties.
A cheft of fugar, v. g. contains from ten to fif-
teen hundred weight ; a chert: uf gljfs from two
hundred to three hundred feet ; of Ca(ti!e-(bap,
from two and an half to three hundred weight ; of
indiijo, from one and an half to two hunJred
weight, five fcore and twelve pounds to the hun-
dred.
7B CHESr,
CHE
C H I
CHEST, in anatomy, the bread, or that part of
the body which contains the heart and lungs. See
the article Breast.
CHESSTREE, in naval affairs, a piece of wood
which ftands up and down edgeways, bolted to the
fhips fide : there is a large hole in it, through which
the rope, called the tack, is palled, which is fattened
to the clue or lower corner of the main-fail ; and
when the clue of the fail comes down to the chefs-
tree, the tack, is faid to be aboard. Shipwreck, p. 51.
in the Notes.
CHEVAGE, orCniEFAGE, a tribute of a cer-
tain fum of money, formerly paid by fuch as held
lands in villinage to their lords, by way of ac-
knowledgement, being a kind of poll, or head-
money.
CLEVALER, in the manege, is faid of a horfe
when in paffaging upon a walk or trot, his ofF fore-
leg erodes or overlaps the near fore-leg every fecond
motion.
CHEVALIER, in a general fenfe, fignifies a
knight, or horfeman : but
Chevalier, in heraldry, fi2;nifies any cavalier,
or horfeman, armed at all points, by the Romans
called cetaphraftus eques ; now out of ufe, and
only to be feen in coat-armour.
CHEVAUX DE FRISE, in fortification, a
large joift or piece of timber, about a foot in diame-
ter, and ten or twelve in length ; into the fides
whereof are diven a great number of wooden pins,
about fix feet long, armed with iron points, and
crofling one another.
The chief ufe of the chevaux de frife, is to flop
lip breaches, or to fecure the avenues of a camp,
from the inroads both of horfe and foot. It is
fometimes alfo mounted on wheels, with artificial
fires, to roll down in an aflault.
CHEVRETTE, in the art of war, an engine for
raifrngof guns or mortars into their carriage?.
it IS made of two pieces of wood, about four
feet long, fianding upright upon a third fquate
piece : the upright pieces are about a foot afunder,
and pierced with holes exactly oppofite to each
other, having an iron bolt, which being put
through thefe holes higher or lower, at pleafure,
ferves with a har,d-fpike, which takes its poifc over
this bolt, to raife any thing by force.
CHP2VRON, or Cheveron, in heraldry, one
of the honourable ordinaries of a Ihield, reprefenting
two rafters of an houfe,. joined together as they
ought to {land : it was anciently the form of the
priefleffes head attire : fotne fay it is a fymbol of
protection ; others, of conftancy ; others, thai it
reprefents knights fpears, &c.
Per Chevron, in heraldry, is when the field is
divided only by two Tingle lines> riilng from the two
bafe points, and meeting in the point above, as the
che- ron do;'s.
CHEVRONEDj is when the coat is filled with.
an equal number of chevrons, of colour and
metal.
CHEVROMEL, a diminutive of chevron, and
as fuch only containing half a chevron.
CHEV^RONNE, or Chevronny, fignifies the
dividing of the {hield fsveral rimes chevron-wife.
CHIAOUS, a word in the original Turkifh,
fignifying envoys, are officers to the number of five
or fix hundred in the grand fignior's court, under
the command of a chiaous bafchi. They fre-
quently meet in the grand vizier's palace, that they
may be in readinefs to execute his orders, and carry
his difpatches into all the provinces of the empire.
The chiaous bafchi aflifts at the divan, and intro-
duces thofe who have bufinels there.
CHIAROSCURO, among painters. See the
article Claro-Obscuro.
CHIAUSI, in the Turkifh affairs, ofHcers other-
wife called mutes, employed in executing perfons of
diftindlion ; the orders for doing of which are fent
them by the grand fignior, wrapped up in a black
cloth.
CHICANE, or Chicanry, in law, an abufe
of judiciary proceeding, tending to delay the
caule, to puzzle the judge, or impofe upon the
parties.
Chicane, in the fchools, is applied to vaia
fophifms, diflindtions, and fublcties, which pro-
tract difputes and obfcure the truth.
CHICHES, or Chich-Pease, the fame with
the cicer of botanifls See Cicer.
Chick-Weed, Jfwe, in botany. See the ar-
ticle Alsine.
CHIEF, a term fignifying the head or principal
part of a thing or perfon. Thus we fay, the chief
of a family, &c.
Chief, in heraldry, is that which takes up all
the upper-part of the efcutcheon from fide to fide,
and reprefents a man's head.
//.' Chief, imports fomething borne in the chief
part or top of the efcutcheon.
Chief-Lord, the feudal lord, or lord of aa
honour on whom others depend.
CHILBLAINS, in medicine, the fame with
whit is otherwife called perniones. See the article
Pernio.
CHILD, a term of relation to parent.
Child-Bed, ? c t-\
r, u }■ See Delivery.
Child-Birth, \
CHILDERMAS-DAY, or Innocent's-Day,
an anniverfary held by the church, on the 28th of
December, in commemoration of the children at
Bethlehem, malTacred by order of Herod.
CHILIAD, denotes a thoufand of any things^
ranged in feveral divifions, each whereof contains
that number. Thus the tables of 1 garithnis are fo
called, becaufe they were at firit divided into thou-
fands.
CHILIARCHA, or Chiliarchus, inant'qui-
t7>
C H I
ty, a military officer who had the command of a
thoufanJ men.
CHILlASrS, in church hiftory, the fame with
the milleiiarians. See the article Millena-
RIANS.
CHIMERA, orCHiMiERA, a fabulous monfter
which the poets feign to have the head of a lion,
the body of a goat, and the tail of a dragon ; and
add, that this odd beaft was killed by Bellero-
phon.
CHIMES of a Clock, a kind of periodica] mufic,
produced at equal inters als of time, by means of a
particular apparatus added to a clock.
in order to calculate numbers for the chimes,
and adapt the chime-barrel, it muft be obf>;rved,
that the barrel mult turn round in the fame time
that the tune it is to play require in finging. As
for the chime-barrel, it may be made up of certain
bars that run athwart it, with a convenient number
of holes punched in them to put in the pins that are
to draw each hammer; and thefe pins, in order to
play the time of the tune rightly, muft ftand up-
right, or hang down from the bar, fome more,
fome lefs. To place the pins rightly, you may
proceed by the way of thanees on belN-, viz. i,
2, 3, 4 ; or rather make ufe of the mufical notes.
Obferve what is the compafs of your tune, and di-
vide the barrel accordingly from end to end.
CHIMNEY, in architecture, a particular part
of a houfe, where the fire is made, having a tube
or funnel to carry away the fmoke.
The parts of a chimney are the jambs, or fides,
coming out perpendicularly, fometwues circularly,
&c. from the back ; the mantle- tree which refts on
the jambs; the tube, or funnel, which conveys a-
way the fmoke; the chimney-piece, or moulding,
which is on the fore-f.de of the jambs, over the
mantle-tree, and the hearth, or fire-place.
Chimney Jambs, the fides of a chimney, fome-
tim.es flanding out perpendicularly, fopietimes cir-
cuia:ly, from the back, on the extremities whereof
the mantle-tree refts.
ChIMNEY-MoKEY, or HEARTH-^'!o^■EY, a
tax impofed by flatute 24 Car. II. exprefling that
every fire-hearth and flove of every dwellino- or
other houfe within England and Wales, except
fuch as pay not to church and poor, fliall be charge-
able with two fhillii'.gs per annum, payable at Mi-
chaelmas and Lady-day, to the king and his heirs.
This tax being much complained of, as burden-
fome to the people, has been abolished, and inftead
of it the window-tax was granted.
Chimney - Piece, a compofition of certain
mouldings of wood or Hone, ftandirig on the fore-
fide of the jambs, and coming over the mantle-
tree
CHINA-CHINA, in pharmacy, the fame with
euinquina. See Quinquina.
China Root, in the mattria medica, is the
c H r
name of a drujr, of which there are two kincJs,
oriental and occidental. The two plan's differ little
or iiothing in the leaves, flowers, or feeds, but
confiderably in the root, and remarkably in the
time of flowering ; the Chinefe blowing only in
June and July, whilft the American produces flow-
ers fucceflively almoft all the year.
Decoctions of this root drank freely, are faid to-
promote perfpiration and urine, ai.d have been
greatly commended in the venereal dileafe : they da
not appear, however, to have any confiderable
virtue.
The occidental fort which grows naturally about
Carthagena in Spanifh America, is a fpecies of the
fmilax; to which article we refer the reader for its
generical charadters.
China-Rose. See the article HiBisius.
China-Ware, or Porcelain, a kind of wart
well known in moft paits of the world. It ia
formed of an artificial fubftance of a nature be-
twixt earthen- ware and glafs. It refills fufion iri
the fire, when per fe£t, equally with the firft; and
bears, in like manner, a fudden change with reo-ard
to heat and cold ; but at the (ame time has, to a
certain degree, the tranfparency, and entirely the
clofe and even texture of the latter. The piinci-
ple on which the fubftance of China is formed is as
follows.
There are fome kinds of earth, which being ex-
pofed to a ftrong heat, will, after fome time^ fufe
and melt, and acquire the nature of glafs ; while
there are others that, on the contrary, refifi entire-
ly the action of heat, and remain unaltered by it,
at leaft with refpedl to that degree which can be
applied by means of furnaces, or fuch artificial
fires; the firft of thefe kinds are called vitre-
fcent earths, the others apyrous. Now thefe xwd-
kinds being mixed together, in due proportion,,
they fo operate on each other, that a matter, en-
dued with the properties above enumerated, is con-
fequentially produced : for the \itrtfcent earth,.
though^ it is prevented by the other from liquifying,
fo as to become fluid, )et melts to fuch a decree,
as to make the parts of the whole cohere and jjain
a femi-tranfparency, while the other alFofds a body,
which, not having any propenfity to melt, hinders
a greater liquefadtion of the whole, by abforbing the
fluid formed by the other ; and gives, confeouent-
ly, a proper rigidity or ftifi-'nefs to the whole' m.afs
when hot, and at the fame time i)revents its gaining,,
when become cold, that vitreous grain or texture
which would render it more tranfparent, as hkewife
brittle, and apt to crack or fly on any fudden
change with regard to heat or cold.
The original kind of this ware manufactured in
China and Japan, was accordingly formed by a
( ompofition cf two earths : the one vitrefcible,
which is called by the Chinefe petunfc; the other
ayyrousj.or refilling the adlbn of heat, fo as not
ID.
C H I
to fuffer itfelf to be fufed, or melted by the heat of
a furnace, at leaft wiihout the aJdition of fome
very powerful flux, and is called kaolin.
i'he more nerfedf imitations of the China ware
•in Europe have been, in like manner, by the com-
iiiixture of two kinds of earth. Bvit others, where
the true compofition has not been undeiflood, or
,ths proper materials were not to be procured, have
been formed of matter, prepared by mixing with
the earths fome vitreous or fluxing lubflances, not
being duly adapted to the refdtance of the earth,
the wares for the moft part, (though fome of them
have been very white, and of a good confiftence
while in a clayey ffate for working, and capable of
fullaining the heat of the furnace) have yet not
been able to bear hot water, when fuddenly poured
upon them, while they are coM, without cracking
or fuftering a feparation of their parts.
The qualities of China ware, when petkQly
good, are, to be very white and tenacious, fo is
not only to bear violence without breaking, and
ffrike fire with the fleel as flint; but, as is faid
before, to fuffer boiling water to be poured on it,
while it is itfelf in a cold ftate, wi;hout being bro-
ken or cracked : to have a femi-tranfparent appear-
ance ; to break without fliewiiig any grain in the
divided parts, but feeming to have in them the even
texture of glafs ; to fnine on the exterior furface,
as if a bright polifh had been given to it : to be
completely fit, while the compofition is in the ftate
of a moift palle, before it be dried or baked, to be
modelled or caft with the greateff nicety and mi-
nutenefs, retaining the figure, though wrought into
the moft thin and flender parts ; to dry afterwards
without warping ; and to undergo at lafi: the bak-
ing or burning, without any feparation of the parts
or flawing. If the compofition, or the ware form-
ed of it, be deficient in any of thefe particulars,
tlicy are fo far faulty : and by examining any pie-
ces of China with regard to thofe particulars, which
relate to the finifhed ware, the comparative or ab-
folute goodnefs may be eafily diilinguiflied.
The baking or burning China ware is performed
much in the fame manner, as is praififed by the
potters for earthen-ware; except that it is done
with more care ; and that Ibme expedients are uftd
for defending the pieces from the injury of the
fnioke or duft of the furnace, which would deprave
the Colour, or infeft the furface with fpecks.
The glazing tlie ware of this kind is a very im-
portant part of the manufaiSlure of it; and has
been generally found the moft diiFicult to be per-
formed. It is done by Ipreading fome foft isLfs
powdereil, or fome fluxing compofition, (either
mixed with part of the matter, of which the ware
itfelf is formed, or in fome cafes without) on the
furface of the pieces; and melting it there, fo as
when cold, to make an entire covering with the
fmoothnefs and fliining appearance of g'als.
C H I
Tlie painting and gilding China ware is much
the fame as in the cale of enamel, except in fome
particulars; as not only the fame compofitions for
colours ferve equally well for both, but the manner
of burning or fufing tliem is alfo alike, allowing
tor the difference of the figures of the pieces, and
the number of them generally required to be burnt
together. On this part of the manufaiSure, the
value of the ware in general moftly depends, tho'
it is indeed, properly confidered, not a part of the
art of making China-ware, but an auxiliary art
employed only for the giving additional ornaments
to it, being in fafl only enamel painting applied to
this purpofe.
CtilN-COUGH, a convulfive kind of cough,
which children are chiefly fubjedl to, proceeding
from a tough, vifcid, and acid matter, lodged in
the coats of the ftomach, which when they vomit,
they are eal'y for a time.
SoiT.etimes this diforder proceeds from a more
dangerous caufe, which is a certain fait communi-
cated to tender bodies by means of the air, which
coagulates the lymph, and, which growing fharp
and ifagnating, afleiSts the larynx.
In the cure of this cough, particular care fhould
be had to the ftomach ; and without a vomit the
cure can hardly be efteded. Spermaceti in broth
is of excellent ufe : but by bleedings and repeated
purges this cough may be cured, without other
means ; yet the milder cathartics ought here to take
place. Drinks and liquid aliments fhould alfo be
taken in lefs quantity than ufual.
CHINE, in the manege, the fame withahorfe's
backbone.
CHINESE, fomething belonging to the empire
of China, or its inhabitants.
CHIONANTHUS, in botany, a ftirub which
grows by the fide of rivulets in South-Carolina, to
about the height of nine or ten feet, the leaves of
which are about the fize of the kurel, but much
thinner in fubftance. The flowers are monopeta-
lous, the tube of which is very iliort and fpreadingj
the upper part of which is cut into four very long
fegments, which are ere&, acute, of a linear fi-
gure, and fomewhat uneven : in the tube of the pe-
tal are inferred two fliort filaments, terminated
with eredl cordated antherae ; the fruit is an unilo-
cular roundifli black berry, containing a ftriated
hard feed. Thefe come out in May, hanging ia
long bunches, and of a pure white, from which
the inhabitants give it the appellation of fnow-drop-
trce ; and from the flowers being cut into narrow
(egments, it is called by Ibme the fringe-tree.
This plant is propagated here by fowing the feeds.
For the firft two or thiee winters they require fhel-
ter ; afterward they will bear the weather tolerably
well.
CHIRAGRA, in medicine, a term ufed to denote
the gout in the hand or wrift. See the article Gout.
CHIRO-
€ H I
CHIROGRAPH, Chlrographum, in the time of
the Saxons, fignified any public indrumeiit of gift
or conveyance, attefted by thefubfciiption and croiFes
of witnefTes.
Chirograph was alfo anciently ufcd for a fine :
the manner of engrofling the fines, and cutting the
parchment in two pieces, is dill retained in the
chir02;iapher's omce.
CHIROMANCY, x^'P-^/^a'^^i^:, a fpccies of di-
vination, drawn from the dift'crent lines and linea-
ments of a perfon's hand ; by wliich means, it is
pretended, the inclinations fr-ay be difcovered.
CHIRONIA, in botany, a genus of plants ; the
corolla is formed of a lingle petal, and is equal ; t!ie
tube is rouiidilh, and of tiie fize of the cup ; the limb
is divided into five equal oval (egments, and patent ;
the fruit is of an oval figure, and contains two cellsj
the feeds are numerous and fmall.
CHIRONOMY, Chirommia, in antiquity, the
art of reprefenting any paO tranfaflicn by the gef-
tures of the body, more efpecially by the motions of
the hands, 'f !;is made a part of a liberal education ;
it bad the approbation of Socrates, and was ranked
by Plato amring the political virtues.
CHIROIONY, Chircttmid, among ecclefiaftical
writers, denotes the impofition of hands ufed in
conferring pri.Tllv O'dcrs. See the article Order.
CIIIRURGERY, or Surgery, is that part of
medicine which is employed in manual operations.
The word is formed from the Greek, yj'P^ 'h^
hand, and Ejycv, work.
Chirurgery is undoubtedly very ancient, but its
inventor is very uncertain. Some attribute it to
Apis, king of Egypt, though, perhaps, on no good
foundation. But, be that as it will, it is ce.tain
that during the firil ages it was nearly the fole me-
dicine, and confequenily it preceded ph\ fie in point
of time. In the days of Flippocrates, furgery was
fo conne£led with medicine, that the former was
fcarce diftinguilhed from the latter by any peculiar
and difctiminating name : and that Hippocrates him-
felf affilled the fick by manual operation, is a fadt
which cannot be called in qucftion. During thefe
laft forty years, furgery has been cultivated with
very great fuccefs. iM. le Dran has furnifhed us
with inftrudtions which will inform the mofl: fkilful
proficients. M. de la Fave, the ingenious com-
mentator on Dionis, has likewife given us, in his
note<:, not only what his own experience and re-
flections have fuggefted, but alfo, as he fays, the
opinions anri obfcrvations of the greateft furgeons at
Paris ; and indeed the frequent mention he makes of
Meff. Mor;.nd, Petit, de la Peyronie, and others,
are (ufficient proofs that his comments are an exaft
rc'prefentation of the prefcnt flate of furgery in
France. M. Garengcot's treatife on the operations
of furgery lies under the difadvantage of having
been publifhed feme years fince, and before many of
thofe improvements were made, v/hich are now
29
C H L
univerfally known : it, however, contains feveral
cafes and remarks well worth the attention of a
rtudious reader. Hcifier's furgery is in every per-
fon's hands ; and the charaftcr of Heifter is fo well
eftablifhed, that any account of that work is necii-
lefs. Nor need we mentim the treatife of furgery,
and critical enquiry, of the ingenious Mr. Sharp,
fince the name of the author is abundantly fuiR-
cient.
If the reader defircs a more particular account of
cliirurgical authors, we refer tiim to Heifter's Sur-
gery, where he will find a very large catalogue oF
them,
CHISLEY-Land, in agriculture, a foil of a
middle nature, between Tandy and clayey land, with
a large admixture of pebbles.
CrilSSEL, an inftrument much ufcd in carpen-
try, mafonry, joinery, fculpture, &:c. and diliin-
guifhed according to the breadth of the blade into
half- inch chiflels, quarter-inch chilTels, &c. They
have alfo different names, according to the difi^erent
ufes to which they are applied; as, i. The former,
ufed by carpenters, &c. juli after the work is fcribed :
it is Itruck with a mallet. 2. The paring-chiflel,
which is ufed in paring ofF the irregularities made by
the former : this is preffed by the workman's (boul-
der. 3. The fkew-former cleanfes acute angles
with the point of its narrow edge. 4. The mor-
tice-chifl'el, ufcd in cutting deep fquare holes in
wood, for mortices : it is narrow, but thick and
ftrong, to endure hard blows. 5. Socket-chiflels,
having their (hank made with a hollow focket at
top, to receive a firong wooden fjirig fitted into it
vvi;h a fhoulder. 6. Ripping-chifTel, having a blunt
edge, with no bafil, ufed in tearing two pieces of
wood afunder. And, 7. The gouge. See the ar-
ticle Gouge.
CHITUA, in the materia medica, a kind of
lignum aloes, of a reddifh colour. See the article
Ligkum-Aloes.
CHIVALRY, in law, is a tenure of fervice,
whereby the tenant is bound to perform fome noble
or military office to his lord ; and is either regal,
when h(.ld only of the king; or common, fuch as
may be held of a common perfun as well as the
king : the former is properly called ferjeantry, and
the latter efcuage. Sne the articles SerjeanTry
and EscuAGE.
A flatute of Charles II. abolifnes all tenures by
chivalry, in capite, &c. and ordains that all tenures
fhall be conftrued to be free and common loccage.
CHIVES, orCivES, a very fmall f>rt of orMon.
Thefe never produce any bulbs; and fcldom grov/
above fix inches liigh in the blade, v.hicli is final!
and fiender.
They are increafed by parting the roots ; and
were formerly much ufed in fpring-fallads ; but of
late years have been little noticed.
CHLORlTtS, in natural hiftory, a kind of
7 C gruen
C H O
green jifper ; but almoft as pellucid as the coarfer
emeralds. SeejASPER.
CHLOROSIS, in medicine, a difeafe commonly
caled tlie green ficknefs, mcident to girls, maids,
widows, and even wives, whofe hufbands are de-
ficient.
Various are the fymptoms of this diforder, as a
feverifl'i habit of body, vomiiing, difliculty of
breathing;, and longing for unnatural foods.
As to the cure, Aftruc recommends borax, mine-
ral water"-, eledtuaries made of preparations o{ rteel,
tlie martial flowers, &c. afafoetida, aloes and myrrh,
emollient baths, fiequent evacuations, and exer-
cifs; but above all, matrimony.
CHOCOLATE, in commerce, a kind of parte,
or cake, prepared of certain drugs, the balls of
which is the cacao nut.
CHOIR, that part of the church or cathedral
■where choirifters fing divine fervice : it is feparated
from the chancel, where the communion is cele-
brated ; and alfo from the nave of the church,
where the people are placed : the patron is faid to
be obliged to repair the choir of the church. It
was in the time of Conftantine that the choir was
feparated from the nave. In the twelfth century,
they began to inclofe it with walls; but the ancient
baluftrades have been fince reflored, out of a view
to the beauty of architecSlure.
Choir, in nunneries, is a large hall adjoining to
the body of the church, feparated by a grate, where
the nuns fing the office.
CHOLACiOGUEiJ, medicines which purge the
bile.
Of this kind are manna, cafTia, rofes, fena, rhu-
barb, aloes, jalap, fcammony, &:c. There is feme
reafon to think that antimonial medicines a£l more
powerfully on the bile than any other remedies.
CHOLEDOCHUS, in anatomy, is a common
epithet for the gall-bladder, the hepatic veflels^ and
the common gall dudt, which com.municates with
the duodenum.
CHOLER, or Bile. See Bile.
Cholera-Morbus, in medicine, the fame wiih
bilious fever. See Bilious.
CHOMER, Homer, or Omer, the fame with
eorus. See the article Corus.
CHONDRILLA, in botany, a plant which grove's
naturally in France, Switzerland, and Germany, the
roots of which run deep into the ground, and fpread
out with thick fibres on every fide, each of which,
when broke, will produce a frefh plant, which ren-
ders it in thofe parts (where it is confidered as a
weed) very difficult to be eradicated. From the
root arife a number of flender (talks, which at their
bottom are furnifhed with oblong leaves ; but thofe
above are narrow and entire. The flower is com-
pound, imbricated, and uniform : the proper one
snonoprtaldus, ligiilated, linear, tiuncated, and four
er five tiuits dcata-ieJ. There is no pericarpium.
C H O
The cup is of a cylindrical figure, containing foli-
tary, ovated, comprefled feeds, crowned with down.
It flov^ers in May, and the feeds are ripe in
September.
CHONDROGLOSSUM, in anatomy, the name
of a pair of mufcles arifing from the cartilaginous
procefs of the os hyoides, and meeting in the bafeof
the tongue, where they are inferted ; this pair is not
found in all fubjecls.
CHOPIN, oi Chopine, a liquid meafure, ufed
both in Scotland and I'rance, and equal to half
their pint. See the articles Pint and Mea-
sure.
CHORD, ill geometry, is a right-line connecting
the extremities of any arch of a circle.
Line sf Chords is the chords of a circle pro-
jedled on a right-line. See P/ane Scale.
Chords, in mufic, are the firings, or lines, by
whofe vibrations the fenfation of found is excited,
and by whofe divifions the feveral degrees of tune
are determined.
They are called cords, or chords, from the Greek,
XopJo, a name which the phyficians give to the in-
teltines ; in regard the ftrings of mufical inflru-
ments are ordinarily made of guts, though others
are made of brafs or iron wirq, as thofe of fpinnets,.
harpfichords, &c.
Chords of gold wire, in harpfichords, yield a
found almoft twice as ftrong as thofe of brafs :
chords or ftrings of fleel yield a feebler found than
thofe of brafs, as being lefs heavy, and lefs duc-
tile.
The tone of a found depends on the time or
duration of the ftroke made on the drum of the ear,
by a wave or pulfe of air; for as that is longer or
fliorter, the tone will be more grave or acute ; and
fince all pulfes move equally fwift, the duration of a
ftroke will be proportional to the interval between
two fucceiTrve pulfes ; and confequcntly a found is
more or lefs grave or acute, in proportion to the
length of that interval.
Hence it follows, that all the founds, from the
loudtft to the loweft, which are excited by the vi-
brations of the fame body, are of one tone. It
likewile fallows, that all thofe bodies, whofe parts
perform their vibrations in the fame or equal times,
have the fame tone : alfo thofe bodies which vibrate
floweft have the graveft and deepeft tone, as thole
which vibrate quickelt have the fharpeft or flniUeft
tone.
Chord, Cirda, in anatomy, a little nerve com-
pofed by a combination of ramuli of the fifth and
feventh pairs, and extended in the manner of a
chord, under the membrane of the drum of the-
ear. See the article Tympanum.
CHORDEE, in medicine and furgery, a fymp-
tom attending a goiiorrhrea, confiiting in a violent
pain under the frenum, and along the duiit of the
urethra, during the creation of the penis, which is.
inciuvated.
C H O
C H R
incurvated downwards. Thefe ereiHions are fre-
quent and involuntary.
CHOREA SanctiViti,St, Virus's Dance,
in medicine. See the article Virus's Dame.
CHOREPISCOPUS, or Country-Bishop,
an affiftant to a bifhop, firft introduced into the
church when the diocefes became enlarged by the
convcrfion of the pagans in ths country and villa-
ges at a diftance from the mother-church.
Chorepiscopus is alio the name of a dignity in
fom;; cathedrals in Germany, fignifyiiig the fame
witii chori-cpifcopus, or bifliop of the choir. The
firlt chanter in the church of Cologne is called chori-
epilcopus.
CHOREUS, in ajicient poetry, the fame with
troch;eus or trochee. See the article Trochee.
CHORIAMBUS, in ancient poetry, a foot con-
fifting of four fyllables, whereof the firft and laft
are long, and the two middle ones are fhort ; or,
which is the Tame thing, it is made up of a tro-
chsus and iambus : fuch is the word ndbilitas.
CHORION, in anatomy, the exterior mem-
brane which inverts the f(Stus in the uterus : it is
thick, fpongy, villofe, and furnifhed with a vaft
apparatus of blood -veflels. It is contiguous to the
uterus, and is feparable into membranes or parts.
CHOROBATA, or Chorobates, a kind of
water-level among the ancients, of the figure of the
letter T, according to Vitruvius's dcfcription.
CHOROGRAPHY, the art of making a map
of fome country or province.
Chorography differs from geography, as the de-
fcription of a particular country does from that of
the whole earth ; and from topography, as the dc-
fcription of a country differs from that of a town
or diflriiil. See the articles Geography and To-
pography.
CHOROIDES, in anatomy, an epithet of fe-
veral membranes, which on account of the multi-
tude of the blood-veffcls refemble the chorion. See
Chorion.
Choroides denotes the coat of the eye placed
immediately under the fclerotica, the inferior lamel-
la of which is called tunica Rufchiana : it is very
full of veflels, and coloured black.
Mr. Le Cat, in his dcfcription of the parts of
the eye, maintains Mariot's opinion of the choroid
coat, and not the retina, being the immediate or-
gan of vifion. The retina, according to him, is to
the choroid what the epidermis is to tiie fkin,
Choroides is ufed lor a portion of the pia mater.
See the article Pia Mater.
P/t'.v/« Choroides is a convolution of the mem-
branes of (he brain, confilting of an allemblage of
veins and arteries.
CHORO-FAVORITO, in the Italian mufic,
,a chorus in which are employed the beft voices and
inflruments to fing the recitatives, play the ritor-
nellos, &c. It is otherwifc called the little chorus,
or choro recitante.
CHORUS, in dramatic poetry» one or more
perfons prefent on the ftage during the reprefenta-
tion, and fuppofed to be by-ftandeis, without any
fhare in the action.
Chorus, in mufic, is when, at certain periods
of a fong, the whole company are to jom the lingers
in repeating certain couplets or verfcs.
The word chorus is often placed in Italian mufic,
inftead of tutli, or da capella, which mean the grand,
chorus. When after chorus we meet with i", or
prim}, we muft underftand that it is to be played
in 'the firfl chorus ; if 2°, 11°, or fecotic/o, in the
fecond ; and, confequently, that the compofition is
for eight voices or different parts.
CHOSE, in the common law, is ufed with va-
rious epithets : as,
Chose in ASiion is an incorporeal thing, and
only a right,, as an annuity, bond, covenant, &c.
and generally all caufes of fuit, for any duty or
wrong, arc accounted chofes in aiflion.
Chofcs in aflion may be alfo called chofes in fuf-
pence, as having no real exiftence, and not being^
properly in our pofleflion.
Chose Local is any thing that is annexed to a
place, fuch as a mill, &c.
Chose Transitory, fomething moveable,
and which may be taken away, or carried from
place to place.
CHC^UAN, in commerce, the Levant name for
the feed of a fpecies of fantolina, known among us
by that of carmine feed, from its being often ufed'
in the preparation of that drug.
CHOUGH, or Cornish Chough, in ornitho-
logy, a fpecies of corvus, otherwife called coracias,.
See the articles CoRvus and Coracias.
CHRISM, xf'=^/''==i oil confecrated by the bifliop,
and. ufed in the Ronilfii and Greek churches in the
adminiftraiion of baptifm, confirmation, ordination,,
and extreme un£lion.
Chrism-Pence, a tribute anciently paid to the
bifhop by the parifh clergy for their chrifm, confe-
crated at Ealter for the cnfuing year : this was af-
terwards condemned as fimonaicil.
CHRIST, Xeifof, an appelLtiun ufually given,
to our Saviour, anfwering exactly to tlie Hebrew
Meffiah, and fignifying one tiiat is anointed. See
M.ESSIAH.
Or Jer of Christ, a military order, founded bj
Dionyfius I. king of Portugal, to animate his no-
bles againft the Moors.
The arms of this order are gules, a patriarchal
crofs, chai-ged with another crol's argent : thev had'
t'neir rcfidence at firft at CailTomarin,, afterward
they removed to the cii}' of Ihomar, as being-
iiea.M
C H R
C FI R
nearer to the Moors of Andalufia and Eftrema-
dura.
Christ is alfo the name of a military order in
I/ivonia, inftituted in 1205, by Albert bifhop of
Riga. The end of this inititution was to defend
the new Chriftians, who v/ere converted every day
in Livonia, but were perfecuted by the heathens.
They wore on their cloaks a fword with a crofs
over it, whence they were alio denominated Bro-
thers of the Sword.
Christ-Thorn, in botany, a name given to
the paliurus, a fpecies of rhamnus. See the article
Rhamnus.
CHRISTENING, denotes the fame with bap-
tifm. See the article B.aptism,
CHRISTIAN, in a general fenfe, fomethlng be-
loniiina: to Chrift.
Christian Religion, that inflituted by Jefus
Chrift.
CHRISTIANS, thofe who profefs to believe and
praOtKe the Chriftian religion, and are baptized in
the name of Jefus Chrift.
Christians of Sc. John, a feci of Chriftians
very numerous in Balfora, and the neighbouring
towns : they formerly inhabited along the river Jor-
dan, where St. John baptized, and it was from
thence they had their name.
Christians of St. Thomas, a f >rt of Chriftians
in a peninfula of India, on this fide of the gulf:
they inhabit chiefly at Cranganor, and the neigh-
bouring country : thefe admit of no images, and
receive only the crofs, to which they pay great ve-
neration.
CHRISTMAS, a feftival of the Chriftian church,
obferved on the 25th of December, in memory of
the nativity of Jefus Chrift.
Christmas-Rose, in botsny, a name fome-
times given to a fpecies of black hellebore. See
the article Hellebore.
CHRISTOLYTE, in church-hiftory, a fe^ of
Chriftian heretics, who maintained that Chrift de-
fcended into hell, body and foul, and that he left
both there, afcending into heaven with his divinity
alone.
CHRISTOMACHI, an appellation given to all
heretics, who deny Chrift's divinity, or maintain
tieteroci( X opinions concerning his incarnation,
CHRITOPHORIANA, in botany. See Ac-
tea.
CHROMATIC, in the ancient mufic, the fe-
coiid of the three kinds into which the confonant
intervals were fubdivided into their coiiciniious
parts. The other two kinds are enhai monic and
diatonic. See the articles Enharmonic, &c.
Chromatic, in painting, a term ufed to fig-
nify the colouring, which makes the third part in
the ait of painting.
CHRONlC, (.r Chronical, an-,ong phyfi-
dnSj an appe'Ution given to difejfes that continu-c
4
a long time, in contradiftinSion to thofe that foon'
terminate, and are called acute,
CHRONICLE, xoiviKoy, in m^atters of literature,
a fpecies or kind of hiftory, difpofed according ta
the order of time, and agreeing in moft rtfpedts
with annals. See the article Annals.
Booh of Chronicles, in the canon of Sejip-
ture, two facrcd books, called bv the Greekij /-rt-
7al:pome>ia, 'arafay-.HZsoi/.zva ; that is, remains j addi-
tions, or fuppknients, as containing many circum-
ftances omitted in the- other hiftorical bcoks.
CHRONOGRAM, xponypay./xx, a fpecies of
falfe wit, confifting in this, that a certain date or-
epocha is exprefted by numeral letters of one or
more verfes.
CHRONOLOGY, as it is commonly accepted,
is the arithmetical computation of time for tnftori-
cal ufes, that thereby the beginniirgs and endings'
o' princes reigns, the revolutions- of empires atid-
kingiJoms, battles, fieges, or any other n>cmor.ib!'f
events or adlions may be truly ftated.
Strumius divides chronology into five diftin£t
branches, viz. metaphyfical, phyfical, political,
hiftorical, and ecclefiaftical, according to the vari-
ous relations or habitudes wherein time is confider-
ed, that is, as in itfelf, as connefied and fuhjeded
to the afFcdiions, ftates, and alteration of natural
things, as accommodated to civil ufes, as matched
with events that pafs in the world, and particularly-
as it relates to the celebration of Eafter.
To be a good chronologift, requires not only
the knowledge of aftronomy and geography, and
confcqtiently that of arithmetic, geometry, and tri-
gonometry, both plain and fpherical, but alfo clofe
application to the ancient monuments.
Sir Ifaac Newton, in order to fettle the grand
epocha of the Argonautic expedition, makes ufe of
the following principles.
He obferves, that Eudoxus, in his defcription of
the fphere of the antients, placed the folftices and
equinoxes in the middle of the conftellations Aries,
Cancer, CheL-e, and Capricorn ; and alfo that this
fphere or globe was firft made bv Mufasus, and the
afterifms delineated upon it by Chiron, two of the
Argonauts. Now it is well known, that by the
preceffion of the equinoxes the liars go back 50"
per annum. And fmce, at the end of the year
1689, the equinoflial colure pafling through the
middle point, between the firft and laft ftar of Aries,
did then cut the ecliptic in iS 6' 44', it is evident,
that the equinox had then gone back 36° 44' ; there-
fore, as 50" is to one year, fo is 30" 44' to 2645
years, which is the time fincc the Argonautic expe-
dition to the beginning of the year i6go; that is,
955 y<^ars before Chriif, is the sraof the Argonau-
tic expedition.
But our great author is more particular and fub-
tile in this affair. He finds the mean place of the
colure of the equinoxes and folftices, by tonfider-
ing
C H R
ing the fcreral ftars they pafled through among
other conftellations as follows, according to Eu-
doxus. In the back of Aries is a ftar of the fixth
niagnitude, marked y by Bayer ; in the end of the
year 1689, its longitude was b 9° 38' 45 ' ; and the
equinodlial colure paiTing through, according to
Eudoxus, cuts the ecliptic in 8 6° 58' 57".
In the head of Cetus are two ftars of the fourth
magnitude, called v and | by Bayer. Eudoxus's co-
lure, pafiing in the middle betwixt them, cuts the
ecliptic in 8 6' 58' 51", at the end of the year
1689.
In the extreme flexure of Eridanus there was for-
merly a ftar of the fourth magnitude (of late it is
referred to the bread of Cetus.) It is the only ftar
in Eridanus, through which the colure can pafs ;
its longitude was at the end of the year 1689 f
25° 22' id", and the colure of the equinox palling
through it cuts the ecliptic in 8 7 ' 12' 40".
In the head of Perfeus, rightly delineated, is a
ftar of the fourth magnitude, called t by Bayer;
its longitude was 5 23"* 25' 30', at the end of the
year 1689 ; and the colure paffing through it cuts
the ecliptic in S 6° 18' 57'. Alfo in the right-
hand of Perfeus is a ftar of the fourth magnitude,
whofe longitude at the end of the year 1689, was
b- 24° 25' 27', and the cquino£lial colure pafiing
through It cuts the ecliptic in 8 4° 56' 40".
fS 6' 58' 57"
Now the fum of all thefe \» 6 58 51
live places of the colure, <.V> y 12 40
viz, I a 6 iS ^j
C b 4 56 40
C H R
Is = I 2 26 05
The fifth part of which is = 8 C° 29' 13", which
is therefore the mean place in which the colure did,
in the end of the year 1689, cut the ecliptic.
After a like manner he determines the mean
place of the folfticial fummer colure, to be o>l 6°
28' 46", which, as it is juft 90° from the other,
ftews it to be rightly deduced. The equinoxes
having then departed js 6° 29' from the cardinal
points of Chiron, ftiews that 2628 years have elap-
fed hnce that time, which is more correal than the
former number, though lefs by only feventeen years.
See Precession.
By ftmie other methods of a like nature, he alfo
fhews the sera of the Argonauts ought to be placed
in that age of the world ; and having fixed this iiioft
antient epocha, he makes iiis computation, with
reference thereto, in the future part of his book.
As to the authors who have written on this fci-
ence, they are very numerous ; among the moderns
are Petavius, VoOius, Ufher, Sir Ifaac Newton, kc.
and among the antients, Julius Africanus, Eufcbius,
&c. There is alfo an excellent Trcatife of Chro-
nology by the learned Strauchius, tranflated into
'29
Englifh by Mr. Sault, F. R. S. and an ufcful com-
pent! by Mr. Wells.
CHRONOMETER, a general name for any
inflrumeiit ufed in the meafuring of time; in this
fenfe clocks, watches, dials, &c. are chronometers :
though there are fome other inflruments peculiarly
called by that name, particularly one dcfcribed by
Mr. Sauveur in his Principles of Acoftics, as like-
wife one defcribed in Dr. Dcfagulier's Experimen-
tal Philofophy ; which is a kind of clock, contriv-
ed to meafure fmall portions of time with great ex-
adlnefs, even to the fixteenth part of a fecond ;
which is of great ufe in aftronomical obfervations,
the time of the fall of bodies, the velocity of run-
ning waters, &c. But thefe kind of chronometers
mull not be depended on for any long fpace of
time, except their pendulums be made to vibrate in
a cycloid, becaufe all clocks, which have fhort pen-
dulums, are liable to err more confiderably than
thofe with long pendulums.
CHRYSALIS, in natural hiftory, a ftate of reft
and feeming infenfibility which butterflies, moths
and feveral other kinds of infeits, muft pafs through
before they arrive at their winged or more perfect
fiate. See Butterfly.
The fird flate of thefe animals is in the cater-
pillar or reptile form : then they pafs into the chry-
falis-ftate, wherein they remain immoveably fixed
to one fpot, and furrounded with a cafe or cover-
ing, which is generally of a conical figure ; and,
laitly, after fpending the ufual time in this middli;
ftate, they throw off the external cafe wherein
they lay imprifoned, and appear in their moft per-
fedt and winded form of butterflies, or flies. See
Caterpillar.
Through the whole courfeof this transformation^
the animal remains the fame, only furrounded with
different coverings ; in the caterpillar form, it is a
kind of foetus, or embryo, wrapped up in feveral
coats, the limbs of which can only be difcovered by
the aililTance of the microfcope : in the thryfalis or
nymph- flate, it acquires a farther degree of matu-
rity i and then the limbs, wings, iScc. become per-
fectly dilVm£t ; and at length it difengages itfelf,
and becomes an inhabitant of the air, adnined with
a peculiar kind of plumage : in this lalt {late the
two fexes copulate, and the female lays her eggs to
be afterwards hatched into caterpillars, and to pafs
through the like changes with the parent- inject.
CHRYSANTHEMUM, Curn-Marigold, in
botany, a genus of plants, producing compound, radi-
ated flowers, the proper hermaphrodite floreis are fun-
nel -fllaped, and the female, ligulated, oblong, ar.d
tridentated ; it is deditute of a pcricarpium, but the
immutated cup contains feveral foiitary, oblong,
naked feeds.
Theie are various fpecies belonging to this genus,
one of which grows very common in corn fields 5
7 D ' another
C H R
ano her fpecies, which is annual, anJ either with
white or yellow-coloured flowers, is cultivated in
gardens : thefe make an agreeable appearance, par-
ticularly thofe with double flowers ; a variety of
which (called the quilled chryranthemum) is moft
eileemt-d ; thef- may be encreafed by cuttings in
the fumnitr, and prefcrved in a green-houfe in win-
ter.
CHRYSOBALANUS, in botanv, a genus of
icofandrious plants, the flower of which conlift.-^ of
five oblong, plain, patent petals, inferted in a cam-
panulated cup.
The fruit is an ovated, large unilocular berry,
incloUng an ovated nut, with five longitudinal fur-
rows.
There are two fpecies in this genus; but being
natives of the warm parts of America, they require
a hot-houfe for their prefervation in this climate.
CHRYSOBERYL, a kind of beryl with a tinc-
ture of yellow. See Beryl.
CHRYSOCOiVlA, or Chrysocome, goldy-
locks, in botany, a genus of plants, the compound
flower of which is lubulous, the proper one of a
funnel-form, with a quinquifid limb. There is no
pericarpium, but the cup fcarcely immutated, con-
tains folitary, ovato-oblcngjComprefVed feeds, crown-
ed with a hairv down.
CHRYSOGONUM, in botany, a genus of
plants, the univerfal flower of which is radiated ;
the proper hermaphrodite one cf a funnel-form,
q'jinquidentated and ereifl ; the female one plain,
cblong, truncated, and tridcntated. There is no
pericarpium : the immutated cup contains folitary,
obverfo-cordated, quadrangular feeds in the female;
the hermaphrodites prove abortive.
CHRYSOLITE, in natural hiffory, a gem
'which the ancients knew under the name of the
topaz ; and the true chryfolite of the ancients,
'which bad its name from its fine gold-yellow co-
lour, is now univerfaUy called topaz by modern
isweilers. See the article Topaz.
Chrysolite-Paste, a kind of glafs made in
imitation of natural chryfolite, by mixing two
ounces of prepared chryflal with ten ounces of red-
lead, adding twelve grains of crocus martis made
with vinegar; and then baking the whole for twen-
ty-four hours, or loniier, in a well-luted crucible.
CHRYSOPHYLLUM, IVar-apple, in botany, a
genus of trees which grows naturally in the Welf-
Indies to the height of twenty or thirty-feet, divid-
i-na; in'o many branches. The flowers which are
montjpetalous and campanulated, come out f:o:n
t!i- fiJc of the blanches, and are fuccceded by large
glohofe berries, each containing thiceorfour.com-
prefic-d ciFeous feeds.
The fruit of thefe trees arc very rough and af-
tringent at F.ifl:, but bv laying fome time after they
are gathered they become mellow.
C H U
The timber is ufed in the Weft-Indies for build-
ing, and for (hingles to cover houfes.
CHRYSOPRASUS, or Chrysoprasius, the
tenth of the precious itones mentioned in the Reve-
lations as forming the foundation of the heavenly
Jerufalem.
The chryfoprafius is a fpecies of prafius, of a
pale but pure green colour, with an admixture of
yellow. See Prasius.
CHRYSOSPLENIUM, golden faxifrage, in bo-
tany, a genus of plants, producing apetalous flow-
ers, each of which contains a coloured premanent
calyx, divided into four or five parts, in which is
inferted eight or ten ereft fubulated flamina.
The fruit is an unilocular, two horned capfule,
containing a number of very fmall feeds.
This genus contains two fpecies which grow
wild in many parts of England ; they flower in
March or April.
CHUB, orCHUBE, in ichthyology, theEnglifh
name of a fpecies of cyprinus, with eleven rays in
the pinna ani. See the article Cyprinus.
CHURCH, has different fignifications, accord-
ing to the different fubjedfs to which it is applied.
X. It is underlfood of the colledlive body of Chrif-
tians, or all thofe over the face of the whole earth,
who profefs to believe in Chrifl^, and acknowledge
him to be the Saviour of mankind.
2. Church is applied to any particular conjjrega-
tion of Chrifllans, who at one time, and in one
place, afTociate together and concur in the partici-
pation of all the inrtitutions of Jefus Chriff, with
their proper paftors and miniffers.
3. Church denotes a particular fe£t of Chriffians
diffinguifhed by particular dodfrines and ceremo-
nies.
4. The word church is ufed to fignify the body
of ecclefiallics, or the clergy, in contradiifinciioii
to the laity.
5. Church is ufed for the place where a particular
congregation or focicty of Chriftians afTemble for
the celebration of divine fervice.
Church Wardens, formerly cal'ed church-
reeves, are oflicers chofen yearly, in Eafier-week,
by the minifter and parifhioners of every parifh-,
to look after the church, church-yard, church- re-
venues, &c. alfo to obferve the behaviour of the
parifhioners, in relation to fuch mifdemeanors as
appertain to the cenfure or jurifdiflion of the ecdcr
fiaftical court.
CHURLE, Ceorle, or Carl, in the time of
the Saxons, figniiied a tenant at will, who htlj
land of thanes, on condition of rent and fervice.
They were of two forts, one like our farmers that
rented the out-land eftates, the other which tilled
and manured the demeihes, and therefore called
pl()ue;hmen.
CHYLE, in the animal ceconomy, a milky
fluids.
CUV
fluid, fccrcted from the aliments by means of di-
gertion.
The principles of the chyle feem to be fulphure-
ous, mucilaginous, faline, and aqueous. It is a
kind ot natural eniulfion, both with regard to the
colour, the ingredients, and the manner of prepa-
ration. There is this difFerence between the artifi-
cial and natural emuifion, that the latter is far more
pure, and is prepared with much greater apparatus,
not by the fudden exprelTion of part of the liquid,
but bv a gentle and fuccefllve percolation.
■ CHYLIFICATION, the formation of the chyle,
or the a6l whereby the food is changed into chyle.
Chylification commences by comminuting the ali-
ment in the mouth, mixing it with faliva, and chew-
ing it with the teeth ; by thefe means the food is
reduced into a kind of pulp, which, being received
into the ftomach, mixes with the juices thereof; and
thus diluted, begins to ferment or putrify ; and af-
fuming a very different form from what it had be-
fore, grows either acid or rancid. Here it meets
with a juice feparated from the blood by the glands
of that part, whofe excretory duiSs open into the
esvity of the ftomach ; by the commixture of thefe
liquors, whether of faliva, or the juice of the fto-
mach, a proper menftruum is compofed, by which
the parts of the aliment are ftil! more and more di-
vided by its infinuating into their pores, and acquire
ftill a greater likenefs to the animal fluids, and form
what if called chyme. The ftomach, by means of
its mufcuiar fibres, contrafTling itfelf, gradually dif-
charges its contents by the p^Torus into the duode-
num ; in which gut, after a fmall femicircular de-
fcent, it meets v/ith the pancreatic juice and bile ;
both which joining with it, renders fome part of the
aliment more fluid, by ftill difuniting the groffer
parts from the more pure, and here the chylification
is made pufect.
The bile, which abounds with lixivial falts, and
apt to entangle with the groffer parts of the con-
cofled aliment, ftimulates the guts,^ and cleanfes
the;r cavities of the mucous matter feparated from
the blood by the glands of the guts, and lodged in
tlieir cavities ; which not only moiftens the infule
of tlie guts, but defends the mouth of the lacteal
veffels from being injured by alien bodies, which
often pafs that wav.
The contents of the inteftines move dill on, by
means of the periftaltic motion of the g'lis ; whilif
thofe thinner parts, fitted to the pores of the latSleal
veil.-ls, arc abforbed by them : the thicker move
morL- flov/ly on, and by the many ftops they con-
tinually meet with by the connivent valves, all the
chyle or thin parts are at length entirely abforbe'l ;
the remains, being merely exciemcntious, are only
fit to be protruded by flool.
In the paffase through the fmill inteftines, the
filer part of the maf:-, which we call chyle, as has
beeii already obferve.-l, enters the orifices of the Iac-
4{
C I c
teal veffels of the firft kind, wherewith the who't
mefentery is intermixed, which either alone, or to-
gether with the mefearic veins, difcharge themfelves
into the glands, at the bafis of the mefentery.
Then the chyle is taken up by the ladteals of the
fecond kind, and is conveyed into glands between
the two tendojis of the diaphragm, called Pecquet's
Refervatory, whence it is carried to the heart by
the thoracic dudl and the fubclavian vein: and hen;
it firft mixes with the blood, and in time becomes-
affimilated thereto.
CHYMISTRY, or Chemistry. See the ar-
tide Chemistry.
CIBOULS, in botany, a fmall kind of onion;,
now much in difufe.
CICATRICULA, among natural hiftorians, de-
notes a fmall whltifh fpeck in the yolk of an egg^
fuppofed to be the firft rudiments of the future
chick.
CICATRIX, in furgery, a little feam or eleva-
tion of callous flefli rifing on the fkin, and [Remain-
ing there after the healing of a wound or ulcer. It
is commonly called a fear.
CICELY Sivcet, in botany, a plant with a pe-
rennial, long, thick, foft root, compofed of many
fibres of a fweet aromatic tafte, from which arife
many branching fi-alks, which grow to the height
of four or or five feet ; thefe are downy and hollow..
The leaves are large, and winged like thofe of the
hemlock, but whiter; they are foft to the touch, a
little downy, and have the fmell of chervil. The
flowers grow in umbels on the tops of the ffalks, of
a white colour, and a fv/eet aromatic fcent ; thefe
appear in May or June, and are fucceeded by long,,
angular, furrowed kedi, having the fmell and tafte of
annifeed, and are ripe in July.
This plant is reckoned a pedoral, and the leaves-
being dried in the fhade, and fmoaked like tobacco,
is of great efficacy in afthmatic dllorders.
It is a native of Germany, but has been lor.g
cultivated in England.
For its generical charaifers, fee the article Scan-
Dix, of which it is a fpecies.
CICER, the chick-pea, in botany, an annual
plant, with a flender fibrous root, from whence-
proceed feveral ilalks ; thefe are hairy, and fur-
nifhed with conjugated leaves, each compofed of
feven or nine pair of lobes, ferrated on their edge;^,
and terminated by an odd one.
The flowers, v^hich are papiiionacecus, proceed
from the fide of the branches, and are like thofe of
the pea, but fmailer. Thefe ate white and ftand on
long foot-ftalks; each hath ten ftainina, and the-
truii is a turbid, fwellmg p()dj of a rhomboidi.1
ihap-?, containing two rour-idifh feeds.
The feeds of this pl.int are accounted in fome
meafure abCteriivo, and for thiCreafon are met with
it) diuretic compolitions in the officinal medicines ::
but they are, very feJdum found m odiej- prefcrip-
Liuil3k.
G I C
C I N
tions. Chick peafe was the provlfion cf the anci-
ent Hebrews, when they took, the field. 7 hey
parched them, and fo eat them ; and at this day, in
Kgypt, it is ufual for thofc who undertake a long
jdiiriicy, to lay in a good ftotk of chick -pcafe,
parched in a frying-pan.
CICHOR.IUM, fuccory, in botany, a genus of
plants, producing compound, plain, uniform fluw-
ers ; the proper ones are moncpetalous, ligulated,
truncated, and deeply quinquidcntated. The ger-
rnen is fituated in a cyhndrical calyx, which is con-
riivent at the top, and contains folitary, compreffcd
feeds with acute angles.
All the forts of fuccory are efleemcd aperitive
and diuretic, opening obftrudlions of the liver, and
good for the j.iundice ; it provokes urine, and
cleanfes the urinary paflagcs of flimy humours.
The juice taken in large quantities, fo as to keep
up a gentle diarrhaea, and continued forfome weeks,
has been found excellent againft the fcurvy and other
chronical diford;.rs.
CICUTA, water-hemlock, in botany, a poifo-
nous plant, which grows in Handing waters in fe-
veral parts of England ; it has a branching hollow
ftalk, which is terminated by umbels of yellovi-ifh
flowers. The whole phnt greatly refembles fmall-
age ; their difference is, that the leaves of this plant
are long, flender, and deeply cut, commonly in-
to three fegments, and thofe of fmallage are cut in
the fame manner, but the fegments are fliort and
broad. 7 he roots of this plant are at firlt hollow
and green, and lined internally with a (hining
white matter : by age they become harder and more
folid, and change their green colour to a pale )'el-
lowifh ; when full grown, they are as large as the
fift. 1 hey have a number of fibres, like the com-
mon celery-root, efpecially at the bottom, by which
they are faftened to the earth at the bottom of the
water wherein they are commonly produced : they
are often, however, loofened and carried off by the
water; and too often have been taken up and eaten
for celery, of which feveral melancholy inflances
have happened.
Their poifonous quality refides in an orange yel-
low juice, which is diftributed indeed through the
whole plant, but accumulated mofl plentifully in
the roots.
On a chemical analyfis, both the leaves and roots
of this plant are found to contain a large quantity
of watery moifture. Four ounces of the frelh roots
were reduced, by drying, to three drams and a
half ; from which were obtained two drams of fpi-
rituous and half a dram of watery extrad ; only
one dram of earthy matter remaining from the
whole four ounces. The leaves loft more in dry-
ing, and yielded lefs earth than the roots : the
<)uantity of watery extract was two drams from
four ounces : the refiduum gave but half a fcruple
to (pirit. Sixteen ounces of the leaves yielded in
cxprenion ten ounces of juice, which, on being in-
fpiflattd, left no more than a fcruple of folid matter.
CILIA, the eye-laflies, in anatomy, are certain
rigid hairs fituated on the arch or tarfus of the eye-
lids, and bent in a very fmgular manner.
They are deftined for keeping external bodies
out of the eye, and for moderating the influx of
light.
CILIATED Zra/, among botanical writers, one
furrounded all the way with parallel filaments,
fomewhatlike the hairs of the eye-lids, whence its
name.
CILIARE, or Ligamentum Ciliare, or
CiLiARis Processus, in anatomy, a range of
black-fibres difpofed circularly, having their rife in
the inner part of the uvea, and terminating in the
prominent part of the chryffalline humour of the
eye, which they furround.
ClMA, or Sim A, in architeflure, a member or
moulding, called ogee and cymatium.
CIMOLIA Terra, in natural hiftory, a fpe-
cies of white marie, which is ponderous and friable,
and makes a confiderable effervefcence with aqua-
forti?.
CiMOLiA Alba, a name given to the hard,
heavy, white clay, whereof tobacco-pipes aie
made.
CINCHONA, in botany, a genus of plants,
the flower of which is monopetalous and infundi-
buliform ; the fruit is a roundifli bilocular capfule,
crowned with a cup, and opening into two parts
from the bafe to the apex, containing feveral ob-
long, comprelTed, marginated feeds.
This is the tree which produces the quinquina,
or Peruvian bark. See the article QuiNquiNA.
CINCTURE, in architeflure, a ring or lift, at
the top and bottom of the fhaft of a column, fepa-
rating the fhaft at one end from the bafe, and at
the other from the capital.
That at the bottom is peculiarly called apophyge,
as if the pillar took its flight from thence 5 and that
at the top colarin, or collar.
CINERITIOUS, an appellation given to diffe-
rent fubftances, on account of their refembling
allies, either in colour or confiflence : hence it is,
that the cortical part of the brain has fometimes
got this epithet. See the article Brain.
CINNABAR, in natural hiftory, is either na-
tive or factitious. The native cinnabar is an ore of
quick-filver moderately compa£t, very heavy, and of.
an elegant ftriated red colour. In this ore the quick-
filver is blended in different proportions with ful-
phur. It is fo rich an ore, as to be no other than
mercury impregnated with a fmall quantity of ful-
phur, juft enough to reduce it to that Hate, being
commonly more than fix parts of mercury to one
of fulphur; and even the pooreft cinnabar yields
one half mercury: it is of a very bright glittering
appearance, when frelh broken j and is ufually
found
C I N
found lodged in a bluifli, indurated clay, though
fometimes in a greenifh talcy ftone.
Failitkus Cinnabar, a mixture of mercury and
fulphur fublimed, and thus reduced into a fine red
glebe. The beft is of a high colour, and full of
fibres, like needles.
Cinnabar is likewlfe ufed by painters as a colour,
and is rendered more beautiful, by grinding it with
gum-water and a little fnfFron.
Th;re is likevvife a blue cinnabar, made by mix-
ing two parts of fulphur with three of quickfilver
and one of fal armoniac.
Cinnabar of Amlmmy, a preparation of mer-
cury, fulphur, and antimony, made by fublimation,
faid to be a good diaphoretic and alterative.
CINNAMON, Ciniwrnomum, the bark of a tree
of the bay kind, growing in the iiland of Ceylon ;
freed from the outer green or greyifli part, and cut
into long flices, which curl up, in drying, into
quills or cranes, the form in which it is brought to
us ; very thin, light, of a reddifh yellow colour,
or pale rudy iron colour, fomcwhat tough in break-
ing, and of a fibrous texture like wood. It is fre-
quently mixed with another bark, greatly refcmbling
it in appearance, but much weaker in virtue, .co/w
lignea : this laft is d.ftinauiflied by the clofe fmooth
furface which it exhibits on being broken, and by
its remarkably flimy tafte.
Tliis batk is one of the moft grateful of the aro-
cnatics ; of a very fragrant fmi-ll, and a miderately
pungent, glowing, but not ficr}' tafte, accompariied
with a conliderable fweetnefs, and fome degree of
sftringency. It is faid, that the fine flavour refides,
originally, only in the thin pellicle which lines the
interior furface of the bark, and which abounds
with veficles of efTential oil ; the reft of the bark,
while frefli, being merely fubaflringent, and re-
ceiving the flavour, which we find it to have, from
the inner pellicle in drying. Accordingly the
thinnell pieces are found to be ftrongeft ; as con-
taining the iargeft proportion of this adtive part,
and the leaft of the inert woody matter.
Cinnamon, infufed in boiling-water in a clofe vef-
fel, gives out to the fluid the sreateft part of its vir-
tue ; together with a reddifh brown tiinfture, deeper
or paler, accordino; to the proportion of cinnamon
employed. Rectified and proof fpirit extract its vir-
tues more perfectly than water, and without the
a.Tiftance of heat ; three ounces of the powdered
baik, by cold maceration for a few days, give a
ftrong impregnation to a quart of proof fpirit.
The aromatic principle of this fpice is an efTential
oil ; which, in diftiUation with water, rifes fluvvly,
difficultly, and renders the liquor fomewhat milky :
the water continues to run milky, and gratefully
impregnated with the fragrance of the cinnamon,
till about a gallon has been drawn off from a pound :
when large quantities of the fpice are fubmi«ed to
29
C I N
the operation at once, a fmall portion of the oil
commonly feparates and finks to the bottom of th*
water ; in colour gold yellow ; of a delightful fmell
like that of cinnamon iifelf ; and of a fiery pun-
gency, fo as not to be fafely tafted or applied to tht
fkin without dilution; for, as Boerhaave obferves, it
burns to a gangrenous efchar : in dofes of a drop or
two, diluted by the means of fugar, mucilages, ?^c,
it is one of the moft immediate coidlals and reflora-
tlves, in languors, fin^ultufes, and all debilities of thfc
vis vitae. If the milky diftilled water be long kept,
great part of the ponderous oil fufpended in it, feparates
and fubfides : fome with a view to the perfei5tion of
the water, endeavour to prevent this fcparation, by
adding a fmall proportion of fugar, which contri-
butes to keep the oil diflulved : others, with a view
dnly to the obtaining of the oil, endeavour to pro-
mote the feparation, by fetting the liquor in a very
cold place, and perhaps by other means not com-
monly known. It is faid, that from fixteen ounces
of good cinnamon, about two drams of oil may b'e
colledted.
On diftilling proof fpirit from this fpice, the
purely fpirituous part, which comes over firft, proves
almoft flavourlefs, but the waery part which fol-
lows brings with it the efTential oil ; and this oil
being diflolved by means of the fpiri'uous portions,
the liquor proves limpid. A cordial water of this
kind is commonly prepared in the {hops, by draw-
ing off a gallon of prootfpirit from a pound of
cinnamon. A like preparation m.ight be obtained
rather more advantageoufly, and free from the foreign
flavour which the common proof-fpirits are accom-
panied with, by adding to the fimple water a fuita-
ble quantity of pure rectified fpirir.
frhiu Cist^ AMOK, called alfo winter's baik, is
the bark of a tree frequent in the ifland of St. Do-
mingo, Guadalupe, &c. of a (harp biting tafle like
pepper. Some uCe it inftead of nutmeg ; and in
medicine it is efteemed a ftomachic and antifcor-
butic. See Winteranus Cortex.
CINQUEFOIL, ^uinquefolium, in botany, the
fame with the potentilla of Linnaus. See the ar-
ticle Potentii.la.
Cinquefoil roots are efteemed dryin<r, aftringent,
and antifcbrific ; and accordingly have been pre-
fer! bed with fucccfs in agues and fluxes of all
kinds.
CINQUE- PORT.=;, an appellation given to five
port-towns, fituated on the coaft of Kent and
Suffex, overagainft Ftance, and famous in Englilh
hiftory.
The cinque-ports are Hafting?, Dover, Hithe»
Romney, and Sandwich ; which had large privi-
leges granted thtm, on account of their former
great importance, being then not only the keys
of the kingdom, but confiderable for their itiari-
time flrength : thus we are told, thit they wei-e
1 E cbliged
C I R
obliged to provide eighty (hips at their own charge
for forty days, as often as the king (hould - have
occafinn in his wars.
Cj KQUE-PoRT is alfo a particular kind of fifliing-
riet, much ufed in ftanding water ; fo called on ac-
count of the five entrances into it.
CION, or CyoN, among gardeners, denotes a
yoiiii2, fprig, or fprout of a tree.
CioK, in anatomy, a name fometimes ufed for
the uvula. See the article Uvula.
CIPHER, or Cypher, one of the Arabic cha-
raclers, or figures, ufed in computation, formed
thus o.
A cypher of itfclf fignTies nothing ; but when
placed to the right of other charailers, in whole
numbers, it augments their value ten times ; and
when placed to the left in decimal arithmetic, it
Icflcns the value in each figure in the fame propor-
tion.
Cipher is alfo a kind of enigmatic character,
compofed of fcveral letters intervv'oven, which are
generally the initial letters of (he perfons names for
whom tlie ciphers are intended.
Thefe are frequently ufed on feals, coaches, and
other moveables. Merchants likewife, inliead of
arms, bear a cipher, or the initial letters of their
names interwoven about a crofs, of which we have
many inftances on old tumbs.
Cipher denotes likewife certain characters dif-
guifed and varied, ufed in writing letters that con-
tain fome fecret, not to be underftood but by thofe
between vvhom the cipher is agreed on.
CIS-CiEA, in botany, a plant which grows na-
turally in fhady places in many parts of Lngland.
This plant hath a creeping root, by which it multi-
plies greatly. The ftalks are upright, and furnifhed
with heart-fhaped leaves, placed oppofitc: thefe are of
a dark green on their upperfide : but pale underneath.
The ftalki are terminated with loofe fpikcs of
flowers, which are branched out into three or four
fmall fpikes. The flowers are fmall and white,
having but two heart-fnaped fpreading petals ; op-
pofite to which are two ered hairy (lamina : when
the fiov/er is decayed, the calyx becomes a rough
oval capfule with two cells, each containing a iingle
oblong feed.
CIRCENIAN Games, Clrcenfes Ludi, a general
term, under which was comprehended all con^bais
exhibited in the Roman circus, in imitation of the
Oh mpic games in Greece.
CIRCLE, in geometry, is a plain figure, com-
prehended under one line, which is called a circum-
fereiTce, unto which all lines drawn from a point in
the middle of the figure called the center, and fall-
ing upon the circumference thereof, are all equal
the one to the other. Though more properly, it is
ihit fpace included within the circumference or
peripheiy, tliat is the circle : however, in the popular
4-
C I R
ufe of the word, circle is frequently ufed for the
periphery alone.
Every circle is fuppofed to be divided into 360
equal parts, called degrees; and of all figures is the
moll: capacious ; that is, contains the greateft fpace
or area under the lealt bounds or periphery.
1 he method of finding the circumference from
the diameter or radius being given, is a problem of
the greateft ufe in geometry. The ancients en-
deavoured to folve this propofition by a continual
bifection of the fides of an infcrihed polygon, till
they arrived at a fide which fubtended a very fmall
arc : they likewife found the fide of a fimukr cir-
cumfcribed polygon; then multiplying each of thefe
by the number of fides of the polygon, they ob-
tained the periphery of each polygon. The ratio of
the diameters to the periphery of the circle will be
greater than that of the fame diameter to the peri-
meter of the circumfcribed polygon ; but iefs than
that of the infcrihed polygon. The difference of
the two being known, the ratio of the diameter to
the periphery is eafily known in numbers very nearly
true, though not exactly fo.
But the eafieil way of obtaining the circle's peri-
phery, is by the help of fluxions and infinite feries ;
becaufe the fluxion of the arch is to the fluxion of
its tangent in the duplicate ratio of the radius to the
fecant; as may be fcen dtmanftiated in mod: books
of fluxions.
Tiie impoflibility of expreffing the exai"!: prop'^r-
tion of the diameter of a circle to the circumference,
by any received way of notation, and the abfulute
neceffity of having it as near the truth as poffible,
has put fome of tiie moft celebrated men in all ages
upon endeavouring to^approximate it.
The celebrated Van Culen was the firft who at-
tempted it with any fuccefs ; for by the ancient me-
thod, though fo very laborious, he carried it to
thirty- fix decimal places, v.'hich he ordered to be
engraved upon his tombflone. After him Mr.
Abraham Sharp carried it to feventy five place^ ;
but Mr. John Machin has carried it to one hundred,
which are as follow :
If the diameter of the circle be i, the circum-
ference will be 3,14159265358979323846264338^3
279502884197169399^75155,82097494459230781
64052861089986280348253421170679, 4- which
is a degree of exadtncfs far more than could ever
have been expedted. But the ratios generally in ufe
are as 7 to 22, as 106 to 333, as 113 to 355,,
as 1702 to 5347, as 1815 to 5702, or as \ to
Since then ij the diameter of a circle is i, the
circumference will be 3,1415926536 — of the fame
parts ; and finte all circles are iiniilar figures, by
having the diameter of any circle given, we can find
any other part of a circle by the following propor-
. tious.
I, As-
]*r.ATKJXXIV.
>y v<</y Circle
^--^■ea-^-Cf/van/A/^ff^t}/- C^. ^ Yi
'y.^3. Ci/m/m/e'ie'n/in-
. A
/
\ \
/
4—
/ iJ
^ 0\ \
/ /^ ""^
Or \
^
r7/ >
/ /
fu/itm/
, K ^tM^V" ,/i-H/it
C I R
1. As I : 31415926536 : : any given diameter
to its circumference.
2. As I : ,7854 + : : the fquare of the diame-
ter given to the area requited.
3. As I : ,8862 -f- : : diameter given to the fide
of the fquare ; that is, equal in area to that circle.
4. As I : ,7071 : : diameter given : fiJc of the
infcribtd fquare.
But if the circumference of any circle be given,
any of the other parts may be found by the fol-
lowing proportions.
1. As I : ,318309 : : circumference given, to the
diameter of th.it circle.
2. As I : ,07958 : : fquare of the circumference
given : area of tliat circle.
3. As I : ,2821 : : circumference given to the
fide of a fquare =z in area to that circle.
4. As I : 2251 : : circumference given to the
Cde of a fquare infcribed in that circle.
Again, having tr.e area of a circle, to find any of
the other parts.
1. As I : 1,2732 ; : area given : fquare of the
diameter of that circle.
2. As I : 12,56637 : : area given : fquare of the
circumference of that circle.
3. As I : ,6366 : : area given : fquare of the (ide
of the infcribed fquare.
We miiht give man}' more proportions of the
like kind ; but the above w;ll be fafTicient with pro-
per application : however, it may not be amifs to
remark, tiiat the area of any circle is equal to half
the diameter, multiplied by half the periphery.
To d.'jcribe a Circle through three given Points,
not in a Right line. Let A B C be the three given
points (Plate XXX^IV. Z^. I.) draw two right-lines
frwn A to B, and from B to C ; then divide thefe
two right lines into two equal parts, by the perpen-
dicub.rs Ci H.
CIRCULAR, in a genera] knCe,, any thing that
is defcribed or moved in a round, as the circum-
ference of a circle, or furface of a globe.
I'he circular form is of all others the befl difpofed
for motion, and the mod capacious.
Circular Letter, a k'.ter direiEted to feveral
perfons v.ho have tlii. fame intereft in fome common
affair.
CiRCUi AR Lines, in mathematics, fuch ftraight
l;nes as are divided from the divihons made in the
arch of the limb, fuch as fines, tangents, fecants,
chords, tic. See the articles Sine and Tangent.
Circular. Numbers, called alfo fpherical ones,
according to fome, are fuch whofe pov/ers terminate
in the roots themfelves.
Thus, fjr inliance, 5 and 6, all v.hofe powers
erd in 5 and 6, as the iquare of 5 is 25, the fquare
of 6 ii 36, &c.
Circular Sailing is the method of failing by
tjie arc!i of agreat circle. See the article Sailing.
Circular. Vexqcitiv in the new. aiuonomy,
C I R
fignifies the velocity of any planet, or revolving
body, which is meafured by the arch of a circle.
CIRCULATION, the ad of moving round, or
in a circle : thus we fay, the circulation of the blood,
the circulation of the fip, &c.
Circulation of the Blood, the natural motion,
of the blood in a living animal, whereby that fluid
is aUernatelywcarried from the heart into all parts of
the body, by the arteries, from whence it is brougiit
back to the heart again by the veins.
This motion is chiefly caufed by the dilatation,
and contraction of this organ, and is the principle,
on which life depends ; for when it ceafes in any
part, that part dies ; when it is diminifiied, the
operations are weak ; and when it ceafes totally^
lite is extinguifhed.
All the veins difcharge themfelves into the ven-
tricles of the heait ; from hence all the arteries
arife : the blood expelled out of the right ventricle
mufl be carried, through the pulmonary artery, into
the lungs; from which it muft be returned, by the.
pulmonary veins, to the left ventricle; from the
left ventricle the blood thus inported is, by -the.
conflriflion of that part, asain expelled into the
aorta, and by it diftributed all over the refl: of the
body, and thence is returned again to the right:
ventricle by the cava, v/hich completes the circula-
tion.
This circulation becomes aftuaily vifihle, withi
the affiftance of a microfcope, efpecially in fi(h^
frogs, &c. wherein the inofculation, or union of
the extremities of the arteries with thofe of the,
veins, together with the globules of blood llov/ing:
from the one into the other, may be plainly feen.
The circulation of the blood is generally faid n
have been fiifl: difcovered in England, in the year.
1628, by Dr. Harvey, an ingenious and leaiiied
phyfician ; though there are others who contend for.
the glory of this moft important difcovery. Leoni-
cenus fays, that Fran. Paoli Sarpi, a Venetian, dif-
covered the circulation, but durft not publifh his.
difcovery for fear of the inquificion; that he there-
fore only communicated the fecret to Fab. ab. Aoua-
pendente, who, after his death, dcpofited t.'ie book,
he had compofcd on it, in the library of St. iMark,,
where it lay a long time, till Aquapendents difco-
vered the fecret to Harvey, who then lludied unJcf
him at Padua, and who upon his rtturn to England,.
a land of liberty, publifhed it as his own. But Sir.
George Ent has ihev/n, that father Paul received the.
firft notion of the circulation of the blood from
Harvey's book on that fubjeil, which was carried to.-
Venice by the amb.;lud.-r of the republic at the.
court of England..
Tlie circulation of the blood was altofether un—
knowato the ancients-: the.y thought that all the bloodt
came from the liver,, and that the greatefl part C'f it"
paffcd into the vena cava, and fo.into a^l the branches-
belonging^ to it; Lut ia fuch a.manner, , tnat,. in:
csL/iMi.ffi;
C I R
coming out fiom the liver, a conrider.ible quantity
of it turns about, and enters into the right cavity of
the heart, where it is divided into two parts, one of
which runs through the vena arteriofa, into the lungs,
and the other through the medium feptum into the
left cavity ; where they fay it is converted into ar-
terial blood, or vital fpirits, which is carried into
the lungs by the arteria venofa, and all over the
body by the arteria magna and its branches.
Circulation of the Sap of Fegetahks is a na-
tural motion of the nutritious juice of plants from
the root to ihe extreme parts, and thence back
again to the root.
Circulation, in chemifbry, is an operation
whereby the fame vapour, raifed by fire, fails back,
to be returned and diftilled fsveral times, and thus
reduced into its moft fubtil parts.
CIRCULUS, in chemiftry, an iron inftrument
in form of a ring, which being heated red-hot, and
applied to the neck of retorts and other glafs-vcflels,
till they grow hot, a few drops of cold water thrown
upon them, or a cold blaft, will make the necks fly
regularly and evenly off.
Another methjd of doing this, is to tie a thread,
firft dipt in oil of turpentine, round the place where
you would have it break ; and then fetting fire to the
thread, and afterwards fprinkling the place with cold
water, the glafs will crack exactly where the thread
was tied.
CIRCUMAGENTES Musculi, or Obi-iqjji
MuscuLi, in anatomy, the certain oblique mufcles
of the eye% fo called from helping to wind and turn
the eves about.
CIRCUMAMBIENT, an appellation given to
a thing that furrounds another on all fides ; chiefly
ufed in fpeaking of the air. See the article AiR.
CIRCUMCISION, the aft of cutting ofF the
prepuce ; or a ceremony in the Jewifh and Maho-
metan religions, wherein they cut off the fore-fkin
of their males, who are to profefs the one or the
other law.
Circumcision is alfo the name of a feaft, cele-
brated on the firft of January, in commemoration of
the circiimcifion of our Saviour.
CIRCUMFERENCE, in a general fenfe, de-
notes the line or lines bounding a plane figure.
Hovi'ever, it is generally ufed in a more hmited fenfe,
for the curve line which bounds a circle, and other-
wife called a periphery ; the boundary of a right-lined
figure being exprefll'd by the term perimeter.
Any part of the circumference is called an arch,
and a right-line drawn from one extreme of the arch
to the other, is called a chord.
The circumference of every circle is fuppofed to
be divided into 360 degrees. The angle at the
circumference of a circle is double that at the center.
See Angle.
For the ratio of the circumference of a circle to
its radius, fee the article Circle.
C I R
CIRCUMFERENTOR, an inftrument ufed by
furveyors for taking angles.
It confifts of a brafs index and circle, all of a
piece. The index is commonly about fourteen
inches long, and an inch and a half broad ; the
diameter of the circle is about feven inches. On
this circle is made a chart, vvhofe meridian line
anfwers to the middle of the breadth of the index,
and is divided into three hundred and fixty degrees
(fee Plate XXXIV. fg. 2.) There is a brafs ring
foldered on the circumference of the circle, on which
fcrews another ring, with a flat glafs in it, fo as to
form a kind of box for the needle, iufpended on the
pivot in the center of the ciicle. There are alfo
two fights to fcrew on, and flide up and down the
index ; as alfo a fpangle and fockct fcrewed on the
back-fide of the circle for putting the head of the
ftafF in.
Hoiv to cbferve the ^lantlty of an Angle by the
ClRCUMFERENTOR.
Let it be required to find the quantity of the
angle EKG (Plate XXXIV. /^. 3.) firft, place
your inftrument at K, with the fiower-de-Iuce of
the chart towards you ; then dire£f your fights to E,
and obferve what degrees are cut by the (outh-end
of the needle, which let be 296; then, turning the
inftrument about, djredl your fights to G, noting
then alfo what degrees are cut by the fouth end of the
needle, which fuppjfe 247. This done, always
fubtrad the lelVcr from the greater, as in this ex-
ample, 247 from 296, the remainder is 49 degrees,
which is the true quantity of the angle EKG.
CIRCUMFLEX, in grammar, one of the ac-
cents. See the article Accent.
CIRCUMGYRATION,- denotes the whirling
motion of any body round a center : fuch is that of
the planets round the fun.
CIRCUMINCESSION, in theology, a term
whereby the fchoolmen ufed to exprefs the exiftence
of three divine perfons in one another, in the myftery
of the Trinitv.
CIRCUMLOCUTION, a paraphraftical me-
thod of exprcfling one's thoughts, or faying that in
many words which might have been faid in few.
Circumlocution, in oratory, is the avoiding
of fomething difagreeable, or inconvenient to be
exprefTed in direft terms, by imitating the fenfe
thereof in a kind of paraphrafe, fo conceived as to
foften and break the force thereof.
CIRCUM-POLAR Stars, an appellation given
to thofe ftars, which by reafon of their vicinity to
the pole, move round it without fetting.
CIRCUMSCRIBED, in geometry, is faid of a
figure which is drawn round another figure, fo that
all its fides or planes touch the infcribed figure.
Circumscribed Hyperbola, one of Sirlfaac
Newton's hyperbolas of the fecond order, that cuts
its afymptotes, and contains the parts cut ofF within
its own fpace.
CIRCUM-
C I R
C I R
CIRCUMSCRIBING, in geometry, denofcs the
defcribiiig a polygonous figure about a circle, iufuch
a manner, that ail its fides Ihall be tangents to the
circumference.
Sometimes the term is ufed for the defcribing a
circle about a polvgon, fo that each fide is a chord ;
but ill this cafe it is more ufual to fay the polygon is
iiifcnbtrd, than tiie circle is circunifcribeii.
CIRCUMSCRIPTION, in natural philofophv,
the termination, bounds, or limits of any natural
body.
CIRCUMSPECTE AGATIS, inlaw, a ftatute
ptelcribing certain cafes to the judges, wherein the
king's prohibition does not lie.
CIRCUA^STANCE, particularity which, tho'
not ciicntial to any action, yet doth fbme way aftcJl
it.
CIRCUMSTANTIBUS, in law, a term ufed
for fuppl) ing and making up the number of jurors,
in cafe any impannelled appear not, or appearing,
are challenged by either party, by adding to them
fo many of the perfons prefcnt, ?.s will mike up
the number, in cafe they are properly quali-
fied.
CIRCUMVALLATION, ike Lirje of, a forti-
fication of earth, confilf ing of a parapet and trench,
which are made round the town intended to be be-
fieged, when any moleftation is apprehended from
parties of the enemy, which may march in order to
relieve the place.
Before the attack of a place i« begun, care is to be
taken to have the moff exadl plan of it poffible, and
upon this, the line of circumvallation, and the at-
tack, are projeiSled. The line of circumvallation,
being a fortification oppoftd to an enemy that may
come from the open country to relieve the bcfiegtd,
ought to have its defences directed againft hmi ;
that is, fo as to fire from the town : and beliegers
ought to be encamped behind this line, and between
it arid the place. The camp ought to be as much as
poffible out of the reach of the fhot of the place ;
and the line of circumvallation, which is to be far-
ther diftant from the place than the camp, ought
much more to be out of the reach of its cannon.
As cannon arc never to be fired from the rear of
the camp, this line fhould be upwards of 1200 fa-
thoms from the place ; we wdl fuppofe its diflance
fixed at 1400 fathoms from the covered-way. The
thicknefs or depth of the camp may be computed
about 30 faihoms, and fri.m the head of the camp
to the line of circumvallati'in there ought to be a
fpace of 120 fathoms, that the army may be drawn
up in order of battle at the head of the camp behind
the circumvallation ; this diftance added to the 30
fathoms allowed for the deptii of the camp makes
150 faihom'!, which being again added to the Jiftance
of the covered-viay from the rear of the camp, makes
1550 fathoms for the diftaucis of the circumvaliatiun
£ii/m the covered-way.
^9>
Sometimes alfo an advanced fofle or ditch is made
before the line, about 12 or 15 feet wide, 6 or 7
feet deep, and about 12 or 15 fathoms diOant from
the fofle of the line. The defign of this ditch is 10
flop the enemy when he advances to attack the line,
and make him lofe time and men in palling it. For
as it is abfoUitely under the fire of the line, the
enemy muft necefTary lofe many foldiers during the
time of his pafliige over it ; and the pafTing this ditch
may alfo fo break and difconcert the order of the
enemy, as to prevent his attacking with the fame
advantage, as he mioht have done if lie had not
been obflrudted by it.
It will be fufScient to obferve, wi;h a'I. Vauhan^
Firfl, That the circumvalia ion ought to occupy
the moff advantageous part of the ground before the
place ; that is to fay, the mofl eafy to defend, the
moll difficult to attack, and the muft adapted to 'he
fecurity and conveniency of the troops ; and that
the redans ought to be placed on the moft eminent
places, and not in bottoms.
Secondly, 'I'hat the cannon of the place do not
play upon the rear of the camp.
Thirdly, Never to carry the lines too far into the-
field, nor to occupy more ground than is necefTary
for the fecurity of the camp.
Fourthly, To pofTefs all places from which the
line may be commanded, when it may be done
without carrving the circumvallation too far; and
alfo to conftrii^^i this line fo as that it nuy take ad-
vantage of all the declivities, eminences, livers,.
moralles, and in general of all which may render
the accefs to it more difEcult. If there are woods-
and thickets within its circumference, it may be
covered on thofe quarters by felling the trees.
Fifthly, If there be any river; or brooks within the-
circumvallation, which divide the ground into feve-
ral parts, care mull be taken to provide a great num-
ber of bridges for the communicEtion of all the
quarters, that, in cafe of an attack, they may with
eafe and fpeed mutually aflift each other.
It is not diilicult to trace out tliefe lines upon a
good topogr.ijjhical chart or plan of the place and
country zdiacent, fiiice nothing more is nccefi'ary
than to carry on all the parts of tliC line at about
1800 fathoms from the center of the place, and to-
difpofe them in fuch a manner as ihat there may be a-
difiance of about 120 fathoms from ths point of one
redan to the point of an.-oiher.
Nor is there any more difiiculty in tracing out
thefe lines on the ground, to thofe who know any
thing of pra-ctica! geometry, it being too cnfy to
need an explanation here. See the article Con-
tra vallation.
CIRCUVIVOLUTION, in architeaure, fg-
nifies the torus of the fpiral line of the I'noic voli ta,
CIF.CUS, ill antiquity, a great building of a
round or oval figure, ereifled by the ancienis, ta
^ exhibit fhev/s to the peoolc.
2. F CIRRT.
C I s
C I T
CIRRI, among botanifls, fine firings of thread
like filaments, by which fome plants faflen them-
fcK'cs to the walls, trees, iic. fuch are thofe of
ivv.
Cirri, in ichthyology, certain oblong and foft
appi-nda;|ef, not unlike little worms, hanging fr. .m
the under jaws or mouths of fome fifhes : thefe cirri,
tiiUTTionly tranflated beard?, afford marks to diftm-
guifli the different fpecies of the fifli, on which
they are found.
CIRSOCELE, or Hernia Varicosa, in fur-
gery, a preternatural difteniion or divarication of
the ipermaiic veins in theprocefs of the peritona-um,
immediatclv above the tefticle, and fometimes higher
up in the fcrotum, or even in the groin, infomuch
that they refemblc the inteflines of a bird, and equal
the fize of a goofe-quill, with varicofe nodes, by
v/hich means the tefticle appears much bigger, and
hangs down lower than it fhould do.
CJSLEU, in Hebrew chronology, the ninth
month of their ccckfiaflical, and the third of the
civil year, anfjvering iii'aily to our November.
CISSAiMPELOS, in botany, a genus of twining
plants, which grow in the warmcft parts of America :
they produce male and female flowers on diltindt
plants; thofe of the male grow in fliort fpikes or
cluifers, and arc of a pale herbaceous colour. They
are apetalous, having a monophyllous calyx, divided
into four parts with a fingle rtyle. ']he female
flowers are produced in long loofe racemi fiom the
fide of the flaks, Thefe have a calix like the male ;
and inflead uf petals, have four ne6tariums (tanding
round an hairy oval germen, which afterwards be-
comes a pulpy globofe berry, containing a fingle
feed
This genus being tender, requires a hot-houfe in
tills climate, and are the lame as the caapeba of
Pkimier.
CISSOID, in the higher geometry, an algebraic
curve, nrft invented by Diodes, an ancient Greek
geometrician, whence it is peculiarly called the
Cidoid of IJiocIes : its chief ufe is for finding two
mean proportionals between two given riirht lines ;
but Sir Il'aac Newton, in his Eimineratio Uneart/m
icrtii Ordinis, reckons it ana.->ng{l: one of the defec-
tive hyperbolas, being acccidmg to him the forty-
fecond fpecies.
CISSUd, in botany, a genus of plants wliofe
flower conlifis of a polyph)llous fmall involucrum,
with a plane monophyllous cup, which crntains four
concave petals. 'J'he fruit is a rotunJated umbili-
cated berry, containing an olficulatcd roundifli feed.
CISTERCIANS, in church hiftory, a religious
Older ff)undeil in the eleventh century liy St. Robert,
a Benedictine. They became fo powerful, that they
governed almoft all Europe, both in fpirituals and
temporals. Cardinal de Vitri, delcribing their ob-
fervanres, fays, they never wore fkins not fliirts,
nor ever eat flelh, except in fickiiefs j and ablkintd
from fifli, eggs, milk, and cheefe : they lay upon
ftraw beds in their tunics and cowls: they rofe at
midnight to prayers; they fpent the day in labour,
reading, and prayer: and in their cxercifes obferved a
continu:il filenre. The habit of the Ciften i an
monks is a white robe, in the nature of a calTock,
with a black fcapulary and hood, and is girt with a
woollen girdle. 'Ihe nuns wear a white tunic, and
a black fcapulary and girdle,
CISTERN deno'es a fubterraneous refervoir of
rain water ; or a veil'el ferving as a receptacle for rain
or other water for the necellary ufts of a family.
C I S T U S, in botany, a genus of plants, the
flovi-er of which coiifi.Hs of five larne roundifh pa-
tent petals which fpread open, and contains a num-
ber of fhort, hairy filament?, topped with fmall,
roundifh antherre ; the f.uit is a roundifli capfule,
containing a number of fmall feeds.
There are various kinds of this genus, which arc
very great ornaments to a garden ; their flowers are
produced in gieat plenty all over the fiirubs, which
th High of Ihort duration, yet are fucceeded by
freih ones almoft every day for above two months
fucceffively : thefe flowers are many of them about
the big;nefs of a middling rofe, but fingle, and are
of different colours.
From a fpecies of ciffus, called by C, Bauhine,
ciftus ladanitera, the balfam or gum ladanum, is ex-
tracSled, which is common in Cypius, and fome
parts of Arabia; and Tournefort defcribes the me-
thod of gathering this gum in Candia. He lays, it
is brufhed ofr the leaves of the fliiub in a calm day,
by a fort of whip, compofed of many (traps, to
whicli it adheres, and afterwards it is fcraped off
the ftraps, and nude into cakes of different fizcs.
CIl'ADEL, a pi.-, ce fortified with four, five, or
fix baftions, built on a convenient ground near a
city, that it may it command in cafe of a rebellion.
The city therefore is not fortified on the part oppo-
fite to the citadel, though the citadel is againft the
citv. The bell form for a citad-i is a pentagon, a
fquarc being too weuk, and a hexagon too big.
CITATION, in ecclchalUcal courts, is the fame
with fiimmons in civil courts,
CI I'H.'^RA, in antiquity, a mufical inftrumcnt,
the precife ftrudlure of which is not known ; fome
think it refembled the Greek delta A ; and others,
the fliape of a half moon. At firff it had only three
firings, but the number was at different times in-
crcaled to eight, to nine, and laftly to twenty-tour.
It was ufed in entertainments and private houfes,
and played upon with a plcflium or quill, like the
lyre. See the article Lyre.
CITHAREXYLON, in botany, a tree which
grows in moft of the Weft-Indian iflands, where
it lifes to a great height, the wood of which is much
eftcemed for buihling, being very durable. It rii'es
with 611 upright trunk to the height of fifty or fixty
feet, fendintj out branches on every fide i thefe
have
C I T
have feveral angles or ribs running longitudinally,
and are furnifhed with oval, lanctolated leaves, fer-
rated on their edges, of a pale, or whitifli colour
on their upper fide, and very prominent beneath.
The flowers come nnt from the lides and ends of
the branches in loofc fpikes, each of which are mo-
nopetalous and funnel-Iliaped, divided at the top in-
to five parts, which fpread open. The fruit is a
roundifb, unilocular berry, containing two ovated
feeds.
This plant is propagated by feeds or cuttings, and
requires a hot-houfe for their prcfervation in this cli-
mate.
CITIZf.N, Civis, a native or inhabitant of a
citv, veftcd with the freedom and liberties of it.
CITRINUS, inna'ura! hiftory, a kind of fprig
cryftal, of a fine yellow colour, which being fet in
rings, is often miltaksn for a topaz.
CI TRON-TREE, Citrus, in botany. See the
artle Citrus.
CITRUL, Citrnllus, makes a diftinff genus of
plants, according to fome, otherwife called anga-
ria ; but Linnaeus comprehends it among the cu-
cumbers : it is faid to have the lame medicmal cjuali-
ties with the cucuriiita or gourd.
CIIRUS, or Ciimtm, the citron-tree, in bo-
tany, an ever-ereen plant with a flender trunk, the
wood of which is white and hard, and the bark of
a pale green colour. The leaves are fomewhat
like thofe of the orange, generally blunt, but now
and then accuminated. The flowers, which grow
on the tops of the branches, are like thofe of the
orange, the petals being more flelliy. The fruit is
in fhape and fize like the orange, but coloured like
the lemon, and the juice higher flavoured and
more of the perfume in it than either.
Citrons in Italy are not ufed as an aliment, but
as a fauce, and are cut into fmall flices, as we do
lemons, to garnifii the dilhe?, and to fqueeze upon
the meat ; the acid is very agreeable, excites a
weak appetite, and helps digeftion, when uli d mo-
derately. It is an excellent remedy againlt the
fcurvy, and is a kind of fpecific to cure that difeafe ;
when the gums of perfons are ulcerated with this
diforder, the juice will perfeifl a cure.
Citron-juice is alfo good in burning and malig-
nant fevers, to quench thirft, and to reftrain the
' heat and cfFcrvefcence of the blonj. When the
juice is mixed with wa cr, and fwtctcnrd with fu-
f{ar, it makes a fine cooling drink, gtateful to the
pdate, and agrees wiih both fick and well. The
j'lice of citrons is likewife diuretic, cleanfcs the
kidneys of fmall gravel, and rcilrains vomiting
proceeding from bilious humours. From the bark
and flowers of this plant we have oils, cflences,
confciS^ions, and waters obtained, of which confi-
derable quantities are imported.
The citron-tree is propagated and managed with
us in the fame manner us the orange-tree, (to f
C I V
which wc rcTer the reader) but being father morz
tender than the orange, they fhould have a greerv-
houfe with a flue in it, to prclcrve them in winter
in this country.
^V'lth the citron, Linnaeus has claflcd the orange
and lemon, under the general name citrus; but
they being diftindtly noticed, not only here but in
the fouthern parts of Europe, where they are moll
plenty, it was thought iiccefiary in this work to
meiitign them feparatelv.
Ci FY, CivuaSi or UrLs, a large populous town,
capital of fome country, province, or diftriiiT, and
the fee of a bifliop.
Town and city are frequently ufed in a fynony-
mous fcnfe ; however, cuilom feems to have ap-
propriated the term city to fuch towns as are, or
formerly were, the fees of a bifliop : hence it i>,
that Edinburgh, Glafgow, &c. are IHII called ci-
ties, though they are no linger the fees of bifhops,
iince the eftablilhment of prclliytery in Scotland.
CJVET, a foft unduous odoriferous fubftance,
about the confiilence of honey or butter ; of a
whitifli, yellowifli, or brownifli colour, and fome-
times blackifh, brought from the Brazils, the coall
of Guinea, and the Eaft-Indies ; found in certain
bags iituated in the lower part of the belly of an
animal of the cat kind. The bag has an aperture
externally, by which the civet is fned or extracted.
See ZicETHicuM.
This fubflance has a very fragrant fmell, fo
flrong as when undiluted, to be dilagreeable ; and
an unifuous fubacrid tafte. It is ufed chieflv in
perfumes, rarely or never for medicinal purpofes,
thouCTh the fingular efl'ecls which miifk has been
lately found to produce may ferve as an inducement;
to the trial. It unites with oils, both exprefled and
dillilled, and with animal fats : in watery or fp.iri-
tuous liquors it does not diflolve, but both men-
ffrua may be ffrongly impregnated with its odorife-
rous matter, water by diftillation, and rectified
fpirit by digeftion ; by trituration with mucilages',
it becomes (oluble in water.
Civet-Cat. See Zibe thicum.
CtV'lC Crov/n, Corona dvica, was a crown
given by the ancient Romans to any foldier who
had laved the life of a citizen in any engage-
ment.
1 h'.s was accounted more honourable than any
other crown, though conipofed of no better mate-
rials than oaken boughs.
CIVIL, Civilis, in a general fenfe, fomething
that regards the policy, public good, or peace of
the citizens, or fi;hjc(its of tlie flate ; in which
fenfe we fsy, civil government, civil law, civil
right, civil war, &c.
Civil, in a legal fenfe, u alfb applied to the
ordinary procedure in an action, relating to fome
pecuniary matter or inieril, in which lenfe it is
oppofed to criminal.
Civil-
C L A
C L A
Civil-Law is properly the peculiar law o( each
ftate, country, or city : but what we ufually mean
by the civii-ldW, is a body of laws co.npofed out of
the beft Roman and Grecian laws, compiled from
tiie laws of nature and nations, and, for the moft
part, received and obferved throughout all the R.O-
maii dominions for above 1200 years.
The civil-law is ufed in England in the ecclefiafti-
cai courts, in the courts of the admiralty, and in
the two univcrfities ; yet in all thefe it is reftrained
and direfled by the common law.
Civil War, a war between people of the
fame ftate, or the citizens of the fame city.
Civil Year is the legal year, or the annual
account of time, which every government appoin's
to be ufed within its own dominions ; and is fo
called in contradi'/linflion to the natural year, which
is meafured exactly by the revolution of the heaven-
ly bodies.
CIVILIAN, in general, denotes fomething be-
lon2;ing to the civil law; but more efpecially the
doiStors and profeffors thereof are called civilians :
of thefe we have a college or fociety in London,
known by the name of Dodlors-commons.
CLACK, among countrymen. To clack wool,
is to cut off the fheep's mark, which makes the
weight lefs, and yields Itfs cuftom to the king.
Claim, in law, a challenge of intereft in any
thin" that is in poirefllon of another, as claim by
chirter, defcent, acquil'ition, &c.
Claim of Liberty, is a fuit to the king in the
court of Exchequer, to have liberties confiimcd
there by the attorney-general.
Fnlfe Claim is a term ufed in the forefl-laws,
where a perfon c'aims more than his due, for which
he is liable to be amerced.
CLAIR - OBSCURE, Chiaro - Scuro, or
Claro-Obscuro. See the article Claro-Ob-
SCURO.
CLAMP, among brickmakers, implies a pile of
unburnt bricks built up for burning. Thele clamps
are built much after the fame manner as arches are
built in kilns, viz. with a vacuity betwixt each
brick's breadth for the fire to afcend by, but with
this difference, that inftead of arching, they trufs
over, or over-fpan, that is^ the end of one brick
is laid about half way over the end of another,
and fo till both fides meet within half a brick's
length, and then a binding brick at the top finifhes
the arch.
Clamps, in naval architeiTture, thick planks in
a (liip's fide, which fupport the ends of the beams.
See Beams.
Clamps are alfo fmall crooked plates of iron,
forelocked upon the trunnions of the cannon, to
keep them fleady in their carriages at fea.
Clamps are likewife frequently ufed to faften the
Hiafts or bow'prits of fmall vcfl'els aiid boats.
Clamp Kails, fuch nails as are ufed to fanen
on clamps in the building or repairing of fhips.
CLAMPINCj, in joinery, is the fitting of a piece
of board with the grain, to another piece of board
crofs the grain. 1 hus the ends of tables are com-
monly clomped to prevent their warping.
CLAP, in medicme, the firff ftage of the venereal
difeafe, mcrre ufually called a gonorrhoea. See Go-
norrhoea.
Clap- Board, among coopers, denotes any kird
of board proper for making cafks and other veflels
of.
CLAR, or Claer, among inetallurgifts, de-
notes the powder of bone-aflies, kept for coverii;g
the infides of coppels.
CLARENCltUX, the fecond king at arms, fo
called from the duke of Clarence, to whom he firft
belonged ; for Lionel, third fon to Edward III.
having bv his wife the honour of Clare, in the
county of Thomond, was afterwards declared duke
of Clarence; which dukedom afterwards efcheating
to Edward IV. he made this earl a king at arms.
His office is to marfhal and difpofe of the funerals of
all the lower nobility, as baronets, knights, efquires,
on the fouth-fide of the Trent ; whence he is fome-
times called Surrey, or South- roy, in contradiftinc-
tion to Norroy.
CLARENDON. The conftitutions of Claren-
don are certain ecclefiaffical laws drawn upatClaren-
don near Saliitury. They weiefixticn in number,
all tending to relhain the power of the clergy, and
readily afl'cnted toby all the bifliops and barons, the
archbifliop Becket excepted, who oppofed them at
firft, but was afterwards prevailed upon tofignthem.
Pope Alexander III. declared againll and annulled
moft of thefe.
CLARET, a name given by the French to fuch.
of their red wines as are not of a deep or high co-
lour. See Wine.
Claret-Wine-Apple, is fair, and yields plenty
of a pleafant fliarp juice, from whence it has its-
name, and not from the colour, it being a white
apple, but makes a vinous liquor, which, if well
ordered, excels molt other cydeis, efpecially with a
mixture of fweet apples.
CLARICHURD, or Manickord, a mufical
inftrument in form of a fpinnet.
It has forty-nine or fifty ftops, and feventy ftrings,.
which bear on five bridges, the firft whereof is the
higheft, the reft diniinifhing in proportion. Some
of the firings are in unifon, their number being
greater than that of the ftops. There are feveial
little mortifes for pafling the jacks, armed with brafs-
hooks, which ftop and raifethe chords inilead ot the
feather ufed in virginals and fpinnets : but wh,ic
diftinguifhes it moft is, that the chords are covered
with pieces of cloth, which render the found fweetcr,
and deaden it fojthat it cannot be heard at any om-
iid£rabl&'
C L A
fiikrablc dillance; whence it comes to be particu-
larly in ufe among the nuns, who learn to play,
aiid are unwilling to difturb the lilence of the dormi-
tory.
CLARIFICATION, in chemiftry. See the ar-
ticle Depuration.
CLARINO, a trumpet : hence, a dot clarini,
fignifies that a pitce of mufic is to be played by
two trumpets. See the articles Trumpet, Cor-
net, &c.
CLARION, a kind of trumpet, who'e tube is
narrower, and its tone acuter and (hriller than that
of the common trumpet.
Clarion, \n heraldry. He bears ruby, three
clarions topaz, being the arms of the earl of Bath,
by the name of Giaiiviile. Guillim is of opinion,
that thefe three clarions are a kind of old-fafhioned
trumpets; but others fay, that they rather refemble
ths rudder of a (hip ; others a reft for a lance.
CLARK-GOOSE, ia ornithology, a kind of
wild goofe, fouiiJ in ZctUuid.
CLARO-OBSCURO, or Clair-Obscure, in
painting, the art of diifiibuting to advantage tlic
lights aiid ftiadows of a piece, both with regard to
the eafing of the ^yc, and the e.^cdf of the v/hole
piece.
Thus, when a painter gives his figure a ftrong
relievo, loolens them from the ground, and fets
tliem free from each other, by the management of
lights and fhadows, he is faid to underlland the cl'ro-
obfcuro, which maies one uf the great divifions or
branches of painting, the wh'de of a picture being
refolvable into ligh' and fliadow.
Claro-Obscuro, or Chiaro-Scuro, is alfo
ufed to fignify a defign confifting only of two co-
lours, molt u(ua!ly black and white, but fometimes
black and yellow ; or it is a defign wafhed only with
one colour, the fliadows being of a dufky brown
Colour, and the liohts heightened up with white.
The word is alio applied to two prints of two co-
lours, taken off at twice, whereof there are vo-
lumes in the cabinets of the curious in prints.
CLARY, in botany, the Engiifti name of the
fclarea of Tournefort, comprehended by Linnaeus
among the fpecies of falvia, or fage.
//i'W Clary, the fame with the horminum of
Tournefort; likewife accounted by Linnaus a fpe-
cies of (age.
CLAbPLRS, among gardeners the fame v/ith
what botanilts call cirri. See Cirri.
CLASS, clojfis, an appellation given to the moft
general fubdivitions of any thing : thus animal is
lubdivided into the claflls quadrupeds, birds, fifties,
vegetables, &c. which are again fubdividcd into fe-
riefes or orders ; and thefe laft into genera.
Class is alfo ufed in fchools, in a fynonymous
ftjiife with form, for a number of boys al! learning
the fame thing.
CLASSIC, or CtAssiCAt, an epithet chiefly
29
C L A
applied to authors read in the claffei at fchools, and
who are in great authority there.
By claflical learning may be undcrftood, fuch an
intimacy with the beft Greek and Latin writers, ai
not only enables the reader to fee and admire the
beauty of their feveral compofitions, but to imitate
their manner of writing, to tranfcribe their fpirit
and eloquence, and make their di£lion and their fen-
timent his own.
CLAVELLATI CINE RES, the fame with pot-
afhes. See the article Pot-Ashes.
CLAVICLES, clav'ciila, in anatomy, are tw«
bones fituated tranfverfely and a little obliquely op-
pofite to each other, at the fuperior and anterior part
of the thorax, between the fcapula and fternum.
The ufes of the clavicles are, i. To keep the
arms from falling too forward upon rhe breaft, and
to facilitate feveral of the motions of the arm. 2.
To ferve for the place of origin for feveral mufdcs.
3. To defend the great fubclavian veffcls which run
under them.
CLAVIS properly fignifies a key, and is fome-
times ufed in Englifli to denote an explanation of
fome obfcure paflages in any book or writing.
CLAVUS, in antiquity, an ornament upon the
robes of the Roman fenators and knights, which
was more or lefs broad, according to the dignity of
the perfon : hence the difliniSlion of tunica angufti-
clavia and laticlavia.
Clavus, in medicine and furgery, is ufed in fe-
veral figriifications: I. Clavus hyftericus is a fhoot-
ing pain in the head, between the pericranium and
cranium, which affc£fs fuch as have the green-fick-
nefs. 2. Clavus oculorum, according to Celfus, is
a callous tubercle on the white of the eye, taking
its denomination from its figure. 3. Clavus imports
indurated tubercles of the uteius. 4. Clavus im-
ports a chirurgical inftrumcnt of gold, mentioned
by Amatus Lufitanus, defigned to he introduced
into an exulceratcd palate, for the better articulation
of the voice. 5. Clavus is acullus or coin on the
foot : this arifes from a too gieat compreffion of the
cutis, which by tliis means hardens and forms itfe'f
into a kndt. 'J he cure is by foftening them, and
then pulling them out. The pulp of a lemon laid
to a corn, and bound on all night, often foftcns it
fo by the morning, that it may tafily be taken ofF.
Claw, among /oologifis, denotes the fli.irp-
polnted nails with which the feet of certain quadru-
peds artd birds are furnifhed.
CLAY, argilla^ in natural hiftorv, a genus of
earth«, the charadlcrs of which aie tiiefc : they arc
firmly coherent, weighty, and compadf ; ftifi-, vifcid,
and dudlile to a great degree, while .moift ; fmooth
to the touch, not eafily breaking between the fin-
gers, nor readily difFufible in water, and when
mixed, not readily fubfidip.g from it.
Befides the ufe of clay for making potter's ware,
it is a confiderable improver of light and fandy
7 G grounds,
CLE
grounds, which, unlefs they be clayed, will bear
nothing but rye, with whatever other compofts they
be manured ; but once clayed, they will produce
Oiits, barley, peafe, &c.
Clay-Lakds, thoie abounding with clav, whe-
ther black, blue, yellow, white, &c. of which the
black and the jellow are the bcft for corn.
All clay- foils are apt to chill the plants growing
on them in moid feafons, as they retain too much
water: in dry feafons, on the contrary, they turn
hard and choke the plants. Their natural produce
i.s weeds, goofe-grafs, huge daifies, thiflles, docks,
poppies, &c. Some clay-foils will bear clo\cr and
rye-grafs ; and, if well manured, will produce the
bcfl: grain : they hold manure the bcfl of all lands,
and the moft proper for them are horfe-dung, pi-
geon's dung, fome kinds of marie, folding of Iheep,
malt-duft, afhes, chalk, lime, foot, &c.
CLAYTONiA, in botany, a plant which grows
naturally in Virginia. It hath a fmall, tuberous,
dark-coloured root, from whence arifes in the fprinj,
feveral flender ftalks about three inches high, each
having two or three fucculent narrow leaves, of a
deep green colour. From the top ot the ftalk comes
forth four or five flowers in a loofe bunch ; each of
thefe are compofed of five white petals, which are
emarginated and fpotted with red on their inner fide,
and contains the fame number of recurved filaments,
which are terminated with oblong incumbent an-
thers. 1 he fruit is a roundifli, trilocular capfule,
opening with three elaflic valves, containing feveral
Toundifh feeds.
CLEATS, in the marine, pieces of wood hav-
ing one or two projedfing ends whereby to faften
the ropes : fome of them are faftened to the ftirouds
below for this purpofc, and others nailed to different
places of the fliip's deck or fides.
CLEAVERS, aparine-,_ in botany, &c. See the
article Aparine.
CLECHE, in heraldry, a kind of crofs, charged
with another crofs of thefame figure, but of the
colour of the field.
CLEDGE, amona: miners, denotes the upper
ftratum of fuller's earth.
CLEF, or Cliff, in mufic, a mark fet at the
beginning of the lines of a fong, which Ihews the
tone or key in which the piece is to begin ; or it is
a letter marked on any line which explains the reft.
It is called clef, or key, becaufe hereby we know
the names of all the other lines, and confequently
the quantity of every degree or interval : but becaufe
every note in the octave is alfo called a key, this
letter marked is, for diflinftion fake, denominated
the figned clef; and by this key is meant the prin-
cipal note of a fong, in which the melody clofes.
There are three figned clefs, c, f, g ; the clef of
the highefl part in a fong, called treble, or alt, is g
on the fecond, fometimes on the firff, and fome-
limcs on the third line, counting upwards. The
CLE
clef of the bafs, or loweft part, is y, generally on
the fourth line upwards, and often on the fecond,
third, and fifth : for all the other mean parts, the
clef in c, fometimes on one, and fometimes on ano-
ther line; indeed fome that are really mean parts
are frequently fet with the clef g. See Treble,
Tenor, and Bass.
CLEFTS, or Cracks in the Heels, a difcafe in-
cident to horfes, which comes either by over- hard la*
hour, which occafions furfeits, or by giving them
unwholefome meat, or by wafhing them when hot.
For the cure, fhave away the hair, and apply the
oil of hempfeed, or linfeed ; and be fure to keep-
them clean.
CLEMATIS, virgin's bower, in botany, a ge-
nus of plants, the flower of which is compofed of
four loofe oblong petals, having a great number of
fubulated filaments, with antheras adhering to their
fides : it hath many germina, which are roundifh and'
comprelFed, which afterwards become fo many feeds
of the fame form, each crowned with a feather-
fliaped ftyle. There are various fpecies belonging
to this genus, which have all or them climbing
branches, and may be propagated by laying. Some-
of the forts are very agreeable, and proper to run
over arbours, &c. particularly thofe which produce,
double flowers.
CLEPSYDRA, an inflmment or machine ferv-
ing to meafure time by the fall of a certain quantity
of water.
The word comes from xT^iA, condo, and vlap^-
aqua, water.
1 here have likewife been clepfydrre made with-
mercury.
1 he Egyptians, by this machine, meafured thc'
courfe of the fun. Tycho Brahe, in our days, made-
ufe of it to meafure the motion of the flars, &c.
and Dudley ufed the fame contrivance in making'
all his maritime obfervations,
1 he ufe of clepfydi?e is very ancient: they v/ere
invented in Egypt under the Ptolemies; as were alfo
fun-dials. Their ufe was chiefly in the winter ; the
fun-dials ferved in the fummer. They had two
great defeats ; the one, that the wat;r ran out with
a greater or lefs facility, as the air was more or lefs-
denfe ; ihe other, that the water ran more readily
at the beginning, than towards the conclufion.
M. Amontons has invented a clepfydra free from-
both thefe inconveniences, and which has thefe
three grand advantages; of ferving the ordinary
purpole of clocks ; of ferving in navigation for the
difcovery of the longitude; and of meafuring the
motion of the arteries.
Conjhuiilon fif a Qh'E'PsyDKA, To divide any
cylindric vefl'el into parts to be emptied in each di-
vifion of time ; the time wherein the whole, and
that wherein any part is to be evacuated, being,
given.
Suppofe, a cylindric vtfTel, whofe charge of
water
CLE
water flows out in twelve hours, were required to
be divided into parts to be evacuated each hour. i.
As the part of time i, is to the whole time 12, (b
is the fame time 12 to a fourth proportional, 144.
2. Divide the altitude of the vcflel into 144 equal
parts: here the laft will fail to the laft hour; the
ihree next above to the lafl part but one ; the five
next to the tenth hour, ^-c. Laftly, the 23 laft to
the fir ft hour.
F()r fince the times increafe in the feries of the
natural numbers i, 2, 3, 4 5, &c. and the alti-
tudes, if the numeration be in retrograde order from
the twelfth hour, increafe in the feries of t!ie une-
qual numbers i, 3, 5, 7, 9, &c. the altitude,
computed from the twelfth hour, will be as the
fquares of the times I, 4, 9, 16, 25, &c. there-
fore the fquare of the whole time 144, comprehends
all the parts of the altitude of the veilel to be eva-
cuated. But a third proportional to i and 12 is the
fquare of 12, and confequently it is the number of
equal parts into which the altitude is to be divided,
to be diftributed according to the feries of the une-
qual numbers, through the equal interval of hours.
Since in lieu of parts of the fame vefi'el, other lefs
veflels equal thereto may be fubrtituted ; the altitude
of a vellel emptied in a given fpace of time bcini;
given, the altitude of another vefl'cl to be empiied
in a given time may be found, viz. by making the
altitudes as the fquares of the times. Hence we fee
the method of conftrucling the clepfydrae ufed by
the ancients.
Clepsydra is alfo ufed for an hour-glafs of
fand, and likcwife for a water-clock. See the arti-
cles H0UR-G1.ASS and Water-Clock.
CLERGY, Clerus, irvfo;, a general name given
to the body of ecclefiafiics of the Chnftian church,
in contradiflinftion to the laity.
Benefit o/Clergy,\s an ancient privilege, where-
by one in orders claimed to be delivered to his ordina-
ry, to purge himfelf of felony : this purgation was to
be by his own oath, afKrmmg his innocency, and
the oath of twelve purgitorf, as to thtir belief of
it,, before a jury of twelve clerks : if the clerk
failed in his purgation, he was depiived of his cha-
r^dler, whereby he became a mere layman ; or he
was to be kept in prifon till a pardon was obtained ;
hut if he purged himfelf, he was fet at liberty.
This was formerly admitted, even in cafes of
murder ; but the ancient courfe of the law is much
altered upon this head. By the ftatutes of 18 Eliz.
cap. vii. clerks are no more committed to their or-
dmary to be purged ; but every man, to whom the
benefit of clergy is granted, though not in orders,
is put to read at the bar, after he is found guilty
and convicted of fuch felony, and fo burnt on the
hand, and fet free for the firft time, if the ordinary
or deputy ffanJing by do fay, legit ut dericus, other-
wife he fhall fuffer death.
CLERK, a word originally ufed to denote a
4-
C L I
learned man, or inan of letters ; whence the ternv
became appropriated to churchmen, who were from
thence called cleiks or clergymen : the nobility and
gentry being ufually bred up to the excrcife of arn)s,.
and none left but the ecclefiaftics to cultivate the
fciences.
Clerk is alfo applied to fuch as by their courfe
of life exercife their pens in any court or office, of
which there are various kinds.
CLEROMANCY, nMfoixavlua, a fort of divi-
nation, performed by throwing lots, which were
generally black and white beans, little clods of
earth, or pebbles; alfo dice, or fuch like things,,
diliinguifhed by certain charaflers. They caft the.
lots into a veffel, and having made fupplication to-
the gods to dire£l ihem, drew them out, and ac-
cording to the charaftcrs, conjeiSlured what fhould.
happen to them.
CLIENT, Cliens, among the Romans, a citizert.
who put himfelf under the prote£lion of fome great
man, who, in rcfpeft of that relation, was called,
patron. This patron affifted his client with his pro-
tedion,. intereft, and goods; and the client gave
his vote for his patron^ when he fought any office-
for himfelf or his friends. Clients owed refpeft to-
their patrons, as thefe owed them their protec-
tion.
The right of patronage was appointed by Romu-
lus, to unite the rich and poor together in fuch a
manner, as that one might live without contempt,
and the other v/ithout envy ;, but.the condition ot a
clienr,, in courfe of time, became little elfe but a.
moderate flavery.
Client is now ufed for a party in a law-fuit,.
who has turned over his caufe into the hands ot a.
counfcllor or follicitor.
CLINCH, or Clench, in naval affjirs. That
part of a cable, or other rope, which is fattened to
the anchor, is called the clinch, and the ait ot faf-
tening is called chnching.
A peculiar method of fattening a rope to a pott,
&c. is alfo called clinching,
CLIMAC TERIC, Jnms ClimailcricM, among
phyficians and natural hiftcrians, a critical year in a
perfon's life,, in which he is fuppoftd to ftand \\\
great danger of death.
According to, fome,. every fevcnth year is a
climaderic ; but others allow only thofe years
produced by multiplying 7, by the odd number
3, 5, 7, and 9, to be climaiSlerical. Thele-
year,«, they fay, bring with them ibme remark-
able change with refped to health, life, or for-
tune; the grand climatteric is the fixty third year;,
but fome making tv/o, add to this the eighty-
firft:: the other remark^ible climaderics ate the fe-
venth, twenty-firft, thiity-fifth, forty-ninth, antf-
fifty-fixth. The credit of climadtciic years can;
only be fupported by the doftrine of numbers intro-
duced by Pythagoras ; ihungh many eminent men,,
\ ho:h.i
C L I
^wth nmong the ancients and moderns, appear to
have great faith in it.
CLIMATE, in geography, is a trait of the fur-
face of the earth included between two parallels to
the equator, fuch that the longeft day of the leffer
parallel exceeds that of the greater by half an
hour.
Thefe climates are narrower the farther they are
from the equator ; therefore fuppofing the equator
the beginning of the firft climate, the polar circle
will be the end of the 24th climate ; for afterwards,
the lojigefl day encreafes not by half hours, but by
days and months. The following table of the cli-
mates (hews the lengths of the longefl: days, and
tlie latitude at the ends of each climate, together
with the breadth thereof. So that having the cli-
mate civen, the latitude is found : or having the
latitude given, the climate and longeft day are
found.
C L I
Climate.
I ■
2
3 ■
4 •
5 ■
6
7
8-
9
10
II
12
13
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
Length of
da)S.
II.
- I2f
_ ,3 .
L^ltitude.
Breadth.
14
i+t
15
i5i
16
16I-
17
i7r
j8
i8i-
^9
i9i
20
20i
21
2lt
22
22'-
23
23^
24
8.
16,
23
36
41,
44
49,
51
54'
56,
58,
59
61.
62,
63
64,
64
&5
65
66
66
66
66
34
43
II
47
30
22
29
I
58
29
37
26
59
18
25
22
06
• 46
.21
47
c6
.20
.28
•30
8-34
7.50
7- 3
6. 9
5-'7
4-30
348
3'3
2.44
2.17
00
40
26
13
01
0.52
0.44
0.36
0.29
0.22
0.17
0.1 1
o. 4
0. I
The difference of climates arifes from the dif-
ferent inclination or obliquity of the fphere. The
ancients ufed to reckon the parallel in which the
leng h of the longefl day is twelve hours and three
quarters, for the beginning of the firff climate. It
was likewife a cultfim among them, inftead of the
method now among us of fetting the latitudes of
places down in degrees and minutes, to content
themfelves with faying what climate the place under
conlideration was lituated.
The term climate is vulgarly made ufe of ts
fignify any country or region differing from one
another, either in refpeft of the feafons, the qua-
lity of the foil, or even the manners of the inha-
bitants, without any regard to the length of the
longefl dav.
CLIMAX, or Gradation, in rhetoric, a
figure whertin the word or expreffion which ends
the firft member of a period begins the fecond,
and fo on : fo that every member will make a
diftindi fentence, taking its rife from the next fore-
going, till the argument and period be beautifully
finiflied : or, in the terms of the fchof>ls, it is when
the word or expreffion, which was predicate in the
firfl member of a period, is fubje£l to a fecond, and
fo on, till the argument and period be brought to a
noble conclufion ; as in the following gradation of
Dr. Tillotfon. " After we have ptaclifed good
" aftions a while, they become eafy ; and when
" they are eafy, we begin to take pleafure in them ;
" and when they pltafe us, we do them frequently j
" and by frequency of adls, a thing grows into a
" habit ; and confirmed habit is a fecond kind of
" nature, and fo far as any thing is natural, fo far
" it is neceflary, and we can hardly do otherwife ;
" nay, we do it many times, when we do not
" think of it."
CLINIC, a term applied by the ancient church-
hifti rians, to thofe who received baptifm on their
death-bed.
Clinic, in a modern fenfe, is feldom ufed but
for a quack, or rather for an empirical nurfe, who
pretends to have learned the art of curing difeafes by
attenuing on the fick.
Clinic Medicine, Med'uina CJinica, was par-
ticularly ufed for the method of vifiting and treating
fick perfons in bed, for the more exadl difcovery of
all the fymptoms of their difeafe.
CLINOIDES, in anatomy, are four fmall pro-
cefles in the infide of the os fphenoidcs, forming a
cavity ctlled fella turcica, in the middle of that
bone, in which lies the glandula pituitaria.
CLITORIS, or as fome call it, Meniula MuVe-
bris, in anatomy, a part of the extertial female pu-
denda, fituated at the angle which the nymphie
form with each other.
CLOACA, in Roman antiquity, the common
fewer, by which the filth of the city of Rome was
carried away.
Cloaca, in comparative anatomy, imports the
canal in birds, through which the egg defccnds from
the ovary in its exit.
CLOCK, a kind of movement, or machine,
ferving to meafure and ftiike time.
The ufual chionometers are watches and clock* :
the former in ftriclnefs are fuch as fliew the parts of
time ; the latter, fuch as publifh it (Iriking : though
the name watch is originally appropriated to pockef
clocks ;
€ L O
clocks; and that of clocks to larger machines, whe-
ther they flrike or not.
The invent! n of clocks with wheels is referred
to Pacificus, archdeacon of Verona, who lived in
the time of Lotharius, fon of Louis the Debonnair ;
on the credit of an epitaph cuoted by Ughelli, and
borrowed by him from Panvir-ius.
They were at firft called nocSurnal dials, todiftin-
guifh them from fun-dials, which fliewed the hour
by the fun':, fhadow. Others afcribe the invention
to Boethiu?, about the year 510.
Mr. Derham niikcs chjck-work of a much older
fiandMia;; Jnd rank: Aichimcdes's Tphere, mentioned
by Claudian, and that of Pofidonius, mentioned by
Cicero, among the machines of this kind ; not that
either of their form jt ufe were the fame with thofe
of ours, but that thev had their motion from fome
hidden weights or fpriiigs, with wheels, or pullies,
or fome fuch clcck-work principle.
But be this as it will, it is certain the art of mak-
ing clocks, fuc'; as aie now in ufe, was either hrft
invented, or at lealt retrieved, in Germany about
200 years ago.
The water-clocks, or clepfydrae, and fun-dials,
have both a much better claim to antiquity. The
French annals mention one of the former kind fent
by Aaron, king of Perfia, to Charlemaign, about
the year 807, which feemed to bear fome refem-
blance to the modern clocks : it was of brafs, and
fiiewed the hours by twelve little balls of the fame
metal, which fell at the end of each hour, and in
falling, ftruck a bell, and made it found. There
were alfo figures of twelve cavaliers, which at the
end of each hour came forth at certain apertures, or
windows, in the fide of the clock, and fiiut them
again, &c.
Among the modern clocks, the mofl eminent for
their furniture, and the variety of their motions and
figures,- are thofe of Strafbourg and of Lyons. In
the firft, a cock claps his wings, and proclaims the
hour ; the angel opens a door, and falutes the vir-
gin ; and the Holy Spirit dcfcends on her, kc. In
the fecond, two horfemen encounter, and beat the
hour on each other ; a door opens, and there ap-
pears on the theatre the virgin, with Jefus Chrift in
her arms, the magi, with their retinue, marching
in order, and prefenting their gifts ; two trumpeters
founding all the while to proclaim the proceflion.
See Scottus ; fee alfo Salmahus on Solinus, Mafius
de Tintinnahulis, and Kircher in his Mufeum Roma-
num., and Oedip. jEgypt.
The invention of pendulum clocks is owing to
the happy indulfry of the lafl age : the honour of it
is difputed between Huygens and Galileo. The
former, who has written a volume on the fubiec'l,
declares it was firif put in pradtice in the year 1657,
and the dcfcription thereof printed in 1658. Beclier,
de Nova Temperis Dimeiietuii Thcoria, anno 1O80,
iHckles for Galileo ; and relates, though at fecond
30
C L O
hand, the whole hiftory of the invention ; adding,
that one Treder, clock-maker to the father of the
then grand-duke of Tufcany, made the firft pendu-
lum-clock at Florence, by diredtion of Galileo
Galilei ; a pattern of which was brought info Hol-
land.
The academy de'l Cimento fay exprefsly, that
the application of the pendulum to the movement of
a clock was firft propofed by Galileo, and firft put
in pradJice by his fon Vincenzo Galilei, in 1649.
Bl the inventor who he will, it is certain the in-
vention never flourifhed till it came into Huygens's
hands, who infifts on it, that if ever Galileo thought
of fuch a thing, he never brought it to any degree
of perfedlion.
The firft pendulum-clock made in England, was
in the year 1622, by Mr. Fromantil, a Dutch-
man.
CLOGS, a kind of wooden pattens without
rings. See the article Patten.
The term cloiis is alfo ufed for pieces of wood
faftened about the necks or legs of beafts, to pre-
vent their running away.
CLOISTER, Claufirum, an habitation furrounded
with walls, and inhabited by religiou?.
In a more general fcnfe it is ufed for a monaftery
of religious of either fex.
CLOSE Behind, in the manege, a horfc whofe
hoofs come too clofe together : fuch horfes are
commonly good ones.
Close, in mufic. See Cadence.
Close-Hauled, in navigation, the difpofition
in which the fails of a fliip are arranged to make a
progrefs in the neareft diredlion poiTible to the point
from which the wind blows, or to the direction of
the wind. In this manner of failing the keel com-
mor.ly makes an angle of fix points with the line of
the wind : but floops, and fome other fmall veireis,
will go almoft a point nearer ; all veflels, however,
are fuppofed to make nearly a point of Ice- way,
even when they have the advantage of a good
failing; breeze, and fmooth water : lee-way always
increi.fes in proportion to the riling of the wind and
{^i.. Lee-way is known to be an angle included
between'a fhip's real and apparent progrels ; as, a fhip
having the wind at north, and being clofe hauled,
file will ftem E N E one way, and W N VV the
other; but as fhe will make a point of lee- way, her
courfe will be only E by N one way, and W by N
the other.
Clofe-hauling, therefore, is arranging the fails fide-
ways ; fo that the v/ind, as it erodes the fhlp ob-
liquelv' from forward towards the ftern, may fill
them ; but as the wind likcwife enters the cavities cf
the fails in an oblique direction, its force is confi-
derably diminiriied in giving he.id- way, and therefore
the fl)ip makes t!ic lealf progrefs when failing in this
manner, at which time the lower corners of the fails
.are ftretched fore and aft, or lengthways ; and the
7 H - weather
G L O
C L O
weather or windward-edges of all fuch as are fixed
upon yards, arc drawn tight forward by ropes calk-d
bow-lines, which are faiteiicd up and dowi) in three
or four places to keep the fail fleady. See Bowlin'E-
liRIDLE.
Closf.-Qj! A RTiRs, in naval affairs, certain
ilrojig thick fences of wood, fhetching acrofs a
inerchant-fliip in feveral places : they are ufed as a
place of retreat when a fliip is hoarded hy her
enemy, and are therefore fitted with feveral fmall
mufket holes, from which the fhip's crew can defend
themfelves and annoy the enemy : they are likewife
forniied with fever;tl finall caillbn?, called powder-
chefls, which are fixed upon the deck filled with
powder, and can be fired at any time from the
clofe- quarters upon the boarders. See the artii^lc
Boarding.
" When the enemy is determined to board, it
will be more expedient to keep firing your blunder-
bufTes out of the look-holes in the quarter, among
his men, as they ffand thick to enter : as foon as he
is aboard, fpring your powder-chefls upon the quar-
ter ; for theji his men in moimting your quarter will
b; numerous : let your men in th; round houfe be
ready to give the eneniv a volley with their fma!l
arms as foon as they come upon your quarter-deck ;
tliofe who are quartered in the fore-caille muft keep
a watchful eve on the poop that they do no mifchief
there, and likewife fire at thein as they mount the
fnrouds.
" If the enomv come in numbers upon the quar-
ter-deck, dilcharge your cannon from the round-
lioufe with cafe-lhot at them, and if a breach is
expefled before they are re-loaded, tofs out hand-
grcnadoes amonglf them ; then fpring yourpowder-
chefis, as the lalt remedy; for it is prudence in a
commander to let thefe Hand as long as podible, be-
caufe they not only itrike a terror into the enemy,
hut are at all times ready ; and fo long as they are
lianding, he will conclude you are in no great ex-
tremity.
" From all places have an eye to your rigging,
that the er>emv do not cut the fails loofe j and be
iure to aim at the leading men : having fprung your
powder-chefts upon the fides, after the enemy is
aboard, turn all hands to the bulk-heads in readinefs
to receive the firft attack, which will be the brifked ;
for being fide by fide, his men will enter upon the
fore-caftle, main- deck, and quarter-deck : if all this
while the mafter be exemplary brave, and the men
fire with difcretion, they will foon make the crew
of a confiderable (hip leave fo hot a place, as this
muft confequently be, &c." Ciipt. Park's Dt:fcnfive
IVar by Sea.
We have known an Englifli merchant-fliip of
fixteen guns, properly fitted with clofe-quarters,
defeat the united efforts of three French privateers,
who boarded her in the late war, after having en-
gaged at feme diftance the greateft part of a day
and a half. Two of the privateers were equipped
v.'ith twelve guns each, and one with eight.. The
P'rench faiiors v^rere fo much expofed to the fire from
the clofe- quarters after boarding, that a fcene of
carnage enfued too dreadful to be defcribed, and
the decks were very foon covered with dead bodies ;
many of whom, in their htirry to efcape, they were
obliged to leave behind.
CLOSLT, in building, denotes a very finall
room, generally without any chimney : it is elteemed
one great improvement of our modern archite(Sls.
Closet, in heraldry, denotes the half of a bar.
See the article Bar.
CLOSH, among farriers, the fame with founder.
See tlie article Founder.
CLOTH, in commerce, a raanufa£ture made of
wool wove on the loom.
The tgrm is applicable alfo to other manufatSures
made of hemp, flax, &c. but, in a more particular
fenfe, it implies the web or tiffue of woollen threads
interwoven, fume whereof, called the wa-'p, are ex-
tended in length from one end of the piece to the
ether; the reff, called the woof, difpofed acrofs the
fiiff, or breadth-wife of the piece.
Cloths, in painting, are pieces of canvas pre-
pared by proper primings for the ufe of painters,
and fold at the colour {hops.
CLOUD, a colleiSlion of vapours fufpended in
the atmofphere. That the clouds are produced in
the air, trom almoft water alone, there is fcarce any
one that doubts. But water, every where equally
difpol'cd, is tranfparent. Clouds, therefore, are col-
lefrcd from what is beginning to be water ; but the
parts of which, in the mean time, are circumvolvcd
among one another with an unequal motion, nei-
ther refting nor moving equably. If the water
that is floating about in the air, mounts higher and
higher, its particles at length arrive in places fo far
above the earth, that they are not any longer much
united together, but receding from each other, they
do not then conflitute water, but only the elements
of it. But when ihefc elements of water come to
defcend again from thofe upper regions, and are con-
tra<ffed into fmaller fpaces, where they affociate to-
gether, and become a kind of water, they then
form clouds. T'he higher, therefore, the water
afcends in the air, the fcrener and drier the wea-
ther will be, and the freer from clouds ; and the
contrary.
CLOVE-TREE, in botany, the Englifh name
of the caryophyllusof botanifts. See the article Ca-
RYOPHYLLUS.
Clove, a term ufed in weights of wool. Seven
pounds make a clove.
In Effex, eight pounds of cheefe and butter go
to the clove.
Clove-July-Flower, the Engliili name of
the caryophyllus aromaticus. See the article Ca-
RYOPHYLLUS.
CLOVER
C L U
CLOVER, a fpecies of the trifolium. See the
article Tkifolium.
Clover is greatly cultivated in England for feed-
jfig of cattle, and is efttemcd very profitable, be-
caufe the great quantity ot cat.lc which this grufs
will maintain, does very much enrich all clayey
Jands, and prepare them for corn in two or three
years, which is the length of time that this crop
will continue good.
In the choice of this feed, that which is of a
bright yellovvifti colour, a little inclining to brown,
fliould be preferred ; but the black rejected as good
for little.
Ten pounds of this feed will be fufficient for an
acre of ground ; for if the plants do not come up
pretty thick, it will not be worth {landing. The
land in which this is fown fhould be well ploughed,
and harrowed very fine, otherwife the leeds will be
buried too deep, and therebx' loft.
The beft time to fow it is about the beginning of
Augutf, at which leafon the autumnal rains will
bring up the plants in a fhort time ; whereas, when
the feeds aie fown in the fpring, if it be done very
eaily, they are many times burft with wet and
cold ; and if it be done late, they are in danjrer of
niifcarryiiig from drought : whereas in autumn,
when the ground has been warmed by the fum-
mer's heat, the rains then falling gicatly promote
the vegetation of feeds and plants.
The feeds fliould be harrowed in with bufhes ;
for, if it be done with a common harrow, they will
be buried too deep.
Mod people have recommended the fowing of
this feed w.th feveral forts of corn ". but if it be
fealoned, as before direiSled, it will he much better
if fown alone ; for the corn prevents the growth of
the plants until it h reaped and taken oft the
ground, fo that one whole feafon is loft ; and many
times, if there be a great crop of corn upon the
ground, it fpoils the clover, fo that it is hardly
worth rtanding ; whereas, in the way before di-
reitted, the plants will have good roots before win-
ter ; and in the fpring will come on much faifer
than that which was fown the fpiing before under
corn.
CLOUGH, or Draught, among traders, an
allowance of two pound to every three hundred
weight, for the turn of the fcale, that the commo-
dity may hold out when fold by retail.
CLOUTS, in military affairs, arc thin plates of
iron nailed on that part of the axle-tree of a gun's
carriage whicii comes through the nave, through
which the linfpin goes.
CLOYED, or Accloyed, among farriers, a
term ufed when a iiorfe is pricked with a nail in
fhoeing.
CLUE of a Sai/, in naval affairs, the lower-
corner ; and hence,
Clue-Garnets are the fame to the main-fail
C L V
and fore-faif, which the clue-lines are (o all othei
fquare fi.ils, and .ire hauled up V/htil the fail is to
be furled or brailed.
Cll'E Lixtcs arc ropes fadencd to the clues or
lower-corners of tlic fquare fa Ls : their ufes are to
draw each due up to the yard, for the more eafily
furhng or reefing the {a;l.^.
CLUSIA, the b.U!'ani-trec, in botany, a free
which grows common in the VVcfl- Indian iflands.
It arifes to the height of twenty feet, fending out
many brachcs on eiery fide; thcfc are furniflied
with thick, round fucculent leaves, placed oppofite
by pairs. The flowers are produced at the ends of
the branches, and are of a pale )ellow colour; each
of thcfe are compofed of five large, roundifh, pa-
tent, fpreading, concave petals, with a great num-
ber of finale flamina. The fruit is an ovated cap-
fule with fix furrows, having fix valves and fix
cells, containing a number of ovated feeds, fixed
to a column, and covered with ?. pulp. From every
part of this tree exudes a kind of turpentine,
which, in the \Vefl-Indies, is greatly recommended
for the cure of fciaticas, by fpreading it on a cloth,
and applying it as a plafter to the part affected.
CLUiiA, in botany, a genus of plants, which
produces male and female flowers on different
plants ; the male flower confifts of five patent cor-
dated petals ; the female flower has pcrfitlent petals,
as in the male.
The fruit is a globofe, fcahrous capfule, with fix
furrows and three cells, each containing a fingle
roundifh feed.
CLYPEOLA, in botany, a genus of plants,
producing cruciform flowers, with fix ftamina, two
of which are fhorter than the others. The fruit is
an orbiculatcd, plano-comprefTed, ere£l pod, in-
dented at the top with two valves, containing round
comprefled feeds.
CLYSSUS, in chemiflry, an extract prepared
not from one but feveral bodies mixed together :
and among the moderns, the term is applied to fe-
veral extradls procured from the fame body, and
then mixed together.
Clyssus of Antimony, is a liquor obtained by dif-
tillation from a mixture of antimony, nitre, and
fulphur. It is prefcribed to feverifh patients, in or-
der to procure a grateful acidity to their potions,
and to juch as labour under a lofs of appetite.
CLYSTER, is a liquid remedy to be injeiEled
chiefiy at the anus into the larger inteflines. It is
ufually adminiilered by the bladder of a hog, flieep,
or ox, perforated at each end, having at one of the
apertures an ivory pipe faftened with pack-thread.
But the French, and fometinies the Dutch, ufe a
pewter fyringe, by which the liqvor may be thrown
in with more eafe and expedition than with the
bladder, and likewife more forcibly expelled into
the laroe inteflines. This remedy ftiould never be
adminiilered either too hot or too cold, but tepid;
fcr
C O A
C O C
for either of the former will be injurious to the
bowels.
COACH, a commodious vehicle for travelling,
fo well known as to need no defcription.
Coach, or Couch, in naval affairs, a cabin
or large apartment near the ftern of a large fliip of
war, the floor of which is the fame with the quar-
ter-deck ; it is always the habitation of the cap-
tain.
COADJUTOR is properly ufed for a prelate
joined to another to aflift him in the difcharge of
his funflion, and even in virtue thereof to fucceed
him.
COAGULATION, in a general fenfe, imports
a certain change in the ftate of any liquor, by
means of which, inflead of retaining its fluidity, it
becomes more or lefs confiftent, according to the
degree of coagulation.
COAGULUM is the fame with what in Englifh
we call rennet, or rather the curd formed thereby.
See Rennet.
CoAGULUM Alumenosum, in pharmacy, is
made by flirring any quantity of whites of eggs
with a piece of alum of a proper fize in a tin vef-
fel, till they are coagulated ; faid to be good in de-
iiuxions of the eyes.
COAL, a black, fulphureoup, inflammable mat-
ter, dug out of the earth, and ferving for fuel in
many countries.
Camel Coal. See Cannel Coal.
Char-Co Ai.. See the article Charcoal.
COAMINGS of the hatches, in naval architec-
ture, certain rifings on the edges of the hatches to
prevent the water which comes upon the decks at
iea, from running down into the lower apartments
of the fhip. See Hatchway.
COASTING, in agriculture, denotes the tranf-
planting a tree, and placing it in the fame fituation
with refpeiSl to eafl:, weft, fouth, and north, as it
flood in before it was tranfplanted.
Coasting, in navigation, the aft of making a
progrefs along the fea-coaft- of any land : the prin-
cipal articles relating to this part of navigation are
obferving the motion of the tide, founding, and
keeping a good look out.
CO AT, or Coat of Arms, in heraldry, a hubit
worn by the ancient knights over their arms both
in war and tournaments, arid ftill borne by heralds
at arms. It was a kind of fur- coat, reaching as
low as the navel, open at the fides with fhort
flueves, fometimes furred, with ermine and hair,
upon which were applied the armories of the
knights, embroidered in gold and fiiver, and eiiam- '
ellcd vi'iih beaten tin, coloured black, green, red,
and blue ; wtience the rule never to apply colour
on colour, nor metal on metal. The coats of
arms were frequently open, and diverfified with
bands and fillets of feveral colours, aliernately
placed, as we flill fee cloths fcarleted, watered, &c.
Hence they were called devifes, as being divided
and compofed of feveral pieces fewed together;
whence the word falfe, pale, chevron, bend, crofs,
faltier, lozenge, &c. which have fince become ho-
nourable pieces or ordinaries of the fliield. See the
articles Cross, Bend, Chevron, &c.
Coats of arms and banners were never allow-
ed to be worn by any but knights and ancient
nobles.
Coat, in the marine, a piece of tarred canvas
nailed round that part of the marts or bowfprit
where they rife out of the fliip. It is ufed to
prevent the water from running down into the fhip's
hold.
COATING, in chemiftry, implies the covering
a retort, or other veffel, with a compofition called
lute, in order to prevent the adlion of the fire from
melting the glafs. See Lute.
COBALT, in natural hiftory, a fingular fpecies
of arfenical ore, from whence zaffre and fmalt are
made.
COBOSE, in the marine, a fort of box or cover
for the fire-grate of a fmall merchant-fhip : it is
fomewhat fhaped like a centry-box, and always
ftands on the upper deck.
COBWEB, in phyfiology, the fine network
which fpiders I'pin out of their own bowels, in or-
der to catch their prey.
COCCIFEROUS Plants, the fame with bac-
ciferous. See Bacciferous.
COCCOGNIDIUM, or Granum Cnidium,
is the berry of a flirub, growing wild in Germany
in molft fhady woods, called by an Arabic name
Mtzereon, and from its leaves bearing fo.me refem-
blance to thofe of the bav and of the olive-trees,
Laureola and Chamelaea. The fpecies which pro-
duce the coccognidia is named, by Cafpar Bauhine,
Laureola folio deciduo, flore purpurea, officlms Laure-
cla femina. The flowers come forth early in the
fpring before the leaves ; they are fmall, monopeta-
lous, fhaped fomewhat like a funnel, of a pale pur-
plifli red colour, and an agreeable fmell, whilft all
the other parts of the plant are difagreeable. The
leaves, which follow the flowers, are foft, of a
pale green colour, without any gloflinefs. The
flalks and branches arc very flexible, covered with
two barks; the outefmofl of which is of an afh-
colour, thin, and eafily peeled off; the innermoft
green on the outfide, white within, very tough,
and hard to tear. The berries are at fiiit green,
afterwards red, and when ripe, of a brown colour:
they are much about the fize, and partly of the ap-
pearance of pepper-corns: thev contain, under the
outward brown fkiii, another tliin fmooth one, com-
monly greenifh and gloifv ; and under this a third,
which looks as if coated with black varnifli ; under
this lies the kernel, of a white colour, and about
the
c o c
the fizc of a grain of hemp-feed. The berries arc
ufed by the dyers in Germany, but unknown among
the artifts of our country.
CNEORUM, in botany, a low, bufliy flirub,
whofc ftems are hard and woody ; the branches arc
furnifbed with ftifF, oval fhaped leaves, of a daik
green colour, having a flrong vein or rib through
the middle. The flowers are produced fmgle from
the wings of the leaves, toward the extremity of
the branches ; thefc are of a pale ytliow colour,
each confining of three oblong, narrow, concave,
erect petals, with three ftamina, which are (hotter
than the petab. The fruit is a dry, globofe, trilo-
bular, and trilocular berry (which when ripe is
black) and contains in each celt a roundifh feed.
T his plant is propagated by its feeds, which Ihould
be fown in autumn when they are ripe, and is a
vft-y proper plant to be placed in the front of ftirub-
beries.
CNICUS, in botany, a genus of plants, produc-
ing a compound flower, which is tubuious and uni-
form. The prcjper flower is hermaphrodite, fun-
nel-fliaped, and oblong, divided at the top into five
erciit equal parts, containing five fhort hairy fila-
ments, topped with cviindraceous anthers.', and
the calyx contains foiitary iecds, crowned with
down, placed on a plane, villofc receptacle. Of
this genus the carduus bencdidtus is a fpecies, which
fee.
COCCOLOBA, in botany, a genus of plants,
whofe flower is apetalous, but confifts of a mono-
phyllous, patent, coloured cup, divided into five
parts, in which is inferted eight fubulated filaments,
terminated with double roundifh antherre : it has
no peiicarpium ; but the cup, which is incrafl'ated
and befct with berries, contains the feed, which is
an acute, ovated, unilocular nut.
COCCULUS INDICUS, in natural hiflory, the
berry of an oriental plant, fuppofed to be a ipecies
oi Sclanum, and called, by Ray, Solatium racermfiwt
Indicum, (jfc. or Indian-tree nightfhade, producing
its fruit in clufters like grapts. The berries are
brought to us tVom Alexandria and other part-, of
the Levant. They are partly about the fize of bay-
berries, and partly of that of chich-peas; roundifh,
but hollowed in a little towards the {talk, and ap-
proaching to a kidney fliape, rough on the outfide,
and of a grey-brownifh or blackifh colour: the
frefher they are, the heavier ; the older, the drier
and lighter.
In their (fruflure, they greatly refemble the coc-
cognidia, confifting of two fhells and a kernel, in
which lafl their adtivity refides : the outer fhell is
thin, the inner thicker and whitifh ; the kernel is
more manifeflly of a kidney fliape than the entire
berry ; when frefh, of a white colour, but very apt
to grow yellow and brown : it foon likewife be-
comes ranci~d, and is preyed on by worms, info-
much that moft of the berries, as we commonly
30
c o c
meet with them, are found to bemercfliells, without
any kernel.
It is principally employed in ointments for dc-
ftroying cutaneous infeils, and in fifliing. Vox this
lafl purpofrj, a mixture of the powdered cocculus
with rye-me.il, old chcefc, fpirit of wine, and othtr
fubftances, is formed into fmall pellets or piih, which
are ufed as a bait, or only thrown by themfclves in-
to waters ftockcd with filh : the fijhes by fwallow-
ing the pills, are (lupitied and benumbed, arife to
the furface, and may be cafily caught by the
hands.
COCCYGRIA, in botany, a plant which rife;
with an irregular flem to the height often or twelve
feet, fending out many fpreading branches coveretl
with a fmooth brown bark, and furmflied with Tin-
gle, obverfe, oval leaves, about two inches long,
and of the fame breadth, rounded at their points,
and ftanding on long foot-ftalks ; they are fmooth,
ftifl^", and of a lucid green, having a ftrong mid-
rib, from whence fevetal tranfverfe veins run tc-
ward the border. The flowers come out at the
end of the branches upon long hair like foot-ffalks,
which divide and form into a purple coloured
bunch ; they are fmall, white, and compofed of
five fmall, oval petals, which fpread open, and
appear in July. When this tree is full of blofloms,
it makes a pretty appearance, particularly in a dewy
morning, when it feems as if a cloud was hovering
over it. This plant is increafed by laying down
the branches in autumn, is tolerably hardy, and is
a native of Spain, Italy, and the Levant, where
the leaves are ufed for tanning leather.
COCCYX, or CoccYGis Os, in anatomy, a
bone fituated at the extremity of the os factum. See
the article Osteology.
COCHINEAL, in natural hiftory, a fmall, irre*
gular, roundifh body, internally of a red colour.
It is brought chiefly from New Spain, and there
colledled from a plant, which is now common in
the botanic gardens in Europe, called cpuntia, or
piickly pear-tree.
It was formerly fuppofed to be the entire fruit or
berry of the tree, wrinkled and flirivcllcd by dry-
ing : when the pear itfelf became known, cochi*
neal was fuppofed to be its feeds ; but it difl'crs
greatly from thefe alfo, as well as from the entire
pear. It is now known with certainty to be not a
vegetable, but an animal fubflance; to be a particu-
lar Ipecies of infeiV produced upon the tree.
The heft cochineal is fomewhat heavy, or at leaft
not very light, moderately compact, clean, dry,
of a gloflfy furface, of a dark blackilh red colour
on the outfide, with white fiUer-like flreaks.
Chewed, it tinges the fpittle of a deep biowiiilh-
red colour, and imprcflls a kind of faint, not a-
greeable talle. When thoroughly dry, it has no
fmell } when moilt, a fomewhat mufty one.
Cochineal, infufed or boiled in water, imparts a
7 I aim-
c o c
crimfon tiiii\ure, inclining to purple. After the
iiioii; loluble parts have been got'out by light infu-
iion or codHon, the tinctures extracted from the
loniainder by fucceffive frtfli parceis of water, have
niore and more of a purple hue. Woollen cloth,
prepared by boiling, with a little alum and tartar,
acquires a crimfon Arc on being boiled with a pro-
per quantity of cochineal ia fine powder.
The beauty of crimfon, as Mr. HtUot obferves.
Is to incline as much as poffi'nle to the gridelin, or
to be extremely deep. Fixed alkaline falts give the
defirable deepnefs, but tarnifh the colour and di-
minifh its lultre. Volatile alkalies have the fame
cjood effect as the fi.xed, without their bad one;
but the threat volatility of thete falts occafions them
to be fo plentifully diffipated from the hot liquor,
that a very large quantity would be neceflary to ef-
teaually anfwer the purpofe. Mr. Hellot, however,
has difcovcrcd a method of applying them to good
advantage: the cloth, dyed crimfon in the ufual
manner, is dipt in a folucion of a little fal ammo-
jjiac ; and as foon as the liquor grows moderately
warm, a quantity of pot-a(h, equal to that of the
fal ammoniac, is thrown in : the volatile alkali ot
the fal ammoniac is inffantly extricated, and com-
municates to the cloth the brilliancy and deepnefs
required.
A fmall quantity of the vitriolic acid, dropped in-
to a decoelion of cochineal, changes it to a purple :
on adding more and more of the acid, the liquor
becomes fiefh-coloured, and at lait colouiiefs. Spirit
of nitre,^ in like manner gradually dropped in, firft
inclines the colour to yeljow, then turns it quite
vellow, and at laft almoft deflroys it ; the acid dif-
ioiving or attenuating the colouring particles, fo as
to render them indiftmguifhable by the eye.
Solution of tin in aqua regia heightens the colour
into a fcarlet, more or lefs fiery, that is, blended
with more or lefs of a yellow hue, in proportion to
the quantity of the folution : th€ liquor, thus height-
ened, communicates its own fcailet colour to v/ooUen
cloth prepared by boiling v.'ith tartar.
The wild cochineal, or fylvefter, is greatly infe-
rior to the fine fort, called fmiply cochineal : four
parts of the former have no greater efFecf in dying
than one of the latter. Nor does the fylveffer an-
Iwcr in general fo well as the other in regard to the
beauty of the colour, particularly for fcarlet.
COCHLEA, the fnail-£hell, in zoology, a ge-
nus o» univalve fliell-filh, of a fpiral figure, and
containing only one cell.
CocHLE.'v, in anatomy, the thiid part of the la-
byrinth of the ear. See Ear.
Cochlea, the fcrew, in mathematics. Seethe
article Screw.
COCHLEARTA, fcurvy-grafs, in botany, a ge-
nus of plants, whole flower confilis of four ovated
jietals difpofed in the form of a crofs ; it hath fix
iubulated lilutucnts, tvso of which, are Ihortsr than
c o c
the others ; thefe are terminated with compreflled,
obtufe anthera-. The fruit is a cordated, lightly
comprefled bilocular pod, containing four roundifli
feeds in each cell.
The common garden fcurvy-grafs is an annual
plant, it hath a thick, hairy, fibrous root, tiom
whence arife many roundifh leaves, of a deep green
colour, which are hollow, almoft like a fpoon ;
they are full of juice, and upon pedicles about
three or four inches high. 7 he ffalks are branch-
ed, upright, and brittle ; thefe are furnifhed with
leaves, which are oblong, finuated, and without
pedicles.
The flowers are produced in cluffers at the end
of the branches ; they come out in Aday, and the
feeds are ripe in June ; foon after which the whole
plant decays. 'I'his plant has its Englilh name
from its virtue in curing the fcurvy, againil which
it is accounted a capital fpecific, and in this inten-
tion has been principally made ufe of, in couiunc-
tion generally vyiih mild vegetable acids, or fub-
Ifances of lefs acrimony, as orange juice, forrel^
becabunga, &c. being of itfelf too hot, and by no
means good in thin, dry, and hei51ical co/iftitutions.
In fcorbutic rheumatifms, Sydenham prefcribes the
following recipe : Take fixteen parts of frefh made
conferve of garden fcurvy-grafs, eight of conferve
of wood forrel, and fix of the compound powder
of arum root, made up with fyrup of orange peel
into an eleifluary, of which two drams are to be
taken thrice a day fi^r a month, along with fome
ounces of a diftiUed water, impregnated with fcur-
vy-grals, mint, nutmegs, &c. Scuivy-grafs is not
ufelefs in other diforders, for it is excellent in re-
cent obftrudiions of the vifcera, in the green fick-
nefs, and fome fort of afthmas.
In many parts of England they brew an ale with
this herb, which is much reccmmended by many to
cure fcorbutic diforders. This genus comprehends
leveral fpecies, one of which is known by the
name of the fea fcurvy-grafs, which grows m the
fait raarflies in Kent aiid-Efi'ex, and differs but lit-
tle from the former, except in us leaves, and the
medicinal virtues being not quite fo efficacious ;
alfo a fpecies of this genus is the well known plant
called horfe-raddifh.
COCK, Gallus^ in zoology, the Englifli name
of the males of galiinaceous birdsj but more efpe-
cially ufed for the common dunghill cock.
Cock's Comb, in botany, a name given to a
fpecies of rhinanthus, as well as to a fpecies of ce-
lofia. See the articles Rhinanthus and Celo-
SIUS.
CocK-PiT, in naval architefture, the apartmert
for the ufe of the furgeon's mates iji (hips of wari.
The reader will find a very curious and circumftan-
tial account of this place in the firit volume of
Roderic Random.
Cock-Thro?i.ed, among dealers in horfes, is
COD
C O E
faid of a horfe whofe wiiiJ-pipe is fmall, and benJs
like a bow, when he brkllcs his head.
Cock-Water, among miners a ftream of wa-
ter brought into a trough, to wafli away the ("and
from tin ore, while ftatr.plng in the mill.
COCKATOON, in ornitiiology, the fame with
macao. See the article Macao.
COCKET is a feal belonging to the king's
culUim houfe, or rather a fcroll ot parchment fealed
j«id delivered by the officers ot the culloms to mer-
chants, as a warrant that their nicichandifes are
Guftom<;d.
COCKLE, in the hiflory of fheli-fifli, the Eng-
lifh name of the pedtunculus. See the article
Pkctuncdlus.
COCKSWAIN or Coxen. See the article
COXEK.
COCOA, or Cacao, in botany. Sec the ar-
ticle Cacao.
COCOON, in natural hiftory, the pod, or nefl
of the filk-worm.
COCOS, or Coco, is a nut, the fhell of which
rs much ufed by turners, carvers, &c. for divers
works.
\\'hile the nuts are new, and the bark tender,
they yield each about half a pint of clear cooling
water, which in a little time becomes firft a white
foft pulp, and at length condenfes, and allumes the
tafte of the nut. Ihe tree yields fruit thiice a year,
and thofe fometimes as big as a man's head ; but the
cocos of the Antilles are not fo large as thofe of the
Eafl-Indies. In the kingdom of Siam, the cocos-
fruit, dried and emptied of its pulp, fervcs as- a niea-
fure both for things liquid and dry.
COD-EISH, in ichthyology, i* the largeft of the
genus of the afelli, called afellus maximus by authors,
and fometimes ajellui varim, five Jirlatus. The
characters by which this is dillinguifhed from other
fifhes of the fame genus are thefe : its colour on the
back and fides is a dufky (/live, variegated with yel-
low fpots ; its belly is white ; its fides have a long
white line running their whole lengthy from the
gills to the tail, which at the abdomen is curved,
but elfewhere is ilraight ; its fcales are very {mall,
and adhere firmly to the min ; its eyes are large; at
the angle of the lower jaws there hangs a fingle beard,
which is (hort, feldom exceeding a finger's length ;
its tongue is broad ; it has feveral rows of teeth, one
of which is much longer than all the others. Anwng
thefe there are fome moveable teeth, as in the pike;
and in the palate, near the orifice of the ftomach,
and near the gills, it has fmall clurters of teeth. It
has three back fins, two at the gills, and two at the
brcafl, and two others behind the anus ; and the tail
ia plain.
CODE, Codex, a colIe£lion of the laws and con-
flitutions of the Roman emperors, made by order of
Jullini.in.
CODIAj atnong botanifls, f»gnifie$ the head of
any plant, but more particularly a poppy-head,,
whence its fyrup is called diacodium.
CODICIL is a writing by way of fupplement to
a will, when any thing is omitted which the teflator
would have added, or wants to be explained, altered,
or recalled. Jt i« of the fame nature with a will or
teflament, except that it is made without an execu-
tor; and one may leave behind him but one will.,
though as many codicils as lie pleafes. There
is this further difference between a codicil and a
teffament, that a codicil cannot contain the inftitur-
tion of an heir, and is not fubjeft to the fame forma-
lities prefcribed by law for folcmn left amenis! Codi-
cils are always taken as part of the teflament, and
ought to be annexed to the fame ; and the executor
is bound to fee them performed: and in cafe they ara
detained fr©m him, he may compel their delivery up
in the fpiritual court.
COECUM, in anatomy, the firff of the three
largs inteftines, called, from their fize, intefrina.
cralla. l^he ccecum is fituated at the right os ilium,,
and rcfembles a bag, and has a vermiform appen-
dage fixed tx) it. It begins at the termination of
the ilium, and terminates in the bottom of the bag
which it forms : its lengtli is not more than three or
four fingers in breadth. In the appendage, openinrr
into the fide of the ccecum, there aie fome glands,
which, together with its ered fituation, as that is
ufually the cafe, feems to fhew that fome fluid is
fecreted there. In hens, this is double, as alfo ia
many other fowls. In fifiies there are fiequently a
vaft number of them ; in fome fpecies, no lefs than
four hundred, accordijig to Dr. Grew. In man this
appendage is, at the utmofl, fingle, and is ofieu.
wanting.
COEFFICIENTS, in algebra, are fuch num-
bers,, or known quantities, as are put before letters?
or quantities, whether known or unknown, and
into which they are fuppofed to be multiplied. Thus,
in T^x, ax, or i^r; •^, a and t, are the coefficients
of x; and in 6 ;?, gl> ; 6 and 9, are the coefficients
of ti and /'.
COELESTIAL, in general, denotes any. thing
belonging to the heavens ; thus we fay, coelelfial.
obfervations, the coelefiial globe, ^"c.
Cffileflial obfervations are thofa made by afirono-
mers upon the phenomena of the he;;venlv bodies,
with a fuitable apparatus of aftr.onomii.al iiiflrumcnts,,
in order to determine their places, motions, kc^
The inflruments chiefly made ufe of, in affroncmi-
cal obfervations, are the agronomical gnomon, qua-
drant, micrometer, and telefcope. Ste the articles-
Gnomon, Quadrant, &c.
Obfervations in the day-time are cafy, in rega'-<i'
the crofs-hairs in the focus of the object- glafs ot the
telefcope arc then ditlindtly perceivable : in tha
night, thofe crofs-hairs arc. to be illumined, to
make them vifible. This illumination is ciiher per-
formed by a candle placed obliquely near, them, fo
3Sc,
C O E
C O F
ss the fmoke does not intercept the rays ; or where
this is inconvenient, by making an aperture in the
tube of the tek-fcope, near the focus of the t>bje(f\-
glafs, through which a candle is applied to illumine
tiie crofs-rays.
Obfervations on the fun are not to be made with-
out placing a glafs, fmoalced in the flame of a lamp
or candle, between the tclefcope and the eye.
CoELESTiAL Globe. See the article Globe.
COELIAC Artery, in anatomy, that artery
which iffues from the aorta, juft below the dia-
phragm.
The trunk of this artery is very fliort, and near
its origin it fends ofF from the right fide two fmall
oiaphragmatic branches, fometimes only one; and
is afterwards diftributed into right and left, commu-
nicating with other arteries of the fame name,
which come from the intercoftal and mammary
arteries.
The right brartch of this fends off the right gaftric
and epiploic, the pancreatic and duodenic, the hepatic
and the double cyftic arteries.
The left branch of it fends off the left gaftric
and epiploic arteries, the gaftro-epiploic, the great
fpienic, and alio many of the pancreatic arteries.
COELIAC PASSION, in medicine, a kind of
flux, or diarrhoea, wherein the aliments, either
wholly changed, or only in part, pafs off by ftool.
Dr. Friend fays, that the molt rational and fuc-
cefsful method of treating the cceliac paflron is to
adminifter fuch remedies as gently ftimulate the in-
teftinal tube, and deterge the obftrufted glands : for
this purpofe, purges adminiftered in fmall quantities,
and frequently repeated, and gentle vomits of ipe-
cacuanha are recommended.
Authors frequently confound the coeliac paflion
with the lientery, but they are different. See the
article Lientery.
Coeliac Diabetes, called alfo cceliaca urina-
lis, is a diforder wherein the chyle paffes ofr, along
with, or inftead of urine. See the article Dia-
betes.
Coeliac Vein, in anatomy, that running
through the inteltinum rectum, along with the
coeliac artery.
COLMETRY, Cccmetcriwn, the fame with ce-
metery. See the article Cemetery.
COENOBITE, in church hiftory, one fort of
monks in the primitive Chriftian church They
were fo called a-Ko th Korns liix, from living in com-
mon, in which they diffeied from the anachoriies,
who retired from fociety. See Anachoret.
The ccenobitic life, fays Caflian, took its rife
from the times of the apoftles, and was the ftate
and condition of the firft Chriff ians, according to the
defcription given of them by St. Luke, in the AQs.
Coenobite, in a modern fenfe, is a religious
who lives in a convent or community, under cer-
tain rules.
CO-EQUALITY, among Chriftian diviners, a
term ufed to denote the equality of the three perfons
in the Trinity.
CO-ETERNITY, among Chriftian divines^
imports the eternal exiftence of two or more beings:
it is chiefly ufed in fpeaking of the perfons of the
Trinity.
COEUR, in heraldry, a fhort line of partition
in pale, in the center of the efcutcheon, which ex-
tends but a little way, much fhort of the top and
bottom, being met by other lines, which form an
irregular partition of the efcutcheon.
CO-EXISTENCE, the exiftence of two or
more things at the fame time.
COFFEE, the coffee-tree, in botany, an everr
green tree, which grows naturally in Arabia, to the
height of fixteen or eighteen feet, and fometimes
higher. The main ftem grows upright ; and is
covered with a light brown bark. The branches are
produced horizontally, and oppofite by pairs, which
crofs each other at every joint : the lower branches
being longefi, the others gradually diminifhing in
length to the top, fo as to form the whole tree pyra-
midical. The leaves are alfo produced oppofite by
pairs, and when full grown, are about four inches
long, and about an inch and a half broad in the
middle, decreafing toward each end ; the borders
are waved, and the furface of them is of a lucid
green.
The flowers are produced in clufters at the hafe
of the leaves, fitting clofe to the branches. Thefe
are tubulous, and i'pread open at the top, where
they are divided into five parts, each containing five
fubulated filaments, topped with linear incumbent
aniherx. Thefe flowers are of a pure white colour,
and are highly odoriferous, like the jafmine, of
v/hich it was formerly held a fpecies. Thefe blof-
foms are fucceeded by round ifh berries, with an
umbilicated point, which contain two cliptic hemi-
fpherical feeds, gibbous on one fide, but plain on the
other, wr<^pped up in a membrane. Thefe berries
are at firfl green ; but when fully grown, they turn
red, and afterwards black, when quite ripe.
This plant is propagated here by fowing the
berrii-'S; but as they very foon lofe their vejetative
virtues, they fhould be (own preiently after they arc
ripe ; but being tender, it is neceffary to keep them
in a hot-houfe conftantly in this climate.
Coffee plants were firll carried from Arabia to
Batavia by the Dutch, and from thence they were
afterwards brought to Holland, where great num-
bers were raifed from the berries which thofe plants
produced, and from thefe molt of the gardens of
Europe have been furniflied : a great number of
thefe young plants were alfo lent to the Dutch fet-
tlement at Surinam, and from thence were difperfeJ
to moR of the Weft-Indian iflands.
Coffee- bet ties make a confiderable article in com-
merce, of which there are three foits diftini^uifhed
4 in
C O F
in tiaJc ; Arabian or Levant, E.ifl-Indian or Jarva,
and Weft-Indian or Surinam coftcc : the firft is the
fmallcli, and of a fomevvhat darker yellow colour
than the other forts ; the fecond is the largeft and of
the paleft 3'ellow ; the third, of a middle fize, and
in colour greenifh. The green colour of this Jaft
may probably proceed from its coming over frefher
than the others, or perhaps from its not attaining to
fuch a degree of maturity. All the fotts are green
in their unripe ftate; and even thofe, which by ma-
turity or age have acquired the darkert yellow or
brownifli colour, give a green tiniSJure to water.
The peculiar flavour, for which cofFee is admired,
is communicated by roafting: common beans, peas,
and other farinaceous fubftances, receive from that
procefs a fimilar flavour, and have been fometimes
ufed as fuccedanea to coiFee, and fraudulently mix-
ed, by the venders of that commodity, with fuch
as is fold in powder. Dillenius has given an exprefs
difTertation (in the Ephcm. Nat. Ciirlofo) on the
fubftances which in fmell and tafte refemble coffee ;
and finds that roafted rye and roafted almonds come
the neareft to it.
With regard to the medical qualities of coffee,
the common infufions, or rather decodlions of it,
appear to be in general innocent ; to be little dif-
pofed to produce the ill cffefts afcribed to them by
fome, and to have little claim to the extraordinary
virtues for which they are recommended by others.
Simon Pauli was the firll: who condemned the ufe of
coffee as well as tea : but his prejudices againft it
are built on no better foundation than a ridiculous
hiftory related in Olearius's Travels.
COFFER, a long fquare box, of the firmefl
timber, about three feet long, and one and a half
broad, wherein tin-ore is broken to pieces in a
fiamping-mill. See the articles Tin and Mill.
Coffer, in architecture, a fmall depreffion or
fmking of each interval between the modillions of
the Corinthian cornice ; generally filled up with a
rofe, fometimes with a pomegranate, &c.
Coffer, in fortification, a hollow lodgment
athwart a dry moat, from fix to feven feet deep,
and from fixteen to eighteen broad ; the upper part
being made of pieces of timber, raifed two feet
above the level of that moat, which little elevation
has hurdlesj laden with earth for its covering, and
ferves as a parapet with embrafures.
COFFERER of the King's HouJl)old, a principal
officer in the court, next under the comptroller,
who, in the compting-houfe, and elfewhere at
other times, has a fpecial charge and overfight of
the other officers of the houfe, for their good de-
meanor and charge in their offices, to all which he
pays their wages.
COFFIN, in the manege, the whole hoof of a
iiorfe's foot, above the cronet, including the coffin-
bone, the fole, and the frufh.
32
C O H
Coffin- BoN'E is a fmall fpongy bone, inclofcd
in the midft of the hoof, and pofleffing the whole
form of the foot.
COGGESHALL's S/ia'!ng-Ru/e. See the article
Slidinc; Rule.
COGNATION, in the civil law, a term for that
line of confaiiguinity which is between males and
females, both dcfcended from the fame father ; as
agnation is for the line of parentage between males
only defcended from the fame flock.
COGNISEE, or Conn.usee, in law, is the
perfoti to whom a fine of lands, &c. is acknow-
ledged, c\'C.
COGNISOR, orCoNNUSER, is he that paffeth
or acknowledgeth a fine of lands and tenements to
another.
COGNIZANCE, or Connusance, in law,
has divers fignifications : fometimes it is an acknow-
ledgment of a fine, or confeffion of fomething done;
fometimes the hearing of a matter judicially, as to
take cognizance of a caufe, and fometimes a parti-
cular jurifdidlion ; as cognizance of pleas is an au-
thority to call a caufe or plea out of another court,
which no perfon can do but the king, except he can
fliew a charter for it. This cognizance is a privilege
granted to a city or town, to hold plea of all con-
trails. Sic. within the liberty ; and if any one is
impleaded for fuch matters in the courts at Weft-
minfter, the mayor, &c, of fuch franchife may'de-
mand cognizance of the plea, and that it be deter-
mined before him.
CO-HABITATION, among civilians, denotes
the ftate of a man and a woman who live toge-
ther like hufband and wife, without being legally
married.
CO-HEIR, one who fucceeds to a fliare of an
inheritance, to be divided among feveral.
COHESION, in philofophy, that zBlon by
which the particles of the fame body adhere to-
gether, as if ihey v/ere but one.
The caufe of this cohefion has extremely per-
plexed the philofophers of all ages. In all the
fyftems of phyfics, matter is .fuppofed, originally,
to confift of minute indivifible atoms; but how,
and by what principle thefe feveral and diftiniS cor-
pufcles fhould come firft combined into little fyftems,
and how they fhould come to perfevere in that ftate
of union, is a point not yet determined : a point of
the greatefl difficulty, and even of the greateft im-
portance of any in phyfics. J. Bernoulli thinks it
owing to the preflure of the atmofphere; others, to
the figure of the component particles ; but the
generalit}', with Sir Ifaac Newton, to attraiStioii.
See the article Attraction.
COHOBATION, in chemiftry, the returning a
liquor diftilled from any fubftance back upon the
fame fubftance, and diflilling it again, either v<itli
or without an addition of frefli ijieredients.
7 K COHORT,
C O I
C O I
COHORT, Cjhcrs, in Roman antiquity, flie
name of part of the Roman legion, comprehending
about Ix hundred men.
COIF, the badge of a ferjeant at law, who is
called ferjeant of the coif, from the lawn-coif they
wear under their caps when they are created ferjeants.
COIL, in the marine, the manner in which all
ropes are difpofed aboard iliips, for the conveniency
of ftowage.
COILING, a fort of ferpentine winding of a
cable, or other rope, that it may occupy the lefs
room : each of the windings of this fort is called a
fake; and one range of fakes upon the fame line is
called a Jheave.
TTie fmaller ropes are coiled upon cleats at fea, to
prevent them from being entangled by one another
in traverfing the fails. See the article Cleat.
COIN, a fpecies of money, made of metal, as
gold, filver, or copper. Hence coin differs from
money, as the fpecies does from the genus ; money
being any matter, whether metal, wood, leather,
giafs, horn, fruits, fliells, &c.
It feems derived from the French, coig>i ; that is,
engulu!, a corner ; whence it has been held, that
the mod ancient fort of coin was fquare with
corners.
It is one of the royal prerogatives belonging to
every fovereign prince, that he alone, in his own
dominions, may order the quantities, value, and
fafliion of his coin : but the coin of one king is not
current in the kmgdom of another, unlefs at a great
Jo's ; though our king, by his prerogative, may
make any foreign coin lawful money of England at
his pleafure, by proclamation. By flatute any per-
fon may break or deface any piece of coin fufpeiSted to
be counterfeited or diminifhed, otherwife than by
wearing : but if fuch pieces, on breaking, &;c. are
found to be good coin, it will be at the breaker's
peril, who fhall ftand to the lofs of it. Coins of
gold or filver are to pafs notwithllanding fome of
them are cracked or worn ; but not if they are
clipped. Counterfeiting, clipping, or impairing the
king's coin, is high treafon ; as alfo the making
any {lamps, dye, mould, &c. for coining, except by
perfuns employed in the mint, &c, and the conveying
i'uch out of the mint is the fame, and fo is colouring
metal, refembling gold or filver coin, marking it
on the edges, &c. The ftatutes which ordained
milled money to be made, give liberty to any perfon
to refufe hammered filver coin, as not being the
lawful coin of this kingdom : counterfeiting the
coin extends only to gold and lilver ; for the coin-
ing of halfpence or farthings, or pieces to go for
fuch, of copper, incurs a penalty of live pounds for
every pound weiijht.
Coin, in architeflure, a kind of dye, cut dla-
ponal-wife, ■ after the manner of the flight of a
fiair-cafe ■■, fervin-g at bottom to fupport columns in
a level ; and at top to correct the inclination of an
entablature, fupporting a vault.
Coin is alfo ufed for a folid angle, compofed of
two furfaces inclined towards each other ; whether
that angle be exterior, as the coin of a wall, 5cc.
or interior, as the coin of a chamber or chimney.
COINING, or Coinage, the flamping and
making money. Formerly the fabric of coins was
different from what it is at prefent. They cut a large
plate of metal into feveral little fquares, the corners
of which they cut off with fhears. After having
fliaped thefe pieces, fo as to render them perfedlly
conformable in point of weight to the ftandard-
piece, they took each piece in hand again, to make
it exactly round by a gentle hammering. This was
called a planchet, and was fit for immediate coining.
Then engravers prepared, as they fiill do, a couple
of maffes of fteel, in form of dyes, cut and termi-
nated by a flat furface, rounded off at the edges.
They engraved or ftamped on it the hollow of a
head, a crofs, a fcutcheon, or any other figure,
according to the cuftom of the times, with a fliorc
legend. As one of thefe dyes was to remain dor-
mant, and the other moveable, the former ended in
a fquare prifm, that it might be introduced into the
fquare hole of the block, which being fixed very
faff, kept the dye as fleady as any vice could have
done. The planchet of metal was horizontally laid
upon this inferior mafs, to receive the ftamp of it on
one fide, and that of the upper dye, wherewith it
was covered on the otiier. This moveable dye,
having its round engraved furface refting upon the
planchet, had at its oppofite extremity a flat, fquare,
and larger furface ; upon which they gave feveral
heavy blows with a hammer of an enormous fize,
till the double flamp was fufficiently in relievo im-
prefled on each fide of the planchet. This being
finifhed, was immediately fucceeded by another ;
and they thus became a flandard-coin, which had
the degree of finenefs, the weight, and mark, deter-
mined by the judgment of the infpeflors, to make
it good current money. The flrong tempering
which was, and is flill, given to the two dyes, ren-
dered them capable of bearing thofe repeated blows.
Coining has been conliderably improved and rendered
expeditious by feveral ingenious machines, and by a
wife application of the fureft phyfical experiments to
the methods of fining, trying, and flamping the
different metals. The three fineft inftruments the
mint-man ufes are, the laminating engine, the ma-
chine to mill the edges of coins, and the prefs.
After they have taken the laminae or plates of
metal out of the mould into which they are caft,
they do not beat them on the anvil, as was formerly
done ; but they make them pafs and repafs between
the feveral rollers of the laminating engine ; which,
being gradually brought clofer and clofer to each
other, prefently give ;he hmins its uniform zrA
exa^
C O I
exafl: ihickncfs. Inflead of dividing the laminx
into fmali fqiiarc?, they at once cut clean out of ft as
many planclicts as it can contain, by means of a
(harp fieel trepan, of a round figure, hollow with-
in, and of a proportionable diameter, to fh.ipe and
cut off the piece at one and the (amc time. After
thefe planchets have been compared and weighed
with ftandard- pieces, filed or fcraped, to get off
the fuperfluous pare of the metal, and then boiled
and made clean , they arrive at lart at the machine
which marks them upon the edge, and finally the
prefs, which fqueezing each of them fingly between
the two dyes, brought near each other, with one
blow forces the two lurfaces or fields of the piece to
fill exadlly all the vacancies of the two figures en-
graved hollow. The engine, which ferves to lami-
nate lead, gi\es a fufficient notion of that which
ferves to flatten gold and filver laminie between
rollers of a lefll-r fize.
The principal pieces of the machine to ffamp
coins on the edge, are two fteel lamina-, about a
line thick. One half of the legend, or of tlie
ring, is engraved on the thicknefs of one of the
laminae, and the other half on the thicknefs of the
other ; and thefe two laminre are flraight, although
the planchet marked with them be circular.
When they have a mind to flamp a planchet,
they firft put it between the laminae, in fuch a man-
ner, as that thefe being each of them laid flat upon
^ copper-plate, which is faftened upon a very thick
wooden table, and the planchet being likewife laid
flat on the fame plate, the edge of the planchet may
touch the two lamin.-e on each fide, and in their thick
part. One of thefe laminae is immoveable, and
faftened with feveral fcrews ; the other Aides by
means of a dented wheel, which takes into the teeth
that are on the furface of the laminae. This [Tiding
laminae makes the planchet turn in fuch a manner,
that it remains ftamped on the edge, when it has
made one turn. Only crown or half crown pieces
can bear the impreflion of letters on the thicknefs of
their edges.
The coining engine or prefs is fo handy, that a
fingle man may ftamp twenty thoufand planchets in
one day. Gold, filver, copper planchets are all of
them cotned with a mill, to which the coining
fquares, commonly called dyes, are faftened ; that
of the face under, in a fquare box furnifhed with
male and female fcrews, to fix and keep it fteady ;
and the other above, in a little box, furnifhed with
the fame fcrews, to faften the coining fquare. The
planchet is hid flat on the fquare of the effigy,
which is dormant ; and they immediately pull the
bar of the mill by its cords, which caufes the fcrew
fet within it to turn. This enters into the female
fcrew, which is on the body of the mill, fothat the
bar caufes the fcrew to turn with fo much ftrength,
that, by pufliing the upper fquare upon that of the
effigy, the planchet violently prefled between both
C O I
fquares, receives the impreflion of both at one puU,
and in the twinkling of an eye. The planchet,
thus ftamped and coined, gees throuah a final exa-
mination of the mint-wardens, from whofe hands
it goes into the world.
/;; the Coinage cf Merhih, the procefs is the
fixme, in eftldf, with that of money ; the principal
difl'erence confifting in this, that money, having but
a fmall relievo, receives its impreflion at a fingls
ftroke of the engine ; whereas for medals, the
height of their relievo makes it necefiary that the
ftroke be repeated feveral times ; to this end the
piece is taken out from between the dyes, heated,
and returned again ; which jirocefs in medallions
and large medals, is repeated fifteen or twenty times
before the full impreflion be given : care muft be
taken that .every time the planchet is removed, to
take oft" the fupcrfluous nie:al, ftretthed beyond the
circumference, with a file. Medallions, and me-
dals of a high relievo, are ufually firft caft in fand,
by reafcn of the difficulty of ftamping them in the
prefs, where they are put only to perfect them ; in
regard the fand does not leave them clear, fmooth,
and accurate enough. Therefore we may fee that
medals receive their form and impreflion by degrees,
whereas money receives them all at once.
Coining, in the tin-works, is the weighing and
ftamping the blocks of tin with a lion rampant, per-
formed by the king's oflicer ; the duty for every
hundred weight being four {hillings.
COITION, the intercourfe between the male
and the female in the afl of generation.
COIX, Job's tears, in botany, a genus of plant?,
producing male and female flowers; the corolla
confifts of two valves ; in the male flowers the
calix is a glume, containing two flowers, and has
no awns : in the female the calix is the fame, and
the corolla a glume without any ariftas. There is
no pericarpium ; the feed, which is folitary and
roundifti, is covered with the indurated calix.
COLARBASIANS, in church hiftory, Chriftlan
heretics, in the fecond century, who maintained
the whole plenitude and perfeftion of truth and re-
ligion to be contained in the Greek alphabet ; and
that it was upon this account that Jefus Chrift was
called the Alpha and Omega: ihey rejeded the
Old Teftament, and received only a part of St.
Luke's Gofpel, and ten of St. Paul's Epiftles, in
the New.
COLARIN, in architeflure, the little frize of
the capital of the Tufcan and Doric column, placed
between the aftragal and the annulets : called alfo
hypotrachelium, and fometimes cindfure.
CoLARiN is alfo ufed for the orlo or ring on the
top of the fhaft of the column, next the capital.
COLCHICUM, meadow fafFron, in botany, a
genus of plants, with a monopetalous flower, di-
vided into fix oblong and ere£l fegments : the fruit
is a trilocular capfule, formed ol three lobes, and
contain.-
COL
COL
■containing a confiderable number of rour.Jifh and
rugofi; leeds.
'l"he roots of this plant, once efteemed poifon-
■ous, are recommended by fome in peftilential and
putrid cafes, the fmallpox, purple fever, Sic. But
great caution ought to be ufed in adminiflering it.
COLCOTHAR, in pharmacy, a preparation of
vitriol calcined to a rednefs,
COLD, in genera!, denotes the privation or nb-
fence of heat ; and, confcquently, thofe who fup-
pofe heat to confid in a brifk agitation of the com-
ponent particles of the hot body, define cold to be
fuch a faint motion of thefe parts, as is either alto-
gether or nearly imperceptible to our organs of
feeling : in which knCe, cold is a mere term of re-
lation between the cold body and the organs of fen-
fation ; and, in fa£f, the fame body will be felt ei-
ther hot or cold, according as the f'enfible organ is
colder or hotter than it.
Be this as it will, cold is found to have very con-
fiderable efFefls, and therefore fhould feem to be
fomething pofitive. An intenfe degree of heat re-
duces mofl: bodies, even gold and the hardeftftones,
the diamond excepted, to a fluid ftate. On the
other hand, not only are thefe reflored to their for-
mer folidity by cold, but greater degrees of it will
congeal all kinds of water, even that of the ocean,
and the watery particles to be found in fpirits. See
the articles Frost, Condensation, Sec.
Jrtificial Cold, that produced by the help of
fieezing mixtures. See Freezing Alixtures.
There happened at Peterfburg, on the 14th of
December, 1759, a very great frofl, equal, if not
more intenfe, than any which had been obferved
there : for, between nine and ten o'clock in the
morning, De Lifle's thermometer flood at 205 ; at
eleven o'clock at 201 ; which lafl was the greateft
degree of cold that had been obferved at Petetfburg,
either by himfclf or others. At one o'clock at noon,
the thermometer flood at 197. A-Ir. Braun had
been employed, feveral days before ibis, in obferv-
ing the feveral degrees of cold which different fluids
would bear, before they were converted into ice ;
partly to confirm thofe things which he had already
Jaid before the academy, and partly to make expe-
riments upon liquors, which had not yet been ex-
amined ; as on the days between the 7th and 14th
the cold was intenfe enough to be between the de-
grees of 181 and loi.
When the natural cold v;as fo intenfe as to be at
205, ProfefTor Braun conjeiturcd, that it was of
all others the moif proper occafion to try the efFefls
of artificial cold, not doubling but that artificial
cold would be increafcd in proportion as the natu-
ral was more intenfe. A.qua-fortis, which was
found by the thermometer to be 204 degrees cold,
was the greater part of it frozen, the ice having
the appearance of cryflals of nitre ; wliich, hcw-
cvir, immediately dillolved in a fraall degree of
heat. Tliis aqua-fortis, which, though frozen at
the fides, was liquid in the middle, was poured
upon pounded ice, in that proportion which was
direcied by Fahrenheit, the firfl perfon who made
artificial cold with fpirit of nitre. But before the
profefTor made this experiment, he, by examina-
tion, found, that both the ice and aqua-fortis were
of the temperature with the air, which was then
204. Upon the firfl pouring, the m.ercury fell 20
degrees : this fpirit was poured off, and frefli put on
feveral times; but it was pofTible, by thefe means,
to introduce no more than 30 degrees of cold ; fo
that the mercury in the thermometer fell no lower
than 234. Since therefore Fahrenheit could not
produce cold greater than that of 40 below the cy-
pher of his thermometer, which corrrefponds with
210 of that employed by profefTor Braun; nor
Reaumur, nor Mufchenbroek, who often repeated
the fame experiment, ourauthor was upon the point
of giving up this purfuit, as confidering this as the
greatefl degree to which artificial cold could be car-
ried, thinking it fufHcient honour to himfelf to
have added 20 degrees to the cold formerly known.
But refle<£ling that this was not all the fruit he
expected from thefe experiments, he determined to
purfue them ; but at the fame time, however, to
vary the manner of them. By good fortune, his
ice was all gone, and he was compelled to ufe fnow
in its flead, after having firfl tried and found the
fnow of the fame degree of cold with the air, at
this time 203. The fnow, the thermometer, and
the aqua-fortis, being of the fame temperature, he
immerfed the thermometer in fnow contained in a
glafs ; and at firfl only poured a few drops of the
aqua-fortis upon that part of the fnow in which the
thermometer was immerfed ; upon which he ob-
ferved the mercury to fubfide to 260. Elated by
tliis remarkable fuccefs, he iinmediately conceived
hopes that thefe experiments might be carried fur-
ther : nor was he deceived in his expedlations ; for
repeating the experiment in the fame fimple man-
ner, he poured on only fome more aqua-fortis, and
immediately the mercury fell to 380. Upon which
he immerfed the thermometer in another glafs filled
with fnow, before it had lofl any of this acquired
cold ; and at length, by this third experiment the
mercury fubfided to 470 degrees. When he ob-
ferved this enormous degree of cold, he could fcarce
give credit to his eyes, and believed his thermome-
ter broke. But to his infinite fatisfacTtion, upon
taking out his thermometer, he found it whole ;
though the mercury was immoveable, and con-
tinued fo in the open air twelve minutes. He car-
ried his thermometer into a chamber, where the
temperature of the air was 125 degrees; and after
fume minutes, the mercury being reftored to its
fluidity, began to rife. But to he certain whether
his thermometer had received any injury, and whe-
ther it would yet correfpond with his thermometer,
3 which
COL
which he keeps as ?. flandard, he fufpended them
toijether, and in 20 minutes the thermometers corref-
pondeJ one wit'i the other.
The thermometers which our author ufually employs
have a fpherical i)iilb,a'!d their fcalc is divided intoi 200
parts,of whici J 600 arc above thecypher,which denotes
the heatof boilmg water, and 600 below that heat.
A thermometer of this conftruction was ufed in in-
vefligating the heat of boiling mercury and oils. He
had another thermometer, of which the fcalc went
ro lower than 3G0 degrees below the cypher, denot-
ing the heat of boiling water. He repeated the former
experiment with this, and the mercury very foon de-
fcended fo that the whole was contained in the bulb,
which however it did not quite fill. The mercury
in this bulb was immoveable, even though he ihook
the thermometer; until about a quarter of an hour
it began to afcend in the open air; and it continu-
ed to aicend, till it became higher than the circum-
ambient air feemed to indicate. He was ftruck
with this extraordinary phenomenon, and very at-
tentively looked at the mercury in this thermome-
ter, and found certain air bubbles interfperfed
with the mercury, which were not in that of the
other thermometer. From thefe, and other experi-
ments (it would be unneceflary to recite them all)
he was fatis^fied, that the mercury in thefe thermo-
meters had been fixed and congealed by the cold.
Hitherto our profeflor had only feen the mercury
fixed within the bulb of his thermometers. Thefe
he was unwilling to break. He was, however, de-
firous of examining the mercury in its fixed flate,
and therefore determined to break his thermometers
in the next experiments. It was feveral days before
he got other thermometers which exacStly correfpon-
ded with thofe he had already employed.
When thefe were procured, the natural cold had
fomewhat relented. In the former experiment, the
thermometer flood at 204 ; it was now at 199. In
making the experiment, he varied the manner a
little. He firft put the bulb of the thermometer in-
to a glafs of fnow, gently prefled down, befoie he
poured on the aqua-fortis; he then, in another
glafs, poured the aqua-fortis upon the fnow, before
he immerfed his thermometer therein ; he then, in
like manner, put the fnow to the aqua fortis, be-
fore he put his thermometer therein. Which ever
of thefe ways he proceeded, he found the event ex-
aftly the fame ; as the whole depended upon the
aqua-fortis diflblving the fnow. When he had pro-
ceeded fo far as to find the mercury immoveable,
he broke the bulb of the thermometer, v/hich had
already been cracked in the experiment, but the
p.;rts v/ere not feparatcd. He found the mercury
fulid, but not wholly fo, as the middle ^art of the
(phere was not yet fixed. The external convex
furface of the mercury was perfecily fmooth ; but
the internal concave one, after the fmall portion of
mercury, which remained fiuiJ, was poured out,
30
COL
appeared rough and uneven, as though compofed of
fmall globules. He gave the mercury feveral flrokes
with the peftle of a mortar, which ftood near him.
It had folidity enough to bear extcnfioii with thefe
ftrokcs ; its hardnefs was like that of lead, though
fomewhat fofter ; and, upon ftriking, it founded
like lead. When the mercury was extended by
thefe flrokes, he cut it eafily with a pen- knife.
The mercury then becoming fofter by degrees, in
about twelve minutes it recovered its former fluidi-
ty, the air being then 197. The colour of the
congealed mercury did fcarce differ from that of the
fluid ; it looked like the mofl poliftied filver, as
well in its convex part, as where it was cut.
The next day, the cold had increafed 212 de-
grees, which was feven degrees bevond what it had
ever before been obferved at Peterfburg. The fea-
fon fo much favouring, he thought it right to con-
tinue his purfuit, not only in further confirmation
of what he had already obferved, but to invefti-
gate new phaenomena. In two thermometers, he
obferved the fame fails in relation to the congealing
of mercury, as he did the preceding day. In the
bulbs which he broke, the whole of the m.ercury
was not fixed, as a very fmall portion, much lefs
than that of the preceding day, continued fluid. He
treated this mercury as he did the former : he beat
it with a peftle, he cut it, and every thing was thus
far the fame. But he faw a very great difference in
relation to the defcending of the mercury in the
thermometer, the like of which did not occur to
him, neither in the former, nor any of the fubfe-
quent experiments. From the former ones it ap-
peared that the mercury in the firft experiment had
only defcended to 470, when it becaine immove-
able, though the glafs bulb was not cracked. In
the experiment of the 25th, it defcended to 530 ;
and in two thermometers on the 26th, lo 650. But
as well in the thermometer, which he ufed on the
25th, as in two of the 26th, the bulbs were crack-
ed in the experiment : they cohered however ; nor
was the leaft part of the bu'b fepaiated, but the
congealed mercury feemed to adhere to all parts af
the bulb. In the following experiments he in\a-
riably found, that the nrercury funk lower, if the
whole of it was congealed, than if any part of it
remained fluid. It then generally defcended to 6S0
and 70c, but the bulbs were never without cracks ;
moreover it defcended to 800, and beyond, even to
15CO ; but in this laft experiment, the bulb was
quite broke, fo tliat the ^lohe of iiicrcur^', tho-
roughly frozen, fell out, and by its lA\, of abi-ut
th'ee feet, the globe of mercury became a little
comprcfied ; hut in the foimer, onlv fome parts of
the bulb fell off'.
Air. Braun always found that, cateris pariliis,
the innre intenfe the natural cold was, tin; more
eafy and more expediiiuufly thefe experiments did
fucceed.
7 L In
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In continuing thefe experiments he obferved, that
double aqua-fortis was more effectual than fimple
fpirit of nitre ; but that if both the aqua-fortis and
Glauber's fpirit of nitre, v.hich he fometimes alfo
irfed, were well prepared, the difFerence was not
very confiderable. When his aqua fortis was fro-
zen, which often happened, he found the fame ef-
fefls from the frozen parts, when thawed, as from
that part of it which remained fluid in the middle
of the bottle. Simple fpirit of nitre, though it
feldom brought the mercury lower than 300 de-
grees, by the following method he even froze mer-
cury with it. He fillud fix glafl'es with fnow, as
ufual, and put the thermometer in one of them,
pouring thereupon the fpirit of nitre. When the
mercury would fall no lower in this, he, in the
fame manner, put in a fecond, then in a third,
and fo in a fourth ; in which fourth immerfion the
mercury was congealed.
Another very confiderable difference prefented it-
felf in purfuing thefe inquiries, with regard to the
mode of defcent of the mercury. He conftantly
and invariably obferved, that the mercury defcend-
ed at firft gently, but afterwards very rapidly. But
the point at which this impetus begins is not eafy
to afcertain, as in different experiments it begins
very differently, and fometimes at about 300, at
other times about 350, and even further. In the
experiment before-mentioned, in which the mer-
cury fell to 800, it proceeded very regularly to
6co ; about which point it began to defcend with
very great fwiftnefs, and the bulb of the thermo-
meter was broke. The mercury, however, was
perfeftly congealed.
He frequently obferved another remarkable phas-
romenon, which was, that although the fpirit of
nitre, the fnow, and the mercury in the thermome-
ter, were prcvioufly reduced to the fame tempera-
ture, upon pouring the fpirit of nitre upon the fnow,
the mercury in tjie thermometer rofe. But as this
did not always happen, he carefully attended to
every circumftance ; from which it appeared, that
this effedt arofe from his pouring the aqua-fortis im-
mediately upon the bulb of the thermometer, not
previoufly well immerfcd in the fnow. He likewife
obferved another effeiSV, twice only ; and this was,
that, after the thermometer had been taken out of
the fnow and aqua-fortis, the mercury continued to
fubfide, in the open air, down as low as the conge-
lation of mercury.
In tlie courfe of thefe enquiries, our profcffor
found no difference whether he made ufe of long or
(hort thermometers ; whether the tubes were made
of the Bohemian, or the glafs of Peterfburg. Un-
der the fame circumftances, the fame effedts were
alfo produced, making an allowance for the different
coniracTlion of the different glailes, under fo fevere
a degree of cold. But if thefe tubes were filled
with different mercury, there was then a fenfible
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difference ; inafmuch as nerciiry revived from fub-
limate did not fubfiue fo fait in the thermometer, as
that did which was lefs pure. He has even found,
that he has been able to congeal the lefs pure mer-
cury, at a time when he could not bring tl-e revived
mercury lower than 300 degrees : but this he would,
till farti.er trials have been made, not have confi-
dered as a general axiom.
From thefe experiments our author conceives it
demonftrated, that heat alone is the caufe of the
fluidity of mercury, as it is that of water and other
fluids. If therefore any part of the world does ex'id,
in which fo great a degree of cold prevails as to
make mercury folid, there is no doubt but that mer-
cury ought to appear there as a body equally firm
and confiftent, as the reft of the metals do here :
that mercury, upon congealing, becomes its own
ice, however different the mercurial ice may be from
that of water, or other liquids. The idea of freez-
ing does or can comprehend nothing more than a
tranfition of bodies from a ftate of fluidity to that
of firmnefs, by the fole mterpofition of cold.
The ice of oily and faline bodies differs greatly
from that of water, which is friable and eafily broke,
whereas that of mercury is dudlile. And M. Braun
proceeds to confider all bodies, which liquefy by
heat, as fo many fpecies of ice ; fo that every me-
tal, wax, tallow, and glafs, comes within his view
in this refpeft. Mercury then is, in its natural
ftate, a folid metal, but is fufible in a very fmall de-
gree of heat.
Cold, in medicine, is found to be produflive of
inflammatory diforders, as coughs, pleurifies, perip-
neumonies, rheumatic pains, confumptions, &c.
See the articles Cough, Pleurisy, Peripneu-
MONY, 5iC.
To remove a cold in the beginning, fmall and re-
peated bleedings are recommended ; which likewife
prove beneficial in coughs and the confirmed con-
fumption, even after a purulent fpitting and heflical
fymptoms have appeared. The quantity to be taken
away at a time, may be from four to feven or eight
ounces, once in eight or ten days 5 concerning which
it is obfervable, that the patients do not find them-
felves fo much relieved on the firft as on the fecond
or third night after bleeding.
COLDbHIRE-lRON, that which is brittle when
cold. See the article Iron.
COLDENIA, in botany, an annual plant, whofe
branches trail on the ground, extending about fix
inches from the root, and divided into many fmaller
ones, which are furniflied with fhort leaves, fitting
clofe to the branches ; thefe are deeply crenated on
their edges, and have feveral deep veins, which are
of a glaucous colour. The flowers are produced at
the wings of the leaves, growing in fmall clufters ;
thefe are monopetalous and funnel-fhaped, cut into
four fegments at the top, with four ftamina inferted
in the tube of the corolla. When the flower decays,
2 the
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the germen, which is ovated, becomes a fruit, com-
pofeJ of four cells, wrapt up in the calyx, con-
taining in each a Tingle feed.
This plant being a native of Indin requires a
hot-houfe to preferve it here, and is propagated from
feed.
COLE-SEED, the feed of the napus fativa, or
long-rooted, narrow leaved, navea, and compre-
hended by Linnaeus among the brafficas, or cab-
bage kind.
This plant is cultivated to great advantage in
many parts of England, on account of the nape-
oil exprefled from its feeds. It requires a rich and
ftrong foil, efpecially in marfli or fenny lands, thofe
newly recovered from the fea, or indeed any other
land that is rank or fat, whether arable or pafture.
The belt feeds are brought from Holland, and
{hould be fown about Midfummer, the very day
that the land is ploughed : a gallon will ferve an
acre.
Befides the oil already mentioned, it is likewife
cultivated for winter- food to cattle, and is a very
good preparative of land for barley or wheat.
COLE- WORT, in gardening, a fpecies of braf-
fica. See Brassica.
COLIC, in medicine, a fevere pain in the lower
venter, fo called, becaufe the diforder was formerly
fiippofed to be feated in the colon.
As the fmall and great inteftines differ with re-
fpeft to their contedture, capacity, fundlion, and
fituation, fo the pains which aiFe<3: them are no lefs
diftinguifhed by the places where they are feated,
their degree of violence, their danger, and other
acceding diforders. It is obferved, that pains in the
fmall inteflines are far more fevere and acute than
in the great ones. This is abundantly evident from
the efFeiSls of ftrong cathartics, and poifons of a
cauftic quality, in exciting mod fevere griping and
racking pains, above and below the navel, as well
as in the middle of the belly.
Moft: of the phyficians take the whole regions of
the inteftines for the feat and fubjed of this pain ;
yet fo, as tliat when one part of it is afTedled in an
extraordinary manner, the whole inteftinal tube,
from the fauces to the anus, fufrers by confent ; or
the preternatural motions, and even the inverfions
and injuries of the periftaltic motion, are commu-
nicated to all the reft in I'uch a manner, that if the
caufe of the difeafe be very confiderable, the whole
nervous fyftem is at the fame time affedted to an
extraordinary degree.
Tiiere are different caufes of thefe fevere pains of
theinteftines,and according to the nature, difpofition,
and force of thefe caufes, are the fymptonis diver-
fitied, and the danger more or lels to be appr>.hen-
ded. A very frequent caufe is a retention and in-
duration of the faeces in the large i:itcftints, and
fometimes in the fmall ones, procetdiiig, in a great
meafure, from a load of acido-vifcid crudities, dry,
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juicelefs, and aflringent food, immoderate flcep, and
a way of life unufcd to exercife and motion. In
this obftrudled and coftive ftate of the belly,
whenever it happens, upon the ufe of fweet ali-
ments, and fuch as are fubject to ferment, of fat
flefli meat, efpecially mutton, with drinking of cool
liquors, and refrigeration of the feet and belly, the
inflation of the abdomen is increafcd, and the pain
exafperatcd : hence we may difcern the nature and
marks of the flatulent colic, whieh the ancients af-
cribed to a cold caufe, and whofe generation and
frequent attacks fuppofe an imbecility of the intef-
tines, and a want of a due tone and ftrengrh in
thofe parts ; whence this fort of colic is very inci-
dent to fat and phlegmatic, as well as old and in-
firm perfons, efpecially if they take not due care to
keep the cold from their feet, bick, and belly.
Another kind of colic is the bilious, which, ac-
cording to the ancients, owes its original to a hot
caufe, and arifes from a bilious, acrid, corrupted
humour, colledled in too great plenty, and Itag-
nating in the fmall inteftines, particularly the duo-
denum. It frequently fucceeds a great fit of anger,
efpecially in perfons of a hot and dry conftitution,
in a hot feafon ; or it proceeds from an exceflive
ufe of hot and fpirituous liquors ; and by cooling
potions, which obftruft perfpiration, is exafperated,
and rages with greater violence. The remarkable
fymptoms which attend it, are a hoarfenefs of the
voice, the heart-burn, a continual loathing of food,
a vomiting of porraceous bilious matter, the hic-
cup, a hot and feverifli diftemperature, icftleffnefs,
&c.
As to the method of cure, it appears from what
has been faid, that the caufes of this affedlion are
furprifingly various ; and it may be inferred, that
the manner of treatment ought to be varied in a
way fuitable to the difference of the caufes, whence
the pain of the inteftines proceeds.
When from a fuppreflion of the cuftomary flux
of the haemorrhoids, or menfes, efpecially in bodies
abounding with blood, there arifes a violent pain of
the abdomen, attended with much heat, &c. a vein
(hould be opened in the foot, then emollient clyf-
ters, antifpafmodic powders, with a fmall portion of
nitre, cinnabar, and caftor, fliould be ufed, and
the feet bathed ; and under a remifiion of the fit,
care fliould be taken to reftore the menfes in wo-
men, and the haemorrhoids in men, to their natural
courfes. When the pain of the inteftines proceeds
from a redundance of intemperate and cauftic bile,
the fame remedies are of fervice.
But what exceeds thefe and all other remedies in
this cafe, is a nitrous powder, mixed with a drop
or two of the true difti led oil of nillefoliim, to
be taken in three or four ounces of the water of
common chamomile-flowrrs.
li the pain be tenfive, and fixed in the right or
left hypochondrium, or beneati tie ftomach, it is
COL
a lure fign that the diforder proceeds" from flatu-
lencies, or excrements inclofed within the flexures
of the colon. In this cafe, the principal indication
«iire£ls us to the ufe of clyfters of an emollient,
difcutient, and corroborating quality, not omitting
external applications of carminative and emollient
liniments to the afiedled part.
When the redlum and part of the colon are af-
fe«3ed with a ftrong convulfive ftri<£ture, fo as to
be incapable of tranfmitting either flatus or faeces j
and a clyfter cannot conveniently be introduced,
the abdomen is to be fomented all over with hot
and rich oils, by co£tion, particularly thofe of cha-
momile, dill, or rue, boiled with the fats of a bad-
ger, dog, fox, beaver, &c. which may be intro-
duced, if poflibJe, into the belly by clyfters.
A flatulent colic, proceeding from imbecility, and
want of a due tone of the ftomach and inteftines,
admits of the ufe of carminative things fomewhat
hotter than ordinary. Among tliefe are fpirituous
carminative waters, prepared of the feeds of cumin
and caraway, orange-peel, and the flowers of com-
mon Roman chamomile, and cardamums, diftilled
in wine.
COLISEUM, or CoLiSJEUM, in ancient archi-
tecture, an oval amphitheatre at Rome, built by
Vefpafian, wherein were ftatues fet up reprefent-
ing all the provinces of the empire ; in the middle
whereof flood that of Rome, holding a golden ap-
ple in her hand.
This ftru<aure was fo large, that it would hold
near one hundred thoufand fpeitators.
COLLAR, in a modern fenfe, an ornament
confifl:ing of a chain of gold, enamelled, frequent-
ly fet with cyphers or other devices, with the badge
of the order hanging at the bottom, wore by the
knights of feveral military orders over their flioul-
ders, on the mantle, and its figure drawn round
their armories.
Knights of the Collar, a military order in the
republic of Venice, called alfo the order of Sr.
Mark, or the medal.
Collar of a Plough, an iron ring fixed on the
middle of the beam, wherein are inferred the tow
and bridle chains. See the article Plough,
Collar of a Draught Horfe, a part of the harnefs
made of leather and canvas, and fluffed with flraw
or wool, to be put about the horfe's neck.
Collar, in the marine, that part of a flay
which goes over the maft-head double : alfo that
part where it is faftened below. See the article
Si' AY.
COLI-ATERAL Point, in cofmography, the
intermediate points of thofe between the cardinal
points.
Collateral, in genealogv, thofe relations
whith proceed from the lame flock, but not in the
fame line of afcendants or defcendants, but being,
*(. it were, afide oi each other.
COL
COLLATION, in the canon law, the giving
or beftowing of a benefice on a clergyman by a bi-
Ihop, who has it in his own gift oi patrrinage.
COLLATIVE Benefices are thofe which are
in the gift of the ordinaiies, ard within their owii
jurifdiflion, in which cafe there need no prefenta-
tion, but the ordinary collates or iriCatuies the clerk,
and fends him to the archdeacon, or other perfon,
whofe office it is to inducl him.
COLLECTION, in logic, a term ufed by fome
for what is generally called fyllogifm. See the ar-
ticle Syllogism.
COLLECTIVE, among grammarian.=, a term
applied to a noun exprefling a multitudi-, though it-
felf be only fingular ; as an arm}', company, troop,
&c. cal'ed colleclive nouns.
COLLEGATARY, m the civil law, a perfon
who has a legacy left him in common with one or
more other perfons.
COLLEGE, Collegium, an aflemblage of feveral
bodies or fdcieties, or of feveral peri'ons into one
fociety.
College of Civilians, commonly called Doc-
tors-Commons, founded by Dr. Harvey, dean of
the arches, for the profeflljrs of the civil law refid-
ing in the city of London. The judges of the
arches, admiralty and prerogative court, with fe-
veral other eminent civilians, commonly refide
here.
College of Phyfuians, a corporation of phyft-
cians in London, whofe number, by charter, is not
to exceed eighty. The chief of them are called
fellows, and the next candidates, who fill up the
places of fellows as they become vacant by death,
or otherwife. Next to thefe are the honorary fel-
lows, and laftly, the licentiates ; that is, fuch as
being found capable, upon examination, are allow-
ed to pracStife phyfic.
Sion College, or the college of the London
clergy, was formerly a religious houfe, next to a
fpittal, or hofpital, and now it is a compofition of
both, viz. a college for the clergy of London,
who were incorporated in 1631, at the requeft of
Dr. White, under the name of the prefident and
fellows of Sion college ; and an hofpital for ten
poor men, the firft within the gates of the houfe,
and the latter without.
Grefliam College, or College of Phihfophy^
a college founded by Sir Thomas Grefliam, who
built the Royal Exchange ; a moiety of the re-
venue whereof he gave in trufl: to the ma) or and
commonalty in London, and their fucceflurs for
ever ; and the other moiety to the company of mer-
cers ; the firfl to find four able perfons to read in
the college divinity, aftronomy, mufic, and geo-
metry ; and the lofl, three or more able men to
read ihetoric, civil law, and phyfic; a lecSure upon
each fubjedt is to be read in term time, every day,
except Sundays, in Latin, in the forenoon, and the
fame
COL
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fame in Knglifli in the afternoon ; only the mufic
ledture is to he read alone in Englifh. The leflurers
have eath fifty pounds per ann. and a lodging in tlie
college.
CoLLncE ef Heralds, commonly called the
Herald' i Office, a corporation founded hy charter of
king Rich-ird III. wlio granted them feveral privi-
leges, as to be free from fubfidies, tolls, offices, &c.
They had a fecond charter from king Edward V'l.
and a houfe built near Dodfor's-Commons, by the
earl of Dciby, in the reign of king Henry V'il.
was given them by the duke of Norfolk, in the
reign of queen Mary, which houfe is now re-
built.
COLLEGIANS, in church hiftory, religious
focieties, or clubs, among the Dutch, confifting of
perfons of various profeffions ; but all agreeing that
the Scriptures are the writings of men infpired.
COLLEGIATE Churches, thofe which tho'
no bifhop's fee, yet have the retinue of the bifhop,
the canons and prebends. Such are among us,
Weltminfter, WinJfor, Rippon, Wolverhampton,
Southwell, Manchefter, &c. governed by deans and
chapters. See the articles Dean and Chapter.
Collet, among jewellers, denotes the hori-
zontal face or plane at the bottom of brilliants.
Collet, in giafs-making, is that part of glafs-
veflels which flicks to the iron inftrument wherewi;h
the metal was taken out of the melting pot : thefe
are afterwards ufed for making green glafs.
colliers, in the marine, certain fhips em-
ployed to carry coals from dift'erent parts of the
n jrth of England towards the metropolis and other
places. This trade is very juftly believed to be an
excellent ntirfcry for feamen ; although they are
often found, from the conltitution of their climate,
not to be fo well calculated for fouthern naviga-
tion.
The following judicious remarks, relative to the
utility of thefe fort of (hips, written in the Lte war,
were communicated to the author of the marine de-
partment o\ this Diiffionary by an admiral of our
navy, juftiv relpe^flable tor his capacity as an officer.
The beif confirudled bodies of fhips for the Bri-
tifh feas by far are the catts, of about 400 tons and
upwards, in the coal-trade ; and fifty fail or more,
well equipped, might, at a very fliort warning, be
procured for the government-fervice, as I am well
informed ; and may be made capable, at a fmall
expence, of mounting fixteen or twenty guns, from
fix to twelve pounders ; and if properly fitted with
clofe-quarteri, and confequently the chief part of
their force under cover, with fifty men, exclufive of
officer?, they would be greatly fupeiior to a twenty-
gun fliip in the Englifh channel ; and be failed and
fought with little more than a third of a twenty-
gun fhip's complement.
As the knowledge of both coafls is eflentially
necefTary to the well peiformance of the fervice re-
30
quired of thefe vefills, and to avoid the expence o.'
necefTity of a king's officer in each (hip, I fubm"-
(if not better) to be commanded by experience'*
mafters of (liips in the coal-trade, who are bre'*
pilots from their youth, all of them (killed in cverV
danger on our own coaft, and every difficulty o"
the oppofite one.
They might be made of the gteateft fervice to
the proteiStion of the coafting-trade from the extre-
mity of Scotland to the entrance of the channel,
while the men of war are otherways employed.
As in our feas there is at leaft nine months blow-
ing-weather in a year, and as the wind con(tantU'
raifes the fea, their excellency at fuch a time is
greatly above other (liips, both in their failing, and
in their capacity of keeping the fea; and even in
light gales, by thofe who are acquainted with their
pioperties, they are deemed to fail equal to any
(hip, when they are kept clean, and to a proper
depth of water, which is about twelve feet ; their
guns then will be eight feet above the furface of the
water.
By their ftrong built clofe-quarters, and eafe in
working, they might defend themfelves againft (hips
twice their force.
If fitted with platforms, they would be ready for
tranfports at all times, as occafion required, with-
out the necefTity of waiting for convoy to the oppo-
fite coaft, which might prove a confiderable faving
to the (late, befides the great advantage of difpatch;
for they can with fafety put to fea, when no king's
(hip will pretend to it.
If wanted to any of our American colonies, as
tranfports, no (hips fo proper.
It is well known, that in the late war, the govern-
ment has been under the neceffity of having fixt\'
fail of tranfports or upwards at a time lying idle in
the river for months together ; and, at an a\erage,
not lefs than fixteen men each proteiRed from being
imprefild, to the great expence of the crown, and
difadvantage of the navy.
I propoie thefe fliips chiefly for the cbannel-
fervice, that they may be the eafier bi ought toge-
ther, when any material duty requires their being in
a body.
Then their great ufefulnefs above all will be feen
to prevent or defeat an invahon from the oppo-
fite coaft, while the entrance of the channel is
o;uarded
With the addition of a few (hips of force to
command the necefl'ary divifions that might be made
on fo important a fervice, I think w-e might then
laugh in our turn at the cantonment of the French
troops along the fea-coaft : for with fuch a force,
properly diipofed, it muft be next to iinpoftible for
France to fuccecd in any attempts to invade us.
With different movements of this fleet along the
French coaft, we might wi;h intereft return the
alarm.
7 M If
COL
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If any addition to their complement appears need-
ful, a fubaltern's command from the regiment quar-
tered near their port of fitting might be ordered in
each of them : then the government would be at no
m-ire exixnce for thefe men but their vidlualling.
The fhips I contend for, as a neceflary additional
guard on our coaft, ha\'e every advantage of ftrength;
and by being altogether difmcumbered from every
ufclefe ornament, they are in frefli winds capable to
run down what cannot be deftroyed by their gims.
And though thefe Ihips are in all refpefts for the
purpofe alte.idy mentioned preferable to a twenty-
gun iliip of war, the fifty fail propofed will be little
more expence than twenty fail of twenty-gun fhips
in the king's fervice : and as they are only to be
hired, the difcharge of the (hips difengages the go-
vernment from any further expence.
As private men of war, under the direflion of the
Admiralty in the government fervice, muft necef-
farily be fubjefted to martial-difcipline, they mufl
of courfe command each other agreeable to the date
or number of their warrants, or orders from the
Admiralty board.
The difficulty of manning thefe fhips quickly will
be eafily removed, if it is allowed that the fmaller
concern of a flate ever ought to give way to the
greater ; then the Greenland-fifhery, that employs,
as I am informed, five thoufand of the befl north-
country feamen in Great Britain, and puts the na-
tion to the expence of fixty thoufand pounds a year
bounty, profitable to but few of his majefty's fub-
jects, ought not to be preferred to the employing of
part of thefe five thoufand as a guard to the whole
community.
The fifty fail propofed may be fufficiently manned
with fifty able feamen, and eight officers each ; fo
the whole fleet will want only two thoufand nine
hundred men.
I'he force I would recommend might intirely de-
ftroy the coafling trade of P>ance oppofite to Eng-
land ; and tffedtually ruin their filhery, by which
many thoufands i'ubfift; and I dare affirm 'would
foon make our enemies tired of the war.
]3ut if no part of the men employed in the Green-
land-fifhery can be intirely fpared, they might be
obliged to ferve the king during the time their fhips
are laid up ; which is more than feven months m
year.
Another great advantage of the catts, preferable
to moft fhips of four hundred tons burthen, is their
eafe of cleaning; for they can with lafety be run
afhore, with guns and all in, and in a tide or two
may he cleaned and fitted for the fea. Harwich is
a mofl convenient harbour for that purpofe.
The harbour of Dunkirk, by the prefent expen-
five induftry of the French, is evidently looked on
by them as of the utmoft coiifequence ; which by
means of thefe veifels, properly difpofed, might be
rendered in a manner ufelefs to the enemy, provided
the channel be guarded againft their flilps of great
force.
As to the manner of difpofing of them, I pre-
fume only to recommend, viz.- ten fail from the
noith of Scotland to Newcaftle or Sunderland, ten
fail from Sunderland to the Spurn, ten fail from the
Spurn to the Downs, twenty fail from the Downs
to the Weftward ; in all fifty fail. ' By appointintr
proper places to call for letters or orders from the
Admiralty, they may the eafier be driwn together
on occafion ; each divifion commanded by a king's
frigate.
As the Downs, with the coaft of Suflex, is evi-
dently the pafs that ought to be principjlly guarded
when any thing is feared from the oppofite fhore 5
not only as it is an inlet into the heart of the king-
dom, but with an eaflerly wind fhips in the Downs
may difcretionally ftretch to the weftward, or ply
over to the coaft of France ; whereas fhips at
Spithead can give no affiftance with that wind hitherj
and therefore I propofe twenty fail of this auxiliary
force to be ftationed under the commanding officer
in the Downs.
The next pafs of confequence that has been long
negleiSed is the Humber : the eafy accefs of this
river, and the moft convenient landing-place, in a
little bay (being a fine ftony-beach, fteep too, where
fifty boats may land with fafety at a time) juft withia
the Spurn or entrance of the river to the right going
in; where if a ftrong fort was erefled, would prove
the utmoft advantage againft an enemy, with another
fort on the oppofite point to the Spurn, would efFedtu-
ally guard the entrance of the river, which is an in-
let to a fine open country, where a body of troops
may range at pleafure.
The armament propofed is already near complete,'
by all the fliips of four hundred ton burthen being
fitted with clofe-quarters, and many of them with
ten or twelve guns each, and commanded by the
boldeft'and beft feamen in the world.
In order a little to encourage this moft nece/Tary
armament, I propofe a (hilling a month to their pri-
vate men more than able feamen in the king's
fhips.
Mafter per month -—
Firft mate — —
Second and third mate, each 3/.
Carpenter
Surgeon • — —
Boati'wain and gunner, each 50^.
Two midfhipmen, each 30 y.
Two quarter-mafcers, each 28^.
£■
8
4
6
3
4
5
3
2
7
60
s,
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
I (J
10-
18
Forry-fix private men, at 25 j. each —
Vidualling fifty-eight men, at 9^. per )
day, is — ■ ' — J
Hire of a fhip of four hundred tons, at 1
6 s. per ton — — J
Total expence per month for one fhip — 274 4
Expence of a twenty gun (hip per month - 6co o
This,
120
C O L
This is only the fuppofed exfence. It is proba-
ble, by giving them the advantage of the prizes
they ruay take, with the advantage of the govern-
ment's manning tliem, that the hire of the fhips may
be on cafier terms.
The charge of thefe fhips to the publick would be
indemnified with ufury, by the additional fccurity
that would be given thereby, not only to the coafting
but foreign trade, more efpecially as the prcfent
fcheme ot France feems to be to carry on the war
againfl our commerce by privateers ; and to pre-
ferve their men of war for more important fcr-
vice.
So ufeful, and at the fame time fo necefiary a fea-
armament, all commanded and manned from a par-
ticular part of his mujedy's dominions, would na-
turally encourage and animate one another to bra-
very, and to do honour to their country : and I am
perfuaded would more effedlually difcourage any en-
terprize againft us from our enemies, than if half
the men capible of bearing arms in Great-Britain
were the beft regulated militia in Europe ; or if
every man was a complete difciplined foldier. Even
then to wait the approach of an enemy on fliore
would be a very doubtful and precarious fecurity ;
but to make ufe of the advantages, which by the
favour of Providence we at prefent poflcff, is more
than a probable fafety : for the fliips I would recom-
mend, with the greatefl eafe, might block up every
port of France oppoOte to England, where em-
barking of troops can be made from, or intirely
deiiroy tlnem, if hardy enough to put to fea, and
by their fmall draught of water, they might with
the greateit fafety and eafe look into their har-
bours.
If a proportionable number of the encamped fol-
diers, during the fummer-feafon, were ordered in
each fhip, they would then be ready to aft in earneft
in defence of their country.
. COLLIFLOVVER, or Cauliflower. See
the article Cauliflower.
COLLINSONIA, in botany, a plant with a
perennial root, and fquare annual ftaiks, furnifhed
with cordated leaves, fawed on their edges, and
placed oppofite in pairs. The flowers are produced
in loofe fpikes at the extremity of the ftaiks : thefe
are monopetalous, unequal, and funnel- fhaped, and
divided into five parts at the top : they are of a pur-
fJifh yellow, and are each fuccecded by a fingle
round feed, contained in the bottom of the cup.
This plant grows naturally iu moift places in
ftver.il piuls of North Ameiica ; and are eafily pro-
pagated by pariinj their roots.
COLLIQUATION, in phyfic, a term applied
to the blocid, when it lofes its crafis or balfamic tex-
ture; and to the folid parts, when they wafte away
by means of the aniinal fluids flowing off through
the feveral glands, and particularly thole bf the llcin,
failer than they ©uoht j which occafions £uxcs of
COL
many kinds, but moftly profufe, greafy, and clammy
fweats.
COLLIQUATIVE Fever, in phyfic, a fever
attended with a diarrhcsa, or profufe fweats, pro-
ceeding from coiliquation«
COLLISION, the ftriking of one hard body
againft another, or the fri£lion or percuflion of bo-
dies moving violently with different diredtions, and
dafhing againft each other. See Percussion.
COLLUSION, in law,, a fecret underftanding
between two parties, who plead or proceed fraudu-
lently againft each, to the prejudice of a third
perfon.
COLLUTHIANS, in church hiftory, a reli-
gious feifl which arofe in the fixth century, on occa-
fion of the indulgence fhewn to Arius by Alexander,
patriarch of Alexandria : they held that God was
not the author of the evils and afflidions of this
life, &c.
COLLYRIDIANS, in church hiftory, a ftS of
ancient heretics, who paid divine honours to the
Virgin Mary, offering her little cakes called col-
lyrida.
LOLLYRIUM, in pharmacy,, a topical remedy
for diforders of the eyes ; defigned to coo! and re-
pel hot, (liarp humours, which thev do more eft'ec-
tually, if affifted by the inward ufe of diuretics at
the fame time.
COLOCYNTHIS, Coloquintida, or Bit-
ter-Gourd, the dried medullary or pulpy part
of a fpecies of gourd or cucumber, brought from
Aleppo. It is very light, white, of a fungous tex-
ture, compofed as it were of membranous leaves,
with a number of roundiih feeds in the cavities.
The fungous medulla, freed frijm the feeds,,
which are fomewhat un<ffuous and fweetiih, like
thofe of the common cucumber, has a naufeous
acrid, intenfely bitter tafte. It is a very flrong
irritating cathartic ; commended by f.me, not only
as an etlicacioiis purgative, but likewife as an altera-
tive in obftinate chronical diforders ; by others coii-
demncd, as a dangerous and deleterious drug. Thus
much is certain, that when given by itfelf, in fub-
ftance, in fuch dofes as to purge effectually, as eight
or twelve grains, it operates for the moft pjrt with-
great violence ; diforderiiig the conftitution, occa-
fioning violent gripes, and fometimes bloody dif-
charges. Its principal ufe is a ftimuljs to other
purgatives.
COLON,, in anatomy, the fecond of the three-
large inteiUne*, called inteftina craffa.
The fituation -of tliis is at the circumference of
the fmall inttiiines, and is ufuallv convoluted and^
flexudus, variouHv, in a flrange manrwr. Its begin-
ning is above rhe termination i.f the ilium, and its
end at the os factum. It is connedted wi-h the os*
ilii, the right kidney, the gall bladder, the lever, the
ftomach, the fpleen, and tinally with the left kidney.
Its length is from five to feven fpans; its diameter i^^
ihe;
COL
•the greatefl of ihat of any inteftine. It Tias three
ligaments terminating in the vermiform procefs that
runs longitudmally in it. It has aifo certain exter-
nal adipofe appendiculse, which ftrve to lubricate
it. The connivent valves are larger in this than in
any oiher of th« guts, and the coats it is compofed
of are Wronger than in the fmall guts.
Colon, in grammar, a point or character mark-
ed thus (:) fhewing the preceding fentence to be
perfeil or entire ; only that fome remark, farther il-
iuftra;ion, or other matter conueiled therewith, is
fubjoined.
According to a late ingenious author, the colon
differs from the femicolon, &c. in ferving to diftm-
guifh thofe conjund-t members of a fentence which
are capable of being divided into other members ;
whereof one at lealf is conjunih
COLONEL, in military matters, the comman-
der in chief of a regiment, whether horfe, foot, or
dragoons.
COLONEL-LIEUTENANT, he who com-
mands a regiment of guards, whereof tiie king,
prince, or other perfon ot the firll eminence, is co-
lonel.
Lieutenant Colonel, the fecond officer in a re-
giment, who is at the head of the captains, and
commands in the abfence of the colonel.
COLONN.-XDE, in architedlure, a periftyle of
a circular figure ; or a feries of columns difpofed in
a circle, and infulated within-fide.
A poliflile Colonnade is thatwhofe number of
columns is too great to be taken in by the eye at a
fmgle view. Such is the colonnade of the palace
of St. Peter's at Rome, coniiflirg of two hundred
eighty-four columns of the Doric order, each a-
bove four foot and an half diameter, all in Tibur-
tine marble.
COLONY, Cohnia, a company of people tranf-
planted into a remote province, in order to culti-
vate and inhabit it.
Colonies are of three forts : the fit ft: are thofe that
ferve to eafe and difcharge the inhabitants of a
country, where the people are become too nume-
rous ; the fecond are thofe eftablifhed by vi<3:orious
princes in the middle of vanquifhed nations, to
keep them in awe and obedience ; and the third
fort are thofe eflabliflied for the promotion of trade,
called colonies of commerce ; fuch are thofe efta-
bliftied by European nations in feveral parts of Afia,
Africa, and America.
COLOPHONY, in pharmacy, black refin, or
turpentine, boiled in water, and afterwards dried ;
or, which is flill better, the caput mortuum re-
maining after the diflillation of the etherial oil, be-
ing further urged by a more intenfe and long con-
tinued fire.
When colophony, thus prepared, is treated with
a fire of fuppreffion, it yields a thick oil along with
a heavy, acid water, which difcovets the nature and
4
COL
genuine properties of a refin. Whatever virtues
therefore colophony is pofieifed of, may be afcrib-
ed to the energy of thefe two principles, combined
and blended into one common fubftance. Colo-
phony reduced to powder, is of fingulai advantage
in furgery, in cafes where (he bones are laid hare,
or the pcriofteum, tendons, and mufcles, injured
by burns, corrofions, contufions, punctures, lace-
rations, or paitial divifions. It alfo prevents de-
fluxions of ferum on the joints, and induces, cica-
trizes, and checks the fuigous excrefcences of ul-
cers, if applied in the fame manner. Befides its
drying, confolidating, and lenitive qualities, it is
an insredient in feveral plaflers and ointments.
COLOQUINTIDA, Colocynth, Colocynthis,
in pharmacy, the fruit of the plant colocynthis. See
Colocynth IS.
COLOSSUS, a ftatue of a gigantic, or enor-
mous fize.
The moft famous of this kind was the colof-
fus of Rhodes, made, in honour of Apollo, by
Chares the difciple of L}fippus. It was eighty-
fix feet high, and its thumb fo large, that few
people could fathom it. This ftatue was placed
acrofs the mouth of the harbour at Rhcdes, and
the fhips with full fails paffed betwixt its legs.'
COLOUR, in philofophv, an inherent property
in light, exciting different vibrations, according to
the different magnitudes of its parts, in the fibres
of the optic nerve, which affedt the mind with dif-
ferent fenfations.
The philofophers, before Sir Ifaac Newton's
time, fuppofed that all light, in paffing out of one
medium into another of different denfity, was
equally refrafted in the fame or like circumftan-
ces ; but that illufirious and accurate author has
difcovered that it is not fo, but that " There are
" different fpecies of light ; and that each fpecies
" is difpofed bo'h to fuffer a different degree of
" refrangibility in paffing out of one medium into
" another, and to excite in us the idea of a diffe-
" rent colour from the reft; and that bodies appear
" of that colour which arife from the compofition
" of the colours the feveral fpecies they reflett are
" difpofed to excite."
There are abundance of experiments made by
Sir Ifaac Newton, and others, for the confirmation
of this doftrine ; we fhall only feledl the following
ones, which will fufficiently illuftrate the propoli-
tion, and evince the truth of it. And,
Fird, There are different fpecies of light, and
each fpecies is difpofed to fuffer a different degree of
refrangibility, and to excite the idea of a different
colour.
To (hew this, let a room be darkened, and the
fun permitted to fhine into it through a fmall hole
in the window-fliutter, and be made to fall upon
a glals prifm (by which is meant a piece of
glals of a triangular form, fuch as is reprefented
in
Pj^TESUS'
^^^tcf.4 .C&me/^ \z
iJ'. c^in£f^.Jia^
COL
in (Plate XXXV^ fig. i.) then will the fun's light
in paffing through this prifm fuffl-r difFerent degrees
of refradtion, and by tliat means be parted into dif-
ferent rays, which rays, being received upon a
clean white paper, will exhibit the following co-
lours, viz. red, orange, yellow, green, blue, in-
digo, and a violet purple. Thus let AB (Plate
XXXV. fig. 2.) reprefent the window-fhutter, C
the hole in it, DE F the prifm, Z Y a ray of lightr
coming from the fun, which pafles through the hole,
and falls upon the piifm at Y; and if the prifm
were removed, would go on to X, but in entering
its firfl: furface E F fiiall be refradted into the courfe
Y W, falling upon the fccond in W, where, in
going out into the air, it (liall be refraflcd again.
Let the light now, after it has pafled the prifm,
be received upon a flieet of white paper G U I K,
held at a proper didaiice, and it will exhibit upon
the paper a pidure or image at LM, of an obl.>ng
figure, whofe ends are femi-circular, and fides ftraight.
And it fhall be variegated with colours aiter the
following manner.
From the extremity M, to fome length, fuppofe
to the line no, it fliall be of an intenfe red ; from
no Xo pq'w. fhall be of an orange colour; from pq
10 r J it ihall be yellow ; from thence to t ii it fhall
be green ; from thence to iv x blue ; from thence to
yz indigo; and from thence to the end violet. And
if the whole image bs divided lengthwife into 360
equal parts, the red fhall take up 45 of them, the
orange 27, the yellow 48, the green 60, the blue
60, the indigo 40, and the violet 80.
Sir Ifaac Newton, in his Optics, has fhewn how,
from the refraftion of the mojl refrangible and lealt
refrangible rays, to find the refraftion of all the im-
mediate ones. His rule is this ; if the fine of inci-
dence be to the fine of refra£lion in the leaft re-
frangible rays, as A V to B C (;%- 3-) and to the
fine of refraftion in the moft refrangible, as A V to
B D ; and if CE be tak;n equal to C D, and then
E D be fo divided in F, G, H, 1, K, L, that E J),
E F, E G, E H, E f, E K, i^ L, E C, may be pro-
portional to the eight lengths of mufical chords,
which (hall fojnd the notes in an oiSave, E D be-
ing the length of the key, F. F the length of the
tone above that key, E G the length of the letter
third, E H of the fourth, YA of the fifth, E K of
the greater fixth, EL of the feventh, and EC of
the odtave above that key; that i;, if the lines
ED, EF, EG, EH, E I, E K, E L, and EC,
bear the fame proportion to each other, as the num-
bers I, 4, A, I, :-, \, ^^, i, refpeflively, then fhall
B D and B F be the limits of t'.ie fines of refraiSfion
of the violet rays ; that is, the violet coloured rays-
fhall not all of them prerifely have the fame fine of
refiaiStion; but none of them fiial! have a greater
fine than B D, nor a lefs than B F, though there be
violet-coloured rays v/hich anfsver to any fine of re-
fraiflion that can be t.ikeo b;tween thefc two. In
31
COL
the fime manner BF and B G are the limits of the
fines of rcfratSion of the indigo ; B (t and B H are
the limits belonging to the blue ; BH and Bl the
limits pertaining to the green; BI and BK the
limits for the yellow; BK and BL the limits for
the orange-coloured rays; and, laflly, BL and BC,
thofe of the fines of refraction belonging to ths
red.
And particularly, when light pafTes out of glafs
into air, if the fine of its angle of incidence be 50,
the fine of the angle of refradtion of the red will be
betweeti 77 and 77 -J-, of the orange-coloured be-
tween jj - and 77 5, of the yellow between 77-5-
and 77-3-, of the green between 774 and 77 ;, of
the blue between 77 i- and 77 |, of the indigo be-
tween 774, and 77 l-, and of the violet-co.oiired
rays between 77 l- and 78,
To render this proof complete, we muff now
fliew that thefe difpofitions of the rays of light to
produce fome one colour, and fome another, which
manifelt tlicmfelves after being refrafted, are not
wrought by anv adlion of the prifm upon them, but
are originally inherent in thole rays; and that the
prifm only atTords each fpecies on occafion of fliew-
ing its dillinct qurdity, by feparating them one from
the other, which before, while they were blended
together in the unrefraded light of the fun, lay con-
cealed.
This will be proved by the following experiment.
Things remainins as in the foreo;ning one, let ano-
ther prifm, as N O, (Plate XXXV. fg. 4.) bs
placed cither clofe to, or at fome diflance from the
firff, in a perpendicular fituation, with refpeft to
the former, fo that it may refradt the rays iflliing
from the firff, fideways. Now, if this prifm could
feparate the light, which falls upon it into coloured
rays, as the other did, it would divide the image
breadthwife into colours, as before it was divided
K-ngthwife; but no fuch thing is obfervable; for the
image (hould only be thrown out of the perpendi-
cular fituation LM into the oblique one i' (jj, the
upper parts, which were more refracled m the
former cafe, being more refracled in this ; and
lh;refore made to refide farther fidewife from their
former fituati.jn L, th:n the hjwcr ones are from M.
And farther, each colour ihall be uniio.-m from lide
to fide in the oblique innate, as well as the perpen-
dicular one.
If there be any objection againfl the fuificiency of
this proof, it miift be that the ravs, when they fall
upon the fecond prifm, are not all in like circuin-
iKmces with regard to Cb.cir inclination to its fur-
face ; we fhall therefore, to obvi.ite that objection,
add one more experiment, which iccms to be pecu-
liarly adapted to ihat purpofe. It is as follows :
Two boards A P, CD, (Plate XXXV. /^. 5.)
being eredled in a darkened ioom at ?. proper diiiance,
one of them A B being near the vvjnJovv-ilv.iUer
E F, a fpace beiiij only l.-fc for the prifm G il I 10
7 N be
COL
COL
he placed between tliem ; fo that part of the rnys,
which enters the hole M, may, after pafRng through
the prifm, be Iranfmitted through a fnialler hole K,
made in the board A B, and palling on from ther.ce
to go out at another hole L, made in the board C D,
of the lame iVze as the hole K, and fmall enough to
Cranimit the ravs of one colour onl)' at a time. Let
another prifm P Q_R be placed behind the board CD
to receive the rays paffing through the holes K and L,
and after refradlion by that prifm, let the rays fall
upon the white furface S T. Suppofe £y(i the violet
light to pafs through the holes, and to be refracted
by the prifm PQR to r, which, if that prifm v.'rre
not there, would have pafTed on to W. If the piifm
G H I be turned about flowly, fo that the incident
lay ZY may fall more obliquely upon it, while the
boards and the other prilm remain fixed, in a little
time another colour, fuppofe indigo, which we may
fiippofe before to have proceeded to /, will pafs
through the ho'es K and L ; and if the prifm P Q_R
were removed, would proceed like the former rays
to the fame point W. Now the refraflion of this
prifm will not carry thefe rays to s as it did the other,
but to fome place lefs diftant from W, as to /. But
it is manifeff, that the holes K and L being in the
lame fituation in each cafe, both forts of rays enter
the prifm P Q_R under the fame circumfiances, for
they are equally inclined to its furface R P, and enter
it at the fame point thereof; which fhev.s that the
one fpecies is more diverted out of its courfe by re-
fraction, than the other is, when the circumftaiiccs
of incidence are the fame in each. Farther, if the
piifm G U I be turned about till the rays which ex-
hibit blue, pafs through the hole L, thefe vAW fall
upon the furface S T below t, as at u, and there-
fore are fubjedt to a lefs degree of refraction than
fuch as produce indigo. And thus by proceeding, it
will be found that the green is kfs refradfed than the
blue, snd fo of the remaining colours, according to
the order in which they are reprefented in an image
formed by a Angle prifm. And alfo each fpecies of
rays is difpofed to excite in us the idea of a different
colour.
This is fufficiently clear from what has been al-
ready faid, and is farther confirmed by what fol-
lows, viz. that whatever fpecies of rays are thrown
upon any body, they make that body appear of their
own colour. Thus minium in red-light appears of
its own colour ; but in yellow-light it appears yel-
low; and in green-light, green ; in blue, blue;
and in violet-purple-coloured light it appears of a
purple colour : in like manner vcrdigrife will put on
the appearance of that colour in which it is placed.
But each of thefe bodies appears moft luminous and
bright when enlightened with Its own colour, and
dinimeft in fuch as are moft remote from that.
It is certain therefore each ray is difpofed to excite
its own colour, which is neither to be altered by re-
fraflion nor reflexion. Thus much in confirmation
of the firft part of the proportion, viz. that there
are different fpecies of light, £nd that each fpecies is
difpofed to fufi'cr a different degree of refiangibility,
and to excite in us the idea of a difFerent colour.
We pioceed now to the fecond part of the propofs-
tion, viz.
2. That bodies appear of that colour which re-
fults from a compoiition of thofe colours which
the feveral fpecies they refle£c ace difpofed to
excite.
We have juft now feen that each ray, whatever
be the colour of the body it is refle£i:ed from, is able
to excite no other idea than that of its own colour ;
and that coloured bodies reflttSt not all the different
forts of rays that fall upon them in equal plenty, but
fome forts, viz. thofe of their own colour, much
more copioufly than others. We will now proceed
to (hew, that the other colours may be produced from
a mixture of thofe feven, which rays of light, when
feparated by a prifm, are difpofed to exhibit. From
whence it will be rational to conclude, the bodies ap-
pear of that colour which arifes from the mixture of
thofe which they refie(£\.
I. All the prifmatic colours, viz. thofe that are
made by the prifm, mixed together, appear white,
a little inclining to yellow, fuch as is that of the
fun's light.
To Ihew this, let a convex lens be placed between
the prifm and the paper which receives the image, in
order that the rays feparated by it may be colleiSfed
into a focus ; and let this focus fall ujjon the paper,
then will the fpot where it falls appear white. And
that the whitenefs of this focal point is owing to the
union of thofe colours appears from hence, that if
we remove the paper from the focal point, and
fuffer the rays to crofs each ether in the focus, and
if, when they have proceeded to fome diftance be-
yond, they be then received upon the paper, the
fame coloured image will be exhibited, and in-
verted, becaufe the rays crofs each other in the
focus ; an evidetit proof that the whitenefs of the
fpot was ov.'ing to nothing but the mixture of the
rays confiltuting the feveral colours of the image.
But if the rays of any particular colour be inter-
cep'ed before they arc coUedted in the faid fpot, it
then appears not only of a different colour from
what it did before, but different from any of the
prifmatic colours taken feparately. Or if the cir-
cumference of a wheel be painted with the prifmatic
colours taken in the fame proportion with refpeft to
each other, in which they are exhibited in the
image made by the prifm, and the wheel be turned
fwiftly about, the circumference of that wheel fhall
appear white : if they are taken in other propor-
tions, the colour of the wheel, when turned about,
will vary accordingly. Froin whence this part of
the propofition is alfo abundantly clear.
No compofition of thefe colours will produce
black ; that being no colour but the defedl and ab-
fence
COL
COL
fence of all colour whatever. That fpccics of light
which is difpofcd to fufter a greater dt-grce of re-
fra(5tion, requires proportionally lels obliquity at the
fecond furfacc of any mediurri'to occafion a total re-
flexion of it there ; fo that it is peflible that a ray
of light may pafs through a medium with fuch obli-
quity, that only tliat part of it which is difpofcd to
exliibit a violet colour (hall be rsfleiRed at the focond
fiirfucc, and all the reft tranfmitted there. This in-
deed is a neccfip.rv confequep.cc of what was ob-
fervcd concerning the reflection of light at the fecond
furface of any medium, viz. that the retledlion of a
ray is total, when the obliquity of the incident ray
is fuch, that the angle of refraflion ought to be
equal to, or exceed a right one. This is a confe-
qi;ence of that, becaufe the angle of the refra<flion
of the violet-coloured light is larger than the angle
of refraction of any other, though their angles of
incidence arc equal. And accordingly thus it hep-
pens, as appears by the following experiment.
Let AB (Plate XXXV. /^. 6.) reprefent the
window-fhutter of a darkened room ; C a hole to
let in a ray of the fun ; D EF, G H I, two prifms
fo applied together tliat the fides EF and G I be
contiguous, and the fides D F and G H parallel :
in this fituation light will pafs through thcni with-
out any feparation into colours; for the oppofite
fides being parallel, if the rays are refracted one
v/ay where they go in, they will be as much re-
fracted th; contrary way where ihey go out. But if
it be afterwards received by a third prifin KLM,
it will be divided fo as to form upon any white body
N O Y U the ufual colours, violet at /, indigo at »;,
blue at ti, and red at r. Now let it be fuppofed
that the furfaces E F and G I are not quite clofe to-
gether ; but that the rays in pailing from one to the
other, pafs through a medium (viz. the air) of
different denfity from that of the prifms; and that
the ray ZC is not fo much inclined to the fecond
furface of the firft prifm as to caufe a tot;.l refle(5tion
of any one fpecies there; then will part only of
each fpecies be reflected, and part tranfmitted.
Let now the refleded rays be received by a fourth
prifm T X V ; thefe, after palling through it, will
paint upon a white furface RS, the colours of the
prifm, viz. red at .f, orange at /, yellow at v, and
violet at s. Let now the prifms D E I", G H I, be
flowly turned about, keeping ftil! the fame fituation
v/ith refpecl: to each other, until the obliquity of the
rays Z C to the furface EF be fo far increafed, that
there (hall begin to be a total refltflion of them
there. In which cafe it is obfervable. that firft of
all the violet light will be totally reflected, and will
therefore difappearat /, appearing inliend thereof at
iz, and inciealing the violet light which fell there
before. And when the rays Z C become niore ob-
lique by the prifms being turned farther about, the
indigo (hall be totally refiedted, dif.ippearJng at m,
but falling upon ;■, and making the violet there
more iiitenfe : and by turning the prifms (lill farther
about, all the remaining colours v.ill be fucccilivel/
removed from the furface P Q_to R S.
VVe are now to enquire what it is that gives bo-
dies this power of reflection, fomc one fort of rays
n»o(i copioufly, and fome anotijcr : and this is pro-
bably no othc:r than the different magnitude cf the
particles whereof they are conipofcd, as will a->pear
from the following obfervations.
It water be prepared with fope fo as to render it
fufficiently tenacious, and then blown up into a bub-
ble ; it is obfervable, that as the bubble grows thin-
ner and thinner, as it will do by reafon of the wa-
ter's continually running down from the top of it,
till it breaks, different colours will arife one after
another at the top of the bubble, fpreading thcm-
felvcs into rings, and defcending till they vaniLh at
the bottom in the fame order they arofe at the top.
Thus in an experitnent of this kind, tried by
Sir Ifaac Newton, the colours arofe in this order ;
firft red, then blue, to which fucceeded red a fecond
time, and blue immediately followed ; after that red
a third time, fucceeded by blue ; to which followed
a fourth red, but fucceeded by green ; after this a
more numerous order of colours, Hrft red, then yel-
lov/, next green, and after that blue, and at laft
purple ; then again red, yellow, green, blue, vio-
let, followed each other ; and the laft order of co-
lours that arofe was red, yellow, white, blue; to
which fucceeded a dark fpot that afforded fcarce any
light, though it was obferved to caufe fome very
obfcure reflei£tion, for the image of the fun or
candle might be faintly difcerned in it ; and this
laft fpot fpread itfelf more and more till the bubble
broke.
Now it is apparent that the only reafon why thefe
different colours fucceeded each other at the top of
the bubble, in the above-mentioned manner, was
becaufe its thicknefs in that part continually varied,
till it broke. It remained therefore to examine
what was the thicknefs of the bubble at the top, at
the time it exhibited each particular colour ; and
this was effected by the following contrivance, viz,
by taking the objefl glafs of a long telefcope, fuch
having but a very fmall degree of convexity, and
placing it upon a flat glafs : thefe glafles, by reafon
of the conve:<ity of the former, would touch but in
one point, and the diifance between them, where
they did not touch, would be exceedingly fmall, but
larger, the farther we conftder it from the point of
contadl. Now water being put between thefe glaftes,
the fame colours appeared as in the bubble, in the
form of circles or rings furrounding the point where
the glaffes touched, which poir.t appeared black like
the top of the bubble when it is thinncft. Next to
this fpot lay a blue circle, and next without that a
white one, and fo on in the fame but contrary or-
der to that in which the colours arofe on the top cf
the bubble.
Now
C O L
Now the di nance between the glalTes, that is, the
tliickncfs of the body of water between them, where
it exhibitcJ any one colour of a particular order, was
cijual to the thicknefs of the bubble at the time the
fame colour appeared upon it. For though the me-
dium the light muft pafs through to come at the wa-
ter i?, in one cafe, glafs, and m the other, air; that
makes no difference in the fpecies of the colour reflef"-
ed from the water : for pieces of Mufcovy glafs, made
thin enough to appear coloured, would have their
colours faded, but not the fpecies of them altered
by being made wet with water : but it was found
that tranfpareiit bodies of different denfity would not
under the fame thicicnefs exhibit the fame colours ;
for if the foremcntioned rlafTes were laid upon each
other without any water between them, the air be-
tween them would then afford the fame colours as the
water, but more expanded ; fo that eacii ring had a
larger diameter, though they bore all the fame pro-
portion to each other ; fo that the thickiiei's of the
air, proper to refled each colour, was in the fame
proportion larger than the thicknefs of the water
adapted to reflect the fame.
■ Farther, all the light which is not refle(£led by the
thin fubftances, whether of air or water contained
between the glafles, is tranfmittcd through them ;
for when viewed from the other fide, they exhibit
alto coloured rings as before, but in a contrary order;
for the middle fpot, which in the other view appears
black for want of refieifing light, now looks per-
fedf ly white ; next without this fpot the light appears
tinged with a yellovvifh red ; where the white ap-
peared before, it now feems black, and fo of the
reft.
It is farther obfervable that the foremeniioned
thin plates, whether of air or water, did not appear
of the fame colour when viewed obliquely, as when
feen direct ; for if the rings and colours between a con-
vex and plain glafs he viewed firll in d'lTcti manner,
and then under different degrees of oblitjuity, the
rings will be obferved to dilate themfclvcs as in-
creafed. But a plate of air between the glafs alters
its colour much fooner than the water in the bub-
ble, which is furrounded with air : fur in the wa-
ter, when viewed ob!i(]'Jcly, the fame colour might
be feen at more than twelve times the thicknefs it
appeared at under a direct view ; but w! en the air
was viewed under fuch an obliquity, tiiat the thick-
nefs of the plate, where it was obferved, v.?as but
half as much again as when it was viewed direct-
ly, a different colour appeared.
• Laftly, the fame colour refledted from a denfer
fubilance reduced to a thin plate, and furrounded
hv a rarer, v/ill be more brif]-; than the fame colour,
when reflected from a thin plate forrned of ths raier
fubilaiicc, and furrounded by the denfer; rs was
found by blov/ing glafs veiy ti)in, which exhibited
iji th;; open air more vivid colours than th.; air does
h.-tvveen two crhiflls.
COL
As fo the thicknefs of the plate of air by which
the feveral colours were reflefled, it was found by
carefully meafuring the diftances of the rings from
the points where the glafs is touched, that the dif-
tance between the glaffes where the firft order of
to
colours was refiecled, was from -f_;^--.„ ^^ ___.^__
part of an inch ; that where the fecond, was from
TTFoo-o •« TT-r=oo ; that where the third, from
tt/o-oit to -rT» io-o > and fo in a feiies of the odd
numbers : and that the diftance of the glafle?,
where the firft order of colours that was tranfmit-
tcd paffed through, was from o to txs'-oo-o P^rt of
an inch ; that where the fecond, was from -p^-j^^_
to TTsVo-o i that where the third, from -tttoW" to
tttWo^ and fo on in a feries of the even numbert.
And the thicknefs of a plate of water, where it re-
flciftcd or tranfmittcd the fame colours, was -i of the
tliickncfs of the plate of air.
Now we learn from experiments made with the
microfcope, that the leaft parts of almoft all bodies
are tranfparent ; or the fame may be experienced in
the following manner : Take a very thin plate of
the opaqueft body, and the room being darkened,
apply it to a fmall hole in the window-lhutter, and
it will fufficicntly difcover its tranfparcncy. This
experiment cannot be fo v/ell performed with a
white body, becaufe of the ftrong reflefting pov/tr
in fuch ; but even thofc, when diffolved in aqua-
fortis or other proper menftruuni?, do alfo become
tranfparent. Wherefore if we fhould fuppofe any
body reduced to a thinnefs proper to produce any
particular colour, and then bruken into fragments,
in all probability each fragment would exhibit that
co'our, and a heap of fuch fragments would confti-
tute a body of that colour ; fo that the caufe, why
fome bodies reflect one fort of rays moft copioufly,
and fome another, is probably no other than the dif-
ferent magnitude of their conftituent particles.
This Sir Ifaac Newton thinks a probable ground
fjr making conjeflures concerning the magnitude of
the conftituent particles of bodies. The green of
vegetables he takes to be of the third order, as
likewife the blue of the fyrup of violets. The
azure colour of the fky he thinks is of the fir(l
order, as alio the moft intenfe luminous white ;
but if It is Icfs flrong, he then conjectures it to be
a mixture of the colourr. of all the orders. Of the
latter foit he takes the co'our of linen, paper, and
fuch like fubflances to be ; but white metals to be
of the former lort. For producing black the parti-
cles muft be fmaller than for exhibiting any of the
colours, viz. of a fize anfwering to the thickf.cfs of
the bubble v/iiere it reSedted little or no Ji'ht, and
for that reafon appeared cohjurltfs.
The coiours in the fame part of a pcacockV tail ]
vary as the tail changes its fio'tu.-e with rtfpect tol
the eye ; jufi: io the thin plates of air or water appear j
of a different colour in tliC fame plate when viev/td j
directly, fjo.Ti what ti:cy do V/hen fLtii obliquely,]
2 as;
COL
as was obferved above. The colours of filks, cloths,
and other fubftances, which water or oii can inti-
mately penetrate, become faint and dull by being
wet with fuch fluids, and recover their biightnefs
when dry ; juft as we obferved that plates of Muf-
covy glafs grow faint and dim by wetting : all
which particulars, and many more that might be
produced, abundantly prove the prefent propofi-
tion.
Colour, in painting, is applied both to the
drugs made ufe of in that art, and to the teints pro-
duced by thofc drugs varioufly mixed and ap-
plied.
Colours may be either pigments or fluids. By
pigments is meant all fuch folid bodies as require to
be mixed with fome fluid, as a vehicle, before they
can be ufed as paints, except in the cafe of cray-
ons, where they are ufed dry. Thefe make the
far greater part of the whole ; the fluid colours be-
ing only a (mall number employed along with wa-
ter colours ; and afphaltum, which is fometimes
e.Tiployed in oil-painting.
Colours are diftinguilhed into feveral kinds, ac-
cording to the vehicles in which they are worked,
as oil-colours, water-colours, enamel-colours, &c.
The fame forts of pigments, however, are, in many
inftances, employed in more than one kind of paint-
ing, as vermilion and lake in fevcral, and ultrama-
rine in all.
The principal qualities in colours, confidered
with regard to their perfe£tioii or faultinefs, are
two; purity of colour, and durablenefs: purity of
colour is, by the painters, called hrightnefs, and
the defeiSt of it foulnefs, or fometimes the breaking
the colour : durablenefs is called Jianding, and the
negative, or want of it, yfji/??^, or flying ofF; which
terms, for concifenefs, we fhall ufe in fpeaking of
thefe qualities.
Brightnefs and (landing well are the only pro-
perties which are neceliary to the perfection of every
kind of colours, and they equally relate to all ; but
there are others which are efl'ential to many forts,
with regard only to particular purpofes and ul'es.
The moft ccnfuierable of the more general pro-
perties of colours, after purity and durablenels, or
brightnefs and (landing well, are tranfparency and
opacity ; for according to their condition, with re-
fpe£t to thefe qualities, they are fitted to anfwer
very difrerent kinds of purpofes. Colours which
become tranfparent in oil, (uch as lake, Pruffian
blue, and brown pink, are frequently ufed without
the admixture of white, or any other opaque pig-
ment ; by which means the tcint of the ground on
which they are laid retains, in fome degree, its
force; and the real colour produced in the painting
is the combined efFeds of both. This is called gla-
zing, and the pigments endued with fuch property
of becoming tranfparent in oil, are called glazing
Colours. The fame holds good alfo of fuch colours
3'
COL
as are tranfparent in water ; only when they arc
there ufed in this manner, they are not called gla-
zing, but wafhing, colours. When colours have
no degree of fuch tranfparency in the vehicle in
which they are ufed, as vermilion, king's yellow,
and feveral others, they are faid to have a body,
and to cover. The property of glazing or wafh-
ing is of fo much importance, both in oil and wa-
ter, that no other method can equally well produce
the fame efFeiS in many cafes, either with regard to
the force, beauty, or foftnefs of the colouring ; and
it is therefore very efTential to the perfeiStion of fe-
veral kinds of pigments, that they fliould pofllfs
this property in a complete degree; but, in other
Inflanccs, the ufing colours with a ftrong body is
not lefs neceflTary, efpecially for the grounding or
laying in, as it is called, of many objedls to be
painted.
There is another material quality in colours, that
relate- only to their ufe in oil, which is the drying
well, and, as it is called, not fattening. By fat-
tening is meant a coagulation of the oil, that fre-
quently happens on its commixture with feveral
kinds of pigments, by the cfFecS^ they have upon it;
from whence, after fome time keeping, it is ren-
dered of fo vifcid or glutinous a confiffence, as to
be wholly incapable of being worked with either
brufh or pencil. This quality, when found in
them, deflroys almoft wholly the value of fuch pig-
ments for the purpofes of the colourmen, who fell
a great part of them ground in oil, and tied up in
pieces of bladder, where they are kept till there is a
demand for them, which frequently does not hap-
pen foon ; and, therefore, gives time for their fpoil-
ing, in confequence of this quality. But to pain-
ters who mix the colours for themfelves on their
pallets with the oil, this property is not an equal in-
convenience, when in a lefil-r degree ; only, in gene-
ra!, it muft be obferved, that colours, in propor-
tion to their tendency to fatten, are flow in drying;
and when the oil once contracts this ftate, it will
be a very long time before it will become duly hard
and firm in the painting.
There are two other qualities of colour in gene-
ral that relate only to their teint, or hue ; but
which render them, neverthelefs, fit or inproper,
in a very material degree, for different purpofes.
They are diflinguifhed by the names of warmth and
'coolnefs; terms which, indeed, are ufed very fre-
quently by painters, but, for the moft part, very
indefinitely, and without any precife or clear mean-
ing. What is meant, when properly ufed, by
warmth, is that fiery eft'ciil which a fmall addition
of yellow gives to a true red, and that glowing ap-
pearance which red imparts to either yellow or
blue. By warmth, therefore, in red, is to be un-
derffood a fmall inclination towards orange ; by the
fame term applied to yellow, a like tendency by the
admixture of red ; and by the fame again, in the
7 O c;.fc
COL
cafe of blue, muft be underftood its {lightly verg-
ing on the purple.
By coolnefs is to be underftood the oppofiie to
warmth ; but this term is feldom ufed, except in
fpeaking of yellow and blue; and there it means
either the negation of that which caufes warmth, or
a tendency to green, in either colour, by a flight
admixture of the other.
The fenfe of the word warmth, when applied to
colouring, or the combined appearance of various
teints, muft not be confounded with that wliich it
has when fpeaking of particular colours ; for there
it relates to the producing a ftrong cfteiS by the
difpofition or contraft of the colours, or the grofi-
nefs of the teints, and not the qualities peculiar to,-
or inherent in, the colours themfelves.
The colours ufed in ail the feveral kinds of
painting, except fome peculiar to enamel, aie as
follows :
Clafs I. Red — Vermilion, native cinnabar, red
lead, fearlet oker, common Indian red, Spanifli
brown, terra de Sienna burnt ; thefe are fearlet, or
tending to the orange. Carmine, lake, rofe-pink,
red oker, Venetian red ; thefe tend to the crimfon,
or to the purple.
Clafs II. Blue — Ultramarine, ultramarine allies,
Pruflian blue, verditer, cendre blue, or fanders blue,
indigo, fmalt, bice, litmus, or lacmus.
Clafs III. Yellow — King's yellow, Naples yel-
low, yellow oker, Dutch pink, Englilh pink, light
pink, gamboge, mefticot, common orpiment, gall-
ftone, terra de Sienna unburnt, turpith mineral,
yellow berry wafli, turmeric wafh, tincture of faf-
ffon.
Clafs IV. Green Verdigrife, diftillcd verdi-
grife, or cryftals of verdigrife, Pruflian green, terra
vert, fap green.
Clafs V. Orange Orange lake.
Clafs VI. Purple True Indian red, archal,
logwood wafh.
Clafs VII. Brown — Brown pink, biftre, brown
oker, umbre, Cologne earth, afphakum, tipanifh
juice, or extraft of liquorice.
Clafs VIII. White V/hite flake, white lead,
calcined hartfhorn, pearl white, troy-white, egg-
CiL-li wliice.
Clafs IX. Black -Lamp black, ivory black,
blue black, Indian ink. See each under its proper
article.
Thefe are all the colours at prefent in ufe in this
country, in any kind of painiing, except fuch as
are peculiar to enamel ; in which kind of painting,
iis but few of thefe are capable of combining with
glafs, and enduring the neceflary heat without
changing their nature, or being deftroyed, others
are employed more fuitable to vitrification : for
which fee the article Enamel Painting.
Theory of mixing of COLOURS. There are two
things to be principally considered in regard to co-
COL
lours ! namely, the hue, (which is properly what
may called the colour) and the ftrength of light and
fhadow : for as different colours, fuppofe red and
green, may have the lame ftrength of light, fo two
things, that are one of them much darker than the
other, may ftill have the fame hue as a light blue and
a dark blue.
With refpe£l to the hue, thefe two things are to
be confidered. i"'- The fpecies of colour, and a*'.
The perfetSiion and imperfedlion of colour under
the fame fpecies differ in degrees of perfe<Efion, as
the red of a field poppy is much more perfe(St than
the red of a brick. This quality of perfeftion and
imperfeiStion in the colours, by the painters, is cx-
prefled by the terms bright, or clean or fimple, and
broken, which is taken from their method of mak-
ing the imperfciS colours by the mixture of other
colours, which is called breaking the colours. With
refpedf to this quality of colours. Sir Ifaac Newton,
in his Treatife on Optics, fhews that every ray
of light has its proper colour, which it always
carries with it, and never lofes, in whatever man-
ner it happens to be reflected or refracted. Thefe
natural colours of the rays are the bright fimple co-
lours, and the natural order of them, as they ap-
pear when they are feparated by the refradlion of a
prifm, is red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indico,
violet : all the lefs perfect or broken colours are
made by the compofition and mixture of thefe fim-
ple colours, as yellow rays mixed with blue rays
make a green, but not fo perfedt as the fimple na-
tural rays that are green ; and red and yellow rays
make an orange colour, but not fo perfe£t as
the natural orange-coloured rays. And by a juft
pioportion of all the natural rays together, is pro-
duced whitenefs, which is indiiferent to all the fim-
ple colours, and cannot be faid to incline more
to one colour than to another. By white is
to be underftood any colour between the lightefl:
white and the darkeft black; for as we are not
now conlidering the degrees of light and fhade, ail
the coburs from black to white ate to be confidcied
as of the fame hue.
According to this ob'ervation of the nature of
whitenefs, it appears that the broken colours are a>
medium between the fimple colours and white ;.
and the more broken a colour is, the nearer it is to
white, and the further it is from v^hite, the more
fimple it is.
Having thus explained the nature of the colours,
and the efFedf of their mixture, in order to find
exadtly what colour will be produced by the mix-
ture of any colours given, the colours are to be
difpufed in the following manner. Let there be »
ciicle, as A D F A (Plate XXXV. fig. 7.) de-
fcribed, and let the circumference be divided into-
feven parts A B, BC, CD, DE, £F, FG, GA,
in the fame propoition 10 one another as the frac-
J-j. which are the
propor-
tions
T3^J Tos. sTJ' T5' »"5'' s
COL
proportions of the mufical notes Sol, la, fa, fol, la,
ml, fa, fol. Between A and B place all the kinds
of red, from B to C place all the kinds of orange,
from C to D place all the kinds of yellow, from D
to E place all the kinds of green, from E to ¥
place all the kinds of blue, from F to G place all
the kinds of indico, and from G to A place all the
kinds of violet. Having thus difpofed the fimple
colours, the center of the circle O will be the
place of white. And between the center and the
circumference are the places of all the broken com-
pounded colours, thofe neareft the center being the
moft compounded, and thole fartheft from it being
the lead compounded : as in the line O i, all the
colouis at I, 2, 3, 4, are of the fame fpecies ;
that is, green inclining toward blue; but the co-
lour at I is the finiple natural colour ; that at 2 is
fomething compounded, or broken ; that at 3 is
more broken ; and that at 4 is ftill more broken.
The colours being tiius dilpofed, to know what
colour rel'ults from the mixture of any colours given,
find the center of gravity of the places of the co-
lours given, and that will fiiew the chara(9er of the
compound. For example, fuppofe it were required
to know what colour would refult from the mixture
of two parts of the fimple yellow at P, with three
parts of the fimple blue at Q_; firft find the center
of gravity 3 of the points P and Q^thus: draw P Q_,
and having divided it into five parts, (which is the
fum of three and two) take the point 3 three parts
from P, (becaufe there are three parts of blue) and
two parts from Q_ (becaufe there are two parts of
the colour at P) ; then draw O 3 cutting the cir-
cumference in I, by the place of the point i,
(which is between D and E, but nearer to E) we
find the mixture is a green inclming towards blue;
but becaufe 3 is near the middle between the center
and the circumference, the colour is pretty much
broken. To make the fame thing more clear by
another example ; fuppofe I would know what
would refult from a mixture of two parts yellow at
P, three parts blue at (^, and five parts red at R.
P irfl: I find the place 3 of the mixture of the yellow
and the blue, as before ; then drawing the line 3R
(becaufe there are five parts of the colour at 3, and
five parts of the colour at R) I divide it into ten
parts, and take the point r five parts diftant from
R. By this means r is the center of gravity of the
three colours at P, Q_, and R, and is conkquently
the place of the mixture ; which by drawing Or
cutting the circumference in s, 1 find to be an
orange a little inclining towards red ; and becaufe r
is much nearer the center than the circumference,
the colour is very much broken: and thus one may
proceed in other cafes.
Aaain-, having given the place of any compnund
Colour, one may find what c< louts may be mixed
to compo-.i.nd it. Thus, having given the colour
at 3, drawing any line P 3 Q. through 3, the co-
COL
Jour propofcd may be made by a mixture of the co-
lours in P and Q_, taking fuch a proportion of them
as is exprcfled by the lines 3 P and 3 Q^; that is,
taking of the colour P as much as in proportion to
3 Q_, and as much of the colour Q,as is in propor-
tion to 3 P ; or having drawn O 3 paHing througli
the points i, 2, 4, the fame colour may be produc-
ed by mixing the colours in 2 and 4, in propor-
tion to the lines 4, 3, and 2, 3 ; or it may be pro-
duced by breaking the fimple colour at i, with
white (which is atO) in the proportion of the lines
3, I, and 3 O : and thus in other cafes.
The proportions hitherto rnentioned of the co-
lours to be ufed in the mixtures, relate to the quan-
tity of the rays of light, and not to the materials
which artificial colours are made of. Wherefore if
feveral atificial colours were to be mixed according
to tbefe rules, and fome of them are darker than
others, there mud be a greater proportion ufed of
the darker materials, to produce the hue propofed,
becaufe they refledl fewer rays of light in propor-
tion to their quantities ; and a lefl'er proportion moft
be ufed of the lighter materials, becaufe they refiedt
a greater quantity of light.
\i the nature of the material colours, which are-
ufed in painting, was fo perfeiSlly known, as that
one could tell exaiSily what fpecies of colour, how
perfedl, and what degree of light and fhade eacb
material has with refpeft to its quantity, by thefe
rules one might exaittly produce any colour pro-
pofed, by mixing the feveral materials in their ju(V
proportions. But though thefe particulars cannot
be known to fuiScient exa<Stnefs for this purpofe^
befijes the tedioufnefs that would be in praitice, to
meafure the colours according to their exacft propor-
tions; yet the knowledge of this theory may be of
great ul'e in painting. Suppofe, for example, I had
a pallet provided with the feveral colours at a, b, Cy
d, e ; fuppofe for inftance at a, carmine ; at b, or-
piment ; at c, pink ; at d, ultramarine; at e, fmalts j
and I had occafion to make a broken green, fuch-
as I judge fhould be placed at x. I fee that it does-
not lie a great deal out of a line dravi'n thrnugh c
and d ; therefore I conclude, that mixing the co-
lours c and d will come very near to what I want ::
but becaufe x is nearer to the center O than the line
c d, having brought my tint as near as I can to
what i want, fuppofe to z, I look from a crofs it
for fome colour oppofite to z, to break the tint
with, and 1 find the neareft to be a; therefore by
mixif>2 of the colour a, I bring the compofiiion to
the tint i have occafion for. If the colour a carries-
the tint too much towards the line O D, 1 put a lit-
tle more of the colour d, which brings it into the
right place : or having got the tint z, I miuht have-
broken it with white, whofe place is at the center
O : or putting a greater proportion of the colour </,.
inftead of a, 1 nvtiy afterwards break the tint by
means of the col-our i^ And in the fame manner,,
H
COL
by only inrpefling this fcheme, one may fee in what
manner to make any tints whatloever that can be
produced by the colours that one ufes. Thus one
fees that red and yellow make a brown orange co-
lour, which may ftill be more broken by adding
blue, or indico, or violet, which are to be taken
one or other, as one would iiave the tint inclined
more to the yellow or to the red, blue bringing it
towards the yellow, and breaking it too much, and
violet carrying it towards the red, and not breaking
it (o much.
From thefe principles one may fee the rcafon why
the materials of the brlghtefl and fimpltli colours
are the moft valuable, and of them why the lightcfr
are moft to be efteemcd. The funpleii: colours are
the moft valuable, becaufe they cannot be produced
by mixture; for mixture always breaks the colours :
fuppofe (7, b, c, </, e, to be all the colours you have,
then drawing lines to join the points a, b, c, d, e,
all the tints that can be produced by thofe colours
will have their places within the area of the poly-
gon a, h, c, d, e. That the lighter colours are
more valuable than the dark ones, is becaufe black
does not break the colours fo much as white ; fo
that it is eafier to make the clean dark tints with
light colours and black, than to make the bright
light ones with dark colours and while : for, by
■what has been (hewed, white breaks the colours
very much, but black, being nothing but the ab-
fence of light, only darkens the colours ; though
upon account of the imperfe£lion of the materials
that are in ufe, black does alfo break the colours
fomething, becaufe there is no material fo pertedlly
black as to have no colour at all, as one fees by
the beft blacks havi}iff lights and fliades. There. will
be other exceptions alfo to be made in the application
of thefe obfervations to practice, upon account of
the particular qualities of the materials fome colours
are made of. If all the colours were as dry pow-
ders, which have no efFefl upon one another, when
mixed, thefe obfervations would exa<ftly take place
in the mixing of them : but fome colours are of fuch
a nature, that they produce a very different effedt
upon the mixture, to what one would exped from
thefe principles : fo that it is poffible there may be
fome darker materials, which, when diluted with
vs^hite, may produce cleaner and lefs compounded
colours than they gave when fmgle ; as iome co-
lours do very well to glaze with, which do not
look well when laid on in a body.
Colour, in heraldry. The colours generally
ufed in heraldry are red, blue, black, green, and
purple, which heralds call gides, azure, lable, vert,
or finople, and purpure. Tenne, or tawny, and
fanguine, are not fo common. As to yellow and
white, called or and argent ; they are metals, not
colours. Thefe metals and colours are fometimes
alfo exprefTed in blazon by the names of precious
ftones, and fometimes by thofe of planets, or liars.
COL
CEnomaus is faid to have firft invented the diflinc-
tion of colours, to diftinguiJh the gundillae of com-
batants of the Circenfian games : the green for
thofe who reprefented the earth ; and the blue for
thofe who reprefented the fea.
Colour, in law, is a probable or plaufible plea,
though really falfe in itfelf, and only calculated to
draw the trial of the caufe from the jury to the judge.
COLOURING, among painters, the maimer of
applying and conducing the colours of a picture ;
or the mixtures of light, and fhadows formed by the
various colours employed in painting.
The colouring is one of the chief branches in
paintiniT, which art is, by Mr. Felibien, divided
into three parts, the delign, the compofition, anj
the colouring. See the article Painting.
Colouring and non colouring Drugs. Into thefe
dyers diltinguifh their ingredients : the firft are ap-
plicative, and communicate their colours to the
matters boiled in them, or pafl'ed through them,
as woad, fcarlet-grain, cochineal, indigo, madder,
turmeric, &c.
The fecond ferve to prepare and difpofe the ftutFs
and other matters, and to extract the colour out of
the colouring ingredients ; as alum, fait or cryffal
of tartar, arfenic, realgal, falt-petre, common fait,
fal ammoniac, fal gemma;, agaric, fpirit of wine,
bran, peas-flour, wheat, ftarch, lime, and aflies.
COLOURS, in the marine, certain banners or
ftreamers which dilfinguifh the fliips or fleets of one
nation from thofe of another ; and the inferior
divifions or fquadrons of a fleet from each other.
Sec the article Flag.
A fuit of colours for the admiral's fliip confifts of
a flag, enfign, and jack ; and thofe of a commo-
dore or private fliip of war with the two latter and a
pendant. See the articles Ensign, Jack, and
Pendant.
Colours ufed in Dying. There are in the art of
dying five colours, called fimple, primary, or mo-
ther colours, from the mixture of which all other
colours are formed ; thefe are blue, red, yellow,
brown, and black. Of thefe colours, varioufly
mixed and combined, they form the following co-
lours, panfy, blue, and red ; from the mixture of
blue and fcarlet are formed amaranth, violet, and
panfy; from the fame mixture of blue, cnmipn,
and red, are formed the columbine or dove colour,
purple, crimfon, amaranth, panfy, and ctimfon
violet.
Here it is to be obferved, that they give the name
crimfon to all colours made of cochineal.
Of blue and red madder is dyed purple, pepper
colour, tan colour, and dry-r(jfe colour.
The fame blue, with red, half in grain, makes
amaranth, tan colour, and dry-rofe colour.
Blue and half- red crimfon compote amaranth,
tan colour, dry-rofe, a brown panfy, and fun-
brown.
Blue
COL
Blue and yellow mixed together compofo a yel-
Jow-grccn, fp.ing-grecn, giafs-grcen, laurcl-green,
brown green, dark-grccn ; as well as Tea green,
parrot-green, cabbage-green, Sic. thefe three laft
colours are to be Icfs boiled than the reft.
This is to be noted, that as to green there is no
ingredient or drug in nature that will dye it, but the
■ftufFs are dyed twice, tirft in blue, then in yellow.
Blue and brown. Thefe two colours are never
mixed alone ; but with the addition of red, either of
m.iddcr oj cochineal, they foim fcveral colours.
Red and yellow. All the fhades compofcd of
thefe two colours, as gold-yellow, aurora, mary-
gf)ld, orange, nacarat, granat-flower, flame co-
loui", &c. are made with yell jw and red of mad-
der ; fcarlct beini; lefs proper as well as too dear.
Red and brown. Uf thefe two colours are
formed cinnamon colour, chefnut, mufk, bia:s-
hair, and even purple, if the red be that of madder.
Yellow and brown. The colours formed trom
.thefe two are all the fhades of feuille mort and hair
colours.
But this may be taken notice of, that though it
be faid that there are no colours or (hades made from
fuch and fucli mixtures, it is not meant that none
can be made, but that they are more eafdy formed
from a mixture of other colours.
COLT, in zoology, the fame with foal, being
the young of the hor(e-kind. See Foal.
Colt-Evil, among farriers, a fwcUing of the
yard and cods, incident both to ftoned horfes and
geldings; for which, after wafhing the pait with
luke warm vinegar, it is ufual to anoint them with
juice of rue, mixed with honey, and boiled in hog's
greafe, adding bay-leaves and the powder of fenu-
greek.
Colt's Foot, in botany, the Englifh name of
the tuifilago. See Tussilago.
COL ['IE, a term ufed by timber- merchants for
a defect, or blemifn, in fome of the annular circles
of a tree, whereby its value is much diminiflied.
COLUBRINUM Lignum, fnake-wood. See
NuX V'oMICA.
COLUMBINE, jfquilegia^ in botany. See the
article Af>uiLEGiA.
CoLUMBiNE-Cff/owv, or dove-colour, among
painters, denotes a kind of violet.
COLUlMBUS, or Congregation of St, Colvm-
r.us, a fociety of regular canons, who formerly
had an hundred abbies or monaflerics in the Britifh
iilands.
COLUMN, in archite£ture, around pillar, made
to fupport and adorn a building, and compofed of a
bafe, a (haft, and a capital. As every fulcrum is fo
much the more perfeft, as it is firm, or carries the
appearance of firiiinefs ; hence all columns ought to
have their bafe broader than themfclves. Sec the
article Base.
And as a cylinder and a quadrangular prifm arc
31
COL
more eafily removed out of their place than a trun-
cated cone, or a pyramid on the fame bafe, and of
the fame altitude, the figure of columns ought not
to be cylindrical, but grow lefs and lefs, like a trun-
cated cone. Again, as columns are more firm if
their diameter bears a greater proportion to their
height than if it bore a lefs, the greater ratio is to be
chofen where a large weight is to be fuftained ; and
lefs, where a fmall weight is to be fupporied. Fur-
ther, as the defign of a column is to fupport a
weight, it muft never be fuppofed without an enta-
blature.
Columns are different in the different orders of
architeflure, and may be confidered with regard to
their matter, conftrudtion, form, difpofition, and
ufe. With refpeifl to the order, we have
Tufcan Column, that which has feven diameters
in height, and is the (horteft and mo(t fimple of all
the columns.
Its diminution is one fourth ; that is, the diameter
at top is three fourths of the diameter jufl above the
bafe.
Dork Column has eight diameters in height, and
its capital and bafe more enriched with mouldings
than the Tufcan. It diminilhes one fifth pare of the
diameter at the bafe.
Ionic Column has nine diameters in height, and
ddTers from the others by the volutes in its capital,
and by its bafe.
Corinthian Column, the richeft and moft delicate
of all, has ten diameters in height, and its capital
adorned with two rows of leaves with caulicoles,
from whence fpring fmall volutes. It diminiflies
one feventh part of the diameter.
Compofite Column has likewife ten diameters in
height, and two rows of leaves in its capital, with
angular volutes like the Ionic. It diminiflies one
eighth part of the diameter of the bafe.
It may be obferved, that different authors give
different heights and proportions to columns of the
fame order, and that frequently the fame author
takes the liberty of difpenluig with his own rules ;
but the heights and proportions exhibited above are
a mean between the extremes of all the red.
Columns with regard to their A'laiter, are :
Fujibte Column comprehends not only columns
of various metals, and other fufible matter, as
glafs, &c. but alfo thole of (tone, faid to be caff,
the fecret of which fome believe to have been known
to the ancients.
HydraxAic Colu.mn, the whole fliafts appear to
be of cryllal ; being formed by a number of little
threads of water, falling from holes made in a girt
of metal, at equal diftances, by means of a pipe
mounting through the middle of it. It alfo denotes
a column from v/hofe top proceeds a jet d'eau, to
which the capital fcrvcs .as a bafon, vvhcrce the wa-
ter defcends by a little pipe, which turns fpirally
round the (haft,
7 1' Miuldei
COL
COL
Moulded Column, that made by impaftation of
gravel and flints of divers colours, bound together
with a cement.
IVater Column, that whofe fliaft is formed of a
large jet d'eau, which fpouting out water violently
from the bafc, drives it within the tambour of the
capital, which is hollow, and in falling down it re-
fernbles a column of liquid cryftal.
Columns, with regard to their Coijlrufilon.
Cabled ot Rudented CoLVMbi, that having pro-
jedlures in form of cables, in the naked of the
ihaft, each cable having an effedt oppofite to that
of a fluting, and accompanied with a little lift on
«ach fide.
Coloffhl Column, one of fo large a fize as not to
enter any ordinance of architecture, but defigned to
be placed folitary in the middle of a fquare, &c.
Such is the Trajan column.
Corollatic Column, that adorned with foliages,
turned fpitally round the (haft, or in form of crowns
and feftoons : they are very proper for decorations
of theatres.
Dimivijhed Column, that which has no fwell-
ing, but begins to taper from the bafe, in imitation
.of trees.
Geminated CoLVMii, that whofe fhaft is formed
of three fimilar and equal fides or ribs of flone,
fitted within one another, and fattened at bottom
•witii iron pin«, and at top with cramp-irons : it
fiiight to be fluted, that the joints may be iefs dif-
sernible.
Column ofjoinery, that made of ftrong timber-
boards joined together : it is hollow, turned in the
lathe, and ufually fluted : fuch are the columns of
jnofl altar-pieces.
Column of Alafonry is made of rough ftone, well
laid and covered with plafter ; or of bricks, laid
•triangular-wife, and covered with ftucco.
Column of Tambours, or Bands, that whofe
fhaft is formed of feveral courfes of ftone, or blocks
of marble, Iefs high than the diameter of the co-
lumn.
Column in Truncheons, or Pieces, confifts of
two, three, or four pieces of ftone or metal, differ-
ing from the tambours, as being higher than the
diameter of the column.
Columns with regard to their Form, are:
Fluted Columns, called alfo channelled and
ftraited columns, thofe whofe fhafts are adorned
with flutes or channellings, either from top to bot-
tom, ( r only two thirds of their height.
Gothic Column, a round pillar, either too fhort
for its bulk, or too (lender for its height, having
fometimes twentv diameters, without either diminu-
tion or fwelling, coniequeniiy differing widely from
the proportions of the antique.
Hermetic Column, a kind of pilafter, in manner
.©f ,a terxne, having the head of a man in Leu of a
capital. It is fo called becaufe the ancients placed
on the top of fuch columns the head of Mercury.
Majfive Column, one too fliort for the order,
the capital of which it bears : it likewife compre-
hcnds Tufcan and Ruftic columns.
Ofrt/ Column, that whofe (haft has a flatnefs,
its plan being made oval, to reduce the projec-
ture.
Pafloral CoLVMN, that whofe fhaft is formed in
imitation of a trunk of a tree, with bark and knots.
It may be ufed in the gates of parks and gardens,
and in the decoration of paftoral fcenes.
Serpentine Column, that formed of three fer-
pents twi(tcd together, the heads of which ferve as
a capital : it is now called the talifman, or enchanted
column.
Swelled Column, that which has a bulging in
proportion to the height of the (haft. This practice
obtains among the modern architedls, but feems to
have been unknown to the ancients.
Twified Column, that whofe fliaft is twifted
round in form of a fcrew, with fix circumvolutions,
being ordinarily of the Corinthian order. Some^
times the twifted column is in form of two or three
(lender fhafts twifted round, fo as to leave a cavity
in the middle.
Columns, ivith regard to their Difpofition.
Angular Column is an infulted one, placed in
the corner of a portico, or infeitcd in the corner of
a building, or even a column that flanks any angle
of a polygon.
Attic Column, according to Pliny, is an infui-
lated pilafter, having four equal faces, and of the
highell proportion.
CantonedCohutAHS are thofe engraved in the four
corners of a fquare pillar, to fupport four fprings of ■
an arch.
Coupled Columns, thofe difpofed two and two,
fo as almoft to touch each other at their bafes and
capitals.
Doubled CohVMn, one column joined with ano-
ther in fuch a manner that the two (hafts penetrate
each other with a third of their diameter.
Engaged Co LVMN, that which enters in a wall
with one third or one fourth of its diameter.
Grouped Columns, thofe placed on the fame
pedeftal or focle, either by three and three, or four
and four.
In/ulated Column, one (landing free and de-
tached from every other body.
Medium Columns, a name given by Vitruvius
to the two columns in the middle of a porch, which
have their intercoluniniation larger than the reft.
The term may alfo be applied to the middle low
of columns in a frontifpiece adorned with three
order?.
Niched CoLUMt^, that whofe fhaft enters with
half its diameter into a wall, hollowed out for its
rsceptioa
COL
COL
rrception with its plane parallel to the proje<3ure of
tlie tore.
Columns, with regard U thtir Ufe^ are either,
ift. Agronomical columns, fuch as that at Paris,
erefted for aftronomical obfervations. 2. Chrono-
logical column. 3. P'ur>eral column, which gene-
rally bears an urn, and has its fhaft overfpread with
fymbols of grief and of immortality. 4. Gnomo-
nic column, a cylinder, upon which the hour of the
day is reprefented by the fliadow of a ftyle : of thefe
rhere are two kinds ; in the one the Aile is fixed, and
the hour- lines are no more than the projedion of a
▼ertical dial upon a cylindrical furface : in the other
the ftyle is moveable, and the hour-lines are drawn
to the different i"ieights of the fun in the different
feafons of the year. 5. Hiftorical column, that
whofe fliaft is adorned with a bafl'o relievo, running
in a fpiral line its whole height, and containing the
hiftory of fome great perfonage. 6. Hollow co-
lumn, that which has a fpiral itair-cafe within- fide,
for the conveniency of afcending to the top. 7. In-
dicative column, that which ferves to (hew the tides
along the fea-coafts. 8. Inflruitive column, that
which conveys fome precept or inftru£lion, fuch as
that raifed by the fon of Piliftratus at Athens, con-
taining the rules of agriculture. 9. Itinerary co-
lumn, one with feveral faces, placed in the croifing
of feveral roads, ferving to fhew the different foiftes
by tlie infcriptions engraved on its feveral faces.
10. La£tary column, at Rome, a column, accord-
ing to Feftus, in the herb-market, in the pedeftal of
which was a cavity, wherein young children, aban-
doned by their parents, through poverty or inhuma-
nity, were expofed to be educated at the expenceof
the public. 11. Legal column, among the Lace-
dcmonia.^s, that ereiJfed in a public place, upon
which were engraven the fundamental laws of the
ftate. 12. Limitrophous, or boundary column, that
which fhews the limits of a kingdom, or country,
conquered. Thofe called the Columns, or Pillars
of Hercules, are two very fleep mountains, in the
Streights of Gibraltar. 13. Luminous column, one
formed in a cylindrical frame, mounted and covered
over with oiled paper or gauze, fo that lights being
difpofed in ranks within over each other, the whole
appears to he on fire. 14. Manubiary column, a
column adorned with trophies, built in imitation of
trees, whereon the fpoils of enemies were anciently
hung. 15. Memorial column, that raifed on occa-
f»on of any remarkable event, as the Monument in
London, built to perpetuate the memory of the
burning of that city in 1666. 16. Menian column,
any column that (upports a balcony, or meniana.
17. Miliary column, a column of marble, raifed,
by Older of Auguftus, in the middle of the Roman
forum, fr'^im- whence, as a center, the diftances of
the feveral cities of the empire were reckoned by
other miliary columns, difpoft;d at etjual difVaiices
cn all the grand foads. i8. Roftral column, that
adorneJ with the beaks, or prows of (Tjips, &c.
ere£fed either in memory of a naval vidlory, or irj
honour of fome admiral, &c. 19. Siatuary co*
lumn, that which fupports a ilatue. 20. Symboli-
cal column, that reprefenting by fymbols fome
particular country, or fome memorable adtion.
21. Triumphal column, that erected by the an-
tients in honour of an hero ; the joints of the
ftones or courfes of which were covered with as
many crowns as he had made military expeditions*
22. Zoophoric column, a kind of ftatuary column^
bearing the figure of fome animal.
Scenography of a Column. See the article Sce-
NOGRAPHY.
Column, among printers, is half a page, whei>
the page is divided into two parts from top to bot-
tom.
Column, in the military art, a long deep file of
troops or baggage.
The firft and fecond lines of an army, as they
are encamped, make generally two columns on a
march, filing off cither to the right or left : fome-
times the army marches in four, frx, or eight co-
lumns, according as the ground will allow ; and
each column is led by a general officer.
Columns of a fleet or fquadron. See the article
Lines, Sailing.
COLUMNA, in anatomy, a term applied to
different parts : thus the columna naft is the loweft
and flefhy part of the nofe, which forms a part of
the feptum ; and the columna oris is the fame witlx
the uvula. See Septum and Uvula.
The columnas cordis are fmall, long, and round
flefhy produdtions in the ventricles of the heart. Se«
Heart.
COLUMNEA, in botany, a plant with a climb-
ing ftalk, the leaves are oval, ferrated on their
edges, and (land upon fhort foot-flalks; thefe, as
alfothe ftalksarevery hairy. The flower is monopeta-
lous and ringent, with four ffamina, two being long-
er than the others. The fruit is an ovated bilocu-
lar capfule, containing a number of fmall, oblong
feeds.
This plant, being a native of the warmeil parts of
America, requires a hot-houfe in this climate for
their iirefervation.
COLURtS, in aff-ronomy and geography, two
great cir'cles fuppofed to interfedt each other at right
angles, in the poles of the World, and to pafs-
through the foUtitial and equinoftial points of the
ecliptic.
That which pafTes through the two equinoftial
points is ciillcd the equincdlial colure, and deter-
mines the equinoxes ; and the other, v.hich pafles
ihiough ihe poles of the ecliptic, is called the fcl-
ftitial colure, becaufe it determines the iolflices. See
tQUiN';Xand Solstice.
COLUTi-A, bladder-fena, in botany, a gtnu»
of plants producing papilionaceous flowers. The
4, ecoii^ua
C O M
C O M
common fort is a Qirub, which grows naturally in
Auftiia, in the fouth of France and Italy, from
■whence the feeds were originally brought to Eng-
land. This plant haih feveral woody ftems, which
grow to the height of ten or twelve feet, fending
out many branches, which are furniftied with
winged leaves, compofed of four or five pair of
oval leaves placed oppofite, and terminated with an
odd one ; thefe are indented at the top, and are of
a grajifh colour. The flowers come out from the
wmgs of the leaves on fiender foot-ftalks, about
two inches long ; each fuftaining two or thiee flow-
ers of the butterfly kind ; thefe are yeilow, with a
dark coloured mark on each petal ; they are fuc-
ceeded bv inflated pods an inch and a half long,
having a feam on the upper fide, containing a fmgie
row of kidney-fhaped feeds.
This flowers in June or July, and the feeds ri-
pen in autumn ; they are propagated by feeds, and
are very common in (lirubberies, 5ic.
COMA, or Coma-Vigil, a preternatural pro-
penfity to fleep, when, neverthelefs, the patient
does not fleep, or, if he does, awakes immediately,
without any relief. This difotder is always fymp-
tomaiic, and often attends acute, burning, and ma-
lignant fevers; as alio an infl-mmation of the dura
mater, and ufiiers in a phrenzy. Sometimes it at-
. tends a hemiplegia.
For the cure of the coma-vigil, if the fever has
not continued above the third or fourth day, it is
expedient to take away a large quantity of blood ;
then the body, if coftive, mult be opened with
cjyfters, which muft not be very acrid ; afterwards
diluters and refrigerants fhould be given to moderate
the febrile heat, fuch as abforbent powders, gentle
nitrous medicines, taken in a draught with diapho-
retic antimony, &:c.
COMARUM, marfli cinquefoil, in botany, a
plant whofe flower confifts of five oblong, acumi-
. rated petals, three times iefs than the cup in which
they are inferted, wiih twenty fubulated, perma-
nent filaments, topped with lunular, deciduous an-
therae ; it has no pericarpium, but a fcrotiform,
flefliy receptacle, which is large and perfiltent, and
contains numerous acuminated feeds. This plant
grows wild in boggy places in divers parts of Kng-
Jand.
Coma Somnolentum is when the patient con-
tinues in a profound fleep, and when awaked, im-
mediately relapfes, without being able to keep open
his eyes. This is a primary difeafe, and mutt have
a caufe which obfirudfs the pafl'age of the nerxous
fluid from the cortical part of the brain to the me-
dulla oblongata, throughout the whole brain.
A coma fomnolentum is divided into ferous and
fanguine. The fird requires the natural ferous eva-
cuauons to be reflored or promoted; gouty fits aie
to be invited. Sternutatories are alfo of gieat ufe,
as they difcharge the ferum through the nofe, and
simulate the nerves : and when a vifcid phlegm of-
fends the fiomach, vomits are ufeful, with powder
of fquilh, or emetic tartar, with a laxative potion.
In a fanguir.e coma fomnolentum, when the blood
circulates flowly, or ftsgnates in the head, as in
hypochondriac and fcorbutic cafes, all hot ipiritu-
ous remedies are as bad as poifon ; but bleeding,
clyflers, gentle laxatives, cooling and nervous pow-
ders, are ufeful.
Coma Berenices, in aflronomy, a conflella-
tion of the noithern hemilphere, fituated between
Virgo, Bootes, Canes veratic, and near the Lion's
tail ; this conttellation comprehends, according to
Ptolemy's catalogue three itars ; Tycho's thirteen,
and in the following forty-three. Catullus tells us
in a Latin poem, that this ib the Hair of Berenice,
the wite ot king f.vergetes, who vowed to cut nfF
her hair if her hufliand returned home from the war
vidlor ; which accordingly (he did, and fent it to
the temple of Venus, from whence it was faid to
be taken up into heaven and made a conflellation.
Na
I
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
II
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
'9
20
21
22
2i
24
25
26
27
28
29
3''
3'
32
7
6
6
6
6
5
4-5
n
/
6
6
4-5
5
4
J 1 Right
Afcenfion
4
4
4
4
5
6
6
5
7
4
5
6
5
5
6
5
6
4-5
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77.22.
77-59-
79-37-
79-53-
7959-
80.57.
81. 3
81.48.
81.5,.
81.55,
82. 8,
02.36
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^'3-35'
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«344'
84.13-
84.20'
84.21,
84.23,
84.44.
85.24
85-43-
85.46'
86.13.
86.47,
88.39,
^^ 3
89 13.
89.22.
89.58.
90. 3.
Diftance
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53
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56
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28
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67.
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64
65
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60.23.45
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46J67.46. 5
64. 6. 9
64.23.54
66. 3. 7
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71.34.46
67-3635
72. 6.32
5. 8. 6
74 34- I
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bi. 8.48
71.36.48
ViT. in
Var.ln
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20.1
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20.1
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190.21.37
61.26.33
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4-5
190.21.4.2
67.26.21
42.7
19.6
36
5
191.45 '7
71.17.27
42.7
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5.6
192,10.14
75.54.41
42.0
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42.2
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42
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71. II. 56
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60.54.55
41-5
18.9
COMB, an inftrument to clean, untangle, and
drefs flax, wool, hjir, &c.
Combs for ■wool are prohibited to be imported
into Britain.
Co.MB is alfo the crefi-, or red flcfiiy tufc, grow-
ing upon a cock's head.
Zflfljy'j CoiviE, or Veniis's comb, in botany, the
fame wiih the fcandix. See die article Scandix.
COMBAT, in a general fenfe, denotes an en-
gagement, or a difference diciJed by way of arms.
Combat, in our ancient law, was a formal trial
of fome doubtful caufe or quarrel by the fwords or
battons of two champions. This form of proceed-
ing was veiy frequent, not only in criminal, but
in civil CdUfes ; being built on a prefumption that
God would never grant the vi<flory but to him who
had the beft right. The lafl trial of this kind in
England, was between Donald lord Ray, appellant,
end David Ramfay, Elq. defendant; when, after
many formalities, the matter was referred to the
king's pleafure.
COMBATANT, in heraldry, a term for two
beads, as lions, &c. borne in a coat of arms, in a
flighting poflure, with their faces to each other,
"combination is properly underftood of an
affemblage of feveral things by tWo and two : but
is more particularly ufed in mathematics, to denote
the variation or alternation of any number of quan-
tities, letters, found'-, or the like, in all the diffe-
rent manners poflible.
P. Merfeniie gives us the combinatiofis of all the
rotes and foundi in mufiCj as far as 64 ; the fum
whereof amounts to 90 figuie.s, or places.
The number of pofTible combinations of the 24
letters of the alphabet, taken firft two by two, then
three by three, &c. according to Mr. Preltct's cal-
culation, amount to 139172428887252999425128
493402200.
F. Truchet, in the Memoirs of the French Aca-
demy, (hews, that two fquare pieces, each divided
diagonally into two colours, may be arranged and
combined fixty-four different ways, fo as to form
fo many different kinds of chequer-work ; whicfr
appears very furprifing, when we confider that two
letters, or figures, can only be combined twice.
Problem i. Any number of quantities being given,
together with the number in each combination, to
find the number of combinations.
One quantity, we obferve, admits of no combi-
nation ; two, a and b, of one ; of three, a be, there
are three combinations, viz. ah, ac, i> c ; of four,
fix, al), a c, be, ad, b d, c d ; of five, ten, a b,
a c, he, ad, bd, c d, a e, be, ee, de ; whence it
appears that the number of combinations proceed a.?
I, 3, 6, 10, 15, &c. wherein, if we have n for che
number of terms or quantities to be combined, we
(hall have
for all the different pairs that
can be taken in the number of quantities /;. If the
propofed combinations are to be taken three by
n n — I n — '\ .,, ., ,
three, — X X will exprefs the number ot
'123
combinations fought : but if they are to be taken by
n n — I
fours, — X X
I 2
3
X — - will be the anfwerj
and univerfally, if p be put for the number of quan-
tities to be taken each time, then will — x X
I z
« — 2 « — ; n-A. . .
X X — ^, &c. continued to p terms, re«.
3 4 5
prefent the number of combinations of p things
in ».
Example. Let the number of quantities to be
combined be 8, and 4 the number of them to be
taken ; then by expounding n by 8, and p by 4, we
fliall have 8 X •? X -f- X |, or 70, for the number of
combinations required.
The number of all the poffible combinations, be-
ginning from the combinations of every two, will»
by writing fucceffively for p the numbers 2, 3, 4, 5,
&c
be - X \-
I z '
n n — I
X X ^, &c. which is well known to be the
3 +
fum of the unciae of the binomial 1 -]- i > raifed to the
n power, and abridged of the exponent of the pow-
er increafcd by unity n -\- \-. theiefore the number
of all the poflible combinations will be exprefled by
1" — « — ^ 1 .
Problem 2. Any number of quantities being gi-
ven, to find the number of changes and alterations
which thofe quantities, combined in all the manners
poflible, can undergo.
Suppofe IWo quantities, aand^; their variations
will be 2 : confequently as each of thofe may be
cot-nbined-, even with itl'elf, to thefe there mull be
added two variations. The whole number, there^
fore, will be 2 -+- 2 = 4. If there were three quan-
tities, and the exponent of the variation were 2,
the combination will be 3^ and the changes 9 ; ta
7 Q. which
COM
which if the three combinations of each quantity
with itfelf, « o, bb, c c, be added, we {hall have
the number of changes 3 -j- 3 -|- 3 =r g. In like
manner it is evident, if the given quantities were 4,
and the exponent 2, the number of changes would
be 16 ; if 5, 25, &c, and, in general, if n, /.*.
Suppofe the quantities 3, and the exponent of
variation 3 ; the number ot changes is found 27 =
3'; viz. aaa, aab, aba, baa, abb,aac, aca,
i-ii a, ab c, ba c, b c a, a c h, ca b, c ba, a c c, c a c,
aa, Lba, bab, bbb, bbc, ebb, bcb, bcc, cbc,
i cb^ ic c.
After the fame manner it will appear, that if the
quantities were 4, and the exponent 3, the num-
ber of changes would be 64 r= 4' : and, in gene-
ral, if the number of quantities be r= n, and the
exponent 3, the number of changes will be «'. By
thus proceeding, it will be found, that if the num-
ber of quantities be «, and the exponent n, the
number of changes will be n" ; wherefore, if all
the antecedents be added, where the exponent is
lefs, the number of poffible changes will be found
n" -|- w — I -J- «"— * -}- ?z"— 3 -j-"" — * + "' — 5 -(- n"—^,
&C. till at length, the number fubtradted from n
leaves i, becaufe the beginning is from fingle quan-
tities taken once.
Since then the number of poffible changes is in a
geometrical progreflion, whofe firft term is », the
greatefl «", and the ratio n, it follows that —
« — I
will exprefs the number of poffible changes. Sup-
pofe V. gr. «,=: 4, then will be equal to
340. Suppofe again, nz=. 24, the number of pof-
lible changes will be I39i724288887252gq9425i2
8493402200. In fo many various manners, there-
fore, may the twenty-four letters of the alphabet be
varied and combined among themlelves.
COMBINATORY, in general, denotes fome-
thing belonging to combination. See the preceding
article.
• Combinatory Z)//?///<://»«, a method of recti-
fying fpirits, m>uh praflifed by dillillers, bydiftil-
ling feveral ingredients along with the fpirits ; fuch
are alcaline fairs, and fpirits, and other faline bodies
capable of giving the fpiiits a good flavour. This
method is condemned by Dr. Shaw, becaufe thefe
ingredients mix themfelves io intimately with the
fpirits, as not to be eafily feparated again : hence,
tnftead of rcftlfytng or improvnig, they prevent the
rrue and genuine taile of the fpirits.
COMBUST, an appellation given to a planet
v/hen in conjuncfion with, or not diflant above
i;iglit degrees and thirty minutes from the fun :
tome reftrain the term combulf to the diftance of
i.alf their dillc.
COMEDY, is a fort of dramatic poetry, which
gives a view of common and private life, recom-
COM
mends virtue, and expofes the vices and follies of
mankind in an humorous and merry way. Scali-
ger defines comedy a dramatic poem, reprefenting
the bufinefs of life, whofe event is fortunate and
ftdl familiar. Voffius defines it a dramatic poem,
copying the actions of the principal citizens and
common people in a familiar flyle, and not without
mirth and raillery.
COMET, an opake, fpherical and foHd body
like a planet, performing revolutions round the fun
in elliptical orbits, which have the fun in one of the
foci. The particulars in which they differ from the
planets, are that they move in various direiSlions,
fome the fame way with the planets, others'the con-
trary : neither are their motions confined within the
zodiac, their orbits admitting of any inclinaticrn to
the ecliptic whatever; and the excentricity of their
orbits is fo very great, that fome of the comets per-
form the greateft part of their motion alnifift in
right lines, tending in their approach to the fun
almoft dire£ily towards it, after which they pafs by
it ; and when they leave it march off agam nearly
in a right-line, till they are invifible.
Though the ancients knew little of the ufe of
conic fe£Hons, in comparifon of what has been
difcovered within thefe laft hundred and fifty years,^
yet they applied themfelves to the fiudy of their
properties, and thereby prepared the way for the
readier applying them to the ufcs lately found out.
If thofe who at that time employed themfelves in
making agronomical obfervations, had been as care-
ful in attending to the motion of comets, which do-
not require fuch depth of thought as abftrufe ma-
thematical problems ; though they knew too little
then of the principles of mution to have found out
their real path, yet probably we fliould not have
been fo much at a lofs, as we ft ill are, as to their
periods ; bur, by comparing their motions in dif-
ferent returns, even though the obfervations had
been but grofs, might have arrived to a confiderable
perfedion in the aftronomy of comets. But as moft
of their periods feem to be very Inng, and it is but a
little while that their motions have been carefully
watched, it may be fome ages yet, before we get
any great knowledge about them. Moft of the an-
cients, being of Ariftotie's opinion, that comets
were only inflamed vapours, raifed, continuing, and
difperfed in our atmofphere, took little further no-
tice of them than as omens, often mentioning nei-
ther the time of year, or place they weie feen in ;
and unlefs both ate known, we can neither find
their orbit, nor compare them with that of any
known comet. Seneca indeed, and fome others
whom he mentions, believed comets to be lafling
heavenly bodies, Nat. Quaeft. VII 3 & 22. that
multitudes of them, which could not be feen ori ac-
count of their pofition, kept on their ftated courfe,
and at certain time«, when thev got to the neartt
end of their path, came wtlhin fight of men,
4 th.jp.
COM
COM
chap. 13, 17, 19. and he expeiSed that time and
pains would difcover what was then unicowii, and
pofterity wonder that they did not know furh plain
things, chap. 25. In thcfe feveral places there is a
better gucfs about comets, than any made for above
fifteen hundred years afterward : and further fearch
has fuice confirmed what he thought, that it is the
excentricity of their cubits which occcafions their be-
ing only now and thefi (een. In all thofedaik ages,
from the decline of the Roman empire to the re-
formation, comets being only confidcred as ominous
mjteors, three only have been yet (ound defcribed
enough to determine their orbits, and thofe but in a
grofs manner : and I think Appian was the firft,
who, about 1530, began to obferve their motion
allronomically ; and foon found that, io far from
being wi'.hin our air, they, having no ferifible paral-
lax, murt neeJb he much further ofl' than the moon:
here then is the fi;ft ftep toward finding out the true
nature of comets ; and from that time all aftrono-
mers have allowed their place to be among the
planetary orbits, and many obfervations were made
of their motions by Tycho Brjhe and others.
The two comets of 1664 and 65, coming within
a few months of one anotlier, made many perfons
very inquifitive about them; and in Birch's hiilory of
the Royal Society, vol. II. there are two rema kable
gutfTes, both read May 23, 1666. In page 93, are
Mr. Hjoke's remarks on Monf. Petit's dilTertation
on the nature of comets, prefented to the fociety
fome weeks before. What that paper contained
does not fully appear ; but Mr, Hooke faid, the
hypothefes were very ingenious, and fome of them
not improbable, but whether the comets were moved
in equal fpaces of a curve line in equal fpaces of
time, which Monf. Petit feemed inclined to be-
lieve, deferred to be further examined. This laft
cljufe is remarkable, and that paper, if dill pre-
ferved, is worth fearching, to fee how near Monf.
Petit was to giieffing the truth. The other paper,
page 91, is Mr. Hooke's own, endeavouring to ac-
count for the planet's motions ; where, having pro-
pofed the refiilance of the aether, he fays, the fecond
Cdufe of in.fleding a direct motion into a curve may
be from an attractive propeity of the body placed in
the center, whereby it continually endeavours to
attract or draw it to itfelf : fjr if fuch a principle be
fuppofed, all the phiens^mena of the planets feem
p<^)(fi'j!e to be e;^pl.ilned, by the common principle
of mechanick motions ; and puffihly the profecuting
this fpeculation may give us a true hypothefis of
tiieir motions. By this hypothefis the phjsnomsna
()t the comets as well as of the planets may be
f )lved, and the niotion of the fecondary as well as
their primiry planets : the motion alfj of the pio-
greJion of the auges is very evidenr. 'I'his 1 tnink
was much about the time that Sir il'aac Newton dif-
covered the property of gravity, and fesms much
like it J only Sir Ifa^Cj being the deeper mathema-
tician, profeeuted the matter further, and cleared it
up more fully.
Hevelius was too good an aflronomer, not to fee
that comets were far diftant from the ear(h, and
in his Cometographia, Book III. p. 149 — 164,
largely fhews the abfuidity not only of fuppofing
them m our air, but even below the moon, from the
vafl parallax they would have, and the various places
they muft needs be feen in at different times of day,
as they rife towards the zenith, or defcend to the
horizon : yet could he not fhake ofF the edabliflied
opinion that they were meteors ; but, to recon-
cile both, fuppofts comets to be vapours coUeiSt-
ed near any of the planets, whirling round about
it till thrown out of the atmofphere, and then mov-
ing in a ftraight or curve line till dilperfcd. Book VII.
p. 384 ; that comets are not fpherical, but round
and flat, p. 338 ; and, from the tin^e they leave the
planet's atmofphere, always turn one flat fide to-
ward the fun, p. 666 ; and though, Book IX.
p. 591 — 632, he calculates the places of feveral
comets, as if moving in a ftraight line, and gene-
rally comes nearer the obferved place, than I fhould
expefl fuch an hypothefis to do ; yet he thinks that
their courfe is not leally iiraight, p. 588; and in
more largely treating on the lubjedt, fayj, it is a^
parabola, p. 659. It may furprize thi;fe who have
not read Hevelius, to hear that he firfl faid a comet's
orbit is parabolical, a difcovery generally attributed
to Sir Ifaac Newton ; and indeed not v. ithout reafon,
for Hevelius did but guefs it, and knew not the prin-
ciple on which its motion depended; but it was Sir
Ifaac Newton who firft proved it, and accounted foe
its motion in that curve, from that univerfal princi-
ple of gravity, on which the motion of all the hea-
venly bodies depend. We may however give Heve-
lius his due praife as a good aflronomer, and by a
fhort extraifl from his Cometographia, Book IX..
ihew how nearly he guefied at the true motion of
comets, without knowing, or even fufpeflmg, the
real cauCe which kept them in fuch a tiajeftory. A.
comet then, he fays, " by no means miives in a
" ftraight line, but in a curve, always concave to-
" ward the fun,," p. 658, that is, " in a parabola,"'
p. 659 : this he illuftrates by " the parabolic mo-
" tion of projediles," p. 660. He I'eems here to-
be got very near the point, yet fbev.is afterward he-
did not think of gravity as the caufe of a comet's
parabola,: for " as proiedliles move in a parabola,,
" from a. compound of rheir progrefGve motion and.
" gravity, fo conKts alio have a. double motion ;.
" one the force given them: at leaving the planet's.
" atmofphere, the other not gravity, yet fmuthing
"■ not unhke it, by which comets- turn one of their
" flit fides toward the fun, as the center of our
" (yttem, p. 65'^, as a magnetic needle pomts ti-
" ward the north, or toward a l.iadll.jna. And as.
" in projeftdes gravity, fo in co.nets the incliaiatioiv
" of their flat fides,, ^>irns th'i.n.out. ofth-ir Itraight
" couric '■''
C O M
COM
^ courfe," as a rudJcr turns about a Wp, whicli he
liad before largely confidered, p. 570 — 587. " And
** the farther a comet gets from the fun, the more
*• will its flat fide be oppofcd to its motion, which
" will not only more and more retard its fwiftncfs,
" but turn it cut of its flraight courfe, p. 667.
*' But a comet difF^ts from a projedile, in that a
•' body thrown up moves flowcfl at the vertex of
" i s parabola, and fwifter both in rifing and fall-
*' ing ; while a comet moves fwifteft at the vertex,
*' where a line from the fun is perpendicular to its
■" path, and flower both in approacbins; the fun and
*' letiring from it, p. 66g. If you -Ak whether a
*' comet's path is not an liypcrbola," he " will not
" deny it : it is neither circle nor ellipfis, but may
" be any other fe(Sion of a cone, which is molt
*' bent in the middle, and flraighttr at each end :
" yet is fatisfied it is rather a parabola than an h) pcr-
" bola," p. 683. Laftly, " as the planets regard
*' the fun as their center, fo the comets alfo obey it
♦' in tlieir way," p. 701. We fee here that Hevc-
lius, wh.ther by a mere guefs at what he thought
muft needs follow from his notion of comets being
flat bodies, generally ftanding oblique to the path
they move in, or finding fuch a motion to azrce Left
with his obfervations, came very near to what has
fince been found to be the truth : that comets move
in a parabola, concave toward the fun, fwiftcft at
the vertex, that is, when they are neareft the fun,
snd their motion perpendicular to a line from it, and
that it is an aftion of the fun on comets which makes
them turn out of a flraight line into a curved tra-
jetflory. So far he is right, and feems got near the
point, but is dcfcdlive in not fufpedting the fun to be
the parabola's focus, exprefily denying their moving
in an ellipfis, and confequently returning again ;
and the do<3rine of gravity being a later diftovery,
he is forced to account for their curve another way.
'We may learn alfo from his book, that fludies, of
which we do not at firft fee the benefit, are not
therefore always ufclefs. Hevelius made many ob-
servations and calculations of the motion of comets ;
on which if a perfon at that time had faid to him,
cui bona? why fo much t-me and pains fpent on va-
pours, which were collefted yefterday, and will be
difperfed to-morrow? he, owning them to be no.
thing elfe, could not perhaps have given any fuffi-
cicnt reafon for it : yet if he and others had not
taken that pains, Sir Ilaac Newton would hardly
have found out their leal motion ; and there is a
field yet open for further difcoveries of future agc->
about them.
Sir Ifaac Newton having difcovered that gravity
is univerfal, and that a planet whofe velocity was in
a due proportion to its gravity toward the fun, would
revolve about it in a perfe(5l circle; but in an ellipfis,
of which the fun is one focus, if its motion vras
either Uder or flower; on reconfulering the matter,
on occafion of that remarkabk comet of 16S0, he
found, that, if a body is thrown with a velocltv,
which is to that necefTary to keep it in a circle, as
the fquare root of 2 to 1 ; the fame univerfal piinci"
pl-j of gravity will make it move in a parabola, of
which the lun is the locus : and this being found
agreeable to the oblcrvcd motion of comets, has been
fince allowed by aftronomers to be their real mo-
tion. It fcems however not agreeable to the uni-
foimity of the univcrle, that afrer a (hort view of
the fun, tl'rcy fliould be continually flying farther off,
in that wide V! id beyond the planetary bound*, 10
creep along that dark ci Id region for millions of
years ; (and in leis time than that, they could not
reach any otiier l\ftem, if the parallax of the fixed
ftars be two fcconds, which Dr. Biadley has found
it cannot exceed;) but that thi-y Ihou'd rather re-
volve louiid the fun, in ceitain, though long periods :
and the likenels of the elenients of fome of the
comets fetn in different ages, m:ike it probable tbty
were the fame returning again ; if fo, their ti^jec-
tories are not really parabolas ; but they fcem a kind
of planets, revolving round the fun in (o ex-
treamly extentric ellipfes, that, fo far as we cafi
fee them, they are not fenfibiy different fiom
parabolas, which for eafe of calculation we al-
ways fupjiofe them to be : and that their motion
is almolt exactly a parabola, is eafy to be demon-
ftrated. The tiue motion of comets being thuj
known. Sir Ifaac Nev/ton applied himfelf to find
a method, by which a comet's orbit might be
determined from a courfe of obfervations ; and,
having attempted many Ways in vain, hit at laft on
one, which be has explained, Book III. Prop. 41,
&c. of his Principia, taking for his example the
comet of 1680. 1 he fame method Dr. Halley
ufed for twenty-three more, fome accurately, others
grofsly, as the obfervations he met with were; and
feveral more have been done fince by others. 1' rctn
the likcnefs of the elements, fome of thtfe are fup-
pofed to be difFetent returns of the fame comtt :
firft, thofeof 1531, 1607, and 1682, with a period
of 75 or 76 year?, may be expedted again about
175S' : fecondly, thofe of 1532 and 1661, after a
period of 1283; years, may probably return about
17S9 : thirdly, the obfervations of that in 1556
Were very grofs, and thofe in 1264 ftill more de-
fedlive, fo that neither orbit can be fuppofed to be at
all accurate; yet from their likenefs, though not
agreeing very well, may nnt unlikely be the fame,
and come again, after a period of 292 years, about
1848: laflly, the comet of 1680 was a very re-
niaikablc one ; and as at equal intervals, A. C. 44,
A D. 531, and lic6, others were fccn in fome rr:-
fpciih like it, feveial peifons have fuppofcd ihc)'
might be the fame, being 575 venrs going round the
fun ; yet no obfervations being made at any of the
three tormcr times, it was but a gucfs ; and if the
comet of 1106 was fcen in March in Cancer, as
the manufcri^Jt Mr. Dunthorne mentions, Phil.
Tranf.
COM
Tranr. XLVII. p. 287, feems to fay, it could by
no means be the fame as that of 1680, which cannot
get beyond Taurus in March, nor be fcen in Cancer
after December; the period therefore of that comet
muft remain doubtful, till further light appears.
It may be objefled, that the two periods of the
comet of 1682 beinga whole year different one from
the other, there is no knowing when to CNpciil it
again. The difference indeed is very great, c<.nfi-
deiing how true the planet's motions arc found to be ;
yet I fear we muft not cxpedl the f.imc regularity in
a comet's orbit as in a planet's, they being fubjetl to
many great errors : firft, crofling all or moft of the
planet's patlis, thev m ly come tiearv-r to one or other
of tl'em than any of the planets do to each other,
and be more aSecl'-d by th- ir m lual attraction ;
efpccialiy if near Jupiter ->v baturn, the greatnefs of
which bodies, weaker pc^wer of the fun, ilmvnefs
of their m Jii.m, and conf^queiu long continuance
near on.- another, and diredion of the comet's path
nearly ii> • nrd the fun, all join to make the altera-
tion of its orbit more fenfible : 2dly, a fniall change
of aiii.;,le will make little difference in a planet's
Orbit, which is always nearly perpendicular to the
jun; but when a comet's path makes only five or
ten degrees angle with a line from the fun, a little
variation will bear a greater proportion to that fm.ill
angle, than to 90 degrees : 3dly, as a comet's greateft
diftance is many times its leaft, if by a planet's at-
tradUon the perhelion is altered but a few miles, that
may be greatly multiplied in the aphelion; and if
the angle at firft is c!ianged but one minute, it may
make a great alteration of length, in running four
times as far as Saturn, and back again : 4thly, there
is but little difference in the velocity of a body,
going round the fun in one or two hundred ycafs,
and of one keeping a perfedl parabola ; fmall there-
fore muft be the difference of one revolving in 75
or 76 years, efpccialiy if the fame power, which in-
crcafes its velo..ity, fhould make its perihL'lion diftantc
grejter. Now the comet of 1682, in its defcent
tnward the fun, may be near Mars, but that being
fmall will hardly affe£l it much ; again, in going
from the fun, it may pafs near Venus, a little be-
fore it gets to the dcfcending node, and luar the earth
a Iit:le after it : if then one or more of thcfe planets
fliould be in that part of their orbit when the comet
paffes by, they may make fome change in its mo-
tion. 1 he comet of 1680 is very liable to altera-
tion, as in its defcent it may pafs not remote from
any of the p'anets, extreinely near the earth, and
but a little wav from Venus ; its motion alfo bcinc
all the time almoft diredily towaid the fun, and its
perilulion drftance fo very fmall, a little change
in its motion might make a very great one in iis
orbit.
The method Sir Ifaac Newton gives, in his
Principia, is from three obfervations of a comet, at
proper intervals, to find its real ttajedory ; and
31
COM
Book III. Prop. 4t, he has explained In order the
fcveral proceffes, dcfigned chiefly for conftrudlion,
which was the way he ufed in his example of the
comet of 1680. This operofe problem Dr. David
Gregory has more fully explained and dcmonftrated,
in the fifth book of his aftronomy : it may alfo be
reduced to triangles, and calculated by numbers,
which is much more accurate than conftrudion by
lines ; and though conlilting ol about an hundred
triangles. Dr. Hallcy undertook it for 24 comets,
as others have fince for 20 more ; and fome of them,
by greater care or nicer obfervations to a very great
degree of exaiSincfs. Yet as a complcat lift of the
triangles ufed, and feveral cautions neceffary in prac-
tice, are not publiihed, I have chofen to fet them
down here, not generally repeating the demonftra-
tions, which Sir Ifaac Newton and Dr. (jyeg(;ry
have already done, but fuppofing one of ihofe books
at hand, to add fome obfervations for preventing
miftakcs, and fhewing how it may be reduced to
triangles : the lettcis here ufed are the fame as iii
Sir Ifaac Newton, except fome few which he had
not, and are generally thofe which Dr. Grcg/iry
ules.
He then who would calculate a comet's orbit by
triangles, fhould firft conftruiSl it as true as may be
by lines ; for as the method is approximation, it is
to no purpofe to calculate nicely, while the point
tried is much wrong, as (he firft gucfs will moft
likely be ; and as the accuracy depends on havinir,
in Jig. 2.) B near //, (fee Greg. V. 18, 19.) he
cannot at fiilf cbufe fuch obfeivatioiis as will make it
fo. Firft therefore, out of a fet of obft.rvations on
a comet, chufc three fo that you gefs that interval of
time when the comet was neareft the fun is tlie
ftiortell, but no great nicety is required this firft
time. On a large flieet of paftcboard, draw a circle
ten inches radius for the magma orhh ; mark the
points the earth was in at the three times of obforva-
tion, and call them T, t, and t, (fee Z?^. i) ; from
thefe dr.iw the three obferved longitudes of the comer,
T A, / B, and t C : on / B take any point B, let V
be the interfeftion of S/ and T t, and 7 the place
the comet was in perpendicularly over B ; make
S 7 5 ; S B X 1^ * : : / V : B K, which fet off f)n
the line SB: through E (Newton's Primip HI.
lemma 7.) draw AC cutting T A and - C, {o that
A E : E C as the time between the firft and fecond
obfervations, to the time between the fecond and
third. A and C are near enough for the firft tiidi,
the curtate places of the comet in its orbit. To
try how true they are, let T A be to the perpendi-
cular A M, as r.idius to the tangent of the coinet's
apparent latitude the fiifl linie, and tC : CN :: R :
tang, of apparent latitude the lalt time, and diaw
MN the chord of the parabolick arc M 7N, along
which the comet moved, while the projecition of the
points on the ecliptick are A, B, C : then fay
ii B : S V : : S B -}- ] B E to a fourth number nearly
7 R equal
COM
equal to (S R, fee Greg. V. 20.) the diftance from
the fun at which a comet would move the chord
M N, in the fame time as it really did go the arc
M y N : let X be the length run by a comet at the
earth's mean diftance from the fun, in the time be-
tween the firfi: and third obfervations (Newton's
Prin. III. 40.) then v' S R : ^Z radius : : X : M P,
beincr the length a comet would go in the fame time
at th^e height S R. If M N be equal to M P, the
point B was taken right ; but if very difFcreiit, as
may eafily be this firft time, take a new point b,
find ac, and try till MN is nearly equal to M P.
Being now near the matter, we muft be more
exaa": bifeS the tru^ft A C in I, (ieeXe- 2.) ereft
a perpendicular I / =: Bi, draw S /, and ere£t > ,« :
if u falls on or near B, the obfeivations are rightly
chofen ; if not, take one or more new obfervations,
to make B as near as pollible to (/,, and rather be-
tween i ar^d /* than otherwife, (Greg. V. 18, 19.)
The circle drawn for the magnus orbh will do
again, as will T, / and t, if carefully drawn as to
an^leand diftance, and the fame obfervations are ftill
ufed ; as alfo the three longitudes T A, / B, and
T C Setoff/ B as near as now known, draw AC
as before, bife£f in I, ereiSt the perpendicular I ; =
Bi, ( fee fig. 2.) complete the re<Slangle I /' A/*, and
(A\i nearly the vertex of the parabolic arc A B C ;
(Greg. V. ig. coroll.) but may be further corredted
thus. Produce \ jj. X.o ri, fo that /x tj 1= l I ^a ;
through S drawn 1=3 S n, in the line B | take a
new point E', and if the former lengrh B E is not
true ejiough, which vet it will generally be for con-
ftruflli)p,a truer length for BE' ma) |be foui d as direift-
ed prefcntly for calculation, thus : a fidereal year is to
the time between the firft and third obfjrvations, as
the ciicumference of a circle to the length of the
mean arc the earth moves in that time ; the fquare
of half that arc divided by twice the radius, is the
fall of the eaith in half the time : this, if now done
;>ccuratelv, need not be repeated in N°. 7 of the cal-
culation : then S B : S y : : S B -f- i I /x : S L and
S L^ : R» X S B -I- 4 1 /^ : : the fall of the earth :
BE' the fall of the commet. Through E' draw A'
C, and form the rcitangle V i' >.' /*', ^' is the ver-
tex of the parabolick arc, (Greg. V, 19. coroll ) and
B ^ divides the chord very nearly in proportion to
the times (V. 18.) It remains then to try whether
the point B was gueffed right : fay then S B : S 7 : :
S /.o' +4 IV' : S R, and as above find M N and
I\l P : if they are not equal, draw G P parallel to
C N, then is C G the error ; take a new length / b^
and repeat the procefs to find a new mn and w/>,
and error eg. The two figures 3, which are the
fmall part YCG of /^. I. and 2, fhevv the two
i.afts of this correftioii, when C and c are on the
lame or oppofite fides of z; where a line dcav-fn
through G and g the two points of error will cut
Y C, that is in ihe point the comet was really over,
>\h«.nj by a wrong guefs at the length / B and tb^
COM
it came out C and c; and fetting ofFA'F and af
equal to C G and c' g^ the true point x may be in
like manner found. We may now either proceed
to calculate the orbit arithmetically, from the length
of r B now very nearly known, or find the elements
of the orbit by conftruiHion thus ; (fee fig. 4.) two
points of a parabola m and ;;, perpendicularly over
the curtate places x and z, with the focus the fun,
determine the whole curve : draw then x z, and
ereft two perpendiculars x ?n and z n, the tangents
of the comet's latitude at the firft and third obferva-
tions, T *• and TZ being the radii; S S drawn
through the fun and the interfeflion of a-z and mn,
is the pofition of the comet's node, z p a perpendi-
cular let fall from 2 on S S , is to z « the tangent of
its latitude, as radius, to tangent of the inclination
of the orbit. Produce the perpendiculars x a and zp
to OT and n, as cofine of inclination to radius, which
will be in thatpofition to each other, the fun and line
of nodes, as the comet was in its orbit at the firft
and third obfervations; on m and n (Jig. 5) with
radius Sot and Sn draw two circles; a tangent to
both circles may be drawn by the eye, or thus, bifeit
m n, draw a circle on that center paffing through
m and n, and fet of wm := «y = S« — S m, which
produce to Jand « ; wa J being parallel to m 7, which
is perpendicular to both radii mn and « J, touches
both circles, and S 57 a perpendicular on it from S,
is double rhe perihelion diliance : (De la Hire's plain
conicks.) Wherefore P, the bifedtion of S 57, is the
vertez of the parabola or perihelion point, whofe
pofition is determined by the angle h S P or wSPj
as is the time the comet was tiicie, becaufe the para-
bolick fpace n S m, is to the parabolick fpace m SP,
as the time between the obfervations, to the time
between the peiihelion and fiift obfervation.
Thus are the elements of a comet's orbit found
by conftru6\ion ; but if e.xactnefs is required, lines
will not do it, but the procefs niuft be reduced to
trianglcF, and calculated by numbers. And firft
fee that the obfervations aie good, or elfe be content
with conftrudlion, for it is to little purpofe to calcu-
late nicely by uncertain data. Next try whethtr
the times ^re rightly chofen, by the directions al-
ready given, (It-e page 7.) and, for further accu-
racy, be not content with the earth's places as found
by the tables of the fun, but corredt them by the
menftrual parallax. The weight of the earth being
to that of the moon as 39 788 to i, the diftance of
the moon, is to the diftance of the common centec
of gravity, as 40.788 to I. (Newton Princ. III. 37.
cor. 4 and 6.) Iny%. 6. E is the earth, and M the
moon, revolving round C their common center of
gravity which moves .eg'.ilarly along the jnagnus orlii
A CB rounJ the fun S ; then at any time the fine of
the moon's horizontal parallax, is to the fine of the
fun's parallax divide. i by 40.788, as S C to C E. In
the tiiangle S C L, given S C, C E and S C E, then •
I C S E IS the rtqi-.ied corrcdlion of the fun's place,
' and
C O M
and S E the real diftance of the earth from the fun.
This triangle however need not he folved, the tables
IV. and V. giving the required corrc£lion in angle,
and the length of the line E D, toT)e added to or
fubflraiSled from S C, the diflance of the fun as found
by the common tables. As the moon has fometimes
above five degrees of latitude, and therefore the earth
is not abfolutelv in the plain of the ecliptic, for per-
fect exaiffnefs that (liould be allowed for ; buc as the
whole menflrual parallax is very fmall, this, which
is but a fmall pait of it, may I fuppofe be lately
COM
negle(5tcJ. Laflly, before calculating, draw a fet
of figures fuited to the particular cafe, for no general
rule can be given where to add and where fubf}ra(5l ;
the cafe I have drawn, and fuited the plus and minus
to, is the comet of J742; and another fet of figures
Will {hew, whether to add or fubftradf in that cafe.
Thus prepared, the following is a lift of the triangles
required, what is given and what is fought, for fix-
ing the due length of the lines, which determine the
comet's trajedtory.
No.
Trian.
STt
TYt
StB
(B y
SBy
DSt
AHY
ACH
BE^
SEI
SI /■
I/x
SI^
SI,
SB ^
BDD
I Given.
ST, St, and T S t
rTand-rTY(N». i) and T Y t
/ B (a guefs) S / and S / B
y perpendicularly over B
SB (N°. 3}By (No. 4).SB7=:(90°)
SB:Sy::SB+'Au
365.256:11 4- W: :2 Rx 3.14159
8
9
10
t]
12
>3
^5
16
I
i8
19
20
21
22
23
24
25SE'B I
SL» : R» xSB-|--;-l^::s'^^
St, STDandDST(N<". 3)
W : U + W : : D E
A H (N'. 10) A Y H and A H Y (N'.g)
U:U + W::HD
A H, HCandAHC
U + W : U : : A C
BE(N°.8)BiE(=:9o'')BEi(=SDT— ACH)
SE(=:SB-BE)1E(=;AC-AE)SE1(N°i5)
SI, I;'{N» 15) and SI/
I;', i;x(N°. 17) /I A (=90")
S I (N°. 16) I ^ and S I ^ (= SIE + I X /
SI, IkCN 18) and Sin
SB, Sland BS|
BDD'(N«.9)DBD'(=SB|) BD(=SD-SB)
S B:S7::S/x + tI^
SB, BE'andSBE' (N°. 21)
Repeat 10 — 19 to A' C, SI', I' i^' and S /
Sought.
S T T, S T 7\
[and T T
TYandTY
/S Bands B
R : tang. ap.
[Lat.::/B:B7
6y
:SL
:BE
S D and t D
:DQ.
AYandHY
:HC
ACH, CAH
[and AC
:AE
Bb=li
S I E and S I
3/1
S^
» S I and S n
Remarks.
STt— STYihtTY.
[StT— St Y = TiY
See fig. 1.
rST4-/SB=DST
[tion
f /J. taken from the lafl Conllruc-
X^ 1^'
2R
i ^. GiTg. I. 25.
[cor. 1.
SB|
BD'andDD'
SL
BE'
SE' and BSE'
SEr+BE — SB = DE
A H equal and parallel to
[DQ^
tD + HY — tY = HD
A Y C + A C H -f Y A C =
[180*
See fig. 2. .
SIE-1-90« = &I/
IftXi-5=I»
2S>, = S|-,iSI — ISE=rSEl
[theSuppl. ofBSi?
Greg. V. 18.
Greg. V. 2r.
B D' + B E' =: D' E-
(11)27 A'H'Y = BD'D(N*. 22)
(ic) -11 BE' b' (No. 22 and 29)
(16)32 SE'(N .2s)SE'l' = Suppr. BE^i'
36 S ,«' : S |ix -j- -i r //
3V S B : 7 : : S f
38 TA'M R : tang. Lat. : : T A
30 !- C N R : tans;. Lat. : : t C
4H;v1K N MK:f=A'C')KN(=C'N-A'rvrMKN (90")
4,i[ vSR(N.37).:i/R::xvl'«(N°7).
+SBI+BSE'
:S,^
: S R
:A'M
:C'N
MN
:MP
tD + H'Y — tY — DD' ==
[H' D<
Greg. I. 42. and V. 2a.
m
COM
COM
If M N =: M P, M and N are two true points In the comet's orbit, proceed therefore to N». 89; and
thence find the elements ; but if not equal, take a new point b, fo that
, y ■/ ,5 i : : Y # ; Y /, and repeat the whole procefs, except N*. i, 2, and 7.
N«.
Trian.
80
8
8
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
9^
^3
9+
95
96
.-97
98
99
/' g
T x-m
t z n
ST„v
S TZ
Sz a
S zp
n %f
S X VI
S 2 n
r mn
'S mn
m ny
100 S« a
roi
102'
Sn9
Sought.'
: C G =:A' F
■.c g — d f
c p and p g
; z «
Y z *■ and *■ z
r S jr and S x
TZ S and S z
:z £3
z S a and S c,
: tang. Z/; «
i n
'i nm and « S ;
m n y
Sfl
Remarks.
^g- 3-
See fi;
YC— Yr4-^
T C — G' z = T z
TA'— A'* = T;«'
^=C>
1 2 JC
N. B. The
manner that w
Given.
MN:NP:: A'C-
ffi re : n /> : : a' f'
/^,./)^(=A'C'H'N^29)?/^(N'.67)
Q:G±Pg:^'p::(Z'g
In like manner find A' jt
R : tang. Lat. : : Ta
R : tang. Lat. : : t z
Y.V (=Ta- — TY) Yzand*-Yz
3 T, T *• and S T r j
S T, T z and S t z i
(z« — xm-=i) rnxr m:: %n
S z (N°. 90) z 8 and S z S? (N°. 90)
S z, z S p and S f z (= 90'')
z ^, z « and « z ^ (=; 90") z p : z « : : R
S A-, jr « and S a-w (=1 9O')
S z, %n and S z ?: (=: 90°)
m (N'.88)r« {^°<^\)tnrn (= 90°)
S m, S « and m n
mn, n y n (== S« — ^ fti) m y n i^-zz 90')
S «, S «3 (N°. 92) S « S3
S^,'hS5, andSfi«( = 90°)
i. Parabolic fpace PS » — P S w, is to P S «, as time between the obfervations J Time of
to the time between the perihelion and firft obfervation. J Perihelion
parabolic fpace may be either taken out of the table of the parabola, or calculated in the fame.
as done.
zS_Yz*r:
dee fig. 4.
rSz — zSQ=:TSa. Place
[of the node.
Inclination of the orbit.
See fig. 5.
1 80° — '^nm — w«y=z»SP
£trom Node.
tSP— «Sa=PSa. Perihelion
— =SP. Pcrihel. diftance.
N". 7. I call the time between the firft and fecond
obfervations U, and that between the fecond and
third W. Then a fidereal year is to the whole time,
as the cirrumfefeiice C»f the circle to the arc moved
in that time: and the fquare of half that arc, di-
vided by twice the radius, is the earth's fall toward
the fun in half the time.
N^. 6, 7, 8. I find B E this way rather than
Sir Ifaac Newton's, which is only an approximation,
and ineguiarly too great or too fmall, as the times
are more or lefs unequally divided, and T^rinthe
more or lefs curved parts of the earth's orbit. But
this way, if found as in N°. 23, 24 would be true;
and S;a being not yet known, I ufe S B for it, which
is nearly the fame: nor is I ij. yet found, but as the
comet has been already conltruiled, it is there given
near enough for this procefs.
N°. 20. Since, by Greg. V. 18, the right line
«S|=3 Sm is the truth, full as cafy, and, requir-
ing no taking out natural numbers, is lefs liable to
error, I wonder Sir Ifaac chofe to approximate it by
the point (T, and cr^=:3S<r-|-3'^> (See his fig,
Book III. Prop. 41.)
N". 23, Z4. In Greg. V. 21, the comet's fall at
at the height S L is M V = V Z, (fee his fig.) Now
B and y. nearly Coinciding, by fimilar triangles S B :
S7 (N°. 5) :: S/ (=S^ + 4 V): SL.^ Again,
S L» : R» : : f ^^ (the earth's mean fall) : the fall 2t
the point L. Greg. I. 42. And by fimilar trianglts
S L : S^ + 4 1^ : : the fall at L : B E ; then S L^ :
R*X S^4- ; 1/x :: K-\' ■ BE. This is the true
length of ,14 Z or B E ; and feldom fenfibly different
from B E', which yet being more perpendicular to
AC, is a little fhorter ; and if B E is fo long
and fo oblique to A C, that the very fmall angle
E B E' will fenfibly alter its length, then the fine of
B E' i : fine of B E Z" : : B E : B E'may be fome.hing
truer.
N'. 36. The third proportional to S |U -f- 4 1 1«»
whicli is the truth, fee Greg. V. 20, is eafier fouiid
in Logarithms than S ,« -}- 4 I ^u.
N°. 37. It is here fit to fhew caufe for this confi-
derable variation from Sir Ifaac Newton. Greg. V.
20, fhews thnt a body at the height S R (fee his
fig.) would move the chord A B, while the comet
really moved the arc A V B. Now /*, / and p, in
4 fig-
COM
COM
fig. 2, are the projeflion on the plain of the eclli)-
tic of his V, Land R : then S R, the hypothcnufe
of the right angled triangle S pR, is Gregory's
line, S R, and therefore the length foujht. Sir
Ifaac's I D = S ft -j- Y / a is nearly the fame as S ^ j
but is I O, being the comet's mean height above
the ecliptic, may if the time is unequally di\idcd,
and the inclination of the comet great, confiderably
differ from the height fought at S f , which is in Sft
produced: therefoie, as in No. 23, S B ; Sy : : Sf :
S R, by fimilar triangles.
N°. 3^,39. M and N beinj; the points the comet
■was really in, perpendicular over A' and C, T A'
curtate difiance, is to A' M the height, as radius to
tang, of the apparent latitude at the firft obferva-
tion. The like of C'N.
N°. 41. The reafon of this double proportion is
this : M N, and of courfe A' C and the perpendi-
cular Ye, is too large in the proportion of M N to
MP; but MP will increafe or diminifli, as^Sy'
is lefs or greater than y/ S y. Greg. I. 27. This
however is very hard to find, and only an approxi-
mation atlaft. An eafier and as good a way is, to
compare the error of the la(t conltru(3ion with the
error now found by calculation : thus N P — N P
the difference of the errors, is to / B — / B the
difference of the guefles, as N P the prefent error,
to the required corrediion of t B.
N°. 80. 8 1. Sir Ifaac Newton takes C G = N P ;
hut as the corre£lion is in the plain of A C, not of
M N, I make G the prnjeflion of P, as C is of N.
And if C G is not parallel to eg (fig. 3.) or C f
bears not the fame proportion to t C, as A n to TA,
it may make feme difference in the places of a- and z,
though feldom much.
N°. 80, 8i, 82, 84, are not wanted if A C is
parallel to 17 c ; for then 83 and 85 will be,
NP+n/>: ^P::Aa:Ax::Cc:Cz.
Sir Ifaac Newton in his next propofition, and
Dr. Gregory V. 31, (hew how, by the rule of falfe,
to correct ftill further the comet's orbit as above
found : but that I have here omitted, as hoping and
expefling that the dirediions I have given, being
contrived to avoid all error as much as poffible, will
give the orbit true enough without that laborious
correftion, which I can hardly think is much lefs
trouble than the calculation of the orbit icfelf. The
changing the comet's parabolick oibit in;o its real
elliptical one, by this correiTuon, thereby todifcover
its period, can doubt be at befl but imperfeflly
done, from the fmall part of the orbit we can fee,
e'pecially if fo true a parabola as the comet of
1744 had: and unlefs we fee a comet for a very
long time, we muft be content to wait for that
more certain, though tedious difcovery, the return-
ing after another period. If any one however, de-
firous of the utmoft exaiSlnefs, chufes to under-
take this lail corredion, Sir Ifaac Newton and
Dr. Giegory have both e plained and (hewn tlie
32
ufe of it. (Sec rlate facing the article Comf.t.)
Barker en Comets.
C(j^1ETARIU^'l, a cuiious machine to fliew
the revolution of a comet about the Am.
Dr. Dclagulitr was the fiift who dcflribcd it under
the charaiSler of a planttarium ; and by it repre-
fented the motion of the planet Mercury : but fince
him, it has been defcribcd under the charailer of a
cometarium by Mr. Fergiifon, Mr. Martin, and
feveral others in their mechanical ledures, being
much more adapted to reprefent the motion of a
comet, than a planet ; becaufe none of the planets
defcribe orbits fenfibly elliptical ; whereas thole of
the cometb are very much fo.
Welhall here give the reprefentation of a come-
tarium (as in Plate XXXVI. /^. i.) adapted to
the motion or theory of the comet of the year
1682, whofe period is 75! years.
The conffrudion of the parts of this machine
with the rationale is as follows, taken from p. 142.
of Mr. Martin's ledures. When the lid is taken
ofF the box, the internal parts appear as in
Plate XXXVI. 7%. 2. NO and Q_r are two
elliptic wheels turning each other about the foci I
and S, by means of a cat-gut firing in a groove on
their edges, crofli.ig at K. Thefe oval wheels are
fixed on arbors or axes, which pal's through the
fame focus S and I in each ; the oval N U is moved
by the circular wheel I, fixed alfo upon the fame
axes, but above it upon the bar or long piece G V j
which wheel is itfelf moved by another equal wheel'
G, and that by an endlefs Icrew turned by a winch
on the outfide of the box, all which is evident in
the figure.
The perimeter of the oval Q_T, where it touches
that of NO, will have a velocity always propor-
tional to the diiiance fromi ; that is, in the points
K, 4, 3, 2, I, &c. The velocities will be as the
lines I K, I 4, I 3, I 2, I I, &c. which we con!i-
der as levers ading upon and moving the oval Q_T
in thofe points. "Now it the ovals are fuch that
I K, is to S V, or I K, to I r, as 6 to i, then will
the point K have fix times the velocity turned by
the lever 1 K, as the point V will have when it has
made \ a revolution, or is come under the point S,
where it is turned by the lever I s, than in the fitua-
tion IS.
If we take S PrzS K = Ix, and upon the point
r, S, s, as foci, dtfcribe the ellipfis P L I M, that
will reprefent the orbit of the comet, or the figure
of the groove on the lid of the box, in which a
round brafs ball, reprefenting the comer, is made to
Hide along on a piece of wire, called the ladius
ve£tor, fixed at one end into the top of the arbor at
S, where we fuppofe the fun to be, and is accord-
ingly reprefented by a filver plate at top.
The place of the comet at P is called the perihe-
lion, as being there neareft the fun ; as I is its
aphelion or point of greateft dillaiice. Since
7 S
Si^
COM
SPnSK, the velocity of the comet v.'Ul be in 1
the point F equal to ihat of the point K ; and were
the corrjCt's aphelion at i, it-^ v-loticy then would
be equal to that of the point V, when under .t, viz.
fix times lefs than before; but fmce the comet's
a;helion is at I, apri finte the greater arch dtfcribed
ill the fame time muft have a greater velocity, the
vel city of the comet at I will be about ^ of that
at P.
If the ellipfis ©n ihe Ld of the box be divided
into ^00 parts, to flievv the anomaly of the comet,
and about the axis of the wheel G be placed a circle
t F, divided into equal p..rts, reprefenting the years
or period of the comet, with a proper index point-
insi to thefe uivifions, the inftrujiient will flievv the
firveial particulars relating to the theory of elliptic
motions, whether of a planet or comet.
COME-UP, in the marine, the order to flacken
or caft-ofi" any rope which had been drawn tight on
Tome particular occafion ; as, come-up the cap-
Aern, /. e flacken the rope on the capflern ; come-
up the cat, /. e. flacken the cat-fall. See the article
Capstern and Cat.
CO At RY, Symphytum, in botany. See the ar-
ticle Symphytum.
COi\4ING-TO, or Coming-to an Jm-hsr, in
the marine, the fame with letting the anchor go, to
faflen thefliip in a road, bay or harbour.
COiVHTIA, in Roman antiquity, anafiemblyof
the people, either in the ccmitium or campus-
martius, for the cle>Stion of magiflrates, or con-
iultinson the important affairs of the republic.
CcJMITIUM, in Roman antiquity, a large hall
in the forum, where the comitia were ordinarily
held.
COMMA, among grammarians, a point or
charader marked thus (,) ferving to denote a ihort
flop, and to divide the members of a period.
Comma, in mufic, an interval equal to the dif-
ference of the tone major and minor, and exprelTed
by the ratio 8i : 8o. See the articles Interval
and Tone.
COMMAND, in the royal navy, implies the
rank and power of an officer who has the manage-
ment of a fliip of war under twenty guns, called a
floop, alfo that of an armed {hip or bomb veflel,
whence
COMMANDER is an officer who governs a
floop cf war, armed fliip, or bomb-ketch, and who
has the rank of a major in the army.
COMMANDING Ground, in the military
art, an eminence overlooking any port: or ftrong
A commanding ground is of three kinds : lirft a
front ground, bein^ an height, oppofite to the face
of fome poft, which plays upon its front. Secondly,
a rfverfe ground, being an eminence that can play
upon the back of any poft. Thirdly, an enfilade
cominaiiding ground, being an eminence that, with
C O M
its fhot, can fcour all the length of a flralght
line.
COMMANDMENT, in a legal fenfc, is ufed
vatioufly: fcmetimes it is taken for the command-
ment of the king ; as when, upon his own motion,
and from his own mouth, he orders any perfon to
prifon. Sometimes it is ufed for the commandment
of the juflices : this commandment is either ab-
folute, or ordinary : abloiute is when ajuftice com-
mits a peifon to prifon for contempt, &c. upon his
owi authority, m a piiiii!hiTient: ordinary is where a
jufiice commits a perfon rather for fafe cuftody than
for punifhment ; the perfon thus committed by ordi-
nary commandment is bailable, In another fenfe of
the word, magiftrates may command others to af-
fifl them in the execution of their offices, in order
to keep the king's peace, &c.
Commandment is likewife ufed for the offence
(if a perfon that wills vr orders another to do fome
unlawful i£i, as theft, murder, or the like. To
comn^and any one to commit burglary, is felony
excluded clergy ; and he who commands the doing
any adl that is unlawful, is accefl'ary to it and all the
confequences thereof, if executed in the fame man-
ner as commanded ; though not where it varies, or
where the commander revokes the command. la
trefpall'es, &c. a mafter fhali be charged with the
aiSls of his fervant done by his command : however,
fervants (hall not be excufed for committing any
crime when they ai£l by command of their mafters,
who have no fuch power over them as to enforce
fuch commandments. The commands of infants
or femme-coverts are void.
COMMANDRY, a fort of benefice, or certain
revenue, belonging to a military order, and con-
ferred on ancient knights, who had done fervices to
the order, as the commandries of Malta.
COMMELINA, in botany, a genus of plants
whofe corolla confifts of fix petals, the exterior
three of which are fmall, oval, and concave, of the
dimeniions of the perianthium: the three interior
and alternate petals are l^rge, roundifh, and co-
loured ; containing three fubulated reclining fila-
ments, terminated with ovated antherje.
The fruit is a naked roundifh capfule, with three
cells, and divitled by three valves, and contains two
angulated feeds.
COMMENDAM, in the eccl^fiaftical law, the
truft or adminiflration of the revenues of a benefice,
given either to a layman, to hold, by way of depo-
iitum, for fix month?, in order to repair, Sic. or
to an ecclefiallic, or beneficed perfon, to perform
the pafloral duties thereof, till once the benefice is
provided with a regular incumbent.
COMMEN^SURABLE Quantities, in geo-
metry, are fuch as have feme common aliquot part,
or which may be mealured by fome common mea-
' fure, fo as to leave no remainder in either. Thus a
foot and a yard are commenfurable, there being a
thiid
COM
tliird quantity which will meafure each, as an inch
taken twelve tiinci makes a toot, and thirty-fix times
a yaid.
CoMMENsuRABLES are to each other either as
units to a raiional whole number, or as one rational
whole number to another.
Commensurable Numbers, whether integers
or fradlioiis, are I'uch as have fome other number
which will meafure or divide them wiihoutany re-
maindtr; thus, 6 and i, *j, and J, are rel'pec-
tively commenfurable numbers.
CoMMENsuRAiiLE in Povici\is when thefquares
of right lines are meafured by one and the fame
fpace, or fupcrficies.
Commensurable Surds, are fuch furds, as
being reduced to their leaft terms, become true
figurative quantiiies of their kind, and are there-
fore as a rational quantity to a rational.
COMMENTARY, or Comment, in matters
of literature, an illuflration of the difficult or ob-
fcure pafl'ages of an author.
Commentary, or Commentaries, likewife
denotes a kind of hiftory or memoirs of certain
tranfatilions, wherein the authoi" had a confiderable
hand : fuch are the Commentaries of Casfar.
COMMERCE, a term ufed for the buying, fell-
ing, or bartering of all manner of commodities, in
order to profit by the fame.
COMMINUTION, denotes the breaking, or
rather grinding, a body into very fmall particles.
COMMISSARY, in the eccleliaflical law, an
officer of the bifhop, who exercifes fpijitual jurif-
diclion in places of a diocefe fo far from the epifco-
pal fee, that the chancellor cannot call the people
to the bifhop's principal confiffory court, without
giving them too much inconveniency.
Commissary, in a military fenfe, is of three
forts.
Commissary General cf the Alujlers, an officer
appointed to muffer the army as otten as the gene-
ral thinks proper, in order to know the flrength of
each regiment and company, to receive and infpefl
the mufler-rolls, and to keep an exadl Hate of the
ftrength of the army.
CoMMiss.\RY General of Stores, an officer in
the artillery, who has the charge of all the ffores,
for which he is accountable to the office of ord-
nance.
Commissary Gnural of Provi/ions, an officer
who has the infpedion of the bread and provifions
of the army.
Commissary of a Ship of TFar, the fame with
purfer. See the article I'urser.
COMMISSION, in common law, the warrant
or letters patent which all perfons, exerciilng juril-
diclion, have to empower them to hear or deter-
mine any caufe or fuit ; as the commiffion of the
judges, &c.
COM
COMMISSIONER, a perfon authorized by
comniilhon, letters-patent, or other lawful warrant,
to examine any matters, or execute any public of-
fice, he.
COMMISSIONERS of the Navy, certain offi-
cers appointed to fuperintend the marine under the
diredlion of the lord-high-admiral, or lords connnif-
fioners of the admiralty.
The duty of thcfe officers does not extend to the
internal government of fhips in commi^ion either
at fea or in port, as they are iiuelled with no mili-
tary command, but is more injmcdiately concerned
in the building, docking, repairing, chaning, &c.
of fhips in the dock- yards. They have alio the
appointment of fome of the warrant-officers, as
niaffers and furgeons of fhips.
The principal officers and commiffioners refi 'ing
at the board are, i. 1 he comptroller. 2. Two
furveyors who are fhipwrights. 3. Clerk of the
adfs. 4. Comptroller of the treafurer's accounts.
5. Comptroller of vidtualling accounts. 6 Comp-
troller of the ffore -keeper's accounts. 7. An cxtr.i-
commiffioner.
Befides thefe there are three refident-commiflion-
ers who manage the affairs of the dock-yards of
Chatham, Portfmouth and Plymouth; foran account
of whofe duty fee the article Dock-Yard.
CoMMissiONER'^yir viiSiiialling the Navy, cer-
tain officers appointed to contract for, and furnifh
the king's (hips, or fleets with provifions of all fpe-
cies. See the article Victuallikg-Offcice.
COMMISSURE, inarchiteflure, &c the joint
of two ftones, or the application of the fide of one
to that of the other.
COMMITMENT, in law, the fending of a
perfon charged with fome crime, to prifon, by
warrant, or order.
COMMITTEE, one or more perfons to whom
the confidcration or ordering of a matter is referred,
either by fome court, or by the confent of parties,
to whom it belonss
CotviMiTTEE of Parliament, a certain number
of members appointed by the houfe for the exami-
nation of a bill, miking report of an inquiry, pro-
cefs of the houfe, &c.
COiMMODITY, in a general fenfc, denotes all
forts of wares and merchandifes whatfoever, that a
perfon deals or trades in.
StiipU CoMMODiTits, fuch wares and mer-
chandifes as are commonly and readily fold in a
market, or exported abroad ; being, for the molt
part, the proper produce or manufaiiture of the
country.
COMMODORE, a general officer of the ma-
rine, inveited with the command of a detachment
of fhips of war on any particular enterpnze, during
which time he bears the rank of brigadier general in
;he army,i.nd is dilUnguiflitd trom the inferior fhips
of
COM
of his fquadron, by a broad red pendant tapering \
to the outer end, and forked.
Commodore is alfo a name given to fome fe-
hd ihip in a fleet of merchantmen, who leads the
van in time of war, and carries a light aloft to con-
6u£i and keep together the refl:.
COMMON, fomething that belongs to all alike,
in contradiftiniElion to proper, peculiar, &c. Thus
the earth is faid to be cur common mother.
Common Divisor, is a quantity or number
which e.xadly divides two or more quantities with-
out leaving any remainder.
Common, in geometry, is applied to an angle
line, or the like, which belongs equally to two fi-
gures.
Common Law, that body of rules received as
law in England, before any flatute was enacted in
parliament to alter the fame.
Common-Place Book, Ja'verfarla, among the
learned, denotes a regirter of what things occur
worthy lo be noted in the courfe of a man's fludy,
to difpofed, as that among a number of fubjedts,
any one may be eafily found.
Common-Pleas is one of the king's courts
nowheld conftdntly in Weftminfter-hall, but an-
ciently was moveable.
Common, inlaw, that foil, the ufe of which
is common to this or that town or lordlhip.
Common Prayer is the liturgy in the church
of England.
CcMMoN, in grammar, denotes the gender of
nouns which are equally applicable to both fexes :
thus parens, a parent, is of the common gender.
Common, in geometry, is applied to an angle,
line, or the like, which belongs equally to two
liguies.
COMMONS, or Houfe of Commons, adeno-
minaiion given to the lower houfe of pailiament.
See Parliament.
Commons, or Commonalty, likewife figni-
fies the whole body of the people under the degree
of a baron, whether knights, gentlemen, burgeffes,
yeomen, &c.
COMMONWEALTH, the fame with repub-
lic, ^ee the article Republic.
COMMOTION, an inteftine motion in the
parts of any thing.
COMMUNICATION, in a general fenfe, the
aft of imparting fomething to another.
Communication is alfo ufed for the connec-
tion of one thing with another, or the pafTage from
one place to a-other : thus a gallery is a communi-
cation between tv.o apartments.
Communication of Idioms, in theology, the
a£t of imparting the attributes of one of the na-
tures in jefus to the other.
Communication of Motion, in philofophy, is
the action of a moving body, whereby a body at
C OM
reft is put in motion, or a body already in motion
is accelerated.
Before we proceed to explain the laws, by which
bodies communicate their motion from one to ano-
ther, it is very necefTary to make a diftin£tion be-
tween motion and velocity : which ought to be
well obferved, and is as follows.
By the motion of a body (fometimes called its
quantity of motion, fometimes its momentum) is
not to be underftood the velocity only, with
which the body moves; but the fum of the mo-
tion of all its parts taken together: confequently
the more matter any body contains, the greater
will be its motion, though its velocity remains the
fame. Thus, fuppofmg two bodies, one contain-
ing ten times the quantity of matter the other does,
moving with equal velocity ; the greater body is
faid to have ten times the motion, or momentum,
that the other has : for it is evident, that a tenth
part of the larger has as much, as the other whole
body. In fhort, that quality in moving bodies,
which philofophers underftand by the term mo-
mentum or motion, is no other than what is vul-
garly called the force, which every one knows to
depend on their quantity of matter, as well as their
velocity. This is that pewer, a moving body has
to afFedt another in all actions that arife from its
motion, and is therefore a fundamental principle in
mechanics.
Now, fince this momentum, or force, depends
equally on the quantity of matter a body contains,
and on the velocity with which it moves ; the
method to determine how great it is, is to multiply
one by the other. Thus, fuppofe two bodies, the
firft having twice the quantity of matter, and thrice
the velocity which the other has ; any two num-
bers, that are to each other as two to one, will ex-
prefs their quantities of matter (it being only their
relative velocities and quantities of matter which
we need confider) and any two numbers that are
as three to one their velocities; now multiplying
the quantity of matter in the firft, viz. two by its
velocity three, the product is fix ; and multiplying
the quantity of matter in the fecond by its velocity,
viz. one by one, theprodudt if one ; their relative
forces therefore or powers will be as fix to one, or
the moment of one is fix times greater than that of
the other. Again, if their quantities of matter had
been as three to eight, and their velocities as two
to three, then would their moments have been as
fix to twenty-four, that is, as one to four.
This being rightly apprehended, what follows,
concerning the laws of the communication of mo-
tion by impulfe, and the mechanical powers, will
be eafily underftood.
L In bodies not elaflic.
Thofe bodies are faid to be not elaftic, which,
when
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frhen t^iey ftrike againft one another, do not re-
bound, but accompjny one another after impad>, as
it' they were joined. This proceeds from their re-
taininor the impreflion, made upon their furfaces,
after the imprefling force ceafes to a£l. For all re-
bounding is occafioned by a certain fpring in the
furfaces of bodies, whereby thofe parts, which re-
ceive the impreflion made by the ftrolce, immedi-
ately fpring back, and throw off the impinging
body ; now, this being wanting in bodies void of
elatticity, there follows no feparation after impaft.
When one body impinges on another which is
at reft, or moving with lels velocity the fame way,
the quantity of the motion or momentum in both
bodies taken together, remains the fame after impad
as before; for by the third law of nature, the re-
aflion of one being equal to the atStion of the other,
what one gains the other muft lolc.
Thus, fuppofe two equal bodies, one impinging
with twelve degrees of velocity on the other at reft;
the quantities of matter in the bodies being equal,
their moments and velocities are the fame ; the fum
in both twelve ; this remains the fame after impadt,
and is equally divided between them ; tliey have
therefore lix a-piece, that is, the impinging body
communicates half its velocity, and keeps half.
When two bodies impinge on each other by
meving contrary-ways, the quantity of motion
they retain after impaft, is equal to the difference of
the motion they had before; for by the third law of
nature, that which had the leatt motion, will de-
ftroy an equal quantity in the other, after which
they will move together with the remainder, that is
the difference.
Thus for inftance, let there be two equal bodies
movino- towards each other, the one with three de-
grees of velocity, the other with five, the difference
of their moments or velocities will be two ; this re-
mains the fame after impact, and is equally divided
between them, they have therefore one a-piece ;
that is, the body, which had five degrees of veloci-
ty, lofes three, or as much as the other had, com-
municates half the remainder, and keeps the other
half.
From thefe pofitions it is eafy to reduce a theo-
rem, that fhall fhew the velocity of bodies after
impadl in all cafes whatever. Let there be two bo-
dies A and B, the velocity of the firft: a, of the
other b i then the moment of A will be exprefied
by A a, and of B by B /> , therefore the fum of
both will be A a -{-B I, and A n — B b will be the
difference when ihcy meet. Now thefe quantities
remain the fame after impaft ; but knowing the
quantities of motion and quantities (if matter, v/e
have the velocity (by dividina the former by the
\M+Bb ^Aa—'Ei'
latter : therefore or will in aU
A 4- B A -4- B
cafes exprefs the velocity of the bodies after impa£t,
32
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II. In elaftic bodies.
Bodies perfeiflly elaftic, are fuch as rebound after
impaiEf, with a force equal to that with which they
impinge upon one another: thofe | arts of then- fur-
faces that receive the imprelfion, imniediaiely
fpringiiig back, and throwing (.ff tie impinging
bcdics with a force equal to tlut of im;>a£l.
From hence follows, that the action of elaflic
bodies on each other (that of the fpring being '.qual
to that of the flroke) is twice as much as the fame
in bodies void of elafficity. Therefore, w hen elaf-
tic bodies impinge on each other, the one lofes and
the other gains twice as much motion as if they had
not been elaftic ; we have therefore an eafy way of.
determining the change of motion in elaftic bodijs,
knowing firft what it would have been in the fame
circumltances had the bodies been void of elafticity.
Thus, if there be two equal and elaftic bod.es,
the one in motion with twelve degrees of velocity
impinging on the other at reft, the impinging body
will communicate twice as much velocity as if it
had not been elaftic, that is, twelve degrees, or all
it had ; confcquently it will be at reft, and the
other will move on with the whole velocity of the
former.
It fometimes happens, that in bodies not elaftic,
the one lofes more than half its velocity, in which
cafe, fuppofing them elaftic, it loofes more than all ;
that is, the excefs of what it lofes, above what it
has, is negative, or in a contrary direction : thuS,
fuppole the circumftances of impaft fuch, that a
body which has but twelve degrees of velocity lofes
fixteen; the overplus four is to be taken the contra-
ry way ; that is, the body will rebound with four
degrees of velocity, v. g. Let it be required to
determine the velocity of a body, after impafl, a-
gainft an immoveable object. Let us firft fuppofe
the obje<£l and body both void of elafticity, it is
evident the impinging body would be flopped or
lofe all its motion and communicate none ; if they
are elaftic, it muft lofe twice as much, and confc-
quently will rebound with a force equal to that of
the ftroke.
It is fufficient if only one of the bodies is elaftic,
provided the other be infinitely hard ; for then thi;
imprefTion in theelaitic body will be double of what
it would have been, had they bo.h been equally
elaftic ; and confequently ihe force with which
they rebound, will be the fame as ir the impreffion
had been equally divided between the two bodies.
There are no bodies that we knnw of, eiiher
perfeiSUy elaftic, or infinitely ha;d; the nearer
therefore any bodies approach to perfedlion of elaf-
icity,- fo much the nearer do the laws, which they
I vilerve in the mutual communication of their mo-
' tion, approach to thofe we have laid down.
Sir Ifaac Newton made trials with feveral bodies,
and found that the fame degree of elafticity always
7 T appeared
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appeared in the fame bodies with whatever force
tliey were ftruck, fo that the elaftic power in all
the bodies he made trial upon, exerted itfelf in one
conftant proportion to the comprefling force. He
found the celerity with which balls of wool, bound
up very compact, receded from each other, to hear
nearly the proportion of five to nine to the celerity
wherewith they met ; and in fteel he found nearly
the fame proportion ; in cork the elaflicity was
fomeihing l^fs, but in glafs much greater ; for the
celerity, with which balls of that material fepatated
aFter percuffion, he found to bear the proportion
of fifteen to fix leen to the celerity wherewith they met.
We have hitherto fuppofed the direftion in which
bodies impinge upon one another, to be perpendi-
cular to their furfaces : when it is not fo, the force
of impadl will be lefs, bv how much the more that
direi£lion varies from the perpendicular ; for it is
manifeft that a direfb impuife is the greateft of all
others that can be given with the fame degree of
velocity.
The force of oblique percuffion is to that of di-
reiEt, as the fine of the angle of incidence to the
radius.
Let there be a plane as AD (Plate XXXV I. fig. 3. )
agaiiift which let a body impinge in the point D in
the d:reflion B D ; which line may be fuppofed to
exprefs the force of direct impuife, and may be re-
folvrd into two others, B C and B A ; the one pa-
rallel, the other perpendicular to the plane; but
that force which is exerted in a direction parallel to
the plane can no way afFedl: it, the ftroke therefore
arifes wholly from the other force exprefTed by the
line B A, but this is to ihe line B D, as the line of
the angle of inridence A D B to the radius ; from
whence the propofition is clear.
If the furface cf the body to be flruck is a curve,
then let A D be made a tangent to D, the point of
incidence, and the demonflration will be the fame.
This is the cafe, when bodies impel one another
by a£ting upon their furfaces ; but in forces, where
the furfaces of bodies are not concerned, as in at-
traft'on, &c, we m'ift not confider the relation
which the direciion of the forte has to the furface
of the body to be moved, buttothedirpftion inwhich
it is to be moved by that force. Here the force of
adlion will be !e!s, by how much the more thefe
twodireftions vary from each other.
The force of oblique action is to that of direcS,
as the CO fine of ihe angle comprehended between
the direftion of the force, and that wherein a body
is to be moved thereby to ihe radius.
I/Ct F D {fg- 4.) reprefent a force a£lhg upon
a bi riy as D, and impelling it towards E ; but let
D M be the only way in which it is poffible for the
body tn move v the f rce F D may be r-efolved into
two others, F G and F H, or which is equal to it
G D ; but it is ev dent that only the force G D im-
pels it towards M. NoWj FD being the radius.
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GD is the co-fine of the angle FGD, comprehend-
ed between the two diredlions F£ and GM ; from
whence the propofition is clear.
My meaning in both cafes will be underftood
from the inflance of a fliip under fail. The force
by which the wind a£ts upon the fail will be lefs,
by how much the more its diredlion varies from one
that is perpendicular to its furface : but the force of
the fail to move the (hip forward, will be lefs, by
how much the more the direction of the (hip's
courfe varies from that in which fhe is, impelled by
the fail.
To this we may add the following propofition
relating to oblique forces, viz. that, if a body is
drawn or impelled three different ways at the fame
time, by as many forces aifing in different direc-
tions ; and if the quantity of thofe forces is fuch,
that the body is kept in its place by them, then will
the forces be to each other, as the feveral fides of a
triangle, drawn refpedlively parallel to the direc-
tions in which they aft.
Let the lines A B, A D, A E, {fig. 5.) reprefent
the three forces a£fing upon the body A, in thofe
direftions, and by that means keeping it at refl in
the point A. Then the forces E A and D A will be
equivalent to BA, otherwife the body would be pi>t
into motion by them (contia Hypotb.) But thefe
forces are alfo equivalent to A C, confequently A C
may be made ufe of to exprefs the force A B, and
E C, which is parallel and equal to A D, may ex-
prefs the force A D, while A E expreffes its own :
but A C E is a triangle whofe fides are parallel to
the given diredions ; therefore the fides of this
triangle will exprefs the relation of the forces by
which the body is kept at reft.
i?r;V^^ */ Communication. See the article
Bridge.
Lines of COMMUNICATION, in military matters,
trenches made tocontinue and preferve a fafe corref-
pondence between two forts or pofls ; or at a fiege,
between two approaches, that they may relieve one
another.
COMMUNION, in mattsrof religion, the be-
ing united in dacirine and difcipline ; in which fenfc
of the word, different churches arc faid to hold
communion with each other.
Communion is alfo ufed for the a£l of commu-
nicating in the iacrament of the eutharift, or the
Lord's-fupper.
COMMUNITY, a fociety of men living in the
fame place, under the fame laws, the fame regula-
tions, and the fame cuftoms.
COMMUTATION, in aftronomy, is the angu-
lar diftance between the fun's true place ken from
the earth, and the place of a planet reduced to the
ecliptic This angle of communication is found by
fubftrafling the fun's true place from the heliocen-
tric place of the planet. See Heliocentric.
Commutation, inlaw, the change of a penalty
J^aiK^SL-
\. ^a€i*u/ Campiiis.
tJ^/<'y. /.s. LMfneM/'f/f///
T
.<r'-i^r/i.<i
COM
or punifbment from a greater to a Icfs ; as when
death is cominnted for banifhniint, &c.
COMPACT, in phyTiology, is fuid of bodies
which are of a clofe, deiiCf, and heavy texture,
with few pnres, and they very (mall.
COMPANION, in naval archi;eaure, a fort of
wooden p uch raiftd over ihe (bir-cale which leads
from the quarter-deck of a merchant fh p d.)wn to
the cabin or apartment of the ma(t-r. See Cabin.
COMPANY, in general, denotes a number of
people met together in the lame place, and about the
fame defign. VVith re(pe£t, however, to matters of
pleafure or divifion, inltead of company, we make
ufe of the terms party, or match.
Company, in a commercial I'enfe, is a fociety
of merchants, mechanics, or other traders, joined
together in one common intereft.
Company, in military affairs, a fmall body of
foot, commanded by a captain, who has under him
a lieutenant and enfign.
The number of centincls, or private foldiers in a
company, may be from 50 to 80 ; and a battalion
conlitts of thirteen fuch companies, one o( which is
always grenadiers, and ported on the right : next
them ftand the eldeft company, and on the left the
fecond company ; the youngelt one being always
pofted in the center.
Companies not incorporated into regiments are
called irregulars, or independent companies.
Ruli: ff/"CoMPANY, in arithmetic, the fame with
fellowOiip. See Fellowship.
CUMPARATES, Comparata, among logicians,
denote the terms of a comparifon, or the fubjedls
compared to each other. See thearticle Compari-
.SON,
COMPARATIVE, in general, denotes fome-
thing that is compared to another. Thus,
Comparative Anatomy, is that branch of
anatomy which confiders the fecondary objefls, or
the bodies of other animals; fervii g for the mire
accurate diftiniStions of feveral parts, and fupplying
the defedt of hun)an fubjedls.
It is otherwife called the anatomy of hearts, and
fometimes zootomy ; and flands in contradiftinc-
tion to human anatomy, or that branch of the art
which conliders the human body, the primary ob-
ject of anatomy. See Anatomy.
Comparative D;gr£E, among grammarians,
that between ihe pofrive and fuperlative degrees, ex-
preffing any particulai quality above or beneath the
level of another.
CUMf^ARISON, in a general fenfe, the con-
fideration of the relations between two perfons or
things, when oppofed and fet againft each other, by
which we judge of their agreement or difFeience,
and find out wherein the one has the advantage of
the other.
Comparison of Ideas, among logicians, that
operation of the mind whereby it compares its ideas
COM
one with another, in rcgaid of extent, dejree, time,
placr, or any o'h-r circumrt.mce, and is the ground
of relations. This is a faculty which the brutes
feem n .t to have in any great degree. See Idea
and Relation.
CoMPARI^ON, in grammar, the inflection of
the comparative dej;rce. See the article CoM-
p /\ R A 'r I V E .
Comparison, in rhetoric, a figure that illu-
ftrates and fets off one thing, by reCembling and
compiring it with another, to which it bars a
manifeft relation and rcfeinblaiice, as the following
figure in Shakefpcar :
" She never told her love,
" But let Concealmcnr, like a worm in th' bud,
" Eeed on her damafk cheek: Shepined in thought,
" And fat, like Patience on a monument,
•' Smiling at Grief."
COMPARTITION, in architedure, denotes
the ufeful and graceful dilpofition of the whole
ground- plot of an edifice, into rooms of office, and
of reception or entertainment.
COMl'ARTMENT, or Compartiment, in
general, is a defign compofed of feveral different
figures, difpofed wth fymmetry, to adorn a par-
terre, a ceilmg, &c.
COMPASS, or Mariners Compass, an inftru-
ment whereby the fhip's courfe is determined.
This inrtruinf nt, which is a reprcfentation of the
horizon, is a circle divided inro 22 equal parts, by
rigfit lines drawn from the center to the circum-
ference, called poins, or rumbs, being alfo divided
into 360 equal parts, or degrees ; and confequen'ljr
the diiiance between, or angle formed by, any two
rumbs, is equal to no, i^'. 'Ihe four principal
of thefe rumbi are called the cardinal points, and
take their names from the places to which they
tend, viz, that which extends itielf under the meri -
dian, pointing towards the north, is called north;
and its oppolite one, pointing towards the fouth, is
called (outh ; that which is towards the right-hand,
the face being diredled north, is termed eart ; and
itsoppifite, weft. The names of the others are
compounded of thofe, according to their fitua-
tion.
The compafs being of the utmoftconfequence to
navigation, it is reafonable to expedt that the greaieft
attention fhould be ufed in its conftruflion, and
every attempt to improve it carefully examined,
and, if proper, aJopted, But fo carelefs are the
generality of commanders of this moft ufeful in-
Itrument, that alnioft all the compaffes u:"ed on
board meichant-fhips have their needles formed of
two pieces of rteel wire, each of which is bent in
the middle, fo as to form an obtufe angle ; and
their ends, being applied together, make an acute
one ; fo that the whole reprefents the form of a
lozenge ; in the center of which, and of the carJj
is
COM
is placed the brafs cap. Now, if we examine a
number of thefe cards, we fhall rarely, if ever,
find them all in the lame direttmn, but they will
all vary more or lefs, not only with regard to the
true direction, but from one another.
Theic irregularities are owint; to the ftrufture of
the needle ; lor the wires of which it is compofed
arc only hardened at the ends; huw, if thefe ends
are not eyually hard, or if one end bt hardened up
higher than theothir, when they come to bf put to-
gether, in fixing them to the ca:d, that end which is
hardeft will deftroy much of the virtue of the other ;
by which means the hardeft end will have the moft
power in dire>:ting the card, and confequeatly m<ike
it vary towaid its own airedtion : and, as the wires
are difpoied in the form of a lozenge, thefe cards
can have but little force, fo that they will often,
when drawn afide, ftand at the diftance of feveral
degrees on either fide the point from whence they
are drawn : for all magnetical bodies receive an ad •
dirional flrength by being placed in the dire(5fion of
the earth's magnetifm, and zQ. proportionably lefs
vigoroufly when turned out of it : wherefore, when
thefe ki'id of needles are drawn ai'ide from their true
point, two of the oarallel ildes of the lozenge will
confpire, moredireclly than before, with the earth's
magneufm ; and the cher two will be lefs in that
direction : by which means the two fides will very
iTiuch impede its return ; and the two latter will
have that impediment to overcome, as well as the
friiiiion, by their own force alone.
To remove thefe inconvcniencies, fome needles
are made of one piece of fteel, of a Ipring temper,
and broad towards the ends, but tapering towards
the middle, where a hole is made to receive the
cap. At the ends they termmate in an angle, greater
or lefs, according to the flcill or fancy ef the work-
man. Thefe needles, though infinitely preferable
to the other, are, however, far from being perfe£l ;
for every needle of this form hath fix poles inflead of
two, one at each end, two where it becomes tapering,
and two at the hole in the middle : this is owingto
their {h;.pe ; for the middle part being very flender, it
has not lubftance enough to conduiil the magnetic
ftream quite through, from one end to the other :
all thefe poles appear very diftinflly, when examined
with a glafs that is fprinkUd over with magnetic
faiid. Ibis circumftance, however, does not hin-
der the needle from pointing true ; but as it has lefs
force to move the card than when the magnetic
ftreain moves in large curves froin one end to the
other, it is certainly an impetfedlion.
Thefe inconveniences induced the ingenious Dr.
Knight to contrive anew fea ccmpafs, which is
now ufed on board all the fhips of war. The
needle in this iiiltrument,is quite ftraight, and fquare
at the ends ; and confequently has only two pries,
though about the hole in the middle, the curves are
a little confufed. Needles of this conftrudion,
COM
after vibrating a long time, will always point exa£^!y
in the fame direction ; and if drawn ever fo little on
one fide, will return to it again, without any fenfi-
ble difference. We may therefore conclude, that a
regul.ir parallelepiped is the beft form for a needle,
as well as the fimpleft, the holes for the caps being
as fmall as poifible.
And as the weight fliould be removed to the
greateft diRancefrom the center of motion, a circle
of br.iis, of the (anie diameter of the card, may be
added, which will feive alfo to (upport the card,
which may then be made of thin paper, without
any thing to ftifFen it. This ring being fixed below
the card, and the needle above it, the center of o-ra-
vity is placed low enough to admit of the cap being
put under the needle, whereby the hole in the needle
becomes neccfl'ary.
In order to render the above inftruftions more
plain and cafy to be underffood, we have given a
view of the I'everal parts (Plate XXXVL-) where
Jig. 6. is the card, with the needle KL, and its
cap M, fixed upon it, being one third of the diame-
ter of the real card.
Fig. 7, IS a perfpeftive view of the backfide of
the card, where A B reprefents the turning down of
the brafs edge, C the under part of the cap, Dand
E two fiiding weights to balance the card, and
F, G, two (crews that fix the brafs edge, &c. to
the needle.
Fig. 8. is the pedeftal that fupports the card,
contairiing a fewing needle, fixed in two fmall
grooves to receive it, by means of the collet C,
in the manner of a port-crayon. D, the ftem, is
filed into an odlagon, that it may be the more eafily
unfcrewed.
Jzimuth Compass. See the article Azimuth
Compafs.
Compass Dials, are fmall horizontal dials,
fitted in brafs or filver boxes, for the pocket, to
(hew the hour of the day, by the direction of a
needle, that indicates how to place them right, by
turning the dial about till the cock or ffyle ftands
diredlly over the needle, and points to the north-
ward : but thefe can never be very exact, becaufe of
the variation of the needle itfelf.
Compass-Saw. See the article Saw.
COMPASSES, or Pi//r 3/ Compasses, a ma-
thematical inltrument for defcribing circles, mea-
furing figures, he.
Beam Compasses confift of a long branch or
beam, carrying two btafs curfors, the one fixed at
one end, the other fiiding along the beam, with a
fcrew to fjften it on occafion.
To the curfors may be {icrewed points of any
kind, whether iieel for pencils, or the like. It
is ufed to draw large ciicles, to take great extents,
&c.
C<7//i^r Compasses. See Caliber.
Clocimaker'i CompaiTes are joined like the com-
mon
COM
ition compafll-s, with a quadrant, or how, like the
faring compafTts ; only of" different ufe, (ervinghere
to keep the inftrument Htm at any opening. They
are made very ftrong, with the points of their legs
of well tempered rteel, as being ufed to draw lines
on parte-board or copper.
Cylindrical and Spherical Compasses, confift of
four branches, joined in a center, two of which are
circular, and two flat, a little bent on the ends :
their ufe is to take the diameter, thicknefs, or cali-
ber, of round or cylindric bodies ; fuch as cannons,
pipes, &c.
For the method of ufmg them, fee the article
Caliber CompaJJis.
Elliptic Compasses confift of a crofs A B G H,
(plate XXXIV. fy. 4.) with grooves in it, and an
index C £, which is faiiened to the crofs by means
of dove-tails, at the points CD, that Aide in the
grooves ; fo that when the index is turned about,
the end E will defcribe an ellipfis, which is the ufe
of thefe compafTes.
German Compasses have their legs a little bent
outwards, towards the top , fo that when (hut, the
points only meet.
Lapidary's CoMPASsES are a piece of wood, in
form of the fhafi of a plane, cleft at top, as far as
half its length : with this they mealure the angles,
&c. of jewels and precious ftones, as they cut
them.
There is in the cleft a little brafs rule, fafiened
there at one end by a pin ; but lb that it may be
moved in the manner of a brafs level : with this
kind of fquare they take the angles of the fio.ies,
laying them on the ftiaft as they cut thi m.
Proportio7Ml Compasses are fuch as have two
legs, but four points, which, when opened, are
like a crofs, as not having the joint at the end of
the legs like common compafles : Ibme of thefe
have fixed joints, others moveable ones ; upon the
legs of the latter of which are drawn the lines of
chords, fines, tangents, &c.
Their ufe is to divide lines and circles into equal
parts ; or to perform the operations of the le£tor at
one opening of them.
COMPENDIUM, in matters of literature, de-
notes much the fame with epitome, or abridge-
ment. See Abridgement.
COMPENSATION, in a general fenfe, an
aflion whereby any thing is admitted as an equiva-
lent to another.
Compensation, in the civil law, a fort of
right, whereby a debtor, fued by his jcreditor for
the payment of a debt, demands that the debt may
be compenl'ated with what is owing him by the
creditor, which in that cafe is equivalent to pay-
ment.
COMPLAINANT, in law, the fame w.th plain-
tiff. See the article Plaintiff.
COMPLEMENT, in aftronomy, is an arch of
32
COM
a circle, comprehended between the place of a ftar
above the horizon and the zenith, which is com-
monly called the liar's zenith dillance, or comple-
ment of altitude.
Complement of the Ccurfe, in navigation, is
the number of points, or degrees, minutes, and
feconds that the courfe wants of eight points, or
90 degrees.
Complement, in geometry, is what remains of
a quadrant of a circle, after fome parts has been
taken away ; or it is that part which in any angle or
arch of a circle is wanting to make it a quadrantor
90 degrees.
The fine of the complement of any arch is called
the co-fine, and that of the tangent, the co- tan-
gent, &c.
Complement of the Curtin, in fortification, is
that part of which makes the demigorge. See the
articles CuRTiN and Demigorge.
Complement of the Line of Defence, is the
remainder of the line of defence, after the angle of
the flank is taken off. See the articles Angle and
Defence,
Complements in a rarellelogram, are the two
fmallerpaialle!ogramsGAt,FCE,( Plate XXXIV,
fig. 5.) made by drawing two right lines G E, and
F E, through the point E, in the diagonal ; and
pa-allel to the fides A B, B C, of a parallelogram
A B C D.
COMPLEX Ideas, in logic, are fuch as are
compounded of feveral fimple ones. See the ar-
ticles Term and Idea.
Complex Prcpcj.tion is either that which has at
leaft one of its terms complex, or fuch as contains
Icveral members, as cafual propofiiions : or it is
le^eral ideas offering themfelves to our thoughts at
once, whereby we are led to aiBrm the fame thing
of different objeiSls, or different things of the fame
cbje£I. Thus, God is infinitely luije and infinitely
powerfu'. In like manner in the propofition, Nei-
ther iings nor people are exempt from death.
Complex Term, in logic, is that which requires
more than one word to fignify one thing ; or where
one word implies feveral things,
COMPLEXUS, in anatomy, a broad and pretty
long mufcle, lying along the back part and fide of
the neck : it is fixed below to the vertebrae of the
neck, and above to the upper tranfverfe line of the
OS occipitis. There is one of thefe on each fide ;
and bothafling together, they pull the head diredly
backwards ; whereas, if only one a(Sls, it draws
the head obliquely back.
Complexus Minor, in anatomy, a narrow,
long, and flender mufcle, lying along the infide of
the neck, and otherwife called Maftoidaeus lateralis.
See the article Muscles.
COMPLICATION, in general, denotes the
blending, or rather interweaving, of feveral dif-
ferent things together : thus a perfon afHi^ed with
■J U feveral
COM
feveral diforderi at the fame time, is fald lo labour
under :i complication of difeafes.
COMPONED, CoMFONE, or Gobonv, in
heraldry, is faid of a hordure made up of angular
parts, o ch^-quers, of two different colours.
COMPOSITE, in general, denotes fomething
compounded, or made up of feveral others united
together. Thus,
CoMi'OsiTE Numbers is one that may be
di'. ided by fome one lefs than the compolite itfelf,but
gieater than unity, as 4, 6, 8, 9, 10, &c.
Composite Order, in architefture, the laft
of the five orders of columns ; fo called becaufe its
capital is compofed out of thofe of the other co-
lumns, horrowing a quarter-round from the Tufcan
and Doric, a row of the leaves from the Corin-
thian, and volutes from the Ionic. Its corniche
has fimple modillions or dentils. It is alfo called
the Roman or Italic order, as having been invented
by the Romans. By moft authors it is ranked after
the Corinthian, either as being the next richeft, or
the laft invent' d.
Scammozzi, and after him M. le Clerc, make the
column of this crdcr nineteen modulps and a half,
being lefs by half a module than that of the Corin-
thian, as in efi'eti the order is lefs delicate than the
C( linthian. Vigno'a makes it tvi'enty, which is the
fame with that of hi Corinthian: but Serlio, who
firft formed it into an order by giving it a proper en-
tdblatuie and bale, and after him M. Ptrrault, raife
it ftili higher than the Corinthian. See Order.
For the parts of this order, fee the articles Base,
Capital, Column, Entablature, Frieze
Pedestal, &c.
CuMPOSl VIO'N, Compojitio, in a general fenfe,
the uniting or putting together fcveral things, fo as
to form one whole, ctlled a compound.
Composition of Ideas, an adt of the mind,
whereby it unites feveral fimple ideas into one con-
ception, or complex idea.
Composition, in grammar, the joining of two
words togetner; or prefixing a particle to another
word, to augment, diminifli or change its fignifi-
catun. See the aitick Word.
Composition, in logic, a method of reafoning,
whereby we proceed from Ibme general felf-evident
truth, to other particular and lingular ones.
CoMi'osiTiON, in mufic, the art of difpofing
mufica! f->unds into airs, fongs, &c. either in one
or more parts, to be fung by a voice, or played on
iiif^rumcnts. Seethe articles Music and Song.
Coii'iPosiTioN in oratory, the coherence and
order of the parts of adiicourle.
Composition, in paint ng, confifts of two
parts, invention and difpofition ; the firft is the
chnice of the objefls which are to enter into the
compofition of the fubje£l the painter intends to
execute, and is either fimply hiilorical or allegori-
cal.
COM
The other very much contributes to the perfec*
tion and value of a piece of painting.
Composition, in commerce, a contraft be-
tween an infolvent debtor and his creditors, whereby
the latter accept of a part of the debt in compenfa-
tion for the whole, and give a general acquittance
accordingly.
Composition, in printing, commonly termed
compofing, the arranging of feveral types, or let-
ters, in the compofing flick, in order to form a
line ; and of feveral lines ranged in order in the
galley, to make a page ; and of feveral pages, to
make a form.
CoMPosiTON of Motion, ox Force, in mecha-
nifm, is an afTcmblage of feveral direftioBS of mo-
tion, refulting from powers acting in different,
though not in oppofite lines.
The change of motion is proportionable to thfc
moving force impreffed, and is made according to
the right line in which that force is imprefled. ft is
well known, that if any force generate any motion,
a double or triple force will generate twice or thrice
as much. But the alteration in refpefl of the direc-
tion of the motion, is a campound affair.
Let A be a body (Plate XXXIV, fig. 6.) im-
pelled in the direction C D, by a body C, with
fuch force as fhall caufe it to be uniformly over the
fpace AD, in a fecond of time: at the fame in-
flant, let it receive a Itroke by another body F, in
the direiSlion FB, with fuch a force as (hall caufe it
to pafs over the fpace AB in the fame time.
Now, it is evident the body A cannot move in
both thefe direflions ; awd, therefore, will not move
in either, but in a diredlion compounded of both,
which may be thus demonftrated, Defcribe DE,
parallel to FB; then, though the aftionof F pre-
vents the body from proceeding in the right-line
AD, yet it san no wa)s alter its velocity of ap-
proachmg to the line DE, in the given time, by
virtue of the force impreffed by C. At the end,
therefore, of a fecond of time, the body A will be
fomewhere in the line DE; by the fame way of
reafoning, it will, at the end of the fame time, be
found fomewhere in the line BE, parallel to AD,
and therefore in the concourfeof toth, in the point
E. Its caufe then, is the line A E, which, by the
firft law of motion, is a right line. See Laws «/"
Motion.
Hence appears the method of compoundingadirefl:
force AE, out of any oblique force AD and D E ;
and, on the contrary, of refolving any direft force
AE, into two other oblique forces, by the two fides
of a parallelogram ; for the diredt force will be re-
prefented by the diagonal, and the oblique by the
lides AD and DE. The truth of this theory may
be proved by experiment in the following manner.
Let the body A be drawn with a weight of three
ounces in the dire<£lion AD, and by another of two
ounces in the diredion A JS j then make A D to
AB
COM
A B as three to two, and compleat the parallello-
gram A D B E, and draw the diagonal (as in
Plate XXXIV. /^ 7.) A E, which will mea-
fure lour upon the f.ime fcale, (when the angle
DAB is of a ctrtain magnitude) which ftiews ihe
body A in the fjme circumftance, as if it had been
drawn by a four ounce weiLht in the diredtion AE ;
and this is proved true, by caufing a body G of
four ounces to draw the bodv A the contrary way,
viz. from A to Ci ; for then the body A will be at
left, or inequilibrio with all the forces.
Composition of Proportion. See Propor-
tion.
COMPOST, in hufbandry and gardening, feve-
ral forts of foils, or earthy matter, mixed together,
in order to make a manure for aflittlns the natural
earth in the work of vegetation, by way of amend-
ment or improvement.
Comports are various, and ought to be different,
according to the different nature or the quality of
the foils which they are defigncd to meliorate, and
according as the land is either light, fandy, loofe,
heavy, clayey, or cloddy. A light, loofe land re-
quires a compoft of a heavy nature, as the fcouring
of deep ditches, ponds, &c. fo, on the other hand,
land that is heavy, clayey, or cloddy, requires a
compoft of a more fprightly and fiery nature, that
will infinuate itfelf in the lumpifh clods, which, if
they are not thus managed, would very much ob-
ftrudl the work of vegetation. See Clay, &c.
The great ufe of compoffs is for fuch plants as
are preferved in pots or tubs ; or fometimes it is
ufed for fmall beds, or borders of flower-gardens :
but it is too expenfive to make compolts for large
fardens, where a great quantity of foil is reqhired.
n making of compofls, great care fhould be had
that the feveral parts are properly mixed together,
and not to have too much of any one fort thrown
together,
COMHOSTO, in mufic, means compounded or
doubled, as a fifteenth is an o£lave doubled, «r an
oftave is compounded of a fifth and a fourth.
COMPOND, in a general fenfe, an appella-
tion given to whatever is compofed or made up of
different things : thus we fay, a compound word,
compound found, compound tafle, compound force,
&c. See the articles Word, Sound, &c.
Compound Flower, one confifling of feveral
diilindt leffer flowers, or corollula;, each furnifhed
with a ftyle, ffamina, &c. See Flower.
The corollulae are of two kinds, viz. tubulated
and ligulated : the tubulated ones are always fur-
nifhed with a campaHulated limb, divided mto four
or five fegments ; whereas the ligulated corollulas
have only a flat, linear limb, terminaf-d by a fingle
point, or by a broader extremity, divided into three
or five fegments.
The plants with compound flowers are extremely
CON
numerous, forming a clafs by themfelves, called
by Linnaeus, fyngenefia. See the article Synge-
NESIA.
Compound-Intfrest. See the article Inte-
rest.
Compound Motion, is that which is prodijced
by feveral forces confpiring together in fuch a man-
ner, that the direfiion of one is not contrary to the
direftion of the other ; as when the radius of a cir-
cle moves about the center at the fame time a point
be conceived to go forwards along it. See Com-
position of Amotion,
Compound Numbers, Pendulum, Quan-
tities, Ratio, &c. See Numbers, Pendu-
lums. &c.
COMPOUNDER, in general, denotes one who
compounds feveral things together.
COMPREHENSION, in logic, the fame with
apprehenfion. See Apprehension.
Comprehension, or Synecdoche, a trope
or figure in rhetoric, which puts the name of the
whole for a part, or of a part for the whole ; a
general for a particular of the fame kind ; or a par-
ticular for a general. By this trope a round and
certain number is often fet down for an uncertain
one.
COMPRESS, infurgery, a bolfterof foft linea
cloth, folded in feveral doubles, frequently applied
to cover a plafler, in order not only to preferve the
part from the external air, but alio the better to re-
tain the dreffings or medicines.
COMPRESSED Leaf, among botanifts, one
with a mark or impreffion on both fides. Sec
Leaf.
COMPRESSOR, inanatomyi a mufcle of the
face, more ufually known by the name of elevator
alas nafi.
COMPROMISE, a treaty, orcontraft, where-
by two contending parties eftablifh one or more ar-
bitrators, to judge of and terminate their difference
in an amicable way.
COMPTROLLER, or Controller. See
the article Controller.
COMPUNCTION, in theology, an inward
grief of mind for having offended God.
COMPURGATOR, in law, a perfon that by
oath juflifies or clears another's innocence.
COMPUTATION, in a general fenfe, the man-
ner of eflimating tmic, weights, meafure, monies,
or quantities of any kind.
Computation in Maihemaiics, is ufed in the
fame fenfe as calculation See Calculation.
CONARION, orCoNoiDEs, a name for the
pineal gland, a fmall gland about the bignefs of a
pea, placed m the upper part of that hole in the
thud ventricle of the brain, called the anus, and
tied b/ fome fibres to the nates. See Brain.
Co.N'ATUs, in a Body of Jllstiun, is that difpofi-
tion
CON
lion or aptitude to go on in a right line, if not pre-
vented by other caufes, the fame as attradllon and
gravitation without motion.
CoNATUs is likewife a term ufed in mathematics
to imply the endeavour any natural body that moves
circular has to fly off, or recede from the center of
its motion.
Concave, or Concavity, are terms ufed to
fignify the hollownefs of any thing.
Concave Glass, or Lens, is one that is fiat
on one fide and ground hollow on the other, but
ufually fpherical. This by fome is called a piano
concave, and if this be concave or hollow on both
fides it is called a double concave.
An objecft fepn through a concave glafs, or lens,
appears nearer, fmaller, and lefs bright than with
the naked eye.
Thus, let AB, (Plate XXXIV. /^. 8.) be the
objefl, CD ti.e pupil of the eye, and EF the lens.
Now, as it is the property of a lens, of this form,
to render diverging rays more fo, and converging
ones lefs fo, the diverging rays GH, GI, proceeding
from the point G, will be made to diverge more,
and fo to enter the eye, as from fome nearer pointy;
and the rays AH, BI, which converge, will be made
to converge lefs, and to enter the eye fooner as
from the points a and b ; wherefore the objefl will
appear in the fituation <?, ^, b-y lefs and nearer than
without the lens.
But as the rays which proceed from G, are ren-
dered more diverging, fome of them will be made
to pafs by the pupil of the eye, which otherwife
would have entered it, and therefore each point of
the obje£t will appear lefs bright. See Focus,
Lens, and Mirror.
CONCENTRATION, in general, fignifies the
bringing things nearer a center. Hence the parti-
cles of fair, in fea water, are faid to be concentrat-
ed; that is, brought nearer each other, by evapora-
•ting the watery part : thus, alfo, wine is faid to be
concentrated, when its watery parts are feparated in
form of ice by froff.
CONCENTRIC, in mathematics, fomething
that has the (ame common center with another : it
Hands in oppofition to excentric.
CONCEPTACULUM, among botanifls,akind
of pericarp! um, compol'ed of foft and lefs rigid
valves, and containing only one cavity.
CONCEPTION, among phyfiiians, &c. de-
notes the firil formrition of an embr)o in the womb
of its parent, who from that time becomes preg-
nant. Sec Generation and Prli-;nancv.
7»2OT(7«<Z.7^ Conception, a feflival in the Ro-
miOi church, obferved on the 8th of December, in
commemoration ©f the holy virgin's having been
conceived and born immaculate, or without origi-
nal fin.
Conception of our Lady, a religious order in
Portugal, founded in theXVth century.
CON
Conception, in logic, the fame with appre-
henfion. See Apprehentign.
CONCERT, or Concerto, in mufic, a num-
ber or company of muficians, playing or finging
the fame piece of mufic or fong at the fame time.
CONCERTANTE, thofc parts of a piece of
mufic that ftng or play throughout the whole piece,
either alone or accompanied, to diftinguifh thofe
parts that play now and then in particular places.
CONCERTATO, intimates the piece of mufic
to be compofed in fuch a manner, as that all the
parts may have their recitatives, be it for two,
three, four, or more voices or indruments.
CONCERTO Grussi, the grand chorus of a
concert, or thofe places where all the feveral parts
perform or play together.
CONCESSI, in law, a term freqitently ufed in
conveyances. Its efFedl is to create a covenant, as
dcdi does a warranty.
CONCESSION, in rhetoric, a figure, whereby
fomething is freely allowed, that yet might beardif-
pute ; to obtain fomething that one would have
granted to him, and which he thinks cannot fairly
be denied, as in the following concellion of Dido,
in Virgil :
" The nuptials he difclaims, I urge no more i
Let him purfue the promifed Latian fliore.
A (hort delay is all I a(k him now ;
'' A paufe of grief, an interval from woe."
CONCHA, a genus of bivalve Ihells, the ani-
mal inhabiting which is called tethys. See the arti-
cle Tethys.
Concha, in anatomy, the larger cavity of the
external ear, fituated before the meatus auditorius,
or pafl'age into the internal ear.
CONCHOID, or CoNcHiLis, in geometry; a
curve line, which always approaches nearer a ftraight
line, to which it is inclined, but never meets it.
It is defcribed thus : draw a right line BD (Plate
XXXIV. ^. g.) and another A C, perpendicular
to it to E; draw any number of right line?, as C M,
CM, cutting BD in Q,; make QM = QNr=
AE=:EF; the curve wherein the points M, M,
are found, is the conchilis, or conchoh prima ; fo call-
ed by its inventor Nicomedes. The others, where-
in the points N, N, are found, is t^t conclms fecu?i~
da ; the right line BD the rule, the point C the pole.
The inventor alfb contrived an inftrument, where-
t>v the firft conchois may be defcribed mechanically :
thus, in the rule A D, (/%. lo.) is a channel or
groove cur, fo as a fmooth nail, firmly fixed in the
moveable rule CB, in the point F, may Aide freely
within it; into the rule EG is fixed another nail in
K, for the moveable rule CB to flide upon.
If then the rule BC fo moved, as that the nail F
pafies along the canal A D, the ftyle or point in C
will defcribe the firil conchoid.
Now IetAP = A-, AE = fl, PE=MR = «
— A-i
CON
— .v; wherefore as Jf increafes, a — .v or M R will
decreafc, and therefore the curve continually ap-
proaches nearer to the rule B D.
In the fame manner it appears ihntthe right line
N O mufl: continually decreafc, and therefore that
the fecond conchoid alfo mull continually ap,)roa( h
nearer the rule.
Now as between each conchoid and the right line
B D, there will ftill be the right line Q_M or (^N,
equal to A E ; neith' r of the conchoids can concur
with the right line B D, confequently D i» an a-
ivmptote of each conchoid.
' Puti-^CE, <7=EA = MQ., CQ_=Ar, MR
= v; then by the fimilar triangles C E (^, Q_R M,
we have C E : C Qj : M R : M Q_, that \%^b:x::
y : 0, whence b ai^x y.
Sir Ifaac Newton, in the latter part of his Uni-
verfal Arithmetic, tells us, that the conchoid was
ufedby Archimedes, and other ancients, in the con-
ftruftion of folid problems ; and he himfelf prefers
it before other curves, or even the conic lections, in
the conftruiStion of cubic and biquadratic equations,
on account of its fimplicity and eafy defcripiion,
Ihewing therein the manner of their conftrudtion
by help of it.
CONCHYLIA, a general name for all kinds of
petrefied (hells, as limpets, cochlea, nautili, con-
chae, lepades, &c.
CONCINNOUS Intervals, in mufic, are
fuch as are fit for mufic, next to, and in combina-
tion with, concords : being neither very agreeable
nor difagrceable in thcmfelves, but having a good
efl"e(f!-, as by their oppcfition they heighten the
more efiential principles of plcafure ; as by their
mixture and combination with them, they produce
a variety neccfTary to cur being bet er pleafed.
CoNCiNNous System, in mufic. A fyftcm it
faid to be concinnous, when its parts, confidered as
fimple intervals, are concinnous ; and are behdes
placed in fuch an order between the extremities, as
that the fuccefTion ^^ founds, from one cxtiEmi to
the other, m.'y have an agreeable effedf.
CONCLAVE, the place in which the cardinals
of the Romifh church meet, and are fliut up, in
order to the eleflion of a pope.
Conclave is alfo ufed for the afDmblv or meet-
ing of the caidinals (hut up, for the eledtion of a
pope.
CONCLUSION, in logic, the confcqucnce or
judgment drawn from what was aflerted in the pre
niilcs ; or the previous judgments in reafoning,
gained from combining the extreme ideas between
th?mfelves. i-ee the article Syllogysm.
CONCOCTiON, in medicine, the change
which the fo( d undergoes in the ftomach, &c. to
become ch\le. See Chyle, Chyllification,
and DioF.sTioN.
CONCOMITANT, in theology, fomething
that accompanies or goes along with another ; as
32
CON
concomitant grace is that which God affords us
during the courfc of our aflions, to enable us to per-
form them ; and according to the komilh divines,
to render them meritorious.
CONCOKD, in grammar, that pait of con-
ftruflion called f)i;rax, in which the word.s of a
fentence agree ; that is, in which nouns aie put
in the lame gender, nuiiber, and cale; ;ind veibs
in the fame number and pcifoii with nouns ai d
pronouns.
Concord, in mufic, the relatic.n of two founds
that are always pleafin'; to the ear, whether applied
in coiifoiianceor in fuccefilon,
U two funple founds have fuch a relation, or
difference of rune, as that, when mixed logcther,
thev form a compound found, which agreeably af-
fects the ear, that relation is denominated concord :
and whatever two founds agree in confonance, the
fame will follow each other agreeably, or be plea-
fing in fucceflion. The reverie of a concord is a
oilcord, being all the relations or differences of tune
that are grating to the car.
Concord and harin.iny are, in fa(5l, the fame
thing, though by cullom they are applied difRrent-
Iv, harmony exprelfing the agreement of a greater
number of founds than two in confonance ; be-
fides, harmony always implies to fonance ; but
concord is fometimcs applied to fucceflion, though
never but when it will make a pleafing confonance :
whence it is, that Dr. Holder, and fome others,
ufe the word confonance for what is called con-
cord.
Unifonance, being the relation of equality be-
tween the two founds, all unifons aie concori's, in
the firft degree : but an interval, being a relatioir
of inequality between two lounds, becomes a con-
cord or difcord, according to the variety of that
particular relation : Mr. Malcolm thinks, that as
th • word implies agreement, it is app icable touni-
fon in the firfl: degree.
The differences of tunc take their ri e from the
different proportions of the vibrations of a f -noroiis
body, that is, of the velocity of thofe vibiations
in their rccourffs ; the moic frequent thofc re-
coutfes arc, the more acute is the tunc, U vice iicrjn.
But the effenti.il difference between concord and
di'cord lies more remote : there docs not appear
any natural aptitude in two founds of a concord to
give a plcafiiig fenfation, more than in two cf a
difcoid ; thefe different eifecls niuft be refolved into
the divine will.
We know from experience what propoitions of
tune are pleafing, and what not ; and we know
likewife, how to exprefs the difference of tune bv
the proportion of numbers ; we know whu is plea-
fing, though we do not know v.hy : for inilancc,
we know tb.at the raiioof i : 2 conftitutes concoiu,
and 6: 7 difcord; but on what origin.d Aflcn plea-
fing or difpleafiiig ideas are ccnnvcled with thi-fe
7 X iclatiuiit,
CON
relation', and their proper influence upon one ano-
ther, is entirely above our reach.
We Itnow that the following ratio's of the lengths
of chord, are concord 2: 1, 3: 2, 4: 3, 5 : 4. ^ ■ S»
r: 7, 8 : 5; that is by talcing any chord tor a fun-
damental, reprefented by one, the following divi-
fions thereof will be all concords with the whole.
I 2 3 4 5 3 5
So that the charaderiftic of con-«
•'^2.3.4.5-0.5-
cords and difcords muft be looked for in thefe num-
bers, exprefling the intervals of found : not ab-
flractiy, but as exhibiting the number of vibra-
tion*.
Now unifons are in the firft degree of concord,
or have the moil perfect agreement in tune ; and
therefore have fomething acceflary to that agree-
ment which is more or Icfs to be found m every
concord : but it is not true, that the nearer two
founds approach to an equality of tune, the more
agreement they have ; therefore it is not in the e-
cjualiiy or inccjuality of the numbers that this agree-
iiieiit coniifts.
Farther, if we confider the number of vibrations
made in any given time by two chords of equal
time, they ate, on the principle already laid down,
equal ; and therefore the vibrations ot the two
chords commence together as frequently as poinble;
that is, they coincide at every vibration, in the
frequency ot which coincidence, and of the un-
dulations of the air occafioned thereby, it is that
the difterente of concord and difcord muit be
i'ought.
Now, the nearer the vibrations of two ftrings
approach to a coincidence as frequent as pollible,
the nearer they fhould approach that condition, and
con.equently the agreement of uniions, as is con-
firmed irom experience.
If we take the naturjl fcries, i, 2, 3, 4, 5> ^i and
compare each number to the next, ts expieifirg the
number of vibrations of two chords in the fame
t:ine, whofe lengths are reciprocally asthofenum-
1 ers; the rule will be lound exact ; tor i : 2 is beft,
ihtn 2 : 3 ; a'ter 6 the confouance is inluftcrable, as
the coincidences are too rare; though there are
other latio's that are agreeable, befides thofe found
ill that continued oidcr, namely, 3:5, and 5: 8,
which, with the preceding five, are all meconcoid-
iiio- iutL-ivals withm, or lels th-m an oclave, or i : 2,
that is, who e acuteft term is g: eater th.iii half the
f,.ndaintiital.
On this principle 3: 5 will be prcfeiable to 4 : 5,
bccaufe, being tqual in the number of vibratio-s ot
the acuter term, there is an advantage 011 the .ide
o: th: fundamental in the ratio 3: 5, where the o
incidence is made at every third vibration o '-he
fijnd.imeiitii!, and every fiith of the acute term: in
like manner the ratios 5 ; 8 is lefs per.ect th.m 5 : 6;
becaufc though the vibrations of ea^-h fundamental,
CON
that go to one coincidence, are equal, yet, in the
ratio 5: 6, the coincidence is at every fixih of the
acute term, and only at every eighth in the other.
Thus there is a rule for judsjing ot the preference
of concords from the coincidence of their vibrations,
as in the following table.
Ratios, or Vibrations.
Unifon —
Oaave, 8ve,
Fifth, 5th.
Grave
Term.
- I
2
4
5
Third, "lefTer. 6
Sixth, lefTer, 8
Fourth, 4th.
Sixth, gr. —
Third, gr.
Grave
Acute
Term.
I
I
2
3
3
5
S
Acute
Lengths.
CeinciJ.
60
30
20
20
15
12
12
Though this order be fettled by reafon, it is con-
firmed by thp ear; fo that, upon this foot, concords
muft be the more perfefl, as they have the greater
number of coincidences, wich regard to the num-
ber of vibrations in both chords ; and where the
coincidences are equal, the preference will fall on
that interval, whofe acuteft term has feweft vibra-
tions to each coincidence: which rule is, however,
in fome cafes contrary to experience ; and yet is
the only rule hitherto difcovercd.
F. Merfenne, it is true, after Kircher, gives ano-
ther ftandard for fettling the comparative perfection
of intervals, with regard to the agreement of their
extremes in tune.
The perception of concordance, fay they, is no-
thing butthecomparing oftwoor more different mo-
tions, which in the fame time affe£t the auditory
nerve: now we cannot certainly judge of any con-
fonance till the air be as often ftruck in the fame
time by two chords, as there are units in each mem-
ber exprefling the ratio of that concord ; as for iii-
ftance, we cannot perceive a fifth, till two vibra-
tions of the one chord, and three of the other, arc
performed together, which chords are at length as
3 to 2 : fo that thofe concords are nioftfimplc and
agreeable, which are generated in the leait time ;
and thofe, on the contrary, the moft compound
and grating, which are produced in the longelt
time.
For example, let i, 2, 3, be the lengths of three
chords; I : 2 i^anoiftave; 2: 3 a fifth ; and i : 3
an oclave and fifth compounded, or a twelfth. The
vibrations of chords being reciprocally as their
lengths, the chord 2 will vibrate once, while the
chord one vibrates twice, and then exift an ofiave j
but the twelfth does not yet exift, becaufe the
chord 3 has not vibraied once, nor the chord i
thtice, which is neceffary to form a twelfth.
Againj
CON
Again, to generate a fifth, the chord 2 muft vi-
brate thrice, and the chord 3 twice ; in which time
the chord I will have vibrated 6 times; and thus
the odtave will be thrice produced, while the
twelfth is only produced twice; the chord 2 uniting
its vibrations fooner with the chord i, than with
the chord 3, and they being fooner confonant than
the chord i or 2 with that of 3.
But this rule, upon examining it by other in-
ftances, Mr. Makolm has {hewn to be defeclive,
as it does not anfwer in all pofitions of the inter-
vals with refpedl to each other ; but in a certain
order required: and there being no rule as to the
order, to make this ftandird tally with experience in
every cafe ; we are at laft left to determine the de-
grees of concord by experience and the ear.
So that the whole may be fummed up in this
definition : concord is the refult of a frequent union,
or coincidence of the vibrations of two fonorous
bodies, and confequently of the undulating motions
of the air, which, arifmpr from thefe vibrations,
are fimilar and proportionable to them; which coin-
cidence, the more frequent it is, with regard to
the number of vibrations of both bodies, performed
in the fame time, cseteris paribus, the more perfeft
is that concord : till the unfrequency of the coinci-
dence, in refpedl of one or both the motions, com-
mence difcord.
Mr. Carre, in the Memoirs of the Royal Aca-
demy, lays down a general prupofition to deter-
mine the proportion of cylinders that are to form
the concords of mufic ; namely, that the folid cy-
linders, whofe founds produce thofe concords, are
in a triplicate and inverfe ratio of that of the num-
bers which denote the (ame concords.
For inftance, fuppofe two cylindeis, the diame-
ters of whofe bafes ami lengths are as ^ to 2, their
folidlties will be in the ratio of 27 to 8, which is
the triplicate ratio, or as the cube of 3 to that of
2 ; confequently the founds of thofe two cylinders
will produce a fifth, are cxprefltd by thofe numbers ;
and that the bitjffeft and lonsreft will o-ive the grave
found, and the fmalleft the acute : and fo of all
the reft.
Concords are divided into original, or fimple and
compound. A fimple concord is that whofe ex-
tremes are lefs remote than the fum of any other two
concords. A compound concord is equal to two
or more concords.
Other muficiil wi iters flate the divifion in this
manner; an o(5lave is 1:2, and all the inferior con-
cords above mentioned are Ample ones : and all
greater than an odlave are compound concords ;
as confifting of, and being equal to, the fum of
one or more odtaves, and fome finglt concords lefs
than an odave ; and are ufually, in pradice, called
fimple concords.
As to the compofition and relations of original
concords, by applying to them the rules of the ad-
CON
dition and fubtratSlion of intervals, they will be di-
vided !ntofimp!e and compound, according to the
more general motion : as,
5 : 6 a 3d lefs 4th
4 : 5 a 3d gr 6th lefs
3 : 4 a 4th |6th g
3d.g.and3dl,
4th and 3d 1.
6th gr.
1 r5th4thor6th
J.of<^g;:3'il^f3or
r ) 3d gr. 3d J.
J Uth.
The o£lave is not only the firft concord in point
of perfedion, the agreement of whofe extremes is
greateft, and the neareft to unifon ; fo that, when
founded together, it is impoffible to perceive two
different founds , but it is likcwife the greateft in-
terval of the Lven original concords ; and, as fuch,
contains all the Icfler, which derive their fweetnefs
from it, as they more or lefs directly rile out of it,
and which gradually decreafe from the oiStave to
the leffer fixth, having but a fmall degree of con-
cord.
The manner in which thofe lefier concoids are
found in the octave, fliews their mutual dependen-
ces. For, taking an harmonical and arithmetical
mean betwixt each extreme, and the moft diftant
of the two means laft found, to wit, betwixt the
leffer extreme and the firft arithmetical mean, and
betwixt the greater extreme and the firft harmoni-
cal mean, we have all the leffer concords. Thus,
if betwixt 360 and 180, the extremes of the odave,
you take an arithmetical mean, it is 270, and an
harmonical one is 240. Then betwixt 300 the
greateft extreme, and 240 the harmonical mean,
take an arithmetical mean, it is 300, and an har-
monical mean is 288. Again, betwixt 180, the
Kffer extreme of the odave, and 270 the firft arith-
metical mean, it is 225, and an harmonical one
216.
Thus you have a feries of all the concords, both
afccnding towards acutenefs from a common funda-
mental term 360, and defcending towards gravity
from a common acute term 180: which feries has
this property, that taking the two extremes, and
any other two at equal diftances, thefe four will be
geometritally proportional.
The oiffave, by immediate divifion, becomes a
fourth and fifth ; the fifth again, by immediate di-
vifion, produces the two thirds ; the two thirds are
therefore found by divifion, though not immedi-
ately. And the fame is true of the two fixths.
Thus all the original concords arife from the divi-
fion of the octave j the fifths and fourths immedi-
ately, the thirds and fixths mediately.
From the perfection of the odave, it may be
doubled, tripled, &c. and yet preferve a concord ;.
that is, the fum of two or more oiSlaves is con-
cord ; though the more compound will be gradu-
ally lefs agreeable ; but it is not fo with any other
concord lefs than octave, the doubles, &c. whereof
arc all difcords.
Again,
CON
Again, whatever found is concord to one ex-
treme of the o£iave, is concord to the other alfo ;
and, it v"" aild aiy other fimp'e concord to an
o6tavr, it agrees to both iis extremes, to the neareft
being a fimrle conccrd, and to the lartheft a com-
pound one.
The greatefl number of the vibrations of the
fundamental, it is to be farther obferved, cannot
exceed five, or thtre is no concord wh^re the fun-
damental make; more than five vibrations to one
coincir'cnce with the acute term. Thi'^ progrefs of
the concords ma\ be carried on in iiifinitum, but
the more t om, ound, the "efs agreeable. A fingle
odtavc is better than a double one, and that
than a triple > ne ; and fo of fifths and other con-
cords. Three or four o£laves is the greateli length
in cor.imon prai5lice : the old fcales went but to
two; no voice or inftrument can well reach above
four.
CONCORDANCE, a fort of diaionary of the
Bible, explaining 'he words thereof in alphabetical
order, with the feveral books, chapters, and verfes
quoted, in which they are contained.
CONCORDANT Verses, are fuch as have
feveial words in common, but which, by the ad
dition of other words, convey an oppofite or at
tcitt a very different meaning.
CONCRETE, in thefchool-philofophy, an af-
femblage or compound. See the article Com-
pound.
Concrete, in natural philofophy and chemiftry,
fign:fies a body made up of different principles, or
at'v mixed body: thus a fope is the faflitious con-
crete, or a body mixed together by art ; and anti-
mony is a natural concrete, or a mixed body com-
pounded in the bowels of the earth.
Concrete, in logic, is ufed in contradiftinc-
tion to abftradt ; for example, when we confider
any quality, as wbitenefs, inherent in a fiibjeiSl,
3"^, fuppofe, in fnow ; if we may fay the fuow is
white, then we fpealc of whitenefs in the concrete :
but if we confider whitenefs by itfelf, as quality
that may be in paper, in ivory, and in other things,
as well as in fnow, we arc then faid to conlidcr,
or to take it in the abftraiSt. See the article Ab-
S rRACT.
Concrete Numbers,- are thofe which are
applied to exprcfs or denote any particular fiibjcift,
as two men, three pounds, two thirds of a (hilling,
ice. whereas if nothing be concreted with the num-
ber, it is taken abftracfly, or univerfally. Thus
three fignifics an aggregate of three units ; let
thcfe units be men, pounds, or whatever clfe you
pleafe.
CONCRETION, the uniting together feveral
fmall particles of a natural body into fcnfible malFes,
or concretes, whereby it becomes fo and fo figured
and determined, and is indued with fuch and fuch
proptrties. See Concrete.
C ON
CONCUPISCENCE, according to divines, an
irregiila' appetite, or lull after carnal things, inhe-
rent in the nature if man ever fincc the fall,
CONCURRING, or Congruent fiGUREs,
in geometry, thofe which being laid up'in one ano-
ther, exa^My correfpond and cover each other, and
therefore aie equal.
CONDENSA 'ION, the aft whereby a body is
rendered more denfc, compadl, and heavy.
Hence condenfation (lands oppoled to dilatation,
or rarefadtioii ; which latter rentiers the body lighter
and lonfer, b\ feting the parts further afunder;
whereas the former brings them clofer to each other,
and increafes their contadt.
Condenfation is, by moft writers, difUnguifhed
frnm compreldon, in regard the latter is performed
by fome external violence; whereas the former is
the adlion of cold.
CONDENSER, a pneumatic engine, or fyringe,
wherebv an uncommon quantity of air may be
crowded into a given fpace ; fo that fometimes ten
atmofpheres, or ten times as much air as there is
at the lame time in the fame fpace, without the
engine, may be thrown in the means of it, and its
eg'cfs prevented by valves properly difpofed.
It confifts of a brafs c>lmder wherein is a move-
able pifton ; which being drawn out, the air ru(hes
into the cylinder through a hole provided on pur-
pofe ; and when the piflon is again forced into the
cylinder, the air is driven into the receiver through
an orifice, farnifhed with a valve to hinder its get-
ting out.
The receiver or vefiel containing the condenfed
air, fhould be made very (Irong, to bear the force
of the air's fpring thus increafed , for which reafon
they are generally made of brafs : its orifice is fitted
with a female fcrew, to receive the male fcrew at
the end of the condenfer.
Jf glafs be ufed for a conJerfer, it will not fufFer
fo great a degree of condenfation; but the experi-
ment will be more entertaining, fince tlie (ubjetSl
may be viewed in the condenftd air.
CONDERS, a term ufed in the herring fifhery,
for people who (hind on cli(Fs or eminences near the
fea coall, to dire£l the fifhermen which way the
ftioal of herrings palTes ; their courfc being more
confpicuous to thofe who (land on highclifFi a(hore,
than to thofe on hoard the velFels.
CONDITION, in the civil law, a claufe of
oViligation ftipulated as an article, of a treaty or con-
tract.
I^ONDITION, in common law, a reflriilion an-
nexed to an act, qualifying or fufpending the fame,
in rendering its e(fei5I precarious and unceitain.
CONDITIONAL, iomethingnot abfolutebut
fubjcift to conditions.
Conditional legacies are not due till the conditi-
ons are accompliihcd.
Condi-
CON
Conditional Conjunctions, in grammar,
are thole which (erve to make propofitions conJui-
onal. As, if, unlefs, provided, (^c.
Conditional Propositions, in logic, fuch
as confift of two parts, connedled together by a
conditional particle.
Conditional Syllogism, a fyllogiCm wiiere
the major is a conditional propofition. Thus,
If theieis a God, he ought to be worfhipped.
But thfie is a GoJ ;
1 hercfore he ought to be worfiiipped.
CONDORIVIEI\'TS,in church hiftory, religi-
ous feduarics, v^ho hold their name from lying all
toocther, men and women, \c)ung and old. They
arofe in the thirteenth century near Cologne, where
they arc faid to have worfhipped an im»ge of
Lucifer, and to have received anfwers and oracles
from him.
Another fpecies of conJormicntes, were a branch
of anabaptifts in the fixteenth century; fo called,
becaufe they lay feveral of both fexes in the lame
chamber, on pretence of evangelical chaftity.
CONDUCT, or Safe Conduct, a deed or
fecuriry granted to an enemy, under the great feal
of a prince, that he may pafs and repafs without be-
ing molefted.
CONDUCTOR, in furgery, an inftrument
which feives to condud the knife in the operation of
cutting for the flone, and in laying up fmul'es and
fiftulas. It is alfo called a gorget. See the article
Stone.
Conductors, in militarv aftairs, are affiftants
given to the commifTary of the ffores to receive or
deliver out ftorcs to the army, to attend at the ma-
gazmes by turns when in gainfon, and to look after
the ammtmition-waggons in the field. They bring
their accounts every night to the commifTary, and
are immediately undtr his command.
CONDUIT, a canal or pipe for the conveyance
of water or other fluids.
CONDYLOMA, or Condvlus, in anatomy.
See the article Condylus.
Condylom.\, in medicine, a turbercle or cal ■
lous eminence which arifes in the folds of the anus,
or rather a Iwelling or hardening of the wrinkles of
that part.
CONDYLUS, a name given by anatomifts to a
knot in any of the joints formed b/ the epiphyfis of
a bone. In the fingers it is called a knuckle.
Condylus, in botany, fignifies the joints of
plants.
CONE, in geometry, a folid body, having a
circle for itsbafe, and terminated in a point or ver-
tex. The cone may be conceived as generated by
the motion of the right line K L (Plate XXXVl.
fig. 9.) round an immoveable pomt K, called its
vertex, along the circumference of a plane, called
its bafe, M N ; or it may be formed by the revclu-
3* 7 Y
CON
tion of the triangle K L M, about the right line
K L, which is called the axis of ths cone, anJ
K M its fide.
If the axis be perpendicular to the bafe, i; is faid
to be I right cone : and if inclined, or oblique, a
(calei ous cone. Scalenous cones are again divided
into obtufc-angled, and acute-angled.
Euclid defines a cone a folid figure, wh jfc bafe is
a circle, as C D {fi^. 10. ) and is produced by the in-
tire revolution of the plane of a right-angled tri-
angle Cab, about the perpendicular leg A B.
If this kg or axib be greater than C B, half the
bali:, the folid produced i; an acute angled cone ; if
lefs, it is an cbtufe-angled cone; and, if equal, a
right-angled cone.
For a m.iirf-L'eneral and comprchenfivedcfcription
of a cone, which may tikt in both right and oblique
ones.fuppofe an immoveable point A (fi^. 11.) with-
out the I'lane of the circle BD E C and fuppoft a
right line A E, drawn through that point, ■<^n^ pro-
duced indtfinitely both ways, to be moved q:.iie
round the circumterencc of the circle ; the two fu-
peifii:ies that will arife from this motion, are each
called conic fuperfities ; but taken conjunctly, they
are called luperficies veitically oppofite, or only op-
pofitr fupcrficies. The immoveable point A, com-
mon to both the fuperficies, is called the vertex ;
the circle BDEC the bafe, the right line AC,
drawn through the vertex A, and C the center of
the bafe, the axis ; and the folid comprehended un-
der the conical fuperticies and the bafe is a cone.
Let A B D C (fi^. 12.) be a cone, formed by the
revolution of the triangle ABC about the fide A C,
remaining fixed as an axis, it is manifeft that every
line as M P, drawn parallel to B C, wll defcribe a
circle, of which that formed by B C will be the
greateft; and that the fum of all thele circles will
be the whole cone. Put CB = ;-j AC=:^, and
the circumference formed by the point B = i-,
AP = A-, and M P=;» ; then, as r: c: : y: — -
the circumference of the circle formed by the point
M, this multiplied by -Ogives -^the area of the
circle itfelf, this multiplied by.vzrP;> will give
i2H the conical increment. Again, becaufe of
the fimilar triangles A P M, A C B, it will be a- :
y : : a : r ; wherefore *■= -^- and a-= —.-put-
ting this therefore in the roo'n of x in the former
equation, we fliall have 'JJJL — "1111 for the
conical increment ; and confequently-7-^for the
value of the cone defcribed by A P M ; and confc-
a c r% a cr ^
quentlygT-T" = — ~ ^°^ the whole cone : for
when
CON
when AT becomes equal to a, y ^comes equal to r : I
but when the height of the cone is equal to the !
diameter of the bale, then the folidity will be
We have fhewn under Cylinder, that the fo-
lidity of that figure is- — ; this multiplied by i
gives — ^ for the folid ity of the infcribed cone ;
whence it follows that every cone is \ of the cir-
cumfcribing cylinder, having the fame bafe and al-
titude.
Cone, in botany, a hard dry feed veffel, of a
roundifti figure, tapering to a point, confifting of
feveral woody parts, being moftly fcaly, adhering
clcfely together, and feparating when ripe.
CONESSI, a fort of bark of a tree which grows
on the Coromandel-coaft in the Eaft-Indies. It is
recommended in a letter to Mr. Monro, in the Me-
dical hflays, as a fpecific in diarrhoeas. It is to be
pounded into a fine powder, and made into an elec-
tuary with fyrup of oranges ; and the barkfhould be
frelh, and the eleduary new made every day, or
iecond day, otherwife it loofes its auftere but grateful
bitternefs on the palate, and its proper efFeds on the
inteftincs.
CONFECTION, in pharmacy, fignifies in ge-
neral: any thing prepared with fugar : in particular
it imports fomeihing preferved, efpecially dry fub-
ftanccs
CONFECTS, a denomination given to fruits,
flowers, herbs, roots, &c. when boiled and pre-
pared with fugar or honey, to difpofe them to
keep, and render them more agreeable to the
tafte.
CONFEDERACY, in a general fenfe, a league
or alliance between feveral princes and ftates, to
carry on a common caufe.
Confederacy, in law, is when two or more
combine together to do fome damage or injury to
another, or to commit fome unlawful aiStion.
CONFERVA, in botany, a genus of water
plants, of the cryptogamia clafs, and order of
modes ; confiiling of oblong, capillary filaments,
divided into joints of a globular figure.
CONFESSION, in a legal fenfe, an acknow-
ledgement of fome truth, though in prejudice of
the°perfon that makes the declaration.
Confession, among divines, the verbal ac-
knowledgement which a Chriftian makes of his
fins.
CONFESSIONAL, or Confessionary, a
place in churches under the great altar, where the
bodies of deceafed faints, martyrs, and confeflbrs,
were depofiied.
This worJ is alfo ufed by the Romanifts for a
defk in the church where the confeffor takes the
conieiTions of the penitents.
CON
CONFESSOR, in the Romifh church, a pried
who is impowered to receive the confefTion of peni-
tents, and to give them abfolution.
CONFIGURATION, the outward figure which
bounds bodies, and gives them their external ap-
pearance ; being that which, in great meafure, con-
ftitutes the fpecific difference between bodies.
Configuration of the Planets, in aflrology,
a certain fituation of the planets in the zodiac,
whereby they are fuppofed to aid or oppofe each
other.
CONFIRMATION, in a general fenfe, the adl
of ratifying or rendering a title claim, report, or
the like, more fure and indifputable.
Confirmation, in law, a conveyance of an
eftate, or right in effiy from one man to another,
whereby a voidable eflate is made fure and unavoida-
ble, or a particular eftate is increafed, or a poflef-
fion made perfecSt.
It is alfo the ftrengthening of an eftate formerly
made, which is avoidable, though not prefently
void : as if a bifliop was to grant his chancellorfhip
by patent, for term of the patentee's life ; this is
no void grant, but voidable by the bifliop's death,
except it be flrengthened by the confirmation of the
dean and chapter.
Confirmation, in rhetoric, the third part of
an oration, wherein the orator undertakes to prove
the truth of the propofition advanced in his narra-
tion ; and is either direct or indirefl.
DiretSt confirms what he has to urge for flrength-
ening his own caufe. Indire(£t, properly called
confutation, tends to refute the arguments of his
adverfaries.
Confirmation, in theology, the ceremony of
laying on of hands, for the conveyance of the Holy
Ghoit.
CONFISCATION, in law, the adjudication of
goods or efFedts to the public treafury, as the bodies
and eiTedls of criminals, traitors, &c. Merchan-
difes that are prohibited, or brought aboard, or
afhore, without paying^ the duties when feized, are
confifcated.
CONFLAGRATION, the general burning of
a city or other coiifiderable place.
This word is commonly applied to that grand
period or cataflrophe of our world, when the face
of nature is to be changed by a deluge of fire, as
formerly it was by that of water.
CONFLUENCE, or Conflux, among geo-
graphers, the place where two rivers unite their
ilreams.
CONFLUENT, among phyficians, &c. an ap-
pellation given to that kind of fmall-pox wherein the
puftules run into each o'her.
CONFORMATION, the particular confiftence
and texture of the parts of any body, and their dif-
pofition to compofe a whole.
CONFUSED, in general, is an appellation given
CON
to things void of order and method, or which lie
jumbled to<;ethcrin one heap : thus we fay, a con-
fufed orator, confufed vifion, ideas, Sec.
CONFUSION, in a general Irnfe, is when
things prior in nature do not precede, or pofterior
do not follow : or a perturbation of order.
Confusion, in phyfic, a diibrder of the eyes,
thiU happens when, upon a rupture of the internal
membranes which include the humours, they arc ail
confounded together.
CONFUTATION, in rhetoric, making a
branch of confirmation, is that part of an oration,
wherein the orator feconds his own arguments, and
deftroys thofe produced by hii antaionift.
CONGE d'elire, inecclefiaftical polity, the Icing's
permiflioii royal to a dean and chapter in the time of
a vacancy, to choofe a bifliop ; or to an abbey, or
priory of his own foundation, to choofe their abbot
or prior.
Conge, in architecture, a mould in form of a
quarter round, or a cavetto, which ferves to fepa-
rate two members from one another, fuch as that
which joins the fliaft of the colunm to the cinfture,
called alfo apophyge.
Conges aie alfo rings or ferrels formeily ufed in
the extremities of wooden pillars, to keep them from
fplitting, afterwards imitated in ftone-work.
CONGELATION, fieezing, or fuch a change
produced by cold in a fluid body, that it quits its
former flate, and becomes congealed.
CONGER, in zoology, the name of a fpecies
of muraena, with the upper edge of the back fin
black; called in Englifh the fea-eel.
CONGERIES, a colledion or aggregate of fe-
veral particles, or bodies unitfd into one mafs.
CONGESTION, in medicine, a colleftion of
humours, formed gradually ; whereby it difl'ers from
defluxion, which is made of a fudden.
CONGIUS, a liquid meafute of the ancient
Romans, containing the eighth part of the amphora,
or the fourth of the urna, or fix fextatii. The
congius in Englifli meafure contains 2,070,676
folid inches j that is, feven pints, 4,942 folid
inches.
CONGLOBATE Gland, in anatomy, a little
fmooth body, wrapt up in a fine fkin, by which it
is feparated from all other parts, only admitting an
artery and a nerve to pafs in, and giving way to a
vein and excretory canal to come out, of which
fort are the glands of the brain and teftes.
Winflow includes under the name of conglobate
glands, the lymphatic glands alone, and calls all the
other glands of the body by the name conglomerate.
See the next article.
CONGLOMERATE Gland, that which is
compofed offeveral little conglobate glands, all tied
up together in one common tuniclc or membrane.
Sometimes all their excretory du£ls unite, and make
one common pipe, through which the liquor of them
CON
all runs, as the pancreas and parotides do. Some-
times the dufls uniting, form fcveral pipes, which
only communicate with one anotlicr by crofs canals ;
and fuch an the manimie : others again have fcveral
pipes without any communication with one at.o-
ther ; of which fort are the glandulre lachrvmales,
and proftatx : and a fourth fort, is when each little
gland has its own excretory duiit, through which it
tranfmits its liquor to a coinmon bafon, as the
kidnevs.
CONGLUTINATION, the gliiingorfaftening
anv two bodies together by the intromillion of a
third, whofc parts are undluous and tenacious, in
the nature oi glue. See the article Glue.
CONGREGATION, an aflembly of fcveral
ecckfiaftics united, fo as to conftitute one body.
Congregation, is alfo ufed for a company or
fociety of religious, cantoned out of any order, fo
as to make a fubdivifion of the order itfelf.
Congregation, is likewife ufed for afTemblies
of pious perfons, in manner of fraternities.
CONGREGA TIONALISTS, in church hif-
tory, a fedl of proteftants who rejeft all church-
government, except that of a fingle congregation.
In other matters they agree with the prefbyterians.
CONGRESS, in political affairs, an aflembly of
commiflioners, envoys, deputies, &c. from feveral
courts, meeting to concert matters for their com •
mon good.
CONGRUITY, in the fchools, a fukablenefs
or relation of aoreement between thintis.
CoNGRuiTY, in geometry, is applied to figures,
lines, &c. which being laid upon each other, ex-
a£lly agree in all their parts, as having the very
fame dimenfions.
CoNGRUiTY, among naturalifts, a property re-
lative to a fluid body, whereby any part of it is
readily united with any other part, either of itfelt,
or of any other fimilar fluid, or folid body.
CONIC- Sect ION'S, are curves formed by cutting
a cone by a plane ; and leaving out the circle and
triangle, are three in number; viz. the elliple, para-
bola, and hyperbola. See Ellipse, Parabola,
and Hyperbola.
CUNICHTHYODONTES, or Plectroni-
TiE, in natural hiftory, one of the three names by
which the foflile teeth of fiflies are known.
CONIFEROUS- I'REEs, in botany, .ire thofe
which produce conc«. Such aie the cedar of Li-
banus, fir, pine, larch, &:c.
CONlSSAL.(fe, in natural hiftory, a clafs of
fofiils, naturally and effentially C( mpoundcd, no:
inflammable, norfoluble in water, found in de-
tached mafi'es, and formed of cryftalline matter
debaled by earth,
CONIUM, Hemlock, in bdtany, a genus of
umbellifernus plants, the flower whereof is com-
pound, and from a general umbtl is compofed of
feveral leffer ones which fpread open, and have bo:li
invulu-
CON
iiivt lucrums of many fhort leaves. The proper (
flower confifts of five unequal and coidated petals
wiih the fame number of filaments, topped with
roundifli antherre. The fruit is roundifh, ftriated,
and divilibie into two parts, containing two feeds,
plain on the one fiJe and convex on the other. The
great or common hemlock, (called alfo cicuta) is a
tall plant with a long taper root. The ftallc is
fmooth, round, hollow, irregularly variegated with
fpots and ffreaks of a red or blackifh purple co-
lour ; it rifes to the height of four or five feet,
branching out toward the top into feveral leiler
ftalks ; thefe are furnifhed with large leaves of a
darkifh green colour on the upper fide, and a lighter
green underneath, divided into a number of fmall
oblong, ovated fegments, which fland in pairs on
middle ribs ; thefe fegments are again deeply cut,
but not quite divided on both fides, and many of
the ultimate Icflions have one or two {lighter in-
dentations. The flowers are white, and the feeds
greenifh, and in fize and fliape like thofe of anife.
This plant is biennial, common about the fides of
fields, under hedges, and in moid, fhady grounds,
and flowers in June or Ji;ly. Hemlock has a difa-
grceable ftrong fmell, of that kind which is called
narcotic and virofe : it is recommended externally in
cataplafms, fomentations, and plaifters, as a power-
ful relblvent and difcutient. Taken internally in no
great quantity, it has occafioned diforders of the
fenfes, fleep, convulfiuns, and in fome inftances
death ; and hence it is ranked among the poifonous
pl..nts. Boerhaave tells us, that by the efHuvia of
the herb, bruifed and ftrongly fmelt to, he became
verte^lnous. It is faid that to certain brute animals
it is innocent, and that its ill qualities are correlated
by vinegar and other vegetable acids. Of its ef-
fefls in fmall dofes, in which it has been by fome
recommended, nothing material was known till the
expeiiments of Dr. Storck, lately publifhed, gave
room to hope, not only that the virtues afcribed
to it in external applications are better toundedthan
praiRitioners in general fecm toiuppofe, but likewile
that it is a plant of very great importance, as an
internal medicine.
Dr. Storck relates, that bags of the dry leaves
quilted together, boiled for a few minutes in water
or in milk, where they could nototherwife be borne,
on account of their fmell and the itching they pro-
duced, then fqueezed from tlie fuperflucus liquid,
and applied warm, checked the progrefs of very
bad oangrqnes, and procured a feparation of the
corrupted parts ;. that the fame application in a p-er-
fon ot fixt}', who had been gouty for many years,
immediately abated the pains, foftened anddiftuffed
the tophaceous concretions, and occafioned the next
fit to be milder and of fhorter continuance. For
interndl puipofes, he direds the juice, while frefli,
to be infj^iffatid in an earthen veifel over a very gen-
tle fire, and kept continually flirring to prevent, its
CON
burning, ti'l it acquires the cnnfiftenre of a thick
extract, which is to be mixed with fomiich of the
powdered leaves, as will reduce it into a mafs fit for
being formed into pills. This preparation. Dr. Storck
fays, was given to a little dog in the quantity oi a
fcruple ; taken by himfelf in dofes of one, or two
grains, every morning and evening for fevera! days ;
and continued by perfons in health for a year or two ;
increafcd in fome cafes to a dram and a half in a
day, without producing any ill conRquence , or af-
fcctinc; any of the actions, fecrctions, or excretions
of the body: it neverthelefs had very powerful and
falutary effecfts in fome reputed incurable difeafes,
afting, though fiowly and infenhbly, as a high re-
folvent. He relates hiff or es of inveterate fchir-
ihufes, cancer?, and the worfl kinds of ulcers and
fiftiilas, being completely cured by it, and fays, it
refolves recent catarafts, or at leaft reftrains their
progrefs.
He begins with fmall dofes, giving one pill of
two grains, lirft twice a day, and then thrice a day,
and gradually increafmg the number to fix or more
for a dofe. The good efFe£ls of the medicine were
fometimes vifible in a few days, though the cure
gsnerally required feveral months. The trials of
this medicine made among us have not as yet, fo
far as we can learn, been attended with fo much
fuccefs ; however, in fome cafes in which it was
applied, it was apparently of great benefit. The
preparers of the extradf in England have generally
depurated the juice, though Dr. Storck's direftion
of infpiffating it, while recent, feems to imply,
that it is to be taken before it has fuff-red any fepa-
ration of its parts. The root of hemlock is gene-
rally fuppofed to be both in external applications,
and when taken internally, of more activity thaa
the leaves. Storck relates, that on being cut, it
yields a bitter acrid milk, of which a drop or two
applied to the tongue occafioned a ti.idity, pain,
and fwelling of the part, fo as to prevent f^eech ;
and that he was freed from this complaint by wafh-
ing and rubbing the tongue with citron juice. In
drying it leems to lofe part of us virulence ; he fays
he has taken a grain or two ol the pow.ier without
injury : there are inftances of twenty or thirty
grains being given with advantage in fchirrhufes of
the liver, Sic. in quartan agues, on the approach
of a fi.t, and even in acute fevers ; nor dies the
frefh root appear to be at all times of equal viru-
lence, it having been chewed fieely witnout any
other effecJt being perceived, than an impreffion of
fweetlfhneis, refenibling that of parfley roots, or
carrots. There are inilances of fome drams, and
even ounces, having been taken without producing
any ill confequences, fo vaiiable does this plant
appear to be in its qualities, if really th? fubjeft of
the feveral hiftories was precifely the fame fpecics
of planti
The
CON
The feeds have been recommended by forr.e as
demulcent, paregoric, and antiphrodifiac. Of their
real qualities, little more is known with certainty,
than that they are innocent to fome kinds of birds.
Mr. Ray fays he found the crop of a thrufh full of
hemlock feeds, even at the feafon when corn was
plentiful.
Botanifts enumerate two or three other fpecies
of conium, which are natives of foreign countries.
CONJUGA FE Diameter, or Jxis of an
Ellipfts, the fborteft of the two diameters, or that
bifedting the tranfverfe axis. See the article Axis.
Conjugate Hyperbolas. If there be two
oppofite hyperbolas A M, am, (Plate XXXV'II.
f^. I.) whofe principal axis is the line A a, and
conjugate axis of the line Bi ; and if there be two
other hyperbolas, whofe principal axis is the line
B /', and conjugate one the line Aa; then thefe
four hyperbolas are called conjugate hyperbolas ;
the two former oppofite ones being conjugates to
the latter.
CONJUGATION, in grammar, a regular di-
ftribution of the feveral inflexions of verbs in their
different voices, moods, tenfcs, numbers and per-
fons, fo as to diftinguilh them from one another.
The Latins have four conjugations, diftinguifhed
by the terminations of the infinitive are, ere, ere,
and Ire ; the vowels before re of the infinitive in the
firft, fecond, and fourth conjugations being long
vowels, and that before re in the infinitive of the
third being a fhort one. See tlie article Vowel.
The Englifli have fcarce any natural inflexions,
deriving all their variations from additional par-
ades, pronouns, &c. whence there is fcarce any
fuch thing as rtridt conjugations in that language.
The French grammarians reduce the number of
coniugations in their language to that in the Latin,
and thffe terminating in er, re, ir, and cir.
Conjugation, in anatomv, is applied to a
pair of nerves ariling together, and -"rrVing the fame
operation, fenfatu;;-;, and motion.
CCi> J Unction, \n agronomy, the meeting
of two fiars or planets in the fame degree of the
zodiac.
This conjun£fion is either true, or apparent. The
true conjunction is when a right line, drawn from
the eye through the center of one of the bodies,
would pafs through that of the other: in this cafe
the bodies are in the fame degree of longitude and
latitude : and here the conjunction is alfo faid to be
central, if the lame line, continued from the two
centers through the eye, do alfo pafs through the
center of the earth.
Apparent conjunction is when the two bodies do
not meet precirely in the fame point, but are joined
with fome latitide.
In this cafe a riaht line, drawn through the cen-
ter of the two bodies, would not pafs throuj^h the
33
CON
center of the earth, but through the eye of the
fpedlator : this conjunftion is alio called partile.
The moon is in conjunction with the fun, when
tlicy meet in the fame point of the ecliptic, which
hiippens every month ; and eclipfes of the fun are
always occafioncd by the conjunction of the fun and
moon in or near the nodes of the ecliptic.
In the revolution of Jupiter's fatellites, there muft
be diltinguifhed two conjunctions with the planet ;
the one made beyond the planet in refpcct of the
fun, and in pafEng from the weftern excurfion to
the eaftern, which is called the fuj.erior conjunc-
tion ; the other made on this fide the planer, in
paffing from the eaflern excurfion to the weftern,
and is called the inferior conjunction. That part of
a fatcllite's orbit, comprehended between the two
points of its eaftern and weftern excurfions, and
where the fuperior conjunction is made, may be
called the fuperior femi-circle, and the part where
the lower conjunction is made the inferior femi-
circle. If the planes of the fatellites were parallel
to the plane of their refpcCtive piimary planet's or-
bit, thefe planes prolonged would pals through the
fun ; becaufe the plane of each planet's orbit pafles
through it, confequently all the fatellites would ap-
pear to move in a right line, in the direClion of the
planet's diameter, where it is interfered by its
orbit ; therefore, would never pal's above or under
the planet's center, when in conjunction with it.
Another confequence of this phenomenon is, i
fuppofing the planets and their fatellites to have no
light but what is reflcCted from the fun to them ;
then the fatellite paffing before the planet's difk,
when in their inferior conjunction, muft hide the
fun from fuch of the planet's inhabitants who arc
under their path, and thereby caufe an eclipfe of
the lun to thofe inhabitants. And, when in their
fuperior conjunCtinn they pal's behind the planet's
di.lc, ihey ceafe to be enlightened by the fun, and
confequently, being funk in the planet's fliade, are
not vifible while in that fliade, or behind the planet's
difk, which forms an eclipfe of the fatellite or
moon.
Conjunction, in grammar, an undeclinable
word, or particle, which ferves to join words and
fentences together, and thereby fliews their relation
or dependence one upon another. The conjunction,
which is ufually placed laft in the eight parts of
fpeech, is of great ufe to render the difcuurfe fmooth
and fluent, and ferves many good purpofes in the ar-
gumentative or narrative lt_\ le ; but fliould ever be
omitted where a perfon fpcaks with emotion, as
only ferving to weaken and enervate it. Conjunc-
tions are of feveral kinds,
Adverfative Conjunctions, fuch as are reftric-
tive, or exprelfive of contrarieties ; as, but, never-
thelefs, ullhougb.
7Z
C.-.tt/'/
CON
Caufal Conjunctions, fuch as exprefs the rea-
fon of fomething advanced ; as, for^ hecaufe, feeing,
inafmuch as.
Conduftve Conjunctions, fuch as fhew that a
confequence is drawn ; as, of confequence, for which
reafon, but then,, fo that.
Conditio!7aI Con jVKCTiotiS, thofe that denote a
condition; as, on condition that, if, if not, in cafe of ,
provided that.
Copulative Conjunctions, fuch as fhew a com-
parifon, or exprefs a relation of union between two
things ; as, and, only, as much as, in the fame man-
ner as, not only, inafmuch as, but alfo, neither more
nor lefs.
Continuative Conjunctions, fuch as denote a
fucceffion or continuation of the difcourfe ; as, what-
ever it be, even, in effc5l.
DisiunStive Conjunctions, fuch as import a
relation of feparation or divifion ; as, neither, whe-
ther, or.
Duhitative Conjunctions, fuch as exprefs feme
doubt, or fufpenfion of opinion ; as, if, that is to
fay, y<r.
CONJURATION, magic words, charadlers, or
ceremonies, whereby evil fpirits, tempefts, Sec. are
fuppofed to be raifed, or driven away.
CONNARUS, in botany, a genus of plants,
whofe flower confifts of five lanceolated, ercft,
equal petals ; and contains ten fubulated ereit fila-
ments, topped with roundifh antherse.
The fruit is an oblong, gibbous, bivalvular cap-
fule, of one cell, containing a large ovated feed.
CONNECTICUT, a Britifh colony of North
America, bounded by the Maflachufet colony on
the north-eafl; by the fea, on the fouth ; and by
New-York, on the wefl ; being about one hundred
miles in length, and eighty in breadth.
This colony conflitutes a diilir.fi government, of
a different form from that of New- England.
CONNECTION, or Connexion, the relation
whereby one thing adheres to, or depends upon,
another. Such is the relation between Euclid's
propofitions, that the latter cannot fubfifl but by
its connedfiun with the former.
Connection, or Continuity, in the drama,
confiffs in the joining of the feveral fcenes toge-
ther.
The conreftion is faid to be obferved, when the
fcenes of an aft fucceed one another immediately,
and are fo joined, as that the ftage is never lett
cnipty.
CONNIVENT Valves, in anatomy, thofe
wrinkles, cellules, and valcules, which are found
in the int'ide of the two great inteftines, the ilium
and jejunum.
The inner tunic of the guts, being longer than
the middle or the outward tunic, does frequently
wrinkle, or bag out, in many places, by which
CON
means the pafTage for the contents become flraight-
ened, and the matter through the guts then defcends
more flowly, fo that the ladleals have the more time
to imbibe the ch^\e.
CONNOISSEUR, a French word much ufed of
late in Englifh, to fignify a perfon well verfed in
any thing : whence it is ufed for a critic, or a per-
fon who is a thorough judge of any fubjeft.
CONOCARPUS, the button-tree, in botany, a
plant which grows in all the iflands of the Weff-
Indies. It rifes with a woody upright ftem, about
fi.xteen feet high, fending out many fide branches,
which alfo grow eredl : thefe are furnifhed with
fpear-fhaped leaves, having broad foot-ftalks, and
are placed alternate on the branches.
The flowers grow upon fhort branches, which
arife from the wings of the leaves. Thefe have
three or four fmall leaves on their lower part under
the flowers : each of thefe branches are terminated
by fix or eight conical heads of flowers, each com-
ing out of a fcaly covering. The flowers are fmall,
of a red colour, having five erect fubulated fila-
ments, topped with globofe antherae, with a fingle
flyle.
The fruit is conical and fcaly, and contains a
fingle naked feed.
CONOID, in geometry, is a folid body gene-
rated by the revolution of a conic feftion about its
axis.
Elliptical COKOW), is a folid formed by the revo-
lution of an e!l»pfe about one of its diameters, and
more generally called a fpheroid. See Spheroid.
Hyperbolical CotioiD, is generated by the revo-
lution of an hyperbola ACE (Plate XXXVIL
fg. 2.) about its axis A D.
Example 1. Let it be required to find the furface
of an hypeibolic conoid, generated by the rotation
of the hyperbola A C F about its axis A D.
Let E be the center of the hyperbola, and put
A E, the femi-iia;'i.'\';ife diameter, equal to b, and
A G, the femi-conjugale diamcrei, C^jual to a ;
alfo B C == *■, and E B z:^ y. Now becaufe, from
the nature of the curve, x x =
therefore 2 xx :zz —
Lb
X 2 jj! ; whence ibb x x
= 2 aa y y, and bb x x -z^ a ayy, and ,v = , ,
box
whence x x z=. " '' '' : fubflitutin^r this therefore in
i* x^ °
the general equation, z = xx -}- yy"- '" ^^^ """""^
of X X, and we fhall have
u* V- V' b'
b'i X yy — p o
■¥.yy =
tj)-. b- .\- b* y-- }•■
i^
+ ^-
— **'
I* Xyy — bb"-
i'X
yy — b U-
Xj =
/^LATKXXKtVr.
t^//t ^ff</ C OT\OX<i .
'yi-^o^'
f^ (Z^ra/^tfuc^ ^L^OTtme/^
'ffmxit>fictyi7^ tc:::^/'^lcfo
-C
'J C
>^4^.^.
kJ/^^
^
■.rJ".
-D
— p-
\ c
lX^ . ^-
1 ^ ^
-E
^y
/
f
1.
Jl
' /Mp.'-Con/i'^e/M^^i^ (yl/^ru,^
A yC(?-n,^^i^i^yi^
<y^./o
'^r/. ,f
yX.-4^^jf%/at£i.\
CON
lidyv — /i+ 1
— , by fubftituting dd \n the
b yy ^ h b-
room (A a a -^ bb, for the fluxion of the curve.
Put A D = r, and the circumference generated
by the point := r, then will the circumference ge-
nerated by the point C be =i — — (for as r : r : : .v :
] ■=. — X \ but from the nature of the curve
y J r
XX =1 -7-7- X yy — b b ; therefore x = —X
bb
y y — b b"' ; whence — x will be equal to
b
c a
yy — b b' , the circumference defcribed by the
point C in the terms of the equation of the curve.
This therefore being multiplied -j X ''* ^ — r-y
yy — b b^
the fluxion of the curve line, A C, will give — - x
T b
■h<-
c ay
yy -bb'-x^x ^==rr =rJ7 X ^'^yy-^* >
yy — bU-
for the fluxion of the furface generated by the curve
line A C, about its axis A B.
Example II. Let it be required to find the value
of the hyperbolic conoid formed by the rotation of
the hyperbola A C F D, about its axis AD.
Having drawn an ordinate, as B C, put D F =:: r,
BC—y, A)i — x, A D = a, and A E = 2 ^, then
will E D := fl -]- 2 i, and E B = ;*• + 2 ^, and the
area of the circle generated by the ordinate BC 1=
^ V V c y V X
— -^; whence -^-=- — will be the fluxion of the
2 r z r
folid ; and becaufe, from the nature of the hyper-
bola, asEDxAD:DF^ :: EBxAB:AC^
therefore a a -\- % ab : r r :: xx -\- 1 b x : yy ;
, ryxx-{-2brrx
whence yy =
Putting there-
at -j- 2 a /^ "
fore this laft expreflion in the room of yy, in
the fluxion of the folid — , we fliall have
e r r X X
^7.h
2 a a -|- ^ a b
b c r X X
/hofe fluent ■
x'+ -ibi
{) a a -\- \z a b
-, for the va-
JL.
% a a -f- i^a h (> a a -\- \Z a b
lue of the folid formed by the fpace ABC; whence
aacr-\--iabcr .,,, , , ,1 11
.- ■_ will be the vajue or the whole
t>a -\- \zb
folid ; for when A B flows into, or becomes equal
ro A D, X will become equal to a. Whence it
follows.
That the circumfcribed cylinder is to the in-
fcribed hyperbolic conoid, as 3a -f" bb is to
fl -|- 3 ^, for the cylinder is - acr.
Paral/olical Conoid is generated by the revolu-
tion of a parabola about its axis; and is fomething
CON
like an half fpheroid, only its fides are fomewhat
flraighter.
To find the folid content, multiply the fquare of
the diameter of its bafe by ,7854, and multiply that
produdt by half the height, and that lafl product
will be the content required fufficiently accurate for
common praftice.
To find the content of the lower fruflum of a
parabolical conoid, multiply the fum of the fquares
of the lefTer and greater diameters by ,3927, and that
produift by the height of the fruftum, and the laft
produ£l is the content required.
By fluxions the furface of a parabolic conoid is
found in the following manner.
Example I. Let it be required to find the furface
of a parabolic conoid, generated by the rotation of the
femi- parabola A D E, about its axis A D, (fg. 3.)
From any point B, let the ordinate B C be drawn
paralled to DE; then put A B = a-, B C = ^,
D E = r, and the circumference of the circle gene-
rated by the point E = f ; whence -^ will be
the circumfererKC generated by the point C (for as
r : c : : y : t^ 1 ; but, from the nature of curve,
ax z= yy ; whence t7 x =: 2 yy, and a- := — j
confequently x x =z ■ Subftituting this
■' a a
quantity therefore in the general equation z =:
XX -{- yy"^ in the room of x x, and we fhall have-
4-yyyy
■yy ■
Ayy.^y -\- ""yy^
which
being multiplied by -^, the circumference generated
by the point C, will give -^
■iyyyy -\- '^ oyy
y V"
— X "-^ X ^yy + aa- = — X ^-yj- -r ««"■
= — X^-^ X 4 )■>■ -(- a a', for the fluxion of the
furface generated by the arch A C ; but the fquare
■ ■ , . , zyy 2 v^ , 4 V*
root o\ ±y y -\- an, \i a -+- ■ —. }- ■
10 y^
2S v'°
a9
V V
multiplied by ^-^, will give yy -\-
This therefore being
3 y? y ZySj;
ai-
+
4.V .V
v>
+ -
28," V
--t-I +
, whofe fluent ^■^—
+
— X
2 a* ' z a-" a* ' 3 a'*
— , £\C. equal (by puttiHg a z= i) to — x •^-^—
CON
-|- 7-^ .-, &c. for the
"^2 32 ' ■ 3
furface generated by the arch AC ; but if we fup-
pofe D E := (^, and imagine the ordinate B C to
move in the direftion A D, till it arrive at, or
coincide with the ordinate D E, then j will become
equal to b^ and we fliall have —y.\hb-\-~b*^ —
4.^6 ^ i.y' ~ b'° -if -J i'% for the furface of the
whole parabolic conoid.
Example If. Let it be required to find the value
of a parabolic conoid, generated by the revolution
of the femi-parabola AC ED (Plate XXXVII.
fig. 3.) about its axis AD.
From any point, 'as B, in the axis A D, let the
ordinate B C be drawn parallel to the bale D E ;
then put A B := A-, B C = v, and D E = r, alfo
A D =z (J, and the circumference defcribed by the
point E =: i: ; whence to find the circumference
generated by the ordinate B C, it will be as r :
c:: y : -^— =z to the circumference defcribed by the
point E ; whence -^- X y =
2 r ■"
c y y
will be the
arch of the fame circle. This therefore being mul-
tiplied by .V, the fluxion of the abfcifl'e, will give
'C V V X C X V
— ^^ rz: (by putting x in the room of yy)
becaufe from the nature of the parabola, 1 x ■:=.yy)
for the fluxion of the folid generated by the fpace
n ^ c X X c t )' X .
fluent =: -^ — by puttmg
ABC, whofe
yy in the room of x, equal to
4'-
c n r r
= i(7 f r (by
putting a in the room of a-, and r in the room of y)
will be the value of the folid generated by the whole
parabolic fpace A D E ; for if we imagine the ordi-
nate BC in a flowing rtate, and to move till it ar-
rives at, or coincides with the ordinate D E, then
A B will become equal to A D, x will becotne equal
to a, and y will become equal to r. Whence
follows,
Firfl, That the parabolic conoid is to the circum-
fcribing cylinder as I to 2 ; for the cylinder is equal
a c r
to — ;— .
Secondly, That the infcribed cone is to the cylin-
der as I to 3.
Thirdly, That the cylinder, the parabolic co-
noid, and the cone, are to each other as the num-
bers 3, }, I.
CONOIDES, in anatomy, a gland found in the
third ventricle of the brain, called pinealis, from its
refem'ilance to a pine-apple. Defcartcs fixt-d the
feat of the rational foul in this gland. See the ar-
ticle Brain.
CONSANGUINITY, the relation fubfifting
4
CON
between perfons of the fame blood, or who arc
fprung from the fame root.
CONSCIENCE, in ethics, a fecret teflimony of
the foul, whereby it gives its approbation to things
that are naturally good, and condemns thofe that
are evil. When it judges of an adfion to be per-
formed, it is called in the fchools an antecedent
coni'cience ; and when it pafTes fentence on an ac-
tion which is performed, it is called a fubfequent
confcience. When the mind is ignorant or uncer-
tain about the motive of an a<Sl:ion, or its tenden-
cy to good ; or when there are feveral circum-
ftances in the cafe, feme of which being doubtful,
render the mind dubious concerning the morality of
an action, this is called a doubtful or fcrupulous
confcience ; and if it miftakes concerning thefe, it
is called an erroneous confcience. If the error or
ignorance is involuntary or invincible, the adlioa
proceeding from that error, or from that ignorance,
is reckoned innocent. But if they are the eff'eft of
negligence, or of afFedfatiun, the condu6f flowing
from fuch error is criminal. Not to f How one's
confcience, though erroneous and ill-informed, Mr.
Hutchefon likewife reckons criminal, as it is the
guide of life, and to counteraiS it fhews an incor-
rigible fpirit ; yet to follow an erroneous confcience
is likewife criminal, if the error which mifled the
confcience was the effect of inattention, or of any
criminal pafiion.
Some divines maintain that confcience is infalli-
ble, and hold it to be that immutable law by which
God will judge men. They deny that the under-
ftanding can be the fource of errors, and lay them
all at the door of the will.
CONSCRIBED, a term ufed by fome geometri-
cians for circumfcribed.
CONSCRIPT, Confcriptu!, in Roman antiqui-
ty, an appellation given to the fenators of Rome,
who were called confcript- fathers, on account of
their names being entered all in one regifler.
CONSECRATION, the aft of devoting any
thing to the fervice and worfhip of God. The Mo-
faical law ordained, that all the firtt born, both of
men and beaft, fhould be fanflified or confecrated
to God. We find alfo, that Jofliua C'jriiccratcd
(he Gibeonites, as S-:>k-.'r.On and David did the Ne-
tbiniiro, to the fervice of the temple; and that the
Hebrews fometimcs confecrated their fields and cat-
tle to the Lord, after which they were no longer in
their power.
Among the ancient Chriflians, the confecration
of churches was perfoimed with a great deal of
pious folemnity. In what manner it was done for
the three firfl: ages, is unceitain ; the authentic ac-
counts reaching no higher than the fourth, when,
in the peaceable reign of Conftantiiie, chunhes
were every where buih, and dedicated with great
folemnity. Some think the confecration confifttd
in
CON
in fetth ; up the fign of the croCa, or in placing a
commui on-table in the church; and others, that
no more va^ done than preaching a panegyrical fcr-
mon in .onimcnioration of the founder, and that
then they proceeded to prayers, one of which was
compofed on purpofe for the church to be confe-
crated. The Runianifts have a great deal of pious
foppery in the ceremonies of ctmlecration ; which
they beftow on almoft: every thing, as bells, candles,
books, water, oil, aflies, palms, luords, banners,
pLifiures, croiFes, agnus dels, rofes, children's clouts,
&c.
In England, churches have been always confe-
crated with particular ceremonies, the form of which
was left to the difcretion of the bifhop. That ob-
ferved by biftiop Laud, in confecrating St. Catha-
rine Creed church, in London, gave great offence.
Consecration is particularly ufed for the bcne-
diftion of the elements in the eucharifl:.
CONSECTARY, a dedurtion, or confequence,
drawn from a preceding propofition. Some rather
choofe to call it a confequence, and others a corol-
lary.
CONSENT of Parts, in the animal oeconomy,
an agreement or fympathy, whereby when une part
is immediately aftedied, another, at a dillance, be-
comes afFetfled in the fame manner.
CONSEQUENCE, in logic, the con^lufion, cr
what refults from reafon or argument. See Con-
clusion.
The confequence is, that other propofition in
which the extremes or premifes of a fyllugifm are
joined, or feparated ; and is gained from what was
aflerted in the premifes.
This word, in a more reftrained fenfe, is ufed for
the relation or conne£lion between two propofttions,
whereof one is inferred from the other.
CONSEQUENT, fomething deduced or gather-
ed from a former argumentation. But, in a more
precife fenfe, it is ufed for the propofition which
contains the conclufion, confidcred in itfelf, with-
out any regard to the antecedent : in which fenfe
the confequent may be true, though the confequence
be falfe. See the preceding article.
Consequent of a Ratio, in mathematics, the
latter of the two terms of a ratio, or that to which
the antecedent is compared; thus in m to n, n is
the confequent, and m the antecedent. See the ar-
ticles Ratio and Proportion.
CONSERVATOR, an officer ordained for the
fecurity and prefervation of the" privileges of (ome
cities and communities, having a commiffion to
judge of, and determine the differences among them.
Conservator of the Peace, in our ancient cuf-
toms, a pcrfon who had a fpccial charge to keep
the king's peace.
CONSERVATORY, a term fometimes ufed
for a green-houfe, orice-houfe. See Green-kouse
and Ice-house.
33
CON
CONSERVE, in pharmacy, a form of medi-
cine, contriv J to prefcrve the flowers, herbs, roots,
or fruits, of Itveral fiinples, as near as poflible to
what they are when frefh gathered.
Conferves are made up by beating up the thing to
be preierved with fugar, viz. a triple quantity there-
of to thofe that are mod moifl, and a double quan-
tity to thofe that are leaft fo.
CONSIDERATION, in law, material caufes
or ground of a contradt, without which the party
contracting would not be bound.
CONSfGNMENT, in law, the depofiting any
fum of money, bills, papers, or commodities in
good hands ; either by appointment of a court
of juflicc, in order to be delivered to the perfons
to whom they are adjudged ; or voluntarily,
in order to their being remitted to the perfons
they belong to, or fent to the places they are defign-
ed for.
Consignment of Goods, in commerce, is the
delivering or making ihem over to another: thus,
goods are faid to be configned to a fadlor, when
they are fent to him to be fold, &c. or when a fac-
tor fends back goods to his principal, they are faid
to be configned to him.
CONSISTENT So^/w, a term frequently ufed
by Mr. Boyle, to fignify fuch bodies whofe parts
ari- iirmlv united together, fo that they do not fo
ealily flu'e over one another's furfaces as the parts
of fluid bodies do.
COI>.->ISTENTES, inchurch-hiftory, an appel-
lation given to fuch penitents as were permitted to
affilf at prayers, but not to partake of the Sacra-
ment.
CONSISTORY, at Rome, is an ecclefiaftical
affembly held in the prefence of the pope, for the
reception of princes, or their ambafladors, for the
canonization of faints, for the promotion of cardi-
nals, and other import.;nt affairs.
Consistories, am ng the Jews, were courts
of judicature, corififliiig of twenty-thrte pcrfon?,
who were appointed to fit in judgment upon the
lives and fortunes of the people, and decide all cau-
fes, a few only excepted.
CONSOLATION, a figure in rhetoric, where-
in the orator endeavouts to moderate the grief of
another. A principal regard is always to be had to
the circumftances and relations of the parties: thus,
a fuperior may intcrpofe hi': authuiity, and even
chide : a wife man ma\' difpute, (entences will be-
come him : an i.nferior is to fiicw refpect and aticc-
tion, and cVen that he had triis fiom fome wife or
learned per fan : and an equal" is to appeal to their
common iric/idlhip.
CONSOLE, in ari^hiteflure, an ornament cut
upon the key of an arch, which has a projedure,
and, on occafion, fcrves to fupport little corniches,
figures, bufts, and vafes. They aie aifo called mu-
tuies and modillions, according to thi.ir form. Some
8 A of
CON
CON
of them are ftriated, others in form of cartouches,
others have drops in form of triglyphs. Thofe
made at the end of a plank of wood, cut triangu-
larwife, are called ancones. See Ancone.
Mr. Le Clerc is of opinion, that a confole fhould
always have fomething maflive to fuftain, and ferve
it as a reft.
CONSONANCE, in mufic, is ordinarily ufed
in the fame fenfe with concord, viz. for the union
or agreement of two founds produced at the fame
time, the one grave and tl.e other accute; which
mingling in the air in a certain proportion, occa-
lions an accord agreeable to the ear.
Moft authors confound confonance and concord
together, though fume of the more accurate diitin-
guifli them, making confonance a mere founding of
two notes togetiier, or in the fame time, in contra-
diftindion to the motion of thofe founds in fuccef-
fion, or one after the other. In cffciit, the two no-
tions coincide ; for two notes thus played in confo-
nance, conllitute concord; and two notes that pleafe
the ear in confonance, will pleafe it in fucceffion.
Notes in confonance confl:itute harmony, as notes
in fucceflion confiture melody.
In the popular fenfe, confonances are either fim-
ple or compound. The moft perfccf is unifon ;
though many authors, both among the ancients and
moderns, difcard it from the number of confonan-
ces, as conceiving confonances an agreeable mix-
ture of grave and acute founds, and not a repetition
of the fame found. The firft confonance is the oc-
tave, then the fifths, the fourths, the thirds, and
lixths: tlie reft are multiples, or repetitions of
thefe.
Consonance, in grammar, fignifies a like ca-
dence of words and periods, a fault to be avoided
in Englifh, though the ancients make a figure of
them, which they call oi/.owieT^iulov.
CONSONANT, a letter that cannot be founded
v.'iihout fome fingle or double vowel before or after
it.
Confonants are firft divided into fing'e and dou-
ble ; the double are x and z, the reft are all finglc,
and tliefe are again divided into mutes and liquids;
eleven mutes, b, c, J,/, v, g,j, k, p, q, /, and four
liquids, /, w, n, r. But the moft natural divifion of
confonants is that of the Hebrew grammarians, who
have been imitated by the grammarians of other
oriental languages. Thefe divide the confonants
into five cUffes, with regard to the five principal or-
gans of the voice, which all contribute, it is true,
but one more notably than the reft, to certain mo-
difications which make five general kinds of confo-
nants. Each clafs comprehends feveral confonants,
which re ult from the different decrees of the fame
jnndifitations,or from the different motions of the fame
organs : thefe organs are the throat, palate, tongue,
tCLih, lip."; ; whence the five claffes of confonants
are denominated guttural, palatal, lingual, dental,
and labial.
The abbe Dangeau thinks the nature of the di-
vifion of the fiebiew grammarians very reafonable,
but he does not acquiefce in the diftribution they
have made of them. In order to find a natural and
juft divifion of the confonants, he obferves, no re-
gard muft be had to the chara£lers that reprefent
them, nor any thing to be confidered but their
found, or the modification they give the found. On
this principle the fame author finds in the French
five labial confonants, b, p, v, f, m; five palatal
ones, d,f, g, k, n ; four hiffers, f, z,j, ch; two li-
quids, / and r; two that mix with each other //,
gn ; and the h afpirate.
He adds, i. Tl'hat m and n are properly two na-
fal confonants, the m founding like a b paff>;d thro'
the nofe, and the n like a d pronounced through the
nofe.
2. That among the confonants fome are weak,
others ftrong ; their difference confifting in this,
the former are preceded by a fmall emiffion of the
voice, that foftens them, which the latter have not :
the weak are b, c, d, g, z, j; the ftrong are p,f, i>
t,f,ch: hence we may conclude, that the excefa
of confonants in one language above another only
confifts in this, that there are more modifications
of found eftablifhed in the one than in the other ;
for all men having the fame organs, may form the
fame modifications : fo that it is entirely owing to
cuftom, nothing to nature, that the Englifh have
not the 9 of the Greeks, the P and H of the He-
brews, the Clj of the Germans, the gn of the French,
the gl of the It.ilians, and the // of the Welch.
Alfo that the Chinefe have no r, the Iroquois no
labial confonants, the Hurons abundance of afpi-
rates, and the Arabs and Georgians abundance of
double confonants. Laftly, to find all the confo-
nants that may be formed in any language, there
needs nothing but to obferve all the modifications
that the founds of fpeech will admit of, by which
we fhall have all the confonants pradticable.
Consonant 6'/m/j5, in mufic, are fuch hetv^'ixt
whofe founds there is an union or agreement, or
the one is an unifon to the other. See Conso-
nance and Concord.
With regard to confonant firings. Dr. Wallis
obferves, it hath been long fince obferved, that if a-
viol or lute ftring be touched with the bow or hand,
another ftring on the fame, or another inftru-
ment, not far from it, if an unifon to it, or an
ocSlave, or the like, will at the fame time tremble
of its own accord ; but Dr. Wallis further adds,
that not the whole of that other firing doth thus
tremble, but the feveral parts feverally, according
as they are unifons to the whole, or the parts of
that ftring fo ftruck ; for inftance, fuppofing A C,
(Plate XXXVII. /^. 4.) an upper odtave to a 7, and
therefore
CON
therefore an unifon to each half of it, flopped at $;
now if A C be ftruck, while ay is open, the two
halves of this latter, that is a (3 and ^y will both
tremble, but not the middle point at |3 ; which
will eafily be obferved, if a little bit of paper be
lightly wrapped about the ftring ay, and removed
fucceflTively from one end of the itring to the other :
in like manner, if A D, fig. 5, be an upper twelfth
to a $, and confequcntly an unifon to its three
"parts a^, /3 7, and y ^, will feverally tremble, but
not the points |3, y, which may be obferved in
like manner as the former: alfo, if AE, Jtg. .6,
be a double ocSave to a c, the four quarters of this
latter will tremble, when the former is ftruck, but
not the points 0, y, ^: fo if A G, /ig. 7, be a
fifth to a n, and confequently each half of the for-
mer be flopped in D, an unifon to each third part
of the latter (topped in y, e, while tiiat former is
ftruck, each part of this latter will tremble feveral-
ly, but not the points y, e, and while this latter is
fiiuck, each part of the former will tremble, but
not the point D ; the like will hold in leiler con-
cords, but the lefs remarkably as the number of di-
viftons encreafes. This phaenomenon, as far as is
known, was firft difcovereJ by Mr. William Noble,
of Merton colle^ey and after him by Mr. Thomas
Pigot of Wadham college, and is now commonly
knowr to muficians : Dr. Wallis adds, that the
fame ftring as a y, fig. 4. being ftruck in the mid-
dle at |3, each part being unifon to the other, will
give no diftin£l found at all, but a very confufed
one ; as alfo if a J", fig. 5, be ftruck at g or y,
where one part is an udlave to the other; and in
like manner, if a. e, fig. 6, be ftruck at g or J,
the one part being a double o£tave to the other ;
and fo if a ^, fig. 8, be ftruck in y or 3', the one
part being a fifth to the other, and thus in other like
confoiiant di\ifions ; but ftill the lefs remarkably as
the number of divifions increafes ; this and the for-
mer pha'nomenon Dr. Wallis judges to depend upon
one and the fame caufe, viz. the contemporary vi-
brations of the feveral unifon parts, which make
the one tremble at the motion of the other ; but
when ftruck at the refpcclive points of divifions,
the found is incongruous, becaufe the point that
ftiould be at reft is difturbed : a lute or viol-ftring
will thus anfwer, not only to a confonant ftring on
the fame, or a neighbouring lute or viol, but to a
confonant note in wind-inftruments ; which was
particularly tried on a viol, anfvvering to the confo-
nant notes on a chamber-organ, but not !b remark-
ably to the wirc-ftrings of an harpfichord : wind-
inftruments communicate to the air as ftrong a con-
cuflion, if not a ftronger, than that of gut-ftrings ;
and we feel the wainfcot-feats, on v/hich we fit or
Jean, to tremble conftantly at certain notes on the
organ or other wind inftruments, as well as at the
notes of a bafe-viol : Dr. Wallis was alfo told, that
a. thin, fine Venice g'afs was cracked with the ftrong
CON
and lafting found of a trumpet or cornet, founding
near it an unifon or a confonant note to that of the
tone or ting of the glafs, and he thinks it no ways
improbable.
aiueen CONSORT is faid in contradiftindlion to
a fovereign piincefs, or queen invefted with fuprente
authority. See the article Queen.
CONSPIRACY, in law, fignifies an agreement
between two or more, falfely to indidf, or procure
to be indi6led, an innocent perfon of felony.
CONSPIRATORS are, by ftatute, defined ta
be fuch as bind themfelves by oath, covenant, oP
other alliance, to affift one another, falfely and ma-
licioufly to indift perfons, or falfely to maintain
pleas. Likewife thofe that retain men in the coun-
tries with liveries or fees, in order to fupport their
malicious enterprizes, which extends as well to the
takers as the givers, and to ftewards and bailiffs of
lords, who, by their office or power, take upon
them to maintain quarrels.
Confpirators in treafon are thofe that plot againfl
the king and government.
CONSPIRING Powers, in mechanics, thofe
adding in dire>Slions not oppofite. See the article
Power.
CONSTABLE, Lord high conftable, an an-
cient officer of the crowns both of England and
France, whofe authority was fo very extenfive, that
the office has been laid afide in both kingdoms, ex-
cept on particular occafions, fuch as the king's co-
ronation. The conftable of France had his perfor*
privileged, and, during the king's minority, was
named next to the p:iaces of the blood. The army
obeyed him next the king : he managed all that be-
longed to war, either for punifhment of delinquents,
diftribution of booty, furrender of places, &c. The
jurlfdidlion and fundions of this office are now ia
the marfhals of France.
The funiSlion of the conftable of England con-
fifted in the care of the common peace of theland^
in deeds of arms and matters of war. By a law of
Richard II. the conftable of England has the deter-
mination of things concerning wars and blazonry
of arms, which cannot be difcufled by the common
law. The firft conftable was created by the Con-
queror : the office continued hereditary till the thir-
teenth of Henry VIII. when it was laid afide, as
being fo powerful as to become troublefome to
the king. We have alfo conftables denominated
from particular places, as conftables of the Tower,
of Dover-caftle, of Windfor-caftle, of the caftle
of Caernarvon, and many other of the caftlcs of
Wales, whofe office is the fame with that of the
caftellani, or governors of caftles.
From the lord- high conftable are derived thofe.
inferior ones, fince called the conftables of hundicds
or franchifcs, who were firft ordaini^d in :he tliir-
teenih of Edward I. by the ftatute cf VViiuhi-fter,.
which, for the confervation fA L,t.a.e and vilw of;
aiQiour*
CON
armour, appointed that two cosiflables fhould be
chofen in every hundred. Thcfe are what we now
call liigh-conftables, on account that the increafe
of people atid offences has made it neceffary to ap-
point others under thefe, in every town, called pet-
tf-conftables, who are of the like nature, though
of inferior authority to the other. The high-conftable
over the whole hundred is ufunlly chofen and fworn
fiito his office by the juftices of the peace, in their
fefTions i and as to petty-conftables in towns, vil-
lac,es, Sic. the right of choofing them belongs to
the court- leet, though they may be elefted by the
parifliioners. They are appointed yearly, and ought
to be men of hond^, knowledge, and ability ; and
if they refufe to ferve, or do not perform their daty^
they may be bound over to the ftiTians, and there
indi£ted and fined.
CONSTAT, in law, a certificate that the clerk
of the pipe and auditors of the exchequer grant at
the requc-rt of any perfon who intends to plead or
move in that court for the difcharge of any thing.
A conflat is fuperior to an ordinary certificate, be-
eaufe it contains nothing but what is evident on re-
cord.
CONSTELLATION, in aftronomy, is a fyftem
of feveral ftars that are feen in the heavens near to
one another.
The altronomer to avoid confufion, and to be able
to point out any one &2iV, without being allowed to
give a particular name to each, divides them into
feperate parcels, of which he will make a particu-
lar plan; and to each of thefe parcels he will aflign
a figure at pleafure, fuch as a ram, a bull, a dra-
gon, &c. fo that all the flars in each of the parcels
drawn on the plan, may be inclofed in the defigned
figures, and correfpond to the different parts from
whence they take their name.
For example. Having drawn a bull about a par-
eel of ftars, that ftar which falls in the eye is called
the ftar in the Bull's Eye ; another which refpefts
the tip of the horn, will be named the Bull's Horn.
By this means, if any new phasnomenon is feen in
the heavens among the ftars thus divided into par-
cels, it is direflly known in what part of the heavens
it is in, as in the horn, or towards the bull's head,
&c.
A parcel of flrars thus contained in an afligned
iigure is called a conftcllation. But we would ad-
vertile our young aftronomers, or fuch who are
making themfelves acquainted with the names of
the ftars, not to expcifl that they (liall find any par-
cel of ftars forming the figure from which they
take their names, or have any Hkencfs in many of
thtfe conftellations, or rather in none but the tri-
angles.
In pra(3tcal geometry, when an exaft plan of a
piece of ground is to be drawn, the figure may be
divided from each three objeds into triangles, whofe
Tides are meafured by an inftruraent, fuch as a
CON
chain, and the triangles are joined together by tlie
common fides: in the fame manner, the obferver
will imagine that each ftar forms with any other
two, a fpheric triangle, whofe fides ar§ arcs, on
the concave fphere, comprehended between thefe
ftars; and fince the centre tf the(e arcs are at his
eye, he can mcafure them by the arc of an inffru-
meiit of a circular form; whcfc radius is fufficicnt-
ly large, to diftinguifh degrees, minutes, and fe-
conds.
Now having determined the arcs fliewing the
diftances of each ftar from two or three others,
they may be put on a gl^be, on which may be
drawn the figures of the corft< Itations ; or general
and particular charts may be made of them, in the
fame manner, as on the terreftrial globe all the
points on the furface of the earth are drawn, whofe
reciprocal diHances are known ; or as the geogra-
phical charts are made.
As the earth intercepts from its inhabitants a part
of the fixed ftars, fo the ancient aftronomers divid-
ed that part of the heavens which they knew, into
forty-eight principal conftellations, viz. the Great
Bear, Little Bear, Dragon, Cephcus, Cafliopeia,
Andromeda, Perfeus, Bootes, Northern Crown,
Hercules, Harp, Swan, Serpentarius, Serpens, Vul-
peculae and Anferis, Sagitta, Eagle and Antinous,
Dolphin, Little Horfe, Pcgafus, Northern Trian-
gle, Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo,
Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius,
Pifces, Whale, Oiion, Eridanus, Hare, Great Dog,
Little Dog, Ship Argo, Hydra, Cup, Crow, Cen-
taur, Wolf, Altar, Southern Crown, and Southera
Fifli.
Within the lafl three hundred years, navigators
who had failed to countries unknown to the anci-
ents, having difcovcred thofe ftars which are never
feen in Europe, have formed them into twelve new
conftellations, viz. the Peacock, Crane, Toucan,
Phenix, Gold Fifti, Flying Fifh, Hydius, Cameli-
on, Bee, Indian Bird, Southern Triangle, Indian,
the Greyhounds, Lacenta, Monceros, &c.
The figures attributed to thefe new conftellations
had no other origin than the fancy of thofe who
named them. It is not fo with thofe of the ancients,
which took their origin from the relioious ceremo-
nies of the Ethiopians, Egyptians, Phenicians and
Caldeans. The Greeks adopted a part, and dif-
guifed the reft by fubftituting names and figures
drawn from their fabulous hiftory ; this has been the
fubjccSf of feveral learned difteriations, which may
be confultcd.
The venerable Bedc, indeed, out of a vain zeal,
inftead of the names and figures of the twelve con-
ftellations, fubftituted thofe of the twelve apoftles ;
Julius Schillerius, in 1627, completed the reforma-
tion, and gave fcripture-names to all the conftella-
tions in the heavens. But as thefe innovations could
ferve no purpofe, but that of introducing quarrels
into
CON
into aftronomy, the old conftellations are flill re-
tained, both becaufe better could not be fublHtuted,
and likewife to keep up the greater correfpondence
and uniformity between the old aftronomy and the
new.
The divifion of the ftars by imas^es and figures is
of great antiquity, and fcems to be as old as aitro-
nomy itfelf ; for in the moft: ancient book of Job,
Orion, AriTturus, and the Pleiades are mentioned ;
and we meet with the names of many of the con-
ftellations in the writings of the firft poets Homer
and Hefiod.
The hiftory of each conftellation, with the num-
ber of flars each contains, fee under their refpe^tive "
names, likewife fee Catalogue, Astronomy,
&c.
CONSTIPATION, in medicine, a hardnefs of
the belly, with great coftivenefs.
CONSTITUENT Part, in phyfiology, an ef-
fential part in the compofition of any thing, differ-
ing little from what is otherwife called element or
principle,
CONSTITUTION, in matters of policy, fig-
nifies the form of government eftablifhed in any
country or kingdom.
Constitution, in a phyfical fenfe, is that par-
ticular difpofition of the human body, which rtfults
from the properties and mutual adlions of the folids
and fluids, and which renders them capable of ex-
ercifing the fundfions proper and conformable to na-
ture.
CONSTRICTOR, an appellation given to fe-
veral mufcles, on account of their conftringing or
dofir.'g fome of the orifices of the body. Thus,
Oonstrictor Labiorom, called alfo orbicu-
laris, becaufe its fibres are of an arched figure, is a
mufcle which conflitutes the very fubftance of the
lips, and draws them up, as in kiffing; whence it
is alfo called bafiator and ofculatorius.
Constrictor Nasi, a mufcle arifing above
the dentes incifores of the upper jaw, and termina-
ting in the alae of the nofe. It is but fingle, though
Santorini will have it that it is double, and is not
orbicular in human fubjecls, as in many of the qua-
drupeds. Properly fpeaking, indeed, there is in
the human frame no fuch mufcle as the confhiftor
orbicularis of beafts, but this ferves in fome degree
in its office. The ufe is to draw the al.-e down
wards, and at the fame time to draw the upper lip
downwards in which adfion it is very much aififted
by the conftricEfor of the lips.
CONSTRUCTION, in geometry, is drawing
fuch lines as are previoufly neceffary for the making
any demonftration appear more plain and undenia-
ble.
Construction of Equations, inalgL-bra, is find-
ing the unknown quantities, or the roots of an equa-
tion, either by ftraight lines or curves j or it is the
33
CON
method of drawing a geometrical figure, whofe
properties fhall ej(prefs the given equation, in order
to demonftrate the truth of it.
Construction of fimple Equations is afFcfled
by revolving the fradtions to which the unknown
quantity is equal into proportional parts. 'I'hus, if
— T- = z, then it will be as i : t : : a : z ; whence
p
z will be determined by finding a fourth propor-
tional.
a b -\- m n ,_,
Suppofe the equation = z. The firft
thing to be done is to find a mean proportional be-
tween a and b, which fuppofe iohep ; alfo another
between ;/« and «, which call q, then the equation
will ftand thus, ^^ = z : which may be
)■ — s
conftru<51ed thus. Let thebafe AB, (Plate XXXVII.
fig. 9.) of the right angled triangles A P B, be made
equal to ^, and the perpendicular AP equal to /> ;.
then will P B* be equal q q -{■ p p ; which, accord-
ing to the equation is to be divided by r — s ; there-
fore it will be as r — j : P B (=: Vy y -f- p p) ; :
P B : to a third proportionable, which will give z.
Construction of quadratic Equations. In or-
der to render this fort of conftrudlion more eafy to
the young geometer, we advife that he would confi-
der well the nature of the fecond order of curves
which are made ufe of in conftrudfing quadratic
equations, and which he will find under the article
curve ; and then perufe the following method,
which is given by the ingenious Mr. Maclaurin in
the latter part of his algebra.
The general equation exprefTmg the nature of the
lines of the fecond order, having all its terms and
coefficipnts, will be of this form ;
y'^ -\- a X y -{- c x^
+ by + d
+ ^
where a, />, c, d, e, reprefent any given quantities
with their proper figns prefixed to them.
If a quadratic equation is given, as y"^ + /"^ -f-
q z=. o, and, by comparing it with the preceding,
if you take the quantities o, b, c, d, e, and x (uch
that <7 X -f- b ^^p, and cx'^ + d x •\- e -z:! q, then
will the values oi y in the firfl equation be equal
to the values of it in the fecond; and if the locus
be dcfcribed belonging to the firft equation, the two
Values of the ordinate when ax -\- b =: p and
c x^ -f- ^/.v -|- ^ = q, will be the two roots of the
equation y'^ -{- p y -\- q :iz o.
And as four of the given quantities a, b, c, d, e^
may be taken at plcafure, and the fifth, with the
abfcifle x, determined, fo that ax -\- b may be ftill
equal to p, and c x -\- d x -\- e ■=. q; hence there
are innumerable ways of conftrufting-the fame equa-
8 B tion.
CON
tion. But thofe loci are to be preferred which are
<Jercribed moft eafily ; and therefore, the circle, of
all conic ftdlions, is to be preferred for the refolu-
tion of quadratic equations.
Let AB Plate (XXXVII. fig. lo.) be perpendi-
cular to AE, and upon A B defcribe the fenii-circle
B M M A. If A P be fuppofed equal to at, A B = <?,
and P M = y, then mal<ing M R, M R, perpen-
diculars to tine diameter A B, fince A R X R B =
R M y, and A R r= y, KB z= a — y, R M = at,
it follows that a — yXy=x'^y and / — a y ■\- x"-
= o. And, if an equation y'^ — py -\- q:=zO, be
propofed to be refolved, its roots will be the ordi-
nate to the circle, PM and PM, to its tangent
A E, if a z=. p, and x' z= q: becaufe then the
equation of the circle y"" — a y -\- x' ^z o, will be
changed into the propofed equation y'^ — p y -\-
We have therefore this conftrjdlion for finding
the roots of the quadratic equation y^ — P y -{■
f = o ; take A B = />, and on A B defcribe a
lemi-circle ; then raife A E perpendicular to A B,
and on it take A P = t/?, that is,, a mean propor-
tional between i and q (by 13 E!. 6.) then draw
P M parallel to A B, meeting the femi-circle in
M, M, and the lines P M, P M fliall be the roots
of the propofed equation.
It appears from the conftru£lion that if j = — ,
CT ,/ q =il;p, then A P =: 1^ AB, and the ordi-
nate P N touches the curve in N, the two roots
PM, P M, in that cafe, becoming equal to one
another and to P N.
If AP be taken greater than f AB; that is,
when t^q is greater than i p, or q greater than i/)^,
the ordinates do not meet the circle, and the roots of
the equation become imaginary.
The roots of the fame equation may be otherwife
thus determined.
Take AB /?, (Plate XXXVII. fig. 11.) and
raife B D perpendicular to A B ; from A as a centre
with a radius equal to ip, defcribe a circle meet-
ing B D in C, then the two roots of the equa-
tion;''' — p y -\- q z=z o, fliall be AC -j- C B, and
AC — CB.
For thefe roots arc i /> -f ^/ -% p^ — q, and
i p — ^i P "' —?■' ^"^ ^^ = ip, CB =z
\/ A C^ — C B- = V^ i/>" — q, and confequently
thefe roots are AC + C B.
The roots of the equation y' -\- p y -\- q z=:
are — A C + C B ; as is demonfl rated in the fame
manner.
The roots of the equation ;*• — py — j =1 o are
determined by this conflru(Rion.
Take A B z= t /■, (Plate XXXVII. fig. 12.)
BC =: ,/ q, draw A C ; and the two roots fhall
be A B + A C. If the fecond term is pofitive, then
the roots (hall be -- A B + A C.
CON
And all quadratic equations being reducible ta
thefe four forms,
r —py-r ? = o
/+/>>' — ? = o
y^ — py — J — O
r +/';' + ? = o
it follows, that they may be all conftrufled by this
and tiie laft two articles.
By thefe geometrical conflruftions, the locus of
any equation of two dimenfions m.ay be defcribed ;
fince, by their means, the values of ^ that corre-
fpond to any given value of x may be determined.
But if we demonftrate that thefe loci are always
conic feftions, then they may more eafily be de-
fcribed by the methods that are already known for
defcribina; thefe curves.
Construction ofi cuhk and biquadratic Equa-
tion, How all equations, that involve the third or
fourth power of the unknown quantity, may be
confirufted by means of any given parabola and a
circle, Des Cartes hath fhewn and clearly demon-
ftrated in the third book of his geometry ; but firft
he dire£ls to throw out the fecond term of the equa-
tion, if fuch there be, and then by a rule there
given, to find the roots of the equation fo reduced :
but fince that operation appeared too laborious, fome
devifed a like conftru6tion, without any fuch previ-
ous reduflion ; among whom P'rancifcus a Schooten
might be thought to have difcovered a very eafy and
fimple method for conftruiling cubic equations how-
foever adfedled, if by unfolding the principle from
whence he derived his rule, he had had a greater re-
gard for the memory of his readers, which he over-
charges with many perplexed cautions : but our
countryman Mr. Thomas Baker, in an entire trea-
tife written on thefe conflruiStions, has comprifed in
one general rule not only cubic but alfo biquadratic
equations of any kind ; and this rule he hath fufH-
cien-.ly illufirated by demonftrations and examples
in all cafes ; and towards the end he fubjoined a
method of inveftigating that general rule ; but he
has not fliewn the very method, by means of which
he obtained his Univerfal Geometrical Clavis, or at
leaft might have obtained it with much nioie eafe ;
and fince this rule of Baker's is no lefs perplexed with
cautions about the figns -j- and — • than that of
Schooten, fo that no body can hardly pretend to do
thefe conilruflions aright without having the book
by him ; Mr. Halley thought it would neither be
unpleafant nor unprofitable to young ftudents, to e?;-
plai'n the foundations of both, and by fome amend-
ment of the method, to clear up as much as
poflible fo difficult a fubjedt : Des Cartes conftruc-
tion, which very eafily difcovers the roots of all
cubic and biquadratic equations, where the fecond
term is wantins, may be fuppofed as knowir; but
i;s it is the hinge to what is to follow, it may
. not
CON
CON
not be improper to add here his rule, with fome
alterations for the better : when the fccond term
is wanting, all cubic equations are reduced to
this form z} * a pz. a a qz=.0 ; and biquadratic ones
to this form z,* * ap zz- aaqz. a^ r z= O, where a
denotes the latus redtum of any given parabtda,
ufed in the conftruiStion ; or elfe, taking <? for unity,
the equations are reduced to ihefe forins ; viz.
i* * /I z. y =: or z* * p z z J z. r z= : now the
parabola FAG (Plate XXXVII. (/g. 13.) being
given, whole axis is A C D K L, and latus reiiluni
a or I, let A C be taken = \a, and let it be always
fet off from the vertex A towards the inner parts of
the figure ; then take CD = j/>. in that line AC
produced towards C, if it be — p, in the equation,
or towards the contrary point, if it be -f- /> ^ moreover,
from the puint D, or C, if the quantity be not in the
equation, DE =zy? is to be ereded perpendicular
to the axis, to the right-hand, if it be — y, but on
the other fide of the axis, if it be -|- j ; and then a
circle defcribcd on the centre E with the radius A E,
if it be only a cubic equation, will interfedl the para-
bola in as many points F and G, as the equation hath
true roots, of which the affirmative ones, as G K,
will be on the right fide of the axis, and the negative
ones as FL on the left : but if the equation be a
biquadratic, the radius of the circle fliould be either
augmented or diminlfhed, by adding, if it be — r,
or fubtradling, if -j- r, the rectangle a r from its
fquare, which reflangle is the produ£t of the latus
redtum and the given quantity r, which is very ealily
done geometrically: and the interfeiSlions of this
circle with the parabola will give, letting fall from
them perpendiculars to the axis, all the true roots of
the biquadratic equation, the affirmative on the right
fide of the axis, and the negative on the left : here it
is to be obferved, that Mr. Halley endeavours to have
the affirmative roots on the right fide of the axis, to
avoid the confufion neceffarily arifirg from a great
number of cautions, where their reafon is not evident.
Having premifcd thefe things, in order to make
way for the conftrudlion of thefe equations, where
the fecond term is found, we are to confider the rule
for taking away the fecond term, and reducing the
equation to another, fuch as might be conftru£lcd by
the preceding method : now all cubic equations of
this clafs are reducible to this form z^. bzz. apz- aaq.
=3 o, or to this, z~' . b z z. * . a a q ■=: O ; biquadratic
equations to this form, z''. bz^. ap z". aaqz. a' r.
aaqz a^ r 1=0, or,
=: o, or to this; z*. b:
b z'. ap ■zP-. *. a^ r z= O, or in fine to this form,
Iz'
a' r :=: :
from all which there aiifes
a great variety, according to the figns -\- and — are
differently connefled ; and hence the general rule
ferving for all thefe cafes is rendered vcrv obfcure and
difficult, unlefs it be cleared up by the following
method, and freed from its intricacies : the fecond
term in biquadratic equations is taken away by put-
ting A- ;= z -j- :J: ^, if it be -|- ^ in the equation ;
iqz -\- u* r
or A- = z — ^ b^ \i it be — b ; hence x — ^ i in
the hrlt cafe, and x •{- ^ b \t\ the fecond, is =; a ;
and in any prop jfcd equation fubllituting inllead of
z, its equal, there will aiife a new equation, want-
ing the fecond term, all wh.fc roots x do cither
exceed or come (hort of the fouchc roots z, by the
given difference -^ b.
Example I. z* -f" ^ ^' — t? pzz — a at
= 0, put .V — '^bz^z, and it Will be,
x'—lix -^r\-b6' =^^.1
x- — lx^b-\-r\xbi —{^ibb rrz', and
x»'—bx'' ■\-\bl,xx—,-,h X -f^;,; i+ rrsit
Hence, -v'—^v^ \-\bhxx—^,Mx -frio ^* ==^*-
-\bx^ —ibixx\-f,Mbx— ;^^ b'- =-f-fe«.
— apzx-\- \ apbx — Vo apbh^ — a/ls'.
— a- qx ■\- ^ a- qb~ — iwqa.
-j- /i5 B zz-\-a''r. '
The fum of all thefe is a new equation, wanting
the fecond term, and which confequently may be
conftruettd by Cartes's rule, by taking, ir.ftead of
{-/>, the half of the coefficient of the third term,
divided by a or the parameter, that is ■ ' , = v/> ;
and inftead of -ro, half the co-efficient of the fourth
, , , , . bbb , pb
term, divided by a a., that is, -I- — -^ —
\q; the members of which, that have the fign +,
are to be fet off to the left hand from the axis, and
thofe, that have the fign — to the right, in order to
find the centre of the circle required for the con-
flruflion, and whofe interfeflions with the parabola,
letting fall perpendiculars to the axis, may give all
the true roots x; viz. the affirmative on the right
fide of the axis, and the negative on the left : but
when X — \b :=.%, then drawing a line parallel to
the axis, on the right fide of it, and at the diftance
of \ b, the perpendiculars terminated by this paral-
lel, will denote all the fought roots z ; viz. the
affirmative to the right, and the negative to the left ;
as to the radius of the circle, it is had, by adding the
negative, and taking away the affirmative parts of the
fifth term divided by a <7, from the fquare of the line
A E, drawn from the center E found, to A the vertex
of the parabola ; which is moftly done, by taking, in-
flead of A E, the line E O, terminated at O, the in-
terfe£tion of the parabola and the above-mentioned
parallel ; for its fquare comprehends all the parts of
the fifth term, brought into the new equation, upon
the calling out of the fecond term, as is eafily
proved ; and it only remains, to encreafe the fquare
of E O, if it be — r in the equation ; or, to di-
tninifli it, if it be -\- r, by the addition or fubftrac-
tion of the reflangie a r, from whence the fquare of
the radius of the circle fought is compoftd : this is
the method of inveftigating Baker's central rule,.-
which is eafv and free of all cautions, and the onlv
difference arifes hence, that Mr. Halley determines,
the centre of the circle by the axis, and Mr. Baker
by a parallel to the axis ; and that the former hath
always
CON
always four afRrmative roots on tlie right fide of the
axis, which the latter has fometimes on the right and
fometimes on the left.
As to cubic equations, they are to be reduced to
biquadratics, before they can be conftrufted by the
fame general rule ; which is done by multiplying the
equation propofed by its root z, whence arifes a bi-
quadratic equation, in which the laft term or r is
wanting; wherefore taking away the fecorid term,
and finding the centre E, the line E O is the radius
of the circle ; lyiz. when a r z:=. O ; and the whole
fifth term, in the new equation, arifes from the
taking away of the fecond term.
Example II. z^ — izz -\- apz -\- a a q =z o,
■which, multiplied into z, becomes z* — bzzz-^
apz^ -\- a az q z=. o ; to take away the fecond term,
let ;r -|- -i ^ = z and it will be,
x'' + txi+^hh XX + _'tj ^-' AT -f ^5 b* = -4- =;'^.
— bx' — {hbxx + -3^bix — -jij M= — bzK
-j- apx X -\- \ apb x-\- ^^apbbzz. -\- appzz.
+ a a q X -{- \aaqb z=. '\- aa q%.
In this new equation, the half coefficient of the
third term divided by a, viz. -^ 1- J* is to be
■' I 6 « ' ■^
fubflituted for l.p; and the half coefficient of the
fourth term divided by a a, the fquare of the latus
reflum, viz. — \- ~ — 4- i- o is inftead of
i a a 4 « ' ^ '
4- q in Cartcs's conftruiSion, from whence the centre
E is determined ; then drawing a parallel to the
axis, at the difiance ^ i" to the left fide, becaufe
X -\- ~ b =: z, whofe interfeiSfion with the parabola,
let be O ; a circle defcribed from the centre E and
with the radius E O will either cut or touch the
parabola, in as many points as the equation hath
true roots ; which roots, or z are perpendiculars let
fall from thofe points upon the parallel to the axis,
the affirmative on the ri'jht fide, and the negative
on the left: if the third or fourth term, or both, be
wanting in the equation, in tnveftigating the cen-
tral rule, there is no manner of difference at all to
beobferved ; but the quantity p or q hiring wanting,
thofe parts of the lines C D and D E, in fome mea-
fure deduced from that quantity, will be wanting
too ; and we are to proceed with the retnaining co-
efficients of the third and fourth terms in the new
equation, according to the method preitnbed in the
preceding examples.
Construction, iri grammar, the connecting
the words of a fentence according to the rules of
the languace.
CONSUBSTANTIAL, among divines, a term
denoting fomething cf the fame fubttance with ano-
ther. Thus the orthodox believe the Son of God
to be coiifiibftaritial with the Father.
CONSUBSTANTIATION, a tenet of the Ro-
iriifh and Lutheran churches with regard to the
manner of the change made in the bread and wine
in the cucharift.
CON
CONSUL, the chief magiftrate of the Roman
commonwealth. They were two in number, chofen
every year in the campus martius, by the people
afl'embled in the comitia centuriata.
Consul, at prefent, is an officer eftablilhed by
virtue of a commiffion from the king and other
princes, in all foreign countries of any confiderable
trade to facilitate and difpatch bufinefs, and protedt
the merchants of that ration.
CONSOLATION, in law, a writ by which a
caufe being removed from the fpiritual court to the
king's court, is returned thither again ; and the rea-
fon is, that if the judges of the king's court, by
comparing the libel with the fuggeftion of the party,
find the fuggeftion falfe or not proved, and on that
account the caufe to be wrongfully called from the
ecclefiaftiacal court, then upon this confultation or
deliberation ; they decree it to be teturned.
CONSUMPTION, in medicine. See the ar-
ticle Pathisis.
CONTACT, is when one line, plane, or body,
is made to touch another; and the parts that thus
touch, are called the points or places of contadl.
Thecontadl of two fpherical bodies, and of a tan-
gent with the circumference of a circle, is only in
one point.
CONTAGION, in phjfic, the communicating
a difeafe from one body to another, either by con-
tadf or morbid efflu\ ia.
CONTARA, a name ufed by fome botanifts for
the plant that produces the ignatius's beans, ufed in
meoicine.
CONTEMPLATION, an a£l of the mind,
whereby it applies itfelf to confider and refiedl: upon
the works of God, nature, &c.
CONTEMPORARY, a perfon or thing that
exifted in the fame age with another. Thus So-
crates, Plato, and Ariftophanes, were cotemporaries.
CONTENEMENT, inouroldlawbooks,aterm
of different import ; being fometimes u!ed for cre-
dit, or countenance; and, at other times, for the
maintenance proper for each perfon, according t»
his rank and condition in the common wealth.
CONTENT, in geometry, the area or quantity
of matter or fpace included in certain bounds.
For the Contents of vciiels of different kinds, fee
the article Gauging.
CON lENTlOUS Jurisdiction, in law, de-
notes a court which has power to decide differences
between contending parties.
CONTEXT, among divines and critic?, that
part of fcripture or of a writing that precedes and
follows the text. See the article Text.
CONTIGNATION, in the ancient architec-
ture, the art of laying rafters together, and particu-
larly flooring.
CONTIGUITY, in geometry, is when the fur-
face of one body touches that of another.
CONTI-
CO N
CONTIGUOUS Angles, in geometry, are
fuch as have one leg common to each angle, and
are fometimes called adjoining angles, in contra-
diftinilion to thofe produced by continuing their
legs through the point of contact, which are called
oppofite or vertical angles. See Angle.
CONTINENT, in general, an appellation given
to things continued without interruption ; in which
ienfe we fay, continent fever, &c. See the article
Fever.
Continent, in geography, is what is fre-
quently called the main land, and comprehends fe-
veral countries, kingdoms, and flates, not feparate
from each other; being only four, viz. Europe,
Afia, Africa, and America.
To the north of Europe is contained Ruflia, Swe-
den, Norway, Denmark, and France. In the middle,
Germany and Poland ; and to the fouth, Spain,
Italy, and Turkey in Europe.
To the north of Afia is comprehended the vaft
continent of Tartary ; and to the fouth, China, In-
dia, Perfia, and Turkey in Afia. -
In Africa, is contained Egypt, Barbary, Biledul-
gerid, Zura or the Defart, Negroland, Guiney, Nu-
bia, and Ethiopia Interior and Exterior.
To the north of America we have Mexico, Gra-
nada, Florida, Terra Canadenfis, Terra Aretica ;
and to ihe fouth, Terra Firma, Peru, the land of the
Amazons, Brafil, Chili, Paraguay, Patagonia, and
Terra Antartica.
Continent Qwfe of a Dijhmper, that upon
which the difeafe depends lb immediately, that it
continues fo long as that remains, and na longer.
Continent Fever, that which proceeds to a
crifis, without either intermiffion or remiliion. See
the article Synochus.
CONTINGENT, fomething cafual or uncer-
tain. Hence future contingent, in logic, denotes a
conditional event which may or may not happen,
according as circumllances fall out. The Socini-
ans maintain, that God cannot forefee future con-
tingents, bccaufe depending on the free motions of
the will of man.
Contingent is alfo a term of relation for the
quota that falls to any perfon upoii a divifion. Thus
each prince in Germany, in time of v.ar, is to fur-
nifli fo many men, fo much money and ammunition
for his contingent.
Contingent Use, in law, is f.n ufe limited
in a conveyance of lands which may or may not
happen to veft, according to the contin^-'.-.icy men-
tioned in the limitalimi of the ufe. Ani! a contin-
gent remainder is when an eftate is limited t') tiike
place at. a time to come, on an uncertain cv.-nt.
Contingent Line, in d.jlling, is a iine that
crofles the fubllyle at right angles. See SuESi VLE
and Dialling.
Contingents are fo.". etimes ufed by matherr,a-
33
CON
ticians in the fame fenfc as tangents. See the arti.
cle Tangent.
CONTINU*AL Claim, in law, a claim that is
made from time to time within every year and a day
to lands, &c. which in fome rcfpedl one cannot at-
tain without danger.
Continual Proportion. See the article
Proportion.
CONTINUANTO, a term ufed in a fpecial de-
claration of trefpafs, where the plaintiff would re-
cover damages for feveral trefpafles in one and the
fame aiRion.
CONTINUATO, in mufic, flgnifies, cfpecially
in vocal mufic, to continue or hold on a found in an
equal ftrength or manner, or to continue a move-
ment in an equal degree of time all the way.
CONTINUED Proportion, in arithmetic, is
that where the confequent of the firfl ratio is the
fame with the antecedent of the fecond ; as 4 : 8 :
8 : 16, in contradiftincSllon to difcrete porportion.
See the article Discrete.
Continued Thorough Bafs, in mufic, that which
continues to play conftantly, both during the reci-
tatives and to fuHaia the chorus. See the article
Chorus.
CONTINUO, in mufic, fignifies the thorough
bafs, as bafib continuo, is the continual or thorough
bafs.
CONTINUOUS Fevers, thofe otherwife call-
ed coniiicnt. See Continent.
CONTOBABDITES, in church hiftL-.y, a fe<ft
of heretics in tiie fixth ceqiury, who allowed of
no bifhops.
CON FOUR, in painting, the out-line, or that
which defines a figure.
A great part of the fkiU of the painter lies in
managing the contours well. Contour, with the
Italian painters, fignifies the lineaments of the
face.
CONTOURNE, in heraldry, is ufed when a
beafl is reprefented Handing or running with its
face to the finiiler fide of the efcutchcon, they
being always fuppofed to look to the right, if not
otherwife exprefled.
CONTOURNIATED, a term among antiqua-
ries applied to medals, the edges of which appear
as if turned in a lathe.
CONTRABAND, in commerce, a prohibited
commodity or merchandize bought or fold, im-
ported or exported, in prejudice to the \^w-i and
ordinances of a ftate, or the public prohibitions
of the fovereign.
Contraband goods are not only liable to con-
fifca-icn thcmfclvcs, but alfo kibjecl all other al-
lov/cd merchandife foudd in the fame box, bale,
or parcel, together with the horfes, wag.^in;., &:c.
which conduiSf ihem. There are contrab.i.d. like-
'^•il'c, which bffides the forfeiture of the goods,
8 C aie
C.^O'N
arc attended with feveral penalties and difabl-
lities.
CONTRACT, in a general fenfe, a mutual
conTent of two or more parties, who voluiitariU'
promife and oblige themfelves to do fomething,
pay a certain furn, or the lilce. All donations,
exchanges, leafes, &c. are fo many different con-
trads.
Contract, in common law, an agreement or
bargain between two or more perfons with a legal
conlideration or caufe ; as where a perfon fells
goods, SiC, to another for a fum of money ; or co-
venants, in confidcration of a certain fum, or an
annual rent, to grant a leafe of a mefluage, &c.
Contract is alfo ufed for the inftrument in
writing which ferves as a proof of the confent
granted, and the obligation pafled between the
parties.
CONTRATILE Force, that property or pow-
er inherent in certain bodies, whereby, when ex-
tended, they are enabled to draw themfelves up
again to their former dimenfions.
CONTRACTION, in grammar, is the reduc-
ing of two fylhibles into one, as fd«V for cannot,
Jhou!d'Jiio:ficuldrJi,^c.
Contraction, in logic, a fort of redudlion,
whereby things are abridged, or brought into lefs
tompafs.
Contraction, in phyfics, the dimini(hing the
extent or .''imenfions of a body, or the caufing its
parts to approach nearer to each other, in which
fcnfe it ftands oppofed to' dilatation or expanfion.
CONTRADICTION, a fort of dire6l oppofi-
tion, wherein one thing is found directly contrary
lo another.
CONTRADICTORY Propositions, in lo-
j.^ic, are fucii as differ both in quality and quantity,
one being univerfa!, and the other particular, which
conftitutes the oppoluion of quantity ; one aifirma-
tive and the other negative, wliich makes the _op-
pufition in quality : thus, A. Every vine is a tree,
O. Ssme vine is n:t a tree. 1 hefe can never be
both true, and both falfe at the fame time. To this
it is neceflary that the one deny, and the other af-
lirm, the fame thing of the fame fuhje<fl, confidered
1:; tl.e fame circumiiances, every thing having al-
v/ays its own ellence. This logicians exprefs by
iiffirmare, (jf mgare idem, de eodem fecu7idum idem.
It two univerfals differ in quality, they are contra-
dictory j as, A. Every vine is a tree. E. No vine is
u ti Cd. Tliofe can never be both true together,
but they may be bgth falfe. If two particular pro-
pofuions difier in quality only, they are fubcontra-
didlory ; as, J. Some vine is a tree. O. So7ne vine
is not a tree. Thefe may be both true together, but
ihey can iiever be both falfe. There are likewife
contradictory propofitions on an individual, which
are called fitygle cnntradi(51uries ; as, Peter is jujf,
r,;tcr is not juji. Now in fuch as thtfe, Peter mu(t
2
CON
be confidered at the fame time, without Which they
may be both true ; fince there was a time wherein
Peter was juft, and wherein he was not.
Seeming contradi£t6iies is when the members of
a period quite difagree in appearance and found, but
peifeftly agrec^and are confident in fenfe: thus^
" Cowards die many times before their death ;
" The valiant never talte of death but once."
Shakespzar.
CONTRA-FISSURE, in furgery, a kind of
fraflurc, or fiflure, in the cranium, which fonie-
times happens on the fide oppofite to that which re-
ceived the blow; or, at lead, at fome diftancc
from it.
CONTRA-HARMONICAL Proportion, In
arithmetic, is that relation of three terms, wherein
the difference of the firft and fecond is to the diffe-
rence of the ferond and third, as the third is to the
firft: thus, 3, 5, and 6, are numbers contra-har-
monically proportional, for 2 : i : : 6 : 3.
CONTRA-INDICATION, in medicine, an
indication which forbids that to be done, which the
main fcope of a difeafe points out : as if, in the
cure of a difeafe, a vomit was judged proper; if
the patient be fubjedl to a vomiting of blood, it is
a fufKcient contra-indication as to its exhibition.
See Indication.
CONTRALTO, in mufic, a term ufed by the
Italians for two haut centres, becaufe they play con-
trary to each other. See the article Haut Con-
TRE.
CONTRAMURE, in fortification, is a wall
built before another partition- wall, to ffrengthen it,
fo that it may receive no damage from the adjacent
buildings. See Wall and Rampart.
CONTRAST, in painting and fculpture, ex-
prcffes an oppofition or difference of pofition, atti-
tude, &c. of two or more figures, contrived to
make, variety in a painting, &c. as where, in a
groupe of three figures, one is (hewn before, ano-
ther behind, and another fideways, they are faid to
be in contrafl:.
The contrafl is not only to be obferved in the po-
fition of feveral figures, but alfo in that of the fe-
veral members of the fame figure : thus, if the
rig'it arm advance fartheft, the right leg is to be
liindermoft ; if the eye be direcSted one way, the
aim to go the contrary way, &c. the contrail muft
be purfued even in the drapery.
Contrast, in architeiSlurc, is to avoid the re-
petition of the fame thing, in order to pleafe by va-
riety.
CONTRATE- Wheel, in watch-work, that
next to the crown, the teeth and hoop whereof lie
contrary to thofe of the other wheels, from whence
it takes its name. See the article ^Vatch.
CONTRAVALLATION, in the military art,
a line formed in the fame manner as the line of
circum-
m
U
f
.'^« ~ * '^ ■, ' '^ ;_ /'v',' ' ' .^) .' V '? ! , i" t
■^
/ ; ' A - ■ :;;■;.., ■ ,
t ., :• > .. "5 ^ .,, ^ ',.,.v.-»i-i;','
^ .;■ %
• ) ■■
*-o
'\i!iilii';:;iui •
11
tesg^^ . *
1 ^KiiteiS'l^iMii'iiW
H^
CON
CON
circuiTivallatioii, to defend the befiegerf, or the
army which forms the fiege, againft the enterprizes
of the garrifon.
The trench of the circumvallauon is towards the
field, at the foot of the parapet ; and that of the
contravallation towards the town, and alfo at the
foot of the parapet. The line of contravallation is
never made but when the garrifon is numerous
enough to harrafs and interrupt the befiegcrs by (al-
lies.
This line is conftru£led in the rear of the camp,
and by the fame rule as the line of circumvallation,
with this difference, that as it is only intended to
refift a body of troops much infeiior to a force
which might attack the circumvallation, fo its para-
pet is not made fo thick, nor the folle fo wide and
deep. Its parapet need not be more than fix feet thick,
and the ditch eight feet at the brink, and five feet
deep : the redans of this line are conlhu<3ed in the
fame manner as in the circumvallation. All that
concerns this line, may be fufficiently known by an
examination of the figure of it in Plate XXXVIJI.
which exhibits a part of this, and part of the cir-
cumvallation, with the camp in the interval.
Amongft the antients this line was very com-
mon, but their garrifons were much Wronger than
OUES ; for as the inhabitants of towns were then al-
moft the only foldiers, there were commonly as many
troops to defend a place as there were inliabitants
in it.
The lines of circumvallation and contravallation
are very ancient, examples of them being- found in
hiftories of the remoteff antiquity. The author of
the Military Hiftory of Louis le Grand, pretends,
however, that Csfar was the firft inventor of them;
but it appears fro.m the Chevalier de Folard's Tcca-
tife on the Method of Attacks and Defences of
Places, ufed by the Antients, how little foundation
there is for this opinion. This author afierts, with
great probability on his fide, that thefe lines are as
antient as the time in which towns were firft fur-
rounded with walls, or in other words, fortified.
CONTRAYERVA, in the materia medica,
the name which the roots of the dorfienia is known
by in the (hops. See the article Dorstenia.
The root is ?,n inch or two in length, and about
half an inch thick ; full of knots and irregular tu-
bercles ; furrounded on all fides with numerous
Jong tough fibres, moft of which are loaded with
fcaly knobs ; of a reddifli brown colour on the out-
fide, and pale within. It was firft brought into Eu-
rope, about the year 1581, bv Sir Francis Drake.
Ihis root, deed from the fibres, which are much
weaker than tlie tuberous part, has a light aromatic
fmell, and a roughifh, bitterilh, penetrating tafte,
which, as Teller oblcrves, is not eafily conce;iltd
by a large admixture of other f.ihllances. It is
given, as a. diaphoretic and antifei)tic, in low and
rjialigiiant fevers, and appears to be 01. e of the
niilded and Tafcft of the fubftanccs of the plmgetit
kind cotnmonlv made ufc of in thefe intenti^jn-,
not being liable to produce, though taken pretty
freely, a'ny confiderable heat. The dofe, in fub-
ftance, is from five or' fix grains to half a dram and
more; in decoiStion or intufion, fiom half a dranj
to two drams.
CONTRE, in heraldry, an appellation given to
fevcral bearings, on account of their cutting the
fhield contrary and oppofite ways : thus we meet:
with contre-bend, contre-chevron, contre-pale, &c.
when there are two ordinaries of the fame nature
oppofite to each other, fo as colour may be oppofcd
to metal, and metal to colour.
CON TRIBUTION, in a general fenfc, the
payment of each perfon's quota, or the fhare he
bears in fome impofition or common expence. Con-
tributions are either voluntary, as thofe of expen-
ces for carrying on fome undertaking for the public
intereft ; or involuntary, as thofe of taxes and im-
pofts.
Contribution, in a military fenfe, an impo-
fition or tax paid by frontier-countries to an ene-
my, to prevent their being plundered and ruined
by him.
CONTRITION, in theology, a forrow for our
fins, refulting from the reflection of having offend-
ed God, from the fole confidcration of his goodnefs,
without any regard to the punifluiient due to the
trefpafs, and attended with a fincere refolution of
reforming them.
CONTROL, CoMPTROL, or Controls, is
properly a double regifter kept of acts, iffues of the
officers or commiffioners in the revenues, army, &c.
in order to perceive the true ftate thereof, and to
certify the truth, and the due keeping of the ads
fubjedl to the enrtgifterment.
CONTROLLER, an officer appointed to con-
trol or overfee the accounts of other officers, and,
on occafions, to certify whether or no things have
been controlled or examined.
Controller of the Navy, one of the principal
officers of the navy-board, at which he prefides to
fuperintend and control the inferior and civil de-
partment of the marine, as the admiralty dire£ls the
fuperior and military operations of it.
CONTROVER, in law, a perfon who, of his
own head, invents and fpreads falfe news.
CONTUMACY, in law, a refufal to appear in
court, when legally fummoned ; or the di'bbedience
to the rules and orders of a court having power to
puniih fuch offence.
CONTUSION, in medicine, a bruife, or a fo-
lution of continuity, produced in Any part ot the
body by any inftrument whofe furface does not rife
by way of edge, but m any obtufe figure ; by this
means a contuGon is diftinguiflied from a wound,
which is a folution of continuity prodicci by a
(h.;rp cuttinsi indrunient,
CON-
CON
CON
CONVALLARIA, lily of the valley, in bo-
tany, a genus of plantswhofc flower is monopetalous
and campanulated, divided at the top into fix. obtufe
parts, which fpread open and are reflcxed ; it hath
fix fubulated filaments inferted in the petal, which
are topped with oblong erecS antherae. The fruit is
a globofe berry with three cells, containing a round-
i(h feed.
The common lily of the valley hath a flendcr,
white fibrous root, creeping near the top of the
ground. The leaves come out by pairs, of a fhin-
ing light green, oblong, acuminated, and nervous ;
the foot-flalks of the flowers arife immediately from
the root on one fiJe of the leaves ; thefe are naked,
about five inches long, and are furnifhed toward
iheir top with pendulous white flowers, of an odori-
ferous fcent. This plant is perennial, grows wild
in woods and fliady places, flowers in May, and
the feeds are ripe in autumn. The fiowers are ufed
in medicine ; they have a bitterifh taife, and when
dried, powdered, and fnufFed up the nofc, prove a
ffrong flernutatory ; they are efteemed cephalic and
cordial, and therefore recommended in palfies, epi-
leplies, and fpafms. Of thefe flowers was formerly
prepared a diUilled water, a conferve, and an oil,
but they are all now much in difufe. To this genus
Linnseus has added the polygonatum and unifolium
of other authors.
CONVENTICLE, a private afTembly or meet-
ing for the exercife of religion.
CONVENTION, a treaty, contra£^, or agree-
ment between two or more patties. Every conven-
tion among men, prcviiied it be not contrary to !ic-
nefly and good manners, produces a natural obli-
gation, and makes the performance a point of con-
i'cience.
Convention is alfo a name given to an extra-
ordinary afiembly of parliament, or the flates of the
realm, ht-ld without the king's writ.
CONVENTUAL, in general, denotes fome-
thing belonging to a convent or monaftery.
CONVERGING, or Convergent Lines, in
geometry, are fuch as continually approach nearer
one another ; or whofe dillance becomes flill k-fs
and lefs. Th.Te are oppofed to divergent lines, the
diiltince of which become continually greater : thofe
lines which converge one way, diverge the other.
Converging Hyperbola, is one whofe con-
cave legs bend in towards one another, and ri;n
both the fame way. See Hyperbola and Curve.
Converging Rays, are fuch as, proceeding
from a body, approach nearer and nearer together in
their progrefs, tending to one certain point, where
they all unite : thus the rays proceeding fiom the
objed A B (Plate XXX VJl. f,g. 9.) to the point F,
F, are faid 10 convcige towaids that point.
CONVERSE, in mathematics. One propofition
is called the convcrfe of another, when, after a
contlufion is drav.'n from fomcthing fuppofcdin the
converrepropofition,that conclufion is fuppofed ;and
then, that which in the other was fuppofed, is now
drawn as a conclufion from it : thus, when two
fides of a t'iangle are equal, the angles under thefe
fides are equal ; and on theconverfe, if thefe angles
are equal, the two fides are equal. See Tri-
angle.
CONVERSION, in a moral fenfe, implies a
repentance of temper and conduiSt unworthy our
nature, and unbecoming our obligations to its au-
thor, and a refolution to adf a wifer and a better
part for the future.
Conversion, in rhetoric, &c. is underftood of
arguments, which are returned, retorted, and fhewti
on oppofite fides, by rhanging the fubjedl into the
attribute, and the attribute into the fubjeiS. See
Attribute, &c.
Conversion, in war, a military motion where-
by the front of a battalion is turned where the
flank was, in cafe the battalion is attacked in the
flank. See the article Quarter- wheeling.
Conversion of Equations , in algebra, is when
the quantities fought, or any part or degree thereof
being fractions, the whole is reduced to one com-
mon denominator which may be omitted. Thus,
fuppofe a -f- i =
-, then multiplying all the
numerators in the equation by a excepting its own,
it will ffand thus a a -\- b a ■=. x — 2; therefore
converlion of equaiions is nothing more than what
is commonly termed clearing an equation from
fracSlions, which is done by multiplying each nu-
merator in the equator by the fraction's denomi-
nator, only omitting the fraction's own denomi-
nator. See Equation.
CONVEX, an appellation given to the exteiior
part or fuiface of any thing that is globular or
gibbous, in oppofuion to the hollow or inner fur-
tace of fuch bodies, which is called concave; thus
we fay a convex frieze, lens, mirrour, &c.
CONVEX Lens is a glafs that his one of its
fuperficies convex, and the other plane, which is
called Plano-convex. Or it has both fiJes fpheri-
cal, and then is called a double convex lens.
As perfpe(nives of one convex-glafs make objefls
appear upright, which thofe of two coiivex-glafles
invert, and again tliofe of three rectify, i'o it fliould
feem that thoie of four fhould invert; and yet ex-
perience fhevvs that objefls appear uptight through
thefe glafTes.
According to Mr. Molyneux, this phrenomenon
appears eafily explicable from the confideration of
l>lacing gl;.ff-s in a tube ; which is thus, after the
objeCtglafh-, the eye-glaf; is placed fo much diitant,
towards the eye, from the focus of the objedl glafs,
as is the focus of the eye-glafs ; then tlie middle
cye-glafs is placed at fuch a diftance from the
focus of the firll eye-g'afs, as is the focus of this
middle cye-glafs j laftly, the neareft cye-gla(s is
placed
CON
placed fo much diftant from the focus of this middle
eye-glafs, as is the focus of this nearefl eye-glafs ;
and the eye, loolcing through them all, is placed in
the focus of this nearefl; eye-glafs : therefore, in the
lirft place, one fingle convcx-glafs cannot properly
be faid by itfelf to flievv objedls ere6l or reverfed,
but in refpecS of placing the eye, that looks through
it ; for if the eye be placed nearer to it, than the
focus of the glafs, the objeds are ered; if the eye be
placed juft in the focus, the objedls are neither eredl
nor reverfed, but all in confufion, and between both ;
and if the eye be placed farther from the glafs than
tlie focusj the objefls are reverfed ; and here by
diftant objefls are meant, the rays, flowing from
any point of which, may be counted to come pa-
rallel towards the objedt- glafs : fecondly, theobjcd:-
glafs of a telcfcope reverfes the objeft, both to the
eye-glafs and to the eye, that looks through it ; for
the eye-glafs is placed farther from the objeft-glafs
than is the focus of the objecl-glafs ; but the eye-
glafs contributes notiiing towards the redilication or
reverfion, the eye being placed juft in its focus:
thus we fee, that the reverling of objects in a teie-
kope of two convex-glafl'es proceeds wholly from
the objeiSb-glafs and its pofition ; and the eye-glafs
contributes nothing thereto; for were the eye itfelf
in the place of the eye glafs, it would fee the ob-
j;iSs inverted throuj^h the fingle objecl-glafs. To
come now to the fccond eye glafs placed after the
fit ft, which is that next the objefl-glals, it is ma-
nifciT that if we place our eye nearer to this middle
eye-glafs than its focus, the eye fees the objedls in-
verted and confufed ; place the eye in the focus,
the objeiSls appear all in confufion, and neither ered;
nor reverfed ; tor here again there is a dlftiniSl re-
prefentation of the object to be received on a piece
of paper, as in the focus of the objeiS-glafs, and
the eye being fituated at any time at this place, which
is ufually called the difl:in£l bafe, fees all in con-
fufion ; but then let the eye be placed farther from
this middle-glafs than its focus ; it perceives the ob-
jects ereif and confufed : laftly, the third or im-
mediate eye-glafs contributes nothing towards the
ereiSing or reverfing the fpecies, which it receives
ereifl from the middle eye-glafs, no more than in
a celefcope of two convex-glaifes, the eye-gLfs con-
tributes to the fpecies it receives from the o!)jc£l-
glafs, as was fliewn before: the reafon, that this
lait or immediate eye-glafs has nothing to do in
the eiecling or reverfing the fpecies, is the fame,
as in a telcfcope of two convex- glafie'-, v.z. the
£ye is placed in its focus, and therefore fees the
fpecies, as reprefented in the diflindf bafe ; that is,
the fpecies is inverted in the diflinil b.He of the
ohject-glafs, and therefore a fingle convex eye-
glafs brings it to the eye inverted ; but in the diflinct
bafe of the middle, or fecorid evc-glals, the I'pe-
cies is ereft, and therefore the third or immediate
eye-glafs brings it to the eye ereft : wherefore we
33
CON
are to confider the telefcope, confifl:ing of anobjcdl-
giafs and three eye-glaflcs, as two telefcopes, each
confifting of two convex-glafles; the firft confifts
of the obje£t-glafs and firft eye-glafs, and this in-
verts the fpecies ; that is, the fpecies is inverted
in the diftimS bafe of the obje£l-glafs, and fo brought
to the eye : the fccond telefcope confifts of the
two immediate eye-glafle';, and this renders ereiSl
what the former inverted ; that is, the fpecies in
the diftindt bafe of the middle eye-glafs is ereO,
and is brought to the eye by the eye-glafs; the
eye-glaflcs themfelves, in neither cafe, having any
thing to do with the erefling or inverting, but
merely reprefenting in the fame pofturc the fpe-
cies immediately before them : therefore, in the laft
place, one convex-glafs, as pofited in a telefcope,
itiyerts ; the fecond, that is, the firft eye-glafs does
nothing towards eredtiiig or reverfing, but repre-
fents the image, as it is In the diftlncl bale of the
obje(St-glafs, thu is inverted; the thl'.d gl.ib ere£ls,
or rather reftores, what was before inverted ; the
fourth reprefciits the image as it receives it froin
the diftindl bafe of the third, that is, ereft.
Convex Mirrour. Sec Mirrour.
CONVEXITY, that configuration or fhape of
a body, on account of which it is denominated
convex. See Convex.
CONVEYANCE, in law, a deed or iniTru-
ment that palFes land, &:c. from one perfon to
another.
The moft ufual conveyances are deeds of gift,
bargain and fale, leafe and releafe, fines and re-
coveries, Sec. TJie words give and grant, are ne-
cciTary in a conveyance at common law : but though
fome maintain thjt conveyances fhall operate ac-
cording to the words ; yet, of late, the judges
have a greater regard to the pacing of the eliatc,
than to the manner by which it is paflld.
CONVICT", in common law, a perfon that is
found guilty of an offence by the verdict of a jurv,
CONVICTION, in theology, cxpreftes tliefi.ft
degree of repentance, wherein the finner becomes
fcnfible of his guilt, of the evil nature of fin, and
of the danger of his own ways. See Costrition.
CONVOCATION, an afl'embly of the clergy
of England, by their rcprefentatives, to coiifult of
ecclefialHcal matters. It is held during the IciP.on
of parliament, and confifis of an upper ;ind lower
houfe. In the upper fit the biihops, and in the
lower the inferior clergy, who arc rep.efeiued by
their proclors, confifting of all the deans and arch-
deacons, of one proiSlor for every chapter, and two
fur the clergy of every diocefc, in a'i one \\\xu-
dred and lorty-three divines, viz. twenty-two deans,
fifty-three archdeacons, twenty-four prchcndarij,!.,
and forty- four proflors of the diccefan clerjv. T he
lower houfe choofes its prolocutor, whole bufinefs
it is to take care that the members attend, to cul-
ktlt their dcbaies and votes, and to cany their
'i D refulutioiiS
c o
COP
refolutions to the upper houfe. The convocation
is fummoned by tht king's writ, direil'ed to the
archbiftiop of each province, requiring him to fum-
mon all bifhop?, deans, archdeacons, &c.
CONVOLVULUS, bindweed, in botany, a ge-
lius of plants, whofe flower confifts of a perfiftent
monophyllo'js cup, cut at the extremity into five
fegments ; the corolla is monope^aIo^s and campa-
iiulated ; it hath five fubulated filaments, topped
with ovated comprefTed antherae. The fruit is a
roundifh capfule contained within the cup, and
formed of one, two, or three valves, containing;
feveral feeds. There are many forts of convol-
vulus, feveral of which grow wild in this coun-
try, and are troublefome weeds. Others, which are
natives of foreign parts, are cultivated here for
the beauty of their flowers, fome of which are fo
tender as to require a hot-houfe, fvlany of the fpe-
cies are twining plants, and mofl of them are pro-
pagated by feeds.
CONVOY, in the marine, any fleet or navy of
merchant- fliips bound on a voyage to fome particu-
lar port or rendezvous; or more particularly the
fliip or fhips appointed to condudl and defend
them on their paffage thither.
Convoy, in military afi'airf, a detachment of
troops employed to guard any fupply of men,
money, ammunition, provifions, &c. conveyed in
time of war by land to a town, army, or the like.
CONVULSION, Spafmus, in medicine, a preter-
natural and violent contradfion of the membranous
and mufcular parts, arifmg from a fpafmodic flric-
ture of the membranes furrounding the fpinal mar-
row, and the nerves diftributed from it, and an im-
petuous influx of the nervous fluid into the organs
of motion.
CONVULSIVE, in medicine, a term applied
to thofe motions which naturally fliould depend on
the will, but are produced involuntarily by fome
external caufe, as a contradlion of the mufcles, &c.
See the preceding article.
CONYZA, flea-bane, in botany, a genus of
plants, the compound flower of which is tubu-
lofe, confiiling both of hermaphrodite and female
ones>: thefe laft have no flower petals; but the
hermaphrodite ones confift of one infund;buliform
petal, divided into five patulous fegments at
the limb : the ftamina are five very (hort ca-
pillary filaments: the feeds are folitary, oblong,
and crowned with fimple downy filaments, and
ftand in the cup.
The common flea-bane is recommended in the
jaundice, to promote the mcnfes, and in the flran-
gury. Some alfo make an ointment of its leaves
and root, which is faid to cure the itch.
COOLER, among brewers, diftillers, &c. a
large veflll wherein certain liquors are cooled,
after having been boiled.
Coolers, in medicine, thofe remedies which afFedt
the organs offeeling with an immediate fenfe of cold,
being fuch as have their parts in lefs motion than
thofe of the organs of feeling; as fruits, and all
acid liquors : or they are fuch as, by a particular
vifcidity, or grofTnefs of parts, give the animal flu-
ids a greater confiifency than they had before,
and conlequently retard their motion ; having lefs
of that iiitefl-ine force on which their heat depends.
Of this fort are cucumbers, and all fubftances
producing vifcidity.
COGM, a term applied to the foot that ga-
thers over an oven's mouth ; alfo for that black,
greafy fubftance, which works out of the wheels
of carriages.
COOIVIB, or Comb of Ccrn, a dry meafure
containing four bufhcls, or half a quarter. See
the article Mrasure.
CO-ORDINATE, fomething of equal order,
rar-k, or degree with another.
COPAL, in natural hiffory, a particular fort
of refin brought in irregular jumps from New
Spain, where it is faid to be obtained from dif-
ferent forts of large trees, of which eight are de-
fcribed by Kermandez. Some pieces are whitifb,
femi-tranfparent, friable, not unlike the finer kindi
of common refm grofsly powdered and forced to-
gether into a mafs. Others are more tranfparent
and lefs friable, and of a yellowifh or brown co-
lour. It has a more agreeable fmell than frank-
incenfe, to which fome have refemblcd it, and
does not melt fo thin or burn away fo faff upon
a red hot iron. It does not foften in the mouth,
on being chewed, like anime, with which it has
been confounded by others. From thefe and other
refmous bodies it differs more remarkably in its
being exceeding difficultly difToluble in reflified
fpirit of wine.
Solutions of copal have been greatly efleemed
as varnifhes, and the method of making the fo-
lution kept a fecret in particular hands. Juncker
informs us, that it readily fucceeds, if fpirit of
fal ammoniac, mixed with a due proportion of
oil of fpike or turpentine, is ufed for the men-
flruum.
COPARCENERS, otherwife called Parceners^
fuch as have equal portions in the inheritance of
their anceftor.
COPE, among ecclefiaftical writers, an orna-
ment formerly worn by chantors and fub-chantors,
when they officiated in the church folemnity. It is
alfa worn by Romifh bifhops, and other ordina-
naries ; and reaches from the fhoulders to the
feet.
Cope, among miners, a duty of fix-pence for
every load of ore.
COPERNICAN-SYSTEM, is that wherein the
fun is placed in the center, and fuppofed at refl ; and
that all the primary planets revolve round it, in dif-
ferent periods of time, and at various diilances: but
yet.
COP
yet, that fuch is tlie harmony of the whole, that
there ii this uiiivernil law obfcrved by every one of
them, viz. that tlie fquarcs of the times of their
periodical revolutions round the fun are as the cubes
of their diftances from him. This law likewifc obtains
amongft the fecondary planets, with refpe(S to their
prifTiary ones ; and is therefore univerfal throughout
the whole fyftem. .
In this fyftem, the fixed fiars are likewife fup-
pofed to be at reft ; and that the apparent diurnal
motion, which they and the fun appear to have
from eaft to weft, is entirely owing to the earth's
motion round its axis from weft to eaft ; thereby
caufing the agreea;ble vicifiitudes of day and night.
By whom this fyftem was firft invented is not per-
fedlly known : the firft re\ ivers of it, that we know of,
werePhiloiaus,Ariftarchus, andPythagoras jand after
the laft of thefe it was for (ome time called : it was
alfo embraced by that able geometrician Archimedes.
After him, it was almoft forgotten, until the year
1500, when Copernicus revived it, and from whom
it has its name. But it was never heartily approved
of until the late illuftrious Sir Ifaac Newton took it
in hand, and demonftrated the truth of it, by his
theory of gravity, together with the univerfal law,
mentioned above; and from him it is fometimes
called the Newtonian fyftem, and that more de-
fervedly than by any other name whatfoever.
Various have been the arguments which have been
brought pro and con, with regard to the truth of this
fyftem or hypothefis, and that of Ptolemy, which
feems to have been always its moft formidable anta-
gonift. As to that of Tycho Brahe, it feems to par-
take of the inconveniencies of both, without giving
a remedy for the defects of either in any great de-
gree ; and as it in fome particulars partook of both,
and, as it were, feemed a kind of moderator be-
tween them, it has fharcd the fame fate which the
generality of moderators do in warm difputes ; — been
taken to pieces and defpifed by both. But what is
more ftrange than all the reft, is, that one and the
fame argument has been brought to prove both
iyftems ; this is the refiftance a body would meet
with moving in a contrary direiftion to that of the
earth's rotation : the Ptolomaic inftancing the flights
of a bird eaft, which is as eafily and expeditioufty
performed as the contrary way, although the mo-
tion of the earth is much fwifter than the flights of
any bird whatfoever ; and, therefore, fay the friends
to this fyftem, the bird would be fo far from ar-
riving at any place eaft of that it took flight from,
that it would in reality be left behind. The Coper-
nican fetches his example from the cafe of a (hip
failing to and from the Kaft-Indies ; which is per-
formed thither in three months, and is generally fix
in returning : and therefore it muft be forwarded
thither, and retarded in its return by "the motion of
the earth from weft to eaft. (See Varenius's Syft,
of Geography.) We muft confcfs the Copernican
COP
has here greatly the worft pf the argument; for his
example is not only exaggerated, but even abfurd ;
for the motion of the earth muft equally aftcct the
(hip, and the pUce it is bound to ; and, therefore,
can never prove the motion of the earth. The
truth is, the difference in tliofe voyages proceeds
from another caufe. But the Ptolemaic has no
great reafon to boaft of his fuperiority ; for he does
not coiifider, that the circumambient air is, by the:
motion and atiraclion of the earth, carried round
along with it ; and, confequently, that it commu-
nicates the fame effect to the bird, or any other body
whatfoever : the truth of which may be verified by a
great number of familiar experiments; but ths two
following may fufiice.
1. Convey one, or any number of flies into the
cabin of a fllip under fail, and, when they are fet at:
liberty, and fuftered toflyabout, it may eafily be ob-
ferved they make their flight with as much eafe to-
wards the head of the fliip, as they can towards the
ftern, let the fhip's morion be ever fo fwift,
II. Take a bottle filled with water, and cork it:
up tig;ht, and through the cork pafs a fine capillary
tube, fuch that, when the bottle is inverted, the
water ihall only drop through ; fix it to the top of
the cabin of a fiiip under fail, and place another
bottle with a ftraight neck exadlly under it, and yea
will find that all the drops of water will fall into this
bottle, and not befide it, towards the ftern of the
fhip, although the fliip will move feveral inches
while the drop is in the air.
We fhall next give the reafon why this fyftem is
now fo generally received and approved, almoft by
every man of found learning and judgment, toge-
ther with our own remarks, and that without aay
partiality on either fide of the queftion.
i.It is moft fimple,andagreeable to the tenorof na-
ture in all her adlions ; for by the two motions of the
earth, all the pbsnomena of the heavens are re-
folved, which, by other hypothefes are inexplica-
ble, without a great number of other motions con-
trary to philofophical reafonings. See the articles
Ptolemaic and Tycaonic System.
Remark. This we think a very flrong and un-
anfwerable argument.
2. It is more rational to fuppofe that the earth
moves round the fun, than that the huge bodies of
the planets, the ftupendous body of the fun, and
the immenfe firmament of ftars, fhould move round
the inconfiderable body of the earth, every twenty-
four hours.
3. But that harmony which upon this fupnofition
runs throuoh the whole folar fyftem, wonderfully
confirms this hypothefis, viz. that the motions of
all the planets, both primary and fecondary, are
governed and regulated by one and the fame law,
which is, that the fquares of the periodical times of
the primary planets, are to each other as the cubes of
their diftances from the fun ; and likewife the fquares
of
COP
of the periodical times of the fecondarles of any J
primary, are to each other as the cubes of their
diftances from that primary. Now the moon,
which, in the Copernican fyftem, is a fecondary
of the earth, in the other hypothefis is a primary
one : and fo the rule cannot take place, becaufe the
periodical time, confidered as that of a primary one,
does not agree therewith. See the article Moon,
Period, &c.
4. Again, this fingle confideration Mr. Whifton
thinks enough to eftablirti the motion of the earth
for ever, viz. If the earth does not move round the
fun, the fun muft move with the moon round the
earth. Now the diftance of the fun, to that of the
moon, being as 10,000 to 46, and the moon's
period being lefs than 28 days, the fun's period
■would be found no lefs than 242 years ; whereas,
in faift, it is but one year.
5. The fun is the fountain of light and heat,
which it irradiates through all the f) ftcm, and there-
fore it ought to be placed in the center, fo that the
planets may at all times have it in an uniform and
equable manner.
6. For if the earth be in the center, and the fun
and planets revolve about it, the planets would then,
like the comets, be fcorched whh heat, when near-
eft the fun, and frozen with cold in their aphelia,
or greateft diftance, which is not to be fuppofed.
7. If the fun be placed in the center of the f)ftem,
■we then have the rational hypothefis of the planets
being all moved about the fun, by the univerfal law
or power of gravity arifing from his vaft body, and
every thing will anfwer to the laws of circular mo-
lion and central forces ; but otherwife wc are wh(ily
in the dark, and know nothing of the laws and
operations of nature.
Remark. Thefe are all very fenfible and ftrong
proofs, but cannot amount to a mathematical de-
monftration.
8. But happily we are able to give not only rea-
fons, but demonftrative proofs, that the fun' does
poficfs the center of the (yftem, and that the pla-
nets move above it at the diftance and in the order
adicncd in this and in other places. See the aiticle
Distance.
The firft is, that Mercury and Venus are ever ob-
fcrved to have two conjundions with the lun, but
no oppc.fition, which could not happen, unlefs the
orbits of thefe planets lay within the orbit of the
e: rth.
Remark. This is accounted for by Ptolemy, as
will appear '"rom our remaik on the 13th.
9. The fccond is, that iVlars, Jupiter, and Sa-
tnin, have each their conjunflions and orpofitions
to the fun aheri ately and fucceftively, which couid
not be, unlefs tl eir orbits were exterior to the or-
bit of the earth.
Remark Tl s will alfo fol'ow from Ftolen y s
fj ftcm.
2
COP
I-O. In the third place, the greateft elongation or
diftance of Mercury from the fun, is about 20'',
and that of Venus 47* ; which anfwers exafHy to
their diftance in this fyftem, though in the Ptole-
mean fyftem they might, and would, fometimes be
feen 180° from the fun, viz. in oppofition to him.
Remark. The latter part of this is falfe ; and
the former part of this article is true, in the Ptole-
maic hypothefis as well as the Copernican, as will
appear from our remark on the 13th article.
11. Fourthly, in this difpofition of ihe planets
they will all of them be (ometimes much nearer to
the earth than at others ; the confequence of which
is, that their brightnefs and fplendor, and alfo their
apparent diameters, will be proportionally greater
at one time than another; and this we obferve to
be very true every day. Thus ihe apparent diame-
ter of Venus, when greateft, is near 66", but
when leaft, not more than 9" and a half; of Mars,
when greateft, it is 21", but when leaft, no more
than 2 ' and a half; whereas, by the Ptolemean
hypothells, they ought always to be equal.
12. The fifth is, that when the planets are view-
ed with a good telefcope, they appear with diff^erent
phafes, or with difterent parts of their bodies en-
lightened. Thus Venus is fometimes new, then
horned, and afterwards dichotomized, then gibbous,
afterwaids full, and fo increafes and decreafes her
light in the fame manner as the moon, and as the
Copernican fyftem requires.
Remark. The Ptolemaic fyftem, by their epicycles
account, in fome fort, for thefe appearances, though
not in the fame proportions or places, and therefore
the ftrength of thefe arguments remain the fame.
13. 1 he fixth is, that the planets, ail of them,
do fometimes appear direiSt in motion, fum.etimes re-
trograde, and at other times ftationary. Thus Ve-
nus, as file pafies from her greateft elongation weft-
ward, to her greateft elongation Ciftwarii, will ap-
pear direiSl in motion, but retrograde as fhe palles
from the latter to the former; and when flie is in
thofe points of greateft diftance from the fun, fhe
feems for fome time ftationary : all which is necef-
fary upon the Copernican hypothefis, but cannot
happen in any other.
Remark, lliis argument, though fo particular-
ly inhfted on by the modern Copernicans, is ablb-
lutely, and in every rcfpedl, accoimttd for by the
advocates of Ptolemy, in the following manner.
Let BC, DE, and FG, (Plate XXXiX./j^. i.)
be parts of the orbits of the Sun, Venus, and Mer-
cury, refprfl vely, ©, ihe Sun, movii-sg in his or-
bit from C towards B. Now I'tolemy fuppofed that
two points, ? and M, in the oibits of V^enus and
Mercuiy refpedfively, and which were the centers
of the epicyc'es of liiofe planets, moved in fuch a
manner as to he always in a right line drawn thro'
the Eaiih and Sun, viz. T q. ; now if the diame-
tsr
COP
ter of Venus's epicycle, in which fhe was fiippofed
to move, v«as equal to, or bore fucli a proportion
to her orbit in the Copernican fyftem, as her liif-
tance from the earth in one, bore to it in the other
fyftem, be it what it would ; it is evident that Ve-
nus would have her greateft elongations at V and v,
be retrograde in pafilng through that part of her
epicycle next the earth ; ftationary at the points V
and V i and be dircdl during her paflagc through
that part of her epicycle, which is fartheft from the
earth, equally the fame as in the Copernican fyf-
tem.
The fame will hold 2;ood with rcfrard to Mercu-
ry, as is evident from the figure.
14. The feventh is, that the bodies of Mercury
and Venus, in their lower conjuiiftions with the
fun, are hid behind the fun's body, and in the-
upper ccnjunflions are fcen to pafs over the fun's
body, or difk, in form of a black round fpof,
which is neceffary in the Copernican fyftem, but
impoffible in the Ptolemean fyftem.
Remark. This is a ftrong and convincing proof
of the truth of the Copernican fyftem.
15. The eighth, and laft, is, that the times in
which thefe conjunctions, oppofttions, flations, and
retrogradations of the planets happen, are not fuch
as they would be were the earth at reft in its orbit,
but precifcly fuch as would happen were the earth
to move, and all the planets in the periods affigned
them ; and therefore this, and no other, can be the
true fyftem of the world.
Remark. This is equally falfe with the thir-
teenth.
16. But to all thofe we may add, the aberration
of light, lately difcovered by that excellent and in-
defatigable aftronoir.er, the late Dr. Bradly, and
which we think is poor Ptolemy's ne plus ultra : it
amounts to a mathematical demoniiration of the
truth of the Copernican fyftem ; for it is evident,
[fee the article Aberration] that if the earth
had not a motion on its axis from weft to eaft, there
could not be fuch a thins: as the aberration of Ijoht
exifting m nature.
COPERNICUS, the name of an aftronomical
inftrument, invented by Mr. VVhifton, to exhibit
the motion and phaenomena of the planets, both
primary and fecondary. It is built upon the Coper-
nican fyftem, and for that reafon called by this
name. It confifts of feveral concentrical circles of
wood, vpon v/hich are infcribed numbers, transfer-
red hither from the aftronomical tables ; by the va-
rious difpofttion of thefe circles, which are made fo
as to ftide vi'ithin each other, queftions are foK ed
fo as to fave long calculations. To exhibit eclipfes
thert is a particular apparatus, confifting of a ter-
rtftrial globe, fo difpofed, as that, being turned
round its axis, the light of the fun, or a caniile
projeilcd through a glafs plane, marked out into
concentric circles, exprefFes the digits of theedipfe :
34
COP
and thus is the path of the eclipfe, with its degree
or quantity in any part of the path, reprcfcntcd
with great accuracy.
The inventor of tliis inftrument has wrote a trea-
tife purpofcly to explain it.
COPHTS, CoPHTi, or Copts, a name given
to fuch of the Chriftians of Egypt, as are of the
fe£t of Jacobites.
COPHTIC, or Coptic Language, is tiiat
fpoke by the Cophts, being the ancient language of
the Egyptians, intermixed with the Greek, and the
characters of it being thofe of the Greek.
Coptic Monks, religious, among the Chrifti-
ans of Egypt, who have the higheft veneration for
a monaftic life, confidering it as the philofophy of
the law of Jefus Chrift, and the monks as terreftrial
angels, or celeftial men. They are obliged to part
with their pofTtffions, to renounce marriage for ever,
to live in defarts, to be cloathed in wool, and to
eat no meat,
COPING, or Copping of a TVall,- in architec-
ture, the top or covert of a wall, made floping, to
carry oft' the wet.
Coping over, in carpentry, a fort of hanging
over, not fquare to its upright, but bevelling on its
under fiJe, till it ends in an edge.
COPIVI, or Boifam of Cofivi. See the article
Balsam.
COPPEE, CopEL, cr Cuppel, a ciiemica! vef-
fel made of earth, pretty thick, and of the form of
a platter or difli.
It fuftains the higheft degree of f re, and retains
all fufed metals : but in it all the fcftlle portions of
any n.etal, when mixed with fufed lead, are carried
oft', except gold and ftlver, which are left behind in
fmall globules. See Assaying.
COPPELLING, or Cupelling, inchemiftry,
is the putting metallic fubftances into a coppel, or
covered vefTel, made of bone-afl;es, and. fet in a
naked fire, to try what gold or filver they will
aff'ord.
COPPER, Venus, in natural hifiory, a reddifh
metal, eafily tarnifhing in a moift air, and contrafl-
ing a green or a bluifli green ruft. It is the moft:
elaftic and fonorous of all the metals, and the hard-
eft of all but iron. It fpreads difficultly under the
hammer, but may be extended to a great degree,
drawn into fine wire, and beat into thin leaves. Its
fpecific gravity is near nine times greater than that
of water.
It requires for its fufion a firong white heat, great-
er than that in which gold and iilver melt, titough
not fo great as that which is requifite for the fufion
of iron. When melted, it is remarkably impatient
of moifture : the contad^ of a little water occafions
the melted copp«r to Le thrown abou; with violence,
to the great danger of the by-ftanders. It miy ne-
verthelefs be grsifiulated, like other metals, by cau-
tioufly pouring a very liule at a time into water. •
8 E Kept
COP
Kept in a heat below fufion, it contrafls on the
fufface thin powdery fcales, which, if rubbed off,
are fucceeded by frefti ones, till the whole quantity
of the metal is thus flowly changed into a dark red-
difh fcoria or calx. This does not melt in the grea-
teft degree of fire that our furnaces are capable of
giving; but in the concentrated folar heat, it runs
eafily into a deep red and almofl: opake glafs. A
flaming fire, and a ftrong draug,ht of air over the
furface of the metal, promote its calcination : the
flame being tinged of a green, bkiifli, or rainbow
colours, ii a mark that the copper burns.
Copper is exceeding rarely found pure in the
earjh. Of its ores there is a great variety, inter-
mixed with difttrent ftony matters, generally a-
huunding with fulphur, fometimes containing a lit-
tle arfetiic. Thefe ores are often of beautiful co-
1 )urs, blue, red, green, yellow, variegated like the
rainbow or peacock's tail, moft: commonly green or
blue : they are of a!! ores the moft beautiful. The
lapis lazuli, from which the precious blue pigment
called ultramarine is prepared, is one of the ores of
this metal. Some of them contain no metal but
copper ; many have an admixture of others ; and
there are few ores of other metals without fome por-
tion of copper in them. Copper is of all metals the
moft difBcultly obtained pure from the ore : fulphur
adhering to it fo ftiongly, as not to be expelled with-
out long calcination. When copper and iron are
blended together in the ore, the copper cannot by
any method as yet known, be feparated to ad-
vantage : a rich copper mine, at Lauterberg in the
Hartz foreft, lies on this account unworkcd.
There are ores of copper in almoft all parts of
ihe world ; in Spain, France, England, Norway,
Saxony, Bohemia; hut more particularly in Swe-
den, Hungary, and Tranfylvania. Japan affords a
lort of copper fupcrior to any met with in Europe.
Copper is found alio in a vitriolic ftate, diflblved
in certain waters, as at Neufol in Hungary: when
iron is put into the water, the dilTolved copper fe-
parates ; a proportionable quantity of the iron be-
ing dill'olved in its place. The copper, extricated
from the liquor, adheres to the iron, and covers its
furface wiih a bright cupreous cruft : fome have
been fo far impofed on, as to imagine the iron, by
this means, a£tually tranfmuted into copper.
CoppER-PLATF.sytfr engraving. Plates intend-
ed for engraving ought to be form.ed of the beft
copper; which can be diftinguiflied only by exam-
ining it with regard to the qualities requifite to the
conltituting it good. Thofe qualities are, that it
fhould be very malleable, that i^, capable of being
ipread with the hammer, or fuffering itfelf -to be
rolled r.r drav;n out to the niceft or fmalleft pieces ;
that it fliould neverthtlefs be firm, and rcfift even
to feme degree of hardnefs, provided no fhortnefs
of grain or brittlenels attend, but that it be perfect-
ly duclile; sfid that it be free irom any veins,
COP
fpecks, or dlflimilar parts, but of an equal texture
through the whole. The rednefs of topper is a
prefumptive mark of its being good, but not an in-
fallible one : for though it is in general a proof of
the purity of the copper, yet it does not evince that
the qualities may not be injured by too frequent
fufions, or the calcinations it may have undergone,
if, as is frequently the cafe, it has before been ern^-
ployed in forming fome utenfil.
The copper being chofen, it muff be fabricated
into plates of t~lie fize demanded, the thicknefs of
which may be in proportion of a line to plates that
are a toot by nine inches. Thefe plates muft then
be well forged and planifhed by a brazier ; which
(hould be done cold : for by managing this operation
well, the porofity of the copper may be greatly re-
moved, which is for the moft obvious reafons of
great confequence.When a plate is forged, it fhould
be examined which fide is the moft even, and theleaft
flawed or cracked ; and then the polilhing may be
thus performed.
Put the plate upon a board leaning obliquely, and
in the bottom of which two nails or points are
fixed, to keep it from Aiding off; and then take a
large piece of giind-ftone dipt in water, and rub it
very ftrongly once in every part length-ways, and
then the lame breadih-ways, keeping it moift with
water ; and repeat this operation till no hollows ap-
pear, nor the leaft mark made by the hammer in
forging, or any other flaws, holes, or inequalities.
Alter this take a piece of good pumice-ftone, and
rub the plate with it in the fame ma.iner as was
done before with the grind - ftone, till all the
fcratches and marks made of the grind ftone may,
by the pumice-flone, be likewife taken away, and
then wafh it thoroughly clean. The fcratches and
marks of the pumice-ftone fhould then be taken
out by rubbing the plate in the fame manner with a
piece of oil-ftonc, till all the marks and fcorings of
the pumice-ftone be taken out : and the plate fhould
be then wafhed with water till it be perfeiSly clean.
A proper kind of coal muft in the mean time be pre-
pared for finifhing the preparation of the plate,
which mirft be done in the following manner :
Take three or four large coals of fallow wood',
found, and without clefts, and place them together
in a fire made on a hearth, and cover them with
other burning coals ; heaping a quantity of red-hot
afhes upon them. In this manner let them remain,
being fubjeft to only a fmall accefs of air, for about
an hour and a half: but the time fhould be greater
or lefs, according to their fize, that the fire may
penetrate into the innermoft part of them, and ex-
pel all the fmoke that can be driven out ; to be cer-
tain of which, it is better they (hould flay in the
fire rather longer than is necefTary, than that the
time fhould be unduly fhortened. When they are
fit to be taken out, a vefTel of water large enough
to hold them fliould be prepared ; and they fhould
2 he
COP
COR
be inftantly thrown into it, and left there to extin-
guifh and cool. For this purpofc fome ufc urine
inftead of water ; but there is no difference, unlefs
in the difagreeable fmell of the latter. Tlie coals
being thus prepared, pick out one, or a part of one,
fufficiently large, firm, and free from clefts ; and
holding it faft in the hand, fct one of the corners
againft the plate, and rub it, but without obfcrving
any particular diredtion, to take out the marks or
fcorings of the oil-ftone : but if the coal glide on
the furface, and take no cfFedl, it is a proof of its
not being fit for the purpofe ; and another, that is
not fo faulty, muft be ufed inftead of it. This fit-
nefs may be thus diftinguiflied ; that the coal, if
good, being wet, and rubbed on the copper, will
feem rough, and grate it with a low murmuring
noife. When a good coal is obtained, the opera-
tion muft be continued, till not the leaft fcoring,
flaw, or hole whatever, appears ; but if the coal
itfelf, as will fometimes happen, be too hard, and
leaves traces or fcores of its own forming, a fofter
one muft be chofen, and ufed in the fame manner as
the firi'c, to remedy the defecls of it, and to pro-
cure a perfectly clear and even furface on the plate.
This is the method diredled by Le Bofl'e : but the
end may be better anfvvered, by firft wearing out
the marks of the planifhing hammer, by rubbing
with emery fini.'ly ground ; and then, the plate be-
ing walhed clean, bruftiing it over with the re-
finer's aqua-fortis ; which muft be fuffered to lie on
till the ebullition it produces begins to decreafe ;
and then wafhed ofF, by immerfing the plate in wa-
ter ; when it will be found to be brought to a better
condition to take the burnifh with more certainty,
than by the laborious ufe of fo many ftones and the
coal.
The plate being brought to this ftate, the polifh-
ing muft be finiftied with a fteel burnifher, with
which it muft be ftrongly rubbed ; the beft method
of moving the burniflier is not to work it length-
ways, or breadth-ways, but in a diagonal direc-
tion, or from corner to corner, which will more
effe<51:ually take out all remains of the former fcor-
ings or lines. The copper muft be thus burnifhed
till it be as bright as a looking-glafs in every part ;
but if, when the reft is thus bright, fome particular
fpots appear dull, or that any lines remain, fuch
faults fhould be again worked with the burniflier,
till the whole be uniformly (hining.
COPPERAS, a name given to the fa£titious
green vitriol. See the article Vitriol,
COPPICE, or CorsE, a little wood, confifting
of under-woods, or fuch as may be raifed either by
fowing or planting.
COPULA, in logic, the verb that connefts any
two terms in an affirmative or negative propofition ; as
" Riches make a man happy j" where inaie is the
copula: " No weaknefs is any virtue;" where Is
is the copula.
COPULATION, the aft of generation, or the
congrefs of the male and female, otherwife called
coition.
COPULATIVE Propositions, in logic, thofe
where the fubject and predicate are fo linked toge-
ther, by copulative conjundtions, that they may be
all fcverally affirmed or denied one of another.
Example, " Riches and. honours are apt to elate
" the mind, and incieafe the number of our
" defires."
Cui'utATiVE Conjunction. See the article
Conjunction.
copy, in a law fenfe, fignifies the tranfcript of
any original writing, as the copy of a patent, char-
ter, deed, &c.
Copy, among printers, denotes the manufcript,
or original of a book, given to be printed.
Copv-HOLD, a tenuis; for which a tenant has no-
thing to fliew but me copy of the rolls made by the
fteward of the lord's court.
Copy-holder, one who is admitted tenant of
lands or tenements within a manor, which, time
out of mind, by ufe and cuftom of the manor,
have been den;ifable and demifed to fuch as will take
them in fee-fimple or fee-tail, for life, years, or at
will, according to the cuftom of the manor by cop/y
of court-roll ; but is generally where the tenant has
fuch eftate either in fee or for three lives,
COR, the Heart, in anatomy. See Heart.
Cor Caroli, in aftronomy, an extra-conftel-
lated ftar in the northern hemifphere, fituated be-
tween the coma Berenices, and urfa major, fo called
by Dr. Halley in honour of king Charles.
Cor Hydra, a fixed ftar of the firft magnitude,
in the conftellation of hydra.
Cor Leonis, or Regulus, in aftronomy, a
fixed ftar of the firft magnitude, in the conftella-
tion leo.
CORACOBRACHIALIS, in anatomy, a mufcle
that has its origin at the coracoide procefs of the
fcapula, and its termination about the middle part
of the arm. It ferves to lift the arm obliquely out-
wards.
CORACOHYOIDiEUS, in anatomy, a mufcle
which having its origin from the upper edge of the
' fcapula, near its neck, afcends obliquely under the
maftoidaeus, and is inferred in the os hyoides, which
it ferves to pull obliquely downward-s. See the ar-
ticle Hyoides.
CORACOIDES, in anatomy, a fmall, fharp
procefs of the fcapula, fo called from its refembling
a crow's bill.
The coracoide procefs in infants, is but a carti-
lage, afterwards it becomes an epiphyfis ; and, after
this, about the age of fixteen, it is perceived to be a
ftparate bone. It ferves to (trengthen the articula-
tion of the fhoulder, and gives origin to one ot the
mufclcs 01 the arm.
CORA-
COR
COR
CORACOMANTES, in antiquity, perfons who
foretold events from their obfervations on crows.
CORACO-RADIALIS, in anatomy, the fame
with biceps. See Biceps.
CORAL, Corallium, a hard, brittle, branched
fubftance, refembling the ftalk of a plant ; ufually
about the thicknefs of agoofe's quill ; full of knots ;
fometimes ftraight, and fometimes varioufly bent ;
both externally and internally of a deep bright red
colour. It is found adhering to rocks and other bo-
dies in the fea, particularly in the Mediterranean ;
covered with a foi't fungous bark, in which is a great
number of cells curioufly divided, containing a milky
juice, with apertures on the furface : this cortical
part is feparated while frefli and foft. It has been
generally referred to the vegetable kingdom ; but is
more probably the work and the neit of little ani-
mals.
Artijidal Cos. Ai. is made of cinnabar well beaten ;
a layer whereof is applied on a piece of wood well
dried and poliflied, being firfi: moiftened with fize :
the whole is then again polifhed, and for varnifli
rub it over with the white of an egg.
Coral-Tree. See the article Erythrina.
CORALLINE, Coraliina, in botany, is a ge-
nus of fubmarine plants, confifting ot ftalks and
branches often beautifully ramified, and compofed
of joints of an oblong figure inferted into one ano-
ther. The greater part of thefe are gritty, and of a
coral-like matter, but nature varies from this in
fome of the fpecies, which are of a fofter fub-
ftance.
CORAM NoN JuDicE, in law, is a term ufed
where a caufe is brought and determined in a court
of which the judges there have not any jurifdic-
tion.
CORAN or Alcoran, See the article Al-
coran.
CORANA, a kind of phafeolus, or kidney-
bean, the down of whofe pod is the common cow-
itch.
CORBAN is a fcripture term for an offering
which had life, in oppofition to the minchab, which
had no life.
CORBEL, in architecture, the reprefentation of
a bafxet, fometimes ufed to fignify the vafe of a tam-
bour of the Corinthian column.
Corbel, or Corbeil, is alfo ufed in building,
for a (hort piece of timber, placed in a wall, with
its end fticking out fix or eight inches, as occafion
ferves, in the manner of a fliouldering piece.
CORCKORUS, Jews-mallow, in botany, a
genus of plants, whofe flower confifts of five ob-
long, obtufe petals, with a pentaphyllous calyx,
and hath a great number of hairy filaments, topped
• with fmall anther.T;.
The fruit is a cylindrical pod, v.'ith five cells,
and contains a number of angular, acuminated,
feeds.
CORD, or Chord, feveral threads, cabled or
twifted together by means of a wheel. See the ar-
ticle Rope.
Cord of JVood, a certain quantity of wood for
burning, fo called becaufe formerly meafurcd with a
cord. The dimenfions of a fti.tute cord of wood
are eight feet long, and four feet high, and four feet
broad.
CORDAGE, in general implies all the running
rigging of a Ihip, or all that which is employed to ex-
tend, contrafl:, or traverfe the fails ; it is called run-
ning, becaufe it paifes through blocks, and is frequent-
ly hauled in, or fuckened as occafion requires. See
Rigging.
CORDED, in heraldry. A crofs-corded fomc
authors take for a crofs wound or wrenched about
with cords. See theaiticle Cabled-Cross.
Others, with more probability, take it for a crofs
made of two pieces of cord.
CORDELIER, in church hifiory, aFrancifcan,
or religious of the order of St. Francis.
CORDIAL, in medicine, whatever raifes the
fpirits, and gives them a fudden ftrength and chear-
fulnefs.
CORDON, in fortification, a row of fiones
made round on the outfide, and raifed between the
wall of the fortrefs, which lies aflcpe, and the para-
pat which flands perpendicular, in fuch a manner,
that this difference may not be ofienfive to the eye :
whence the cordons fcrve only as an ornament,
ranging round about the place, being only ufed in
fortifications of flone-work : for in thofe made
with earth, the void fpace is filled up with pointed
flakes.
CORDWAINERS, a term whereby fhoe-makers
are denominated in the ftatutes.
CORED Herrings, thofe caught in autumn on
the coafl near Yarmouth ; which, being rolled in
fait, are afterwards brought on fliore to be made
red-herrings.
CORIANDER, in botany, an umbelliferous
plant, with a white, flender, root, from which arifes
a fmooth, pithy, branching flalk. The lower
leaves are broad and conjugated; but the upper are
deeply cut into five fegments. The flowers grow
in umbels at the top of the branches, of a whitifh
purple colour : they are compofed of five heart-
fliaped petals, with the fame number of ftamina.
The fruit is fpherical, and divided into two parts,
each having an hemifpherical concave feed. It is
annual, flowers in June, and is a native of the
fouth of France, Spain, and Italy, and cultivated in
fome parts of England. The fmell of the whole
plant is firong and aromatic; but not a little difa-
grceable. The feeds alfo have, when frefh, a very
unpleafant flavour, which, by drying, becomes more
mild, and have a fweet agreeable tafle. The dritd
feeds are fometimes employed as a ffomachic and
carminative; and are accounted good againft ca-
tarrhs.
COR
COR
tarrhs, flatulencies, worms, the cachexy, and flight
obftru6tions of the glands, and to ftop hemorrhages
and fluxes.
CORIARIA Myrtle, Sumach, in botany, a
genui of plants producing male and female flowers,
on different plants. The flower of each confiih of
five petals very like the cup. It has no pericar-
pium J but contains five kidncy-ftiapcd feeds, in-
clofed in the petals.
There are two fpecies in this genus, which grew
wild about Mop.tpclicr in France, where it is ufed
for tanning leather.
CORINTHI.AN, in general, denotes fomething
belonging to Corinth : thus we fay, Corinthian brafs,
Corinthian order, &c.
Corinthian Order, in architeifture, the fourth
order of architecture, according to Scamozzi ; but
Mr. Le Clerc makes it the fifth, being the mod no-
ble, rich, and delicate of all the other five.
Moft authors afcribe the invention of this order
to Callimachus, a Corinthian fculptor. Vllalpan-
dus, however, oppofes this opinion, and will have
the Corinthian capital to have been derived from
an order in Solomon's temple, the leaves where-
of were thofe of the palm-tree. The Corinthian
order has feveral characters by which it is dillin-
guifhed from the reft. Its capital is adorned with
two rows of leaves, between which arife little ftalks,
or caulicoles, of which the volutes are formed,
which fupport the abacus, and are fixteen in num-
ber. See Abacus.
CORION, in botany, the fame with the corian-
der. See Coriander.
CORIS, or Cowries, in commerce. See the
aPticle Cowries.
CoRis, in botany, a plant which grows wild
about Montpelier, and in moli places in the fouth of
France. The flower confifts of a fingle ringent
petal : the tube is cylindrical, and of the length of
the cup; the limbs are divided into five oblong feg-
ments. The fruit is a glubofe capfule, fonned uf
five valves, and fituated in the bottom of the cup.
The feeds are fmall, numerous, and oval.
CORISPERMUM, in botany, a genus of plants
whofe flower confifts of two comprefled, crooked-
pointed petals, which are placed oppofite to each
other, and are equal, and contains a fingle ftamen.
The germen is comprefled and pointed, fupporting
two capillary ftyles, each topped with an acute
fligma : the germen afterwards becomes an oval
compreiTed feed, with an acute margin,
CORK-Tree, in botany, a fpecies of the quer-
cus or ouk. The cork-tree has a long thick, hird
ro)t, that produces a nijddle-fized tree, with a thick
trunk, and a fc'.v branches. It has a thick, lii:lu,
fpungy bark, of a yelluv.'ifti grey colour. The
leaves are oblong, oval, about two inches long, and
one and a quarter broad ; they are undivided and
fawed on their edges, and have i little down on tlieir
.3+
under fides. Thefe leaves continue green through
the winter till the middle of May, when they gene-
rally fall off juft before the new leaves come out.
The acorns are very like thofe of the commori oak,
and is a native of the fouthern parts of Europe.
The exterior bark of this tree is the cork; it is
taken off" every eight or ten years ; but there is an
interior bark which nourifhes the tree; fo that ftrip-
pingnff" the outer, fo far from injuring the tree, that
it is neceflary to continue them in health. In the
month of July, the inhabitants of the places where
they grow make an incifion round both the top and
root of the tree, and another longitudinally ; when
it is thus got off", they unwrap before a fire, and
prefs it flat with weights, after which, they clean it,
and export it to other countries.
The cork fhould be chofen in fine boards, all of z
piece, not full of knots or chinks, of a moderate
thicknefs, yellowifh without and within, and that
which cuts even.
Its ufe is too well known to need any account of
it : in medicine it is of fervice to ftop bleeding, be-
ing reduced to powder, or put into fome aftnngent
liquor : burned and mixed with tf.c unguentum po-
pulneum, it is very proper for the piles. The Spa-
niards burn cork into an extraordinary fine black,
called Spanifli black, which is ufed for fcvcra! forts
of work.
Cork, or Corking of a Saddle, the pieces to
which the bolfters are made faft ; fo called as having
formerK- been made of cork.
CORMORANT, in ornithology, the EngliGi
name of a fpecies of pelican, with fourteen long
feathers in the tail, and the under part of the body
whitifh : it is a fca-fowi, almoft equal to a goofe in
fize, and feeds on filh. All the writers on birds
have defcribed it under the names of carbo aqua-
ticus, or corpus aquaticus.
CORN, in agriculture, the grain or feeds of
divers plants ; with us the principal arc thofe of
wheat, barley, oats, and rye. See the articles
Wheat, Barley, See.
Corn is very different from fruits, with refpeft to
the manner of its prefervation ; and is capable of
being preferved in public granaries for prefling occa-
fions, and being kept many years. See the article
Granary.
Corn likewife makes the firft part of the Englifh
name of feveral plants, on accoiiiu of their grow-
ing among corn. Thus we call the Lc'idiolus, corn-
flag ; the chryfanthemum, corn-niangold ; the fifon,
corn-parfley ; t!ie Valeriana, corn-fallad, &c. See
thearticles Gladiolus, Cfirysanthemum, he,
Indian CoRN, Sec the articf; Zea.
Corn-Mill, a water-engine for grinding of
corn, iiee Mill and Grinding.
Corn, in medicine and furgery, a hard tubercle,
like a iiat wart, growing in feveral parts of th? feet,
efpecially upon the joints of the toes. This djiorder
8F is
COR
COR
is not unjuflly attributed to the wearing of too
ftraight oi- narrow-toed fhoes, which never fail to
produce thefe tubercles, efpecially if the peifon is
obliged to ftand or walk much, and in the fummer-
time.
Various are the methods ufed (of removing thefe
callofities of the fkin and cuticle ; feme by knife,
and others by application of emollient and cauflic
or eroding medicines j but which way foever they
are removed, it is certainly the beft to let their hard
fubflance be lirft fufficiently mollified ; and this
may be obtained by frequently macerating them for
a confiderahle time in warm water, and afterwards
paring ofF their uppermofl: furface with a penknife :
or if this does not fuffice, let a plafter of green
w-sx, gum ammoniac, de faphon. &c. or a leaf of
houfe-ieek be applied and renewed every day ; when
thefe applications have been continued for fome
time, peel them away with your nails, or fcrape
them with a fcalpel, but with great caution, to
avoid injuring any of the fubjacent tendons of the
extenfor mufcle, which might occafion violent pains,
inflammation, convulfions, a gangrene, and even
death ; all which have a!fo been fretjuently the con-
fequences of cauflics penetrating to thofe parts.
CORNAGE, an ancient tenure, the fervice
■whereof was to blow a horn when any invafion of
the Scots was perceived.
CORNEA Tunica, in anatomy, the fecond
coat of the eye, fo called from its fubllance, which
refembles the horn of a lanthorn. See the article
Eye.
The cornea is convex, pellucid, and divifible into
various lamella?. It is fituated in the fore-part of the
eye, and Airroundcri by the fclerotica. It has a m.oft
cxquifite feiifc, to the end that the tears, upon the
Icail pain, may be fqueczed out of the lachrymal
•gLnd, to wafl] oft" any filth, which, by flicking to
the cornea, might render it dim.
CORNEL- II'ree, Comus, in botany. See the
article Cornus.
CORNELIAN, Sivda, the fame with carnellan.
See Carnelian.
CORNER, Angului, in a general fenfe, the fame
■wiih nnglc. See Angle.
Corner-TeetM of a Hcrfe^ the four tectb be-
tween the middle teeth and the tuflies, being two
above and two below, in each fide of the jaw,
which fhoot forth when the horfe is four yea;s and
a half old.
CORNET, in the military art of the ancients,
an inllrument much in the nature of a trumpet,
wiiich, when it only founded, the enfigns were to
inarch alone, without the foldiers ; whereas, when
the trumpet only founded, the foldiers were to move
without the enfigns.
Cornet, in the military art of the mriderns, the
third commiffion officer in a irojp of horle or dia-
goous.
This is a very honourable port : he commands iu
the lieutenant's abfence ; his principal duty being to
carry the flandard near the middle of the firft rank
of the fquadron.
CORNICHE, Cornish, or Cornice, in ar-
chitedlure, the uppermoft member of the entabla-
ture of a column, as that which crowns the order.
The corniche is the third grand divifion of the tra-
beation, commencing with the frieze, and ending
with the cimatim. The corniche is different in dif-
ferent orders, there being as many kinds of corniches
as there are different orders of columns. It is moft
plain in the Tufcan order. Vignola makes it con-
fift of an ovum or quarter-round, an allragal or
baguette, the regiet or fillet, the larmier, and the
talon.
In the Ionic, the members are in moft refpefls
the fame in the Doric, except that they are fre-
quently enriched with carvings, and have always
dentils.
In the Doric, Vignola makes the capitals of the
triglyphs of the frieze, with their bandeletters, a
talon, muiules or dentils, a larmier with its guttae
underneath, a talon, fillet cavetto, and regiet.
The Corinthian corniche is the richelt, and is
diftinguilhed by having both modillions and dentils,
contrary to the opinion of Vitruvius, who looks
upon thefe two ornaments as incompatible ; and of
A-Ir. Le Clerc, who accounts the dentils as peculiar
to the Ionic.
In the Compofite there are dentils, its mouldings
carved, and there are channels under the foffit.
Corniche is alfo ufed, in general, for all little
projeclures in mafonry or joinery, even where the^e
are no columns, as the corniche of a chimney,,
beaufet, &c.
Archiiyave-CoRUiCHE, that immediately conti-
guous to the architrave, the frieze being retrenched.
A'lutilated CoRNiCHE, one whofe projedlure is
cut,, or interrupted to the right of the larmier : or
reduced into a plat-band, v.'ith a cimatium.
Catitalk'er CoRNiCHE, a. term ufed by workmen,
for a corniche that has cantalivers underneath.
C(;wV;^-CoR NICHE, that which has a great cafe-
ment or hollow in i;, ordinarily lathed and plaflered
upon compafs fprechets, or brackets,
A/tiilillion-CoRtiicHE, one with modillions under
it.
Corniche is alfo ufed for the crowningaof pe-
deflals.
CORNICLLARIS Processus, the procefs or
knob of the flioulder hone, called thus becaufe it
refembles the figure of a crow's beak.
CORNICULARIUS, in Roman antiquity, aa
officer of the army, appointed to affift the military
tribune in qiialiiy of lieutenant.
CORNICULATE, or Corn iculated Flow-
er, one with a fliarp-pointed appendage, relemb-
ling, in fome deg,rcej a cock's fgur.
CORNI-
COR
CoRKicuLATE PLANTS, the fame with fili-
quofc plants with horned pods, or fecd-ve/Iels.
CORNISH, or Corniche, in architedlure. See
the article Corniche.
CORNU Ammonis, or Hammokis, in natu-
ral hiftory, a genus of foflil (hells, called ferpent-
llones, or fnaks-ftones, by the vulgar.
They are found of all iizes, from the breadth of
a fix-pence, to more than two feet in diameter;
, fome of them rounded, others preatly conipreiled,
and lodged in different ftrata of ftones and clays ;
fome again are fmooth, and others ridged in difte-
rent manners, their ftrire and ridges being either
ftraight, irregularly crooked, or undulated.
CORNUCOPIA, or Horn cf Plenty, among
painters, &c. is reprefented under the figure of a
large horn, out of which iffues fruits, flowers, &c.
Upon medals the cornucopia is given to all deities,
genii, and heroes, to mark the felicity and abun-
dance of all the wealth procured by the goodnefe of
the former, or the care and valour of the latter.
CoRNUCOM^, in botany, a genus of plants,
producing a fiower, the corolla of which is univali-
cuUr, and contains three capillary filaments topped
with oblong antherce ; the germen is turbinated,
and fupports two hairy ftyles ; it has no pericarpi-
um, but the corolla inclofes a fingle turbinated feed,
convex on one fide and plane on the other.
CORNUS, the cornel tree, in botany, a genus
of plants, whofe flowers come out in bunches,
placed on a general involucrum, which is coloured ;
each flower confifts of four oblong, acute, plane
petal?, with four ereft flamina. The fruit is a
roundifh umbilicated drupe, inclofing a cordated or
oblong nut with two cells, having an oblong ker-
nel. There are different fpecies of cornus, one of
which is known by the name of cornelian cherry.
This tree is moderately tall with many irregular
branches ; the trunk is covered with a pale brown
hark, and the young twigs are of a bloody purple;
the leaves are oblong, conliderably broad and ribbed,
with high veins; it flowers early in the fpring be-
fore the kaves appear, and are placed on the extre-
mities of the branches. It is propagated in th.e
nurrciies as a flowering (hrub, on account of the
rarly appearance of the flowers, l^he fruit is ripe in
September, and are preferved by many for the mak-
ing of tarts ; when full ripe they are of a fweetifh
acid, and are reckoned cooling, drying, and altrin-
J^enf, for which reafon they are prefcribed againft
fluxes of all kinds, and ate good in fevers, efpeci-
aliy if a'ttnded with a diarrhaea.
COROLLA, among botanilfs, the moft confpi-
cuous, and in general the moft beautiful part of a
fiower. This is the termination of the liber or inner
bark, continued to, and accompanying the fiu<5lih-
cation in this new form of painted le.ives, moft com-
monly called perals, by which appellation they are
diftinguifhed from the green leaves of the plar.U
COR
If! ufe is the fame as that of the cal)x, fciving
more immediately to prote(St the generative parti,
as the calyx, which is ufually of a lironger texture,
covers the whole. According as there is one, two,
or three of thefe petals, the corolla is faid to be
monopetalous, dipetalous, tripetalous, &c. but in
fome flowers the corolla is wanting, which are then
faid to be apetalc^us.
COROLLARY is an ufeful confequence drawn
from fomething already advanced or demonftrated :
thus, it being demonftrated tl-.at a triangle which
has two equal fides, has alio two angles equal ;
this corollary will follow, that a triangle which has
three fides equal, has alfo its three angles equal.
COROLLISTS, Coroliijla, an appellation given
by LinnsEus to thofe botanifts who have arranged
plants under diftindt claffes, according to the diffe-
rent form of their corollas or flowers ; fuch is the
celebrated Tournefort and Rivinus.
COROLLULA, a term ufed by botanifts, to
exprefs little partial flowers, which together make
up the compound ones.
Thefe corollulas are of two kinds, the tubulated
and ligulated ; the former whereof are always fur-
niflied with a campanulated limb, divided into four
or five fegments ; and the latter have only a flat li-
near limb, terminated by a fingle point, or by a.
broader extremity, divided into three or five feg-
ments. See Flower.
CORONA, Crown, or Crowning, in ar-
chitedlure. SceCROWMNG.
Corona, among anatomifts, denotes that edge
of the glans penis where the preputium begins.
Corona, among botanifts, expreffes any thing
growing on the head of a feed.
Thefe corona; are of various kinds : fometimes
Ample, confifting only of a dentated membrane i
fometimes pappofe, confifting of downy matter,
which in fom.e cafes is immediately aflSxed to the
feed ; in others it has a pedicle growing from it j
and it fometimes is compofed of fimple filaments,
aud fometimes is ramofe. Hence, in the defcrip-
tion of the feeds of plants, they are frequently faid
to be crowned or winged with down ; the ufe of
this part being evidently to fcatter and difperfe the
feeds, when ripe.
Corona Borealis, in aftronomv, is a conftei-
lation in the northern hemifphere, fituated between
Bootes and Hercules, near the head of Serpens.
The poets tell uf, this was the crown or garland
that Venus gave to Ariadne when ftie was married
to Bacchus, in the if.e of Naxus, after Thefeus h.id
forfakenher; and afterwardsBacchus placed thiscrown
in he2\en in token of his love. Novidius will have
it to be the crown of the Virgin Mary. The ftara
in this conftellation, accordmg to Ptolemy's cata-
logue, are eight, Tycho's the fame, and in the
Britifh twenty-one ; their right afcu.fion, declina-
tion, variaticn, &c.. are as follows.
Older
1^
Name.
o
S
n
1
6
a
2
5
;-
3
4
|3
4
4-5
6
5
2-3
a
6
5
t^
7
4
i
8
4
y
9
S
It
10
4
a
II
5
K
12
5
A
13
4-5
e
14
5.6
1
15
6
?
16
6
T
1/
6
(7
iS
6
W
19
5
^
2C
5
i™» ad
!■
21
5
z'l'ad
V
COR
p- . . Diftance
Ar„ r from Nor.
Alcenfion o ,
Pole.
COR
227.
228.
229.
230,
231
231,
232
233
233
234
235'
236.
236,
237'
237'
240.
241.
241.
243-
243-
250.
33-21
18.34
28. r
48.38
8.25
37-49
3«-59
10.20
38.56
53-13
34- 2
46.22
54-47
57-39
58.52
4-34
29.22
46-33
"•34
21.23
28.42
59.29.50
58.50. 8
60. 3.27
57-49-iS
62.28. 8
50.11.34
52.34.29
62.55.58
56.42.55
63. 6. 2
53-34-53
51.20.45
62.25. o
59.28.17
55-57- 6
52-54- 7
55-38- 4
60.21.25
58.39.26
55.44.28
56. 0.25
Var. in
Var. In
Right
Decli-
Afcen,
nation.
/f
1,
36.2
13-5
36.0
13.2
36.2
13.0
35-9
12.8
38-5
12.6
31.0
12.0
36.0
II. 9
38.0
11.8
37-5
ri.6
38-5
II. 5
36.2
"-3
35-2
II.
37-0
11.7
36.7
II. 2
34-0
10.8
43-5
10.2
34-5
9-5
35-7
9.4
35-2
9.0
35-0
8.8
34-5
6.7
Corona AusTRALis, in aftronomy, a conftel-
lation of the fouthern hemifphere, between the fore
legs of Sagittarius. The opinion of the poets are
various concerning this crown : fome fay this is the
crown that was given to Sagittarius by the gods,
and which he was wont to wear ; but one day cafl-
ing it from him out of giddinefs, or with great in-
differency, it gave fuch offence to the donor.-:, that
they placed it betwixt his fore legs, for a chaftife-
ment for his behaviour, and a memento for others,
not to defpife or think triflingly of the gifts of their
iuperiors. Others, call it the wheel of Ixion, think-
ing it to be that wheel on which he was tortured
for his attempt on Juno's virtue, for which impu-
dence Jupiter hurled him down from heaven into
hell, where this punifliment was infli£ted ; but af-
terwards the wheel was made a conftellation, to
betoken to mortal man, the great lin he commits
who attempts the virtue of another man's wife.
CORONAL, Coronaiis., in anatomy, the firfl:
future of the fkuU. See the articles Suture and
Skull.
This future reaches tranfverfe'y from the one tem-
ple to the other, and joins the cs frontis with the
•jil.i parictalla.
CORON.ALE OS, in anatomy, the fame with
the OS frontis. See Frontjs.
CORONARY Vessels, Vafa Coronarla, in
anatomy, certain vtil'-ls which f-jrnifl) the fublbnce
«/ the heart wr.h bloud.
CoROKARY Arteries, are two arteries fpring-
ing out of the aorta, before it leaves the pericar-
dium.
Coronary Vein, a vein diffufed over the ex-
terior furface of the heart. It is formed of feveral
branches arifing from all parts of the vifcus, and
terminates in the vena cava, whither it conveys the
remains of the blood brought by the coronary arte-
ries.
Stomachic Coronary, a vein inferted into the
trunk of the fplenic vein, which, by uniting with
the mefenteric, forms the vena porta. See the ar-
ticle Porta.
CORONE, in anatomy, the anterior apophyfis
of the lower jaw. See Jaw.
CORONER, an ancient officer of the kingdom,
fo called, becaufe he is wholly employed for the
king and the crown.
CORONET. See the article Crown.
Coronet, or Cronet 0/ a Horfe, the loweft
part of the partem, which runs round the coffin, and
is diftinguifhed by the hair joining and covering the
upper parr of the hoof.
CORONILLA, in botany, a genus of plants,
whofe flower is papilionaceous ; the vexillum cor-
dated, bent backwards, and fcarce longer than the
alas, (landing in cluflers at the top of the branch ;
the fruit is a taper jointed pod, inclofing feveral
feeds.
CORPORA Cavernosa, in anatomy. Seethe
article Cavernose.
Corpora Olivaria, two protuberances of the
medulla oblongata. See the article Brain.
Corpora Pyramidalia, two protuberances
of the under part of the cerebellum, fo called from
their refemblance of a pyramid.
Corpora Striata, two protuberances in the
lateral .ventricles in the brain. See the article
Braii*.
CORPORAL of a (hip of war, an officer un-
der the mafter at arms, employed to teach the failors
the exercife of fmall arms, or mufketry, to attend
at the gangway, or entering ports, and obferve that
no fpirituouf, or intoxicating liquors, are brought
aboard, unlefs for the officers, or by their leave :
fome of the fea-nymphs however, who are dex-
trous at conveyances of this kind, often elude their
fearch, by concealing quantities of gin, &c. in
bladders fo cautiouflv, that the corporal's modefty,
though but little, relieves thefe ladies from a clofer
fcrutiny.
The corporal is alfo to extinguifh the fire and
candle at eight o'clock in winter, and nine in fum-
mer, at which time the gun is fired, and to walk
down in the lower- decks, once or twice in an hour,
to fee that there are no lights but fuch as are under
charge of proper centinels.
Corporal, an inferior officer under a ferjeant,
in
COR
COR
in a company of foot, who has charge over one
of the divifions, places and leheves centinel?, and
keeps good order in the corps de garde : he alfo re-
ceives the word from the inferior rounds, which
pafTes by his corps de gaiHc : there are generally
three corporals in each company.
Corporal, Corporak, in the Chtiftian church,
a name for the linen cloth thrown over the confe-
crated elements at the celebration of the eucharift.
CORPORATION, a body politic, or incorpo-
rate, fo called, becaufe the perfons or members are
joined into one body, and are qualified to take and
grant, &c.
CORPOREAL, thofe qualities which denomi-
nate a body.
CORPOSANT,CoMP0 7.ANT,OrCoMP0SANT,
a fort of volatile meteor, or ignis fatiius, often feen
about the decks or rigging of a Ihip, but particu-
larly the extremities, as the mart-heads and yard-
arms, in a violent ftorm, accompanied with rain
and a dark night. We have feen three of ihefe at
once in fuch a fituation ourfelves, when the leaft
glimmer of light could not be difcovered any
where elfe. By fome thefe are called Caftor and
Pollux. See Castor, fic.
CORPS DE Garde, a port in an army, fome-
times under covert, fometinies in the open air, to
receive a number of fokliers, who are relieved from
time to time, and are to watch in their turns, for
the fecurity of fome more confidcrable port.
Corps de garde is frequently ufed for the men who
watch in this poll.
Corps DE Bataille, the main body of an ar-
my, drawn up in order of battle. See the articles
Army and Guard.
Corps, in architeflurc, a term to fignify any
part that projects or advances beyond the nakednefs
of a wall, ferving as a ground fur fome decoration,
or the like.
CORPULENCY, in medicine, the {late of a
perfon too much loaded with flefli or fat.
CORPUS CALLOSUM, a medullary part of
the brain, which covers the whole lateral ventricles.
See the article Brain.
Corpus Caverkosum, a cavernous fubftance
furrounding the vagina, which fwells in the time of
coition.
Corpus Pampiniforme, a body formed a lit-
tle above the tefticles, by the divifion and reunion
of the fpermatic veins.
CoRPU-s isalTo ufed, in matters of literature, for
feveral works of the fame nature, collecicd together
in the form of a fyflcm of any art or fcience.
Corpus Christj, afeftival of the church, kept
on the next Thurfday after Trinitv-Simday, infti-
tured in honour of the euc^rarift ; to which alfo one
of the colleges in Oxford is dedicated.
CORPUSCLE, in phxfics, a minute particle,
or pliyfiral aiom, being i^uch as compcj'u a. natural
3-i-
body. By this word is not meant tiic elementary
paiticles, nor the hypoftatical principles of che-
mirts ; but fuch patticles, whether of a fimple or
compound nature, whofe parts will not be difjolved
nor diiTipatcd by ordinary degrees of heat. Sir
Ifaac Newton, in the fecond book of his Optics,
flicws a way of guefling, with great accuracy, at
the fi7,e of the component corpufcles of bodies. Sec
Colour.
CORPUSCULAR Philosophy, that way of
philofophifing which endeavours to explain things,
and to account for the phenomena of nature by
the motion, figure, ref}, pofition, &c. of the cor-
pufcles, or the minute particles of matter. See the
article Atomical Philosophy.
This philofophy is fo very ancient, that, both
before Epicurus and Democritus, and even before
Leucippus taught in Greece, there was a Phceniciai\
philofcpher, who explained natural phenomena by
the motions and afFeiSHons of the minute corpufcles
of matter, as xery old writers inform us ; and,
therefore, it fhouid rather be called Phoenician phi-
lofophy, than Epicurean.
Mr. Boyle fums up the chief principles of the
corpufcular hypothefis, which now flourifties un-
der the mechanical philofophy, in thefe particu-
lars:
I. They fuppofe that there is but one catholic or
univerfal matter, wfiich is an extended, impenetra-
ble, and divifible fubftance, common to all bodies, '
and capable of all forms. 2. That this matter, in
order to form the vaft variety of natural bodies,
mud have motion in fome or all its afllgnable parts }
and that this motion was gi\en to matter by God,
the creator of all things, and has all manner of di-
ixflions and tendencies. 3. Matter mufi alfo be
aclually divided into parts, and each of thefe pri-
mitive particles, fragments, or atoms of matter,
muft have its proper magnitude or fize, as alfo its
peculiar figure or fhape. 4. They fuppofe alfo that
thefe differently fizcd and fliaped particles may have
as different orders and pofitions, whereof great va-
rietv may arife in (he compofiii;in of bodies.
CORRECTION, in printing, implies the point-
ing out, or difcovering the faults of a printed (heet,
in order to their being amended by the compofitor
before it is printed off. See Printi.n'g.
The correflions are placed on the margin of
every page, right againfl: the line wherein the faults
are found ; and there are diflcrent charaiSters ufed to
exptefs different corrections; thus ^ is 'put for
fl't/t-, to intimate that fomething, as a point, letter,
word, is'c. dafhed in that line, is to be taken out.
If any thing is to be infcrted, the place is to be
marked thus a, and the thing to be inferted added
in the margin. AVhen there are two or more cor-
rcclions in the fame line, then they are all fcparated
in the margin by little bars thus |. If a fpacc be
omitted, its place is marked with a caret, and the
b G _,margm
COR
margin thus ^. When a letfer is inverted, it is
exprt-Ued in the margin thus J). When any thing
h to be tranfpofej, it is direiSled thus, Extraordinary
fcarce roer f ail of^ attaitimeni^ exciting envy, for Ex-
traordinary attainments fcarce ever fail of exciting envy,
and in the margin is added tr. If Italic charadlers
are to be changed for Roman, or vice verfa, a line
is drawn thus under the letters, and rom. or ital.
is written in the margin. If a fpace, or n or m qua-
drat, ftick up, and print black, it is marked in the
margin with adalli, thus |. If a word, fentence, or
paragraph is entirely omitted, the place is marked
with a caret, and in the margin is put the word out.
If the letters of a word ftand too far afunder, a line
is drawn under them, and in the margin, is put a
crooked line or hook, thus o. There are ni^ny
other marks ufcd in corre£ling, as ^J for fuperior,
cap. for capital, /. c. for lower-cafe, ^c.
CoRR'ECTioN, in the manege, fignifies aids given
with feverity.
Correction, in pharmacy, the adding fome
ingredient to a ro/rvpofition, in order to check or
moderate the violence of the operation.
Correction, in rhetoric. See Epanortho-
sis.
CORRECTOR, in general, denotes fomethlng
that mends the faults or bad qualities of others.
Corrector of the Staple, a clerk belonging to
the fl^ple, v.'hofe bufinefs is tO write down and re-
cord the bargains that merchants make there.
Corrector, in medicine and pharmacy, an in-
gredient in a compc'lition, which guards againft or
abates the force of another.
Thus the lixivial f.ilts prevent the grievous velli-
cations of refinons purges, by dividing their parti-
cles, and preventing their adhefions to the internal
membranes, whereby fometimes they occafion into-
Jerahle gripings : and thus fpices and carminative
feeds alio affift in the eafier operation of fome ca-
thartics,, by diffipating colleflions of wind. In the
making a medicine, fuch a thing is alfo called a cor-
reSor, as dcflroys or diminiflies a quality in it, that
could not otljerwife he difpenfcd with : thus tur-
pentine may be called the corredor of quickfilver,
by delitoying its fluxity, and making it thereby ca-
pable of mixture ; and thus reiSlified fpirit of wine
breaks off the points of fome acid?, fo as to make
them become fafe and good remedies which before
were deftruSiive.
CORRELATIVE, fomething oppofeJ to ano-
ther in a certain relation. Thus, father and fon are
correlatives. Light and darknefs, motion and reft,
arc cnrrelaiive and oppofite terms.
CORRIGIOLA, in botany, a genus of plants,
whofe corolla conlifts of five ovated patent petals,
with the fame number of fubulated filaments top'd
with fiiiiple anthers ; it hath no pericarpium, but
the cup, vvhich is pentaphyllous, containing a fingle
ovated triangular feed.
COR
CORROSION, in a general fenfe, the adion of
gnawing away, by degrees, the continuity of the
parts of bodies.
Corrosion, in chemiftry, an aftion performed
on bodies, by means of proper menftruums, that
produce new combinations, and a change of their
form, without converting them to fluidity. See
the article Menstruum.
CORROSIVES, in furgery, are medicines which
corrode whatever part of the body they are appHed
to: fuch are burnt-alum, white precipitate of mer-
cury, white vitriol, red precipitate of mercury,
butter of antimony, lapis infernalis, &c.
CORRUGATOR, in anatomy, a mufcle which
arifes flefhy from the procefs of the os frontis, next
the inner or great angle of the orbit, above the
joining of the os nali and the fuperior procefs of
the OS maxillare with this bone : from thence it
runs obliquely outwards and upwards, and is in-
ferted into the flefhy part of the occipito-frontalis,
fome cf its fibrillae paffing through into the fkln, a
little higher than the middle region of the eye-
brows.
Its ufe is to fmooth the fkin of the forehead, by
pulling it down after the aflion of the occipito-
frontalis ; and when it afls moft forcibly, it ferves to
wrinkle the fkin of the front between the fuperci-
lia, as it happens when we frown, or knit the
brows.
CORRUPTICOLjE, in church hiftory, a fea
of heretics, fo called from their maintaining that
the body of Chrift was corruptible, that the fa-
thers had owned it, and that to deny it was to deny
the truth of our Saviour's palTion.
CORRUPTION, the deftru£tion, extindion, or,
at leaf!, cefl'ation for a time, of the proper mode of
exiftence of any natural body.
CoKTXVPiiou of bloo^d, inlaw, an in fedion ac-
cruing to a man's (fate, attainted of felony and trea-
fon, and to his iffue ; for as he lofes all to the prince,
&c. his iffue cannot be heirs to him, or to any other
anceftor by him : and if he were noble, his heirs are
rendered ignoble.
CORSAIR, in the marine, a name given to the
piratical cruifcrs of Barbary, who frequently plun-
der the merchant-fhips of countries with whom
they are at peace.
CORSELET, a little cuirafs ; or, according to
others, an armour or coat made to cover the whole
body, anciently worn by the pike-men, ufually
placed in the fronts and flanks of the battle, for the
better refilling the enemy's afTaults, and guarding the
foldiers placed behind them.
CORTEX, bark, in botany; fee Bark.
Cortex PeruviMius. See Quinquina.
QoK-vESi IVinteraniis. See Winter a Nus Cortex:
CORTICAL, in a general fenfe, implies fome-
thing confifling of, or refembling^ bark. Thus th€
conical part ot the brain is that which invefts the in-
ternal
COR
COS
teinal or medullary part, like the bark of a free.
See Brain.
CORl^USA, in botany, a genus of plants, the
flower of which confifts of a monopetalous rotated
corolla, and contains five obtufe ftamina. The fruit
is an ovato-oblong pointed capfule, furrowed longi-
tudinally on each fide with valves, having their fides
involuted, and one cell containing a number of ob-
tufe oblong fmall feeds.
CORUSCATION, a glittering, or gleam of
light ifluing from any thing.
CORVUS, the raven in ornithology, a genus of
birds of the order of the picae, the diftinguiihing
charadler of which is, that the beak is of a convex
and cultrated figure, the mandibles nearly equal,
and the bafe befet with hairs.
CoRvus, in aftronomy, a conftcllation of the
fouthern hemifphere. The fabulous hiiiory is this ;
Apollo making a great entertainment for Jupiter,
and after much mirth and feafting (being all
joyous fouls) he found he fhould want water,
or not have a fufficiency for his prefcnt entertain-
ment ; whether this water was wanted among the
gods to mingle with their wine, or to incorporate
with any other divine liquor, we are not able to
judge. However Apollo gave a cup to the crow
(his favourite bird) and fent him to fetch water
therein; but the crow, in his flight towards the
river, efpied a fig-tree, to which he dire£ted his
courfe, and found the figs not yet ripe : however he
would not depart till they were ; and after having
fatisfied his longing, he bethought himfelf of his
errand, and what excufe he fhould make to Apollo
tor his long delay. At laft feeing a fnake, he took
it up in his bill, carried it to Apollo, and told him
it would not let him fill the cup ; for which frivo-
Jous excufe, Apollo decreed that the bird fhould
never drink while the figs were unripe on the tree,
and as a memorial placed the crow, cup, and fnake
in heaven.
There are nine ftars in this conflellation accord-
ing to the Britifh catalogue; their right-afcenfion,
declination, &c. as follow, viz.
c
to
C3
Name.
o
s
a.
I
4
£
2
4
3
6
7
4
3
1
5
to
5
6
J
7
8
3
5
«
9
3
i
Right
Afcenfion
178. 0.59
179.27.39
.79.40.59
180.53. 9
182. 2.39
182.43. 2
184.23. 2
184.55.48
185.27.36
Diftance
from Nor.
Pole.
113.23.3c
II 1. 1 0.1 c
11215.55
106. 12.3c
110-52.55
113.30.25
105.1c.27
104.51.52
112. 4.13
Vur.ir
Xighl
Afcen
46.0
46.1
46.1
46.2
46.2
46.2
46.6
46.7
46,9
CoRVUs, in Rom.in antiquity, a military engine
chiefly ufed in boarding the enemy's fliips.
CORYBAN TES, in antiquity, priefls cf the
goddefs Cybcle, who infpired with a facred fury,
danced up and down, tofling their heads, and beat-
ing on cymbals, or brazen drums. They inhabited
Mount Ida, in the ifland cf Crete, where they nou-
rilhed the infant Jupiter.
CORYLUS, the hazle, or nut tree, in botany, -
See Hazle.
CORYMBYFROUS P/anis, m botany, are
fuch as have a compound difcous flower, but their
feeds deflitute of down. They bear their flowers
in cluflers, fpreading round in the form of an
umbrella. Of this kind are the common mary-
gold, common daify, camomile, &c.
CORYMBUS, among botanift?, clufters of ber-
ries, as thofe of ivy, &c. It is alfo ufed by the mo-
dern botanifts, to fignify a compound difcous flower,
which does not fly away in down.
CO-SECANT, in geometry, is the fecant of the
complement of any given arch to ninety degrees.
COSMETIC, in medicine, implies a prepar?.-
tion for foftening and whitening the fkin,
COSMICAL, in aftronomy, is one of the po-
etical rifings or fettings of a liar ; which is fiid
to rife cofmically, when it rifes with the fun, or
with that point of the ecliptic, in which the fun
is at that time; and the cofmical fetting of a ftar,
is when it fcts at fun rifinc;.
COSMOGRAPHY, a 'tiefcription of the feve-
ral parts of the vifible world ; and confifts of two .
parts, aftronomy and geography. ^
The word is Greek, y.oa/ioy^a<fix, and com-,^
pounded of kcj/j.-.^, the world, and y^a.<p(o, to de-
fer ibe.
COSMOPOLITE, a citizen of the world, oj-
one who has no fixed refidcnce.
COSSE, or Cossic, a word ufed, by old writers,
for algebra.
COSSET, among farmers, implies a colt, calf,
lamb, &:c. brought up by hand, without the dam.
COSTAL, an epithet applied by anatomifts to
feveral parts belonging to the fides.
COSTIVENESS, among phyficians, a preter-
natua! detention of the fasces, with an unufual dry-
nefs and hardiiefs thereof.
The moft effeflual method of removing obftruc-
tions of this kind, are gentle purgatives ; fuch as
the purging falts, manna, lenitive elecluary, and
emollient clyflcrs.
COSTMARY, in botany, a fpecies of tanfey ;
it grows naturally in the fouth of France and
Italy, but ib here planted in gardens, and flowers
in Augufi, Its toots are h^rd, long, ftringy, and
creep in the ground like thole of mint ; the leaves
are oblong, of a palifh colour, and dentated on
their edges; the flowers are produced on the top i>(
2 ibc
COT
COT
tlie {liilks in a loofc corymbus, and are of a deep
yellow.
The leaves arc chiefly ufed in medicine, and are
flomachic, cephalic, carminative, and dcohftruent ;
tliey are alfo externally applied in fomentation and
bathing, to flrengthen the joints.
COSTS, in law, imply the expences of a fuit
rscovcred by the plaintiff together with damages.
COSTUME, a rule or precept in painting, by
which the artift is enjoined to make every perfon
and thing fuflain its proper character, and not only
obferve the ftory, but the circumftance?, the fcene
of aflion, the country or place, and take care that
the habits, arms, manners, proportions, and the like,
exaftly correfpond.
COSTUS, in botany, a plant which hath a flefliy
jointed root, which propas;ates under the furface of
the ground like that of ginger. From the root arife
many round taper herbaceous ftalks, which are fur-
nilhed with oblong fmooth leaves, embracing the
Ihlk like thofe of the reed ; thefe rife about two feet
hioh, and from the center the head of the flowers
arc produced, which is near two inches long, blunt
at the top, and compofed of feveral leafy fcales, out
of which the flowers come; each of thefe have but
one thin white petal, which is of fhort duration.
The time of its flowering here is quite uncertain.
It is propagated by parting the roots in the fpring;
but being a native of Eaft India, it requires a flove
to preferve it in this climate.
The roots of this plant were formerly imported
from India, and were much ufed in medicine; but
of late years they have not been regarded, the roots
of ginger being generally fubflituted in their flead.
COTESIAN Thcornn, an appellation given to a
remarkable property of the circle difcovered by Mr.
Cotes, of great ufc in finding the fluents to a vaft
numbtr of fluxions : the demonfiration and ap-
plication of which may be feen in mofl books on
fluxions, but in o\ir opinion, no where fo elegantly
done as in the trcatifc publiflied by the late Mr.
Simpfon.
COTHURNUS, thebufl<in. See Buskin.
COTICE, or CoTisE, in heraldry, is the fourth
part of the bend ; and, with us is feldom, if ever,
burne but in couples, with a bend between them.
COTTAGE, a fmall houfc, without lands be-
longing to it.
COTTON, in commerce, a foft downy fub-
ftance, growing on a tree called goffyplum by bo-
taniih. See GossYPiUM.
Cotton is fcparated from ihe feeds of the plant by
a mill, and then fpun and prepared for all forts cf
hne works as floe kings, waiflroats, quilts taptiir^',
curtains, &c. With it they llkewife make niuflm,
and r-imetinies it is m.ixed with wool, fometimes
with filk, and even with gold itfelf.
Lavender Cotton, a name by which f^?me call
the fantotlna of authors. Sec the article Santo-
LINA.
COTULA, in botany, a genus of plants whofe
flower is compounded, a little convex, and radiated.
The liermaphrodite florets, which compofe the difk,
are very numerous and tubulofe, with the limb
divided into four fegments : thefe have four fmall
flamlna ; and the feeds are folitary, fmall, and tri-
gonal. The female floreis, which compofe the rays,
have an oval compreffed germen, which is fucceedcd
by Angle cordated feed«.
CoTULA, or CoTYLA, in antiquity, a liquid
meafure among the Greeks, equal to the hemina of
the Romans, containing half a fcxtary, or four ace- '
tabula : hence it appearf, that it contained ten ounces
of wine, and nine ot oil.
CO TURNIX, the quail, in ornithology, a fpecics
of tetrao, with the line of iht; eye-brows v.hite ;
faid to be the leaft bird of the whole order of the
gallinse.
It is about the fize of the fieldfare, and is efteemed
at table.
COTYLA, in anatomy, implies any deep cavity
in a bone, in which any other bone is articulated :
but it is generally ufed to exprefs the acebulum, or
cavity which receives the head of the thigh-bone.
It alfo imports a deep finus furrounded with large
lips.
COTYLEDON, navel-wort, in botany, a genus
of plants, the flower of which is compofed of a
campanulated fingle petal, cut into five fegments at
the brim, which aie reflected. The fruit confifls
of five oblong, ventricofe, acuminated capfulcs,
each formed of a fingle valve, and opening longi-
tudinally inwards. l"he feeds are numerous and
fmall.
There are divers fpecies of cotyledon, which are
all natives of foreign countries, except one fort,
which grows naturally in the wefl: of England ;
the leaves of which are faid to be good in external
infiamm.ations ; and are fometimcs fubflituted in-
ftead of hnufeleek.
COTYLEDONES, in anatomy, are certain
glandular bodies, adhering to the chorion of {'ocne
animals : but no fuch fubflances are obfervable in
human bodies, the placenta in the womb fiipplying
the place thereof in women. See the article Pla-
centa.
COUCH, in painting, a phrafe ufed for each lay
or imprefllon of colour, either in oil or water, where-
with the painter covers his canvas, wainfcot, or other
matter to be painted.
CcucH, or Wet-Couch, in malt-making;
See the article Malt-Ma king.
Couch-Grass, in botany. See the article
Agrostis.
COUCHANT. in heraldry, is uiulerdood of a
lion, or other bealf-, wh^n lying down, but witia
his
c o u
his head raifed, which diilinguifhes the pofture of
couchant from dormant, wherein he is fuppofed
■quite ftretched our and adeep.
COUCHE, in h-.r.'Kliy, fignifies any thing lying
along: thus, .hevron .ouche, is a chevron lying
fideways, with the two ends on one fide of the
fhield, which ihould properly reft on the bafe.
COUCHING, among fportfmcn, denotes the
lodging ot a boar. Sec Boar.
Couching of a CataraSi-, in furgery, one of
the two chief met)iods of curing a canradt, by
couching with the needle. S;i; the article Cata-
ract.
COVENANT, a compact or agreement made
between two or more perfons, to perforin fome-
thing.
COVENTRY-BELLS, in botany, a name
fomctimes ufed for the campanula. See the article
Campanula.
COVERING, or Roofing, in archite£lure.
See the article Roof.
CO-VERSED Sink, in geometry, the remain-
ing part of the diameter of a circle, after the verfed
fine is taken from it. See the article Versed
Sine.
COVERT-WAY, or Corridor, in fortifica-
tion, a fpace of ground upon the edge of the ditch
level with the field. It is covered with a parapet,
together witii its banquets and glacis, ranging quite
round the hah-moun, and otlier works towards the
country.
COVERTURE, in law, is applied to the ftate
and condition of a married woman, who is under
the power of her hufband, arid therefore calledytv;;?
covert; and difabled to contratS with any perfon to
the detriment of herfelf or hufband, without his
confent and privity ; or allowance and confirmation
thereof.
COUGH, Tujjis, in medicine, aconvulfive mo-
tion of the diaphragm, mufcles of the larynx, thorax,
and abdomen, violently fcaking, ar.d expelling the
air that was drawn into the lungs by infpiration.
COVIN, among lawyers, a deceitful compadt be-
tween two or more to deceive or prejudice another
perfon.
COV^ING, in building, is when houfcs are built
proje£ling over the ground- plot, and the turned
projeclure arched with timber, lathed and pla-
flered.
COULTER, in hufbandrv, an iron inftrument,
fixed in the beam of a plough, and fe;ving to cut
tiieediie of each furrow. See the article Plough.
COUNCIL, or Counsel, in a general fenfe,
an afiembly of divers confiderable perlbns to con-
cert meafures relating to the ftate.
Privy Council, the primuin mobile of the civil
government of Great-Bri'.ain, bearing part of that
greot weight in the government which otherwife
would be heavy upon the king.
3+
c o u
It iscompofed of eminent pet Tons, the number of
whor.i is at the fovercign's pleafure, who are bound
by oath to advife the king to the beft of their judg-
ment, with all the fidelity and fecrecy that becomes
their ftation. The king may declare to, or con-
ceal from, his privy council whatever he thinks fit,
and has a f ledt council out of their number com-
monly cal'ed the cabinet council, with whom his
inajedy determines fuch matters as are moll: impor-
tant, and requi^ the utmoft fecrecy. All procla-
mations from the king and the privy-council ought
to be grounded on law, otherwife they are not bind-
ing to the fubjeifl.
Privy counl'ellors, though but gentlemen, have
precedence of all the knights and younger fons of
barons and vifcounts, and are ftiled right honoura-
ble.
Council of War-, an afTembly of the principal
ofEcers of an army or fleet, occafionally fummoned
by the general or admiral to concert meafures for
their conduct in any hoftile enterprize. It is not
much to the advantage of a ftatc to have too many
councils of war.
Councils of war are alfo fometimes called when
the officers have no inclination to land on an enemy's
coaft ; in this cafe they find it necelTary to forefee
great danger in the attempt.
Council, in church hiltory, an affembly of pre-
lates and dodors met for the regulating matters re-
lating to the doflrine, or difcipline, of the church.
National Council, is an affembly of prelates of
a nation under theit primate or patriarch. See Pri-
mate, &c.
Oecumenical ox general Covncit, is an afiembly
which reprefents the whole body of the univerfal
church. The Romanifts reckon eighteen of them ;
Bullinger, in his treatife de Conciliis, fix ; Dr. Pri-
deaux, feven ; and biftiop Bcveridge has increafed the
number to eight, which, he fays, are all the gene-
ral councils which have ever been held fince the time
of the fitft Chriftian emperor. They are as fol-
lows : The council of Nice, held in the reign of
Contlantine the Great, on account of the herefy of
Arius. 2. The council of Conftantinople, called
under the reign, and by the commaiid of Theodofius
the Great, for much the fame end that the former
council was fummoned. 3. The council of Ephelus,
convened by Theodofius the Younger, at the fuit of
Neftorius. 4. The council ofChalcedon, held in
the reign of Martianus, which approved of the
Eutychian herefy. 5. The fecond council of Con-
ifantinople, aflembled by the emperor Juftinian,
condemned the three chapters taken out of the books
•jf Theodorus of Mopfueftia, having firft decided
that it was lawful to|anathen;atize the dead. Some,
authors tell ui-, that they likevvife condemned the feve-
ral eriors of Otigcn about the Trinity, the plura-
lity of worlds, and tlie pre-exiftence of fouls.
6, The third council of Conlfantinople, held by
8 H the
c o u
the coinmand of Conn:antinus Pogonatus the em-
peror, ii; which they received the definition's of the
five firlr ger.crjl counciib, and particularly that a-
gainft Oiigen and Theodorus of Mopfueftia. 7. The
fecond Nicenc council. 8. The fourth council of
Conftantinople, affembled when Lewis II. was em-
peror of the weft. The regulations which they
made are contained in twenty-feven canons, the
heads of which are fet down by Mr. Du Pin, to
whom the reader is referred.
Provincial Covticii, an afTembly of prelates of
a provin-e under the metropolitan.
"counsellor, in general, a perfon who ad-
vrfes another: thus we fay, a counfeilor at law, a
privy counfeilor, &c.
Counsellor at Laiv, a perfon retained by a
client to plead his caufe in a public court of judica-
ture.
COUNT, Comes, a nobleman who poflcfles a
domain erecled into a county. The dignity is a
medium between that of a duke and a baron. See
Earl.
Count, in hw, fignifies the original declaration
in a teal adion, as a declaration is in a perfonal one.
Count-Wheel, in the ftriking part of a clock,
a wheel which moves round once in twelve or twenty-
four hours. It is fometimes called the locking- wheel.
See the article Clock.
COUNTER, a term which enters into the com-
pofuion of divers words of our language,, and gene-
rally implies oppofition ; but when applied to deeds,
means an exad copy kept by the contrary party, and
fometimes figned by both parties.
Counter, in naval architedture, an inward
arching under the fhip's ftern, to which it is parallel :
the upper-part of it is terminated by the bottom of
the ftern, and the lower-part by the buttock. See
Stern and Buttock.
Counter-Approaches, in fortification, lines
and trenches made by the befieged, in order to attack
the works of the befiegers, or to hinder their ap-
proaches.
Line of Counter-Approach, a trench which
the befieged make from their covert-way to the riglit
and left of the attacks, in order to fcour the ene-
mies works. This line muft be perfeflly enfiladed
from the covert- way and the half moon, that it
may be of no fervice to the enemy, in cafe he get
pofTeffion of it.
Counter-Barry, or Contre-Barre, in
heraldry, is the fame as our bendy finifter per bend
counterchanged. See the article Barry.
Counter-Battery is a battery raifed to play
upon another to difmount the guns. See the article
Battery.
Counter-Bond, a bond of indemnification
given to one who has civcn his bond as a fecurity for
another's payment of a debt, or the faithful dif-
chargc of his office or truft.
c o u
Counter-Bracing, in the marine. See this
operation fully explained in the article Tacking.
Counter-Changed, in heraldry, is when any
field or charge is divided or parted by any line or lines
of partition, confifting all interchangeably of the
fame tinflures.
Counter-Charge, a reciprocal charge or re-
crimination brought againfl an accufer.
Counter-Chevroned, a fhield chevrony,
parted by one or more partition lines.
Counter-Componed, in heraldry, is when the
figure is componed of two panes.
. Counter-Deed, a fecret writing, either before
a notary or under a private feal, which deflroys, in-
validates, or alters a public one.
Counter-Drawing, in painting, is the copy-
ing a delign, or painting, by means of a fine linen
cloth, an oiled paper, or other tranfparent matter,
where the flrokes appearing through are followed
with a pencil, with or without colour. Sometimes
it is done on glafs, and with frames or nets divided
into fquares with filk or with thread, and alfo by
means of inftrunients invented for the purpofe, as
the parallelogram.
Counter-Ermine, in heraldry, is the con-
trary to ermine, being a black field with whits
fpots.
Counterfeit-Architecture. See the ar-
ticle Architecture.
Counter-Fissure. See the article Contra-
FISSURE.
Counter-Faced, orCoNTRE-FACE, in heral-
dry, is the fame that we call barry per pale counter-
changed ; but then the number of panes into which
the field is divided, is always fpecified.
Counter-Foil, or Counter-Stock, in the
exchequer, that part of a tally which is kept by an
officer of the court. See the article Tally.
CouNTER-FoRTS, in fortification, certain pil-
lars and paits of the walls, diftant from fifteen to
twenty feet from each other, which advance as much
as may be in the ground, and join to the height of
the cordon by vaults, to fullain the chemin de
rondcs, and part of the rampart, to fortify the wall,
and ftrengthen the ground. See Fausse-Bray.
Counter-Fugue, in mufic, is when the fugues-
go contrary to one another. See the article Fugue.
Counter-Guard, or Envelope, in fortifica-
tion, a mount of earth raifed fometimes in the ditch
of a place, and fometimes beyond it, either in form
of a fimplc parapet, or a fmall rampart, bordered
with a parapet. They are defigned to cover the
faces and points of the baft ions,
Counter-Light, or Contre-Jour, a light
oppofite to any thing, which makes it appear to dif-
advantage. A fingle counter-light is fufficient to
take away all the beauty of a fine painting.
Counter-March, in military aft'airs, a change
of the face or wings of a battalion. The files
counter-
c o u
counter-march to bring thofe which are In front to
the rear; and the ranlcs counter-march, when the
wings or flanks of a battalion change ground with
each other.
Counter-marching alfo fignifies returning or
marching back again.
Counter-Mark, a mark put upon goods that
have been marked before. It is alfo ufed for the
feveral marks put upon goods belonging to feveral
perfons, to flievv that they muft not be opened but
in the prefence of them all or their agents.
Counter-Mine, a well or hole funk into the
ground by the befieged, with a gallery or alley run-
ning from it to difcover the enemy's mineS, and
prevent their efFe£t.
Counter-Mure, a wall built clofe to another,
that it may not receive any damage from the conti-
guous buildings.
Counter-Faled, Contre-Palle, in heraldry, is
when the efcutcheon is divided into twelve pales
parted per fefle, the two colours being counter-
changed ; fo that the upper are of one colour, and
the lower of another.
Counter-Part, in mufic, denotes one part to
be applied to another. Thus the bafs is faid to be
a counter-part to the treble. In law, it is the du-
plicate or copy of any indenture or deed.
Counter-Passant is when two lions are in a
coat of arms, and the one feems to go quite the
contrary way from the other.
Counter-Plea, in law, a crofs or contrary
plea, particularly fuch as the demandant alledges
againlt a tenant in courtefy or dower, who prays
the king's aid, &c. for his defence.
Counter-Point, in mufic, the art of com-
pofing harmony, or of difpofing feveral parts in
fuch a manner as to make an agreeable whole or a
concert. In general, every harmonious compofi-
tion, or compofition of many parts, is called coun-
ter-point. It took its name from hence : before
notes of different meafures were invented, the man-
ner of compofing was to fet pricks or points one
againft another, to denote the feveral concords.
Counter-Pointed, Centre- Pointc, in heialdry,
is when two chevrons in one efcutcheon meet in the
points, the one riling as ufual from the bafe, and
the other inverted falling from the chief; fo that
they are counter to one another in the points. They
may alfo be counter- pointed when they are founded
upon the fides of the Ihield, and the points meet
that way, called counterpointed in fefie.
Counterpoise, in the manege, is tlje liberty
of the aiStion and feat of a horfeman ; fo that in all
the motions made by the horfe, he does not incline
his body more to one fide than to the other, but
continues in the middle of the faddle, being equally
on his ftirrups, in order to give the horfe the proper
and feafonable aids.
c o u
Counterpoise is alfo a piece of metal called
by Ibme the pear, on account of its figure, and the
maf";, by re.ifon of its weight, which Hiding along
the beam, determines the weight of bodies weighed
by the ffatera Romana. See the article Balance.
Counter-Poison, an antidote or medicine
which prevents the effeds of poifoii. See the ar-
ticle Poison.
Counter-Potent, Contre-Potence, in heral-
dry, is reckoned a fur as well as vair and ermine,
but compofed of fuch pieces as reprefent the tops of
crutches, called in French, potenccs, and in old
Enalifh, po tents.
Counter-Proof, in rolling-prefs printing, a
print taken off from another frefh printed ; which,
by being pafied through the prefs, gives the figure
of the former, but inverted. To counter-prove is
alfo to pafs a defign in black lead, or red chalk,
through the prefs, after having moiftened with a
fponge both that and the paper on which the counter-
proof is to be taken.
C u n t E R- Qju A R t E R e D, Contre-ecartele, in
heraldry, denotes the efcutcheon, after being quar-
tered, to have each quarter again divided into two.
CouNTER-RoLLS, are the rolls that fljeriffs of
counties have with the coroners of their proceed-
ings, as well of appeals as of inquefts.
Counter-Round, a body of oiBcers going to
infpedt the rounds.
Counter-Salient is when two beafts are
borne in a coat leaping from each other dire\Slly the
contrary way.
Counter-Scarp, in fortification, the flope of
the moat which faces the body of the place : but this
word is frequently ufed for the glacis, and covered-
way.
Jngle of the CouNTER-Sc ARP, is that made by
the two fides of the counter-fcarp meeting before
the middle of the curtain.
Counter-Signing, the figning, the writing of
a fuperior in quality of fecretary. Thus charters
are figned by the king, and counterfigned by a fecre-
tary of ftate or lord chancellor.
Counter-Swallow-Tail, in fortification, an
out-work in form of a fingle tenaille, wider at the
gorge than the head.
Counter-Tally, one of the two tallies upoa
which any thing is fcored.
Counter^-Tenor, called by the French, haut-
contre, one of the middle parts of mufic oppofite to
the tenor. See the article Tenor.
Counter-Time, in the manege, is the defence
or refiiiance of a horfe that interrupts his cadence,
and the nieafure of his manege, occafioned either
by a bad horfeman, or by the malice of the horfe.
Counter - Trench, in fortification, certain
trenches thrown up by the garrifcn againit the be-
ficgers.
Counter-
c o u
Counter-Tripping, is when two beads are
borne in a coat in a walking pofture, the head of
the one being next the tail of the other.
Counter-Working, the raifing of works to
.oppofe thofe of the enemy.
■ Counter is alfo the name of a counting-board
in a (hop, and of a piece of metal with a flamp on
it, ufed in playing at cards.
Counter of a Hjrfe, that part of a horfe's fore-
hand which lies between the fiioulders and under
the neck.
COUNTRY, among geographers, is ufed indif-
ferently to denote either a kingdom, province, or
lefler diftrift. But its moll frequent ufe is in con-
tradiftindtion to town : thus it is faid, that fuch a
man went down into the country.
Among miners, the term countries is an appella-
tion given to the works under ground. See the ar-
ticle Mine.
COUNTY, in geography, originally fignified
the territory of a count or earl ; but now it is ufed
in the fame fenfe with fhire.
County-Corporate, a title given to feveral
cities on which the Englifh monarchs have thought
proper to beftow extraordinary privileges, annexing
to them a particular territory of land, or jurifdic-
tion, as the county of Middlefex annexed to the
city of London, the county of the city of York,
&c.
CouNTY-CouRT, a court of jufticc, held every
month in each county, by the fherifF or his de-
puty.
This court has the determination of debts and
trefpaffes under forty fhillings.
COUPED, Coupe, in heraldry, is ufed to exprefs
the head, or any limb, of an animal, cut off from the
trunk, fmooth ; diftinguifliing it from that which is
called crazed, that is, forcibly torn ofF, and there-
fore is ragged and uneven.
Couped is alfo ufed to fignlfy fuch crofles, bars,
bends, chevrons, &:c. as do not touch the fides ot
the efcutcheon, but are, as it were, cut off from
them.
COUPLET, a divifion of a hymn, ode, fong,
&c. wherein an- equal number, or equal meafure,
of verfes is found in each part, whicli divifion, in
odes, are called flrophes. See the article Stro-
phe.
Couplet, by an abufe of the word, is frequently
made to fignifv a couple of veifes.
COURANT, or Currant, in a general fenfe,
exprefles the prefent time, as we fay, the year 1765
is the currant year ; the tirft of this currant month,
that is, this prefent year and month.
CouRANT, in a commercial fenfe, any thing that
has a courfe, or is received in commerce; as the
courant coin, &c. alfo the ordinal y and known
price of goods, Sec. in which fenfe we fay, llie
price courant.
c o u
COURIER, a meffenger fent poft, or exprefs,
to carry difpatches.
COURSE, or way of a (hip, in navigation, is
the point of the compafs on which the fhip moves j
or rather, the angle which the courfe or track of
the fhip makes with the meridian. Now the neareft
way betvveen any two places on the globe will be
the arc of a great circle, and therefore, were this
method of failing, commonly called great circle
failing, as eafy and convenient in the calculation as
the others are, it would certainly be the beft ; but
fince the arc of a great circle makes a different
angle with every meridian it paff s over, that is,
the angle of the fhip's courfe is continually varying,
there can be no conftant pradfical ruk for her con-
duit deduced from this method. This difficulty,
not only in this, but in every other method of na-
vigation formerly known, made it neceflary to look
out for fome method by which the fhip's courfe
could be regulated in fuch a manner as at all times
to make equal angles with the meridian, and this was
happily efFe£ted in the invention of the compafs :
for by the property of magnetifm, the needle will
in every place make a given angle with the meri-
dian, if the fhip be fleered on a given point of the
compafs, and therefore the Ihip muff crofs every
meridian under equal angles while the needle re-
mains in the fame pofition with refpedl to the me-
ridian, and as the needle cannot change its pofition,
without being obfeived by the navigator, he may at
all times, when he finds that to be the cafe, eafily
regulate the courfe of the (hip, fo as to bring the
needle to its former pofition, or allow for the
quantity of its variation, as the exigence of the cafe
may require.
The line thus defcribed by the (liip, failing in the
manner above-defcribed, is called a Rhumb-line,
for the particular properties of which fee that ar-
ticle.
Course, in architeflure, a continued range tsf
ftones, level, or of the fame height throughout the
whole length of the building, without being inter-
rupted by any aperture.
Course of Plimhi, the continuity of a plinth of
ftone, or plaifter, in the face of a building, to mark
the feparation of the flones.
Course is alfo applied for the time fpent in learn-
ing the elements of a fclence ; as a Audent is faid
to go through his courfes of philofophy, divinity,
mathematics, &;c. at the univerfity.
COURT, Curia, in a law fenfe, the place
where judges diihibutc juflice, or exercife jurifdic-
tion : alfo the aflenibly of judges, jury, &c. in
that place.
Couiit-Baron, a court that every lord of a
manor has within his own precindls.
Court of Chivahy, or the AJNrJJ:ar s Covrt,
that whereof the judges are the lord high confbble,
and the earl marfhal of England.
Court
GOV
C R A
Court of Confdcnce^ a court in the cities of
London, Weftminfter, and fome other places, that
determines matters in r11 cafes, where the debt or
damage is under forty killings.
Court of Delegates, a court where delegates
are appointed by the king's commi/Eon, under the
great feal, upon an apfcal to him from the fen-
tence of an archbiihop, &c. in ecclefiaftical cau-
fes; or of the court of admiralty in any marine
caufe.
Court-Leet, a court ordained for the puni(h-
ment of offences under high-treafon againft the
crown.
Court-Martial, a court appointed for the
punifliing offences in officers, foldiers, and failors,
the powers of which is regulated by the mutiny
bill.
Court of Requejls, was a court of equity, of
the fame nature with the chancery, but inferior to
it. It was chiefly inftituted for the relief of fuch
petitioners as in confcionable cafes addreffed them-
felves to his majefty : the lord privy-feal was chief
judge of this court.
Court is aifo an appendage to a houfe or habi-
tation, confilHng of a piece of ground, inclofed
with walls, but open at top.
Court Is alfo ufed for the palace or place where
a king or fovereign prince refides.
COURTESY, or Curtesy of England, a cer-
tain tenure, whereby a man marrying an heirefs
feized of lands of fee fimple, or fee tail general, or
feized as heir of the tail fpecial, and getteth a child
by her that cometh alive into the world, though
both it and his wife die forthwith ; yet if fhe were in
polTeflion, he {hall keep the land during his life,
and is called tenant per legem Anglia, or tenant by
the curtefy of England ; becaufe this privilege is
not allowed in any country except Scotland, where
it is called curialitas Scot'ns,
COUSIN, a term of relation between the chil-
dren of brothers and fifters, who in the firft genera-
tion arc called coufin-germans, in the fecond gene-
ration, fecond coiifin?, &c. If fprung from the
relations of the father's fide, they are denominated
paternal coufms ; if on the mother's, maternal.
COUSIN ET, in architt<aure, the ftone that
crowns a piedroit, or pier, the under fide of which
is level, and the upper curved to receive the liril
fpring of an arch or vault. It is alfo the face
on the iide of the volutes in the Ionic capital,
which the French artirts call baluftie and ori-
eller.
COUSU, in heraldry, fignifies a piece of ano-
ther colour or metal placed on the ordinary, as if it
were fewed on, as the word imports. 1 his is ge-
nerally of colour upon colour, or metal upon me-
tal, contrary to the general rule of heialdry.
COVERT, in heraldry, denotes fomething like
a piece of hanging, or a pavilion falling over the
3+
top of a chief or other ordinary, fo as not to hidit
but only to be a covering lo it.
COW, in zoology, the female of the ox kind.
See the articles Bos and O x.
Cow-Itch, in botany, the Engl ifli name of the
hairy phafeolus. See Phaseolus.
L'ow's-Lip, Primula Feris, in botany. See the
article Primula.
COWARD, in heraldry, a term given to a lion
borne in an efcutcheon with his tail doubled, or
turned in between his legs.
COWL, or CouL, a habit worn by the Ber-
nardines and Benedidines, of which there are two
kinds, one white, very large, worn in ceremonies j
the other black, worn on ordinary occafions in the
ftreets, &c.
COXENDIX, in anatomy, a general term for
the hip. See the article HiP.
CRAB, in naval affairs, a fort of wooden pillar
let down through a {hip's decks, having its lower
end refting in a focket called a fawcer; and in the
upper end two or three holes above one another
through the middle of it, into which long bars are
let, whofe length are nearly equal to the breadth of
the deck. It is ufed to heave in the cable, or
purchafe any other weighty matter which requires
a great mechanical power. This machine differs
from a capftern, in having no drum-head, and in
having the bars to go entirely through it, and reach
from one fide of the deck to the other ; whereas
thofe of the capftern are more in number, and only
reach about eight inches or a foot into the drum-
head, according to their different fizes. See the ar-
ticle Capstern.
Crab's Claws, Ci'rla Cancrorum, in the materia
medica, are the tips of the claws of the common
crab, broken off at the verge of the black part, (o
much of the extremity of the c'aws only being al-
lowed to be ufed in medicine as is tinged with this
colour. The blacknefs however is only fupetficial :
they are of a greyifli white within, ;ind when levi-
gated, furnifh a tolerably white powder.
Crab's claws are ot the number of the alkaline
abforbentJ, but they are fuperior to the generality
of them in fome degree, as they are found on a
chemical analyfis to contain a volatile urinous fait.
They are always kept in the {bops levigated to a
fine powder, and aic fomttimes prefcribtd iingly,
though rarely, becaufe- of their want ot the beau-
tiful white colour of fome of the others. They are
the bafis, however, of the famous Galcoigne pow-
der, the lapis contrayerva, and many other ot the
compound fudorihc powders.
Crab's Eyes, OcuH Cancrorum, in pharmacy,
are a firong concretion in the head of the cray-fifh.
They are rounded on one fide, and depreffed and
lir.uated on the other, confidetiibly heavy, mode-
rately hard, and without fmell. We have them
from Holland, Mufcovy, Poland, Denmark, Swe-
8 I den,
C R A
den, and many other places, fome of them proba-
bly taken out of the heads of the animals, but the
far greateft part picked up on the fhores of the Bal-
tic, and of other feas and large rivers.
Crab's eyes are much ufed both in the fhop me-
dicines and extemporaneous prefcriptions, being ac-
counted not only abforbent and drying, but atfo dif
cuffive and diuretic,
Crab-Tr£e, in botany, a fpecies of the malus
or apple ; the fruit is lefs than moft apples, and is
extremely acid and aRringent : its chief ufe is for
making verjuice.
CRADLE, a well known machine, in which in-
fants are rocked to fleep.
It denotes alio that part of the ftock of a crofs-
bow where the bullet is put.
Cradle, in furgery, a cafe in which a broken
leg i>; laid after being fet.
CRAMBE, wild fea-cabbage, in botany, a ge-
nus of plants, the flower of which is tetrapetaious
and cruciform : the fruit is a roundifh capfule, with
one cell and two valves, containing a Angle roundifh
feed. This plant is ufed as an alinvnt like other
cabbage, when very youna:, but is elteemed more
hot and dry. Dale tells us, the leaves heal
wounds, and difcufs inflammations and other tu-
mours.
CRAMP, in medicine, a convulfive contraflion
of a mufcular part of the body, being either natural,
as in convulfive conftitutions, or accidental, from
living in cold places, underground, ^c. It afferts
all parts indifferently, but the hams, calves, feet,
and toes, oftener than the arms and hands : it is
feldom mortal, though its returns are often, quick,
and continuance long, with great pain and diften-
fion of fome vefTels, as appears from the knots and
ganglions it occafions. If it be natural, obferve
the cure as in an epilepfy or convulfions ; if acci-
dental, it is removed by rubbing the part affecSled.
Cramp-Fish, the Engliih name of the torpedo.
See the article Torpedo.
Cramp-Iron, or Cramps, a piece of iron bent
at each end, which ferves to faflen together pieces of
wood, ftones, or other things.
CRAMPONEE, in heraldry, an epithet given to
a crofs, which has at each end a cramp or fquare
piece coming from it ; that from the arm in chief
towards the finifter angle, that from the arm on
that fide downwards, that from the arm in bale to-
wards the dexter fide, and that from the dexter arm
upwards.
CRANE, in mechanics, is a machine of vaft ufe
in raifing great weights, fuch as large flones, mer-
chandife, timber, &c.
The crane is of two kinds, chiefly ; the firll:
©f thefe, reprefented in Plate XXXIX. fg. I. is
tixed, except its gibbet B G V, which is move-
able on its axis B G, in order to convey the bur-
then oyer the carriage, or w' atever elfe is defigned
C R A
to receive it. The fecond, generally called the
rat's-tail crane, in which the whole crane, with
its burthen, &c. turns round on the ftrong pofl S.
Jig. 2. But thofe are again conflrutSfcd in differ-
ent manners, according as their different fituations
or ufes require ; and often, according to the dif-
ferent degrees of fkill or experience in the con-
flruiSors. We fliall give a brief defcription of
both thofe forms, together with their fevcral in-
conveniencies, improvements, additions or alrera-
tions, as far as hath come to our knowledge.
When great weights are to be raifed from a
confiderable depth, and laid on carriages very near
the precipice, as for inffance at the edge of a flone
quarry, it mufl be a fixed one, and only the gibbet
moveable. Thus let AC B ELD Jig. i. repre-
fent a crane of this kind, A a Q_the roof of the crane,
to preferve the rope RTrr pafling over the gib-
bet B C V from the weather, when the arm of the
gibbet is brought under it, by being turned to-
wards Y ; A T the upper piece of the crane, called
the plate, in an horizontal pofition, XYZ the
three crane pofls, braced at top and bottom, D S,
M N, I E three cills within the ftone-work, braced
with wood, and made faft with an upright plate of
iron pinned to the wood on each fide. When the
crane is not in ftone-work, the three pieces, or cills,
muft be one continued piece, reaching from D to E,
H I and h E are the braces of the main port of the
crane, which come up above the level of the wharf
hwB, and which are longer and ftronger than
the others. Here a crofs piece, whofe feflion is [&)
keeps the main poft from twifting; R O is the
capflern, or fhaft of the crane on which the rope or
chain is wound, and turned by the handfpikcs i^/,
fd, and e d, the part being ftiengthencd with iron
hoops above and below the hole at d; it turns
on an iron pivot at O, in a hole, in a piece whofe
feiStion is F: pp are two pins which hold on a
collar in which the upper part of the fliaft turns ;
C T P Qj a {frong piece or block, having three
pullies, one vertical and two horizontal ones, the
rope turning over the firft, and between the other
two.
In this conftruflion there are fevera! inconveni-
encies; the firft is that when the weight is raifed ta
the height required, the ufual method of moving
the arm of the gibbet toward W or w, is by means
of a rope falfcned thereto, called the guide rope,
which a man is to pull in order to bring the weight
over the place where it is to be lowered. Now,
in performing of this, the main rope or chain, not
continuing parallel to the arm of the gibbet, gives
the weight a tendency towards that fide to which it
deviates ; and fometimes fo fuddenly, that without
care, and much force applied, if the weight be
very great, the burthen will fwing to or from the
carriage, fo as to break every thing in its way.
To remedy this fome fix an horizontal piece like
J'/^±Tf:jo!zir.
'.Aci^/ti</ Cj»/k-
y^^^. 2^/r/rie
^ ^
JX.
f^^cr. ^ . ■y^'^rz/ney
Jr'ca. J.^rtzn^y
'y-'
1 X j.
^
xXi^t^i^f* ii'v^^fr
C R A
a hand-fpike in the upright fliaft of the gibbet, a
little above B, to turn it by, but in this cafe aifo,
the force is fo unequal as the weight is carried
round, that the lives of the men, who are loading,
depends entirely on the care of tlie man who guides
the weight by either of thofe methods.
But if upon the axis of the gibbet there be fixed
an iron wheel y, of feveral teeth, to be carried
round by a pinion u of a few leaves, upon the end
of whofe axis, which paflls through the perpendi-
cular piece T X, behind the fhaft of the gibbet
there is faftened a wheel x with arms ; a man
ftanding at that wheel is out of the way, and has
fuch an advantage of power as to hold the weight
flcady in any pofition whatfoever ; its tendency to
fwing being not fenfibly felt at the ends of the
arms of the lart wheel. The firfl: who made ufe of
this method was the late Ralph Allen, Efq; at his
ftone quarry at Bath, where the weight raifed is
four or five, and fometimes fix or feven, ton.
The fecond fort, or that commonly called the
rat's-tail crane, is reprefented by fig. i. it moves
round like a wind-mill on the port S, which is fixed
(landing upright by means of the braces and cills
LLLLLLLL, Y f is a brace and ladder ferv-
jng for the fame ufes with the gibbet ENMF,
. pullies for the rope to run over and come to the
weight at H, A C a wheel of a large diameter for
two or three men to walk in, by which means tlie
wheel is turned, and the rope R M N E D wound
on the horizontal axis B b. But this is the very
worfl and moll dangerous method of working a
crane; inftead of which the horizontal axis B ^ is
now oftener carried round by a flrong wheel and
pinion PC A fig. 3. by means of the two winches
a and h; at the other end of the axis is fometimes
fixed a wheel with teeih, and a catch K, to hold
the burthen to the height it is brought up to, while
the crane is turned round in order to hjwer the bur-
then into the vefl'el?, which is done by lifting up
the catch, and being ready to let it down as need
may require ; but this, not to mention the fudden
jerk this method muft give to the whole machine,
and thereby, when the weight is very confiderable,
run the rifK of tearing it all to pieces ; it is liable to
be forgot through caielcffiiefs, or for want of pre-
fence of mind, when any great danger is appre-
hended.
Another method of flopping this crane is by
means of a fmooth wheel of wood, as VV n inftead
of the toothed one, Hgaiiift which a femi-circum-
ftrtnce of wood D 1 1 B is held liard by means of the
lever G F moving on the center L, and the ropes
H (j and F B while the weight is dcfcending ; but
as in this cafe likewife, if the man at the crane be
carelefs, very bad accidents may happen, Mr. Pad-
more made (uch a contrivance that the pall or lever,
by which the axle is preflcd to regulate the de-
fier.ding motion, communicates with the catch
C R A
above-mentioned in fuch manner, that if the man
who ought to manage it, fhould carelcfly let it go,
the catch always takes, and by that means all ac-
cidents are prevented. This invention is as follows :
PP and pp fig- 4. reprefent two upright pieces
fixed, in the moll convenient manner, to the frame
of the crane, fo as to carry the three centers L K
and k\ when the main rope or chain RrZ, going
over the pully at r, or any where elfe, draws from
the axle in the direilion R r, the catch, if the end
is at A, keeps it immoveable ; but by pulling at H,
the lever G F rifes at F, and confequently draws
up the end B of the pall B D, which moving on the
center >f, does by its end D, by means of the
bar D E, pull down E, and railt; the end A of
the catch, fo as to let the weight run down ; but
to prevent its running too fail, one mufl pull a
little harder, which it is evident from the figure,
will caufe the femi-circumference I O I to prefs
again ft the wheel, and thereby flacken the defcent
of the weight, and if it is pulled very hard will en-
tirely ftop it. Now if the perfon holding at H,
fliould, through, carelcffnefs or otherwife, let it go,
the weight Q^in dcfcending, will bringdown the
pall at B, and raife its other end, fo as to throw the
catch upon the teeth of the racket, and thereby
ftop the whole motion without accident.
But after all, where weights are to be railed or
lowered a great way, as in loading or unloading
veffcls into, or out of high warehoufes, and where
the weight exceeds not two or three tons, and many
hands not to be had, let a worm, or endlefs fcrew,
turned by a handle at each end, be applied to the
teeth of the wheel CA (fig 3) inftead of the
pinion P, but whofe axis is placed at right angles to
the axis of the pinion. This will be found to an-
fwer all the other contrivances, and be vaftly more
fimple and commodious : for the teerh of the wheel
arc pulled by the weight fo direclly againft the thread
of the fcrew, that one may leave it in any pofition
whatfoever, v/iihout any catch or danger of the
weight running down.
But then if you would have the weight to defccnd
pretty quick, which cannot be performed by apply-
ing the hand to the winch, it nKjving through a
large fpace in comparifon to the weight, and with-
out which, fufficient force will be wanting, only
give the winch a fwing, and if th.e worm be well
oiled, the two handles will perform the office of the
fly of a jack, turning round veiy faft, and at the
fame time regulating the motion of the weight ; and
if at any time yriu want to Hop it intirclv, it will be
fufficient to gtafp the axis of the Ic/ew in tlie hand,,
which may by this means be ftopped in two or three
turns of the winch.
Crane's Bill, among furgeona, a kind of
forceps, fo called from its figure.
Crane's Bill, in botany, the Englifh name for
the geranium, bee the article CtP-ANiuw.
CRANIO-
C R A
C R E
CRANIOLARIA, in botany, a genus of plants
whofe flower confifts of one unequal petal, and
contains four ftamina. The pericarpium is coria-
ceous, ovated, acute on both fides, and bivalvular.
The fruit is a woody depreffed nut, acuminated
on both fides, and marked with dentated furrows.
CRANK, a contrivance in machines, in manner
of an elbow, only of a fquare form, projedling from
a fpindle, and ferving by its rotation to raife and fall
the piftons of engines.
Crank, likewife denotes the iren fupport for a
lanthorn, or the like : alfo the iron made faft to a
ftock of a bell for ringing it.
CRANNY, in glafs- making, an iron inflru-
ment, wherewith the necks of glaffes are formed.
CRAPE, in commerce, a kind of ftufF, made in
the manner of gauze, with raw filk, gummed and
twifted in the mill.
CRASIS, among phyficians, is ufed to fignify
fuch a due mixture of qualities in a human body,
as conffitutes a flate of health.
Crasis, in grammar, the contra£lion of two
letters into one long one, or a diphthong. Thus
a^>^5fa is contra£fed into ahnSri.
CRASSAMENTUM, in phyfic, the thick red,
or fibrous part of the blood, otherwife called cruor,
in contradiftindlion to the ferum, or aqueous part.
See Blood.
CRASSULLA, in botany, a genus of plants,
whofe flower confilh of five narrow petals, with
long, linear, ftraight, connivent ungues ; and five
Tubulated ftamina.
The fruit is compofed of five oblong, acuminated,
ftraight, comprefTed capfules, opening longitudinally
inwards, and filled with a number of fmall feeds,
CRAT^^GUS, wild-fcrvice, in botany, a genus
of plants, the flower of which confifts of five
roundifh concave petals, inferted into the cup with
many ftamina.
The fruit is a roundifh, flefliy, umbilicated berry,
containing two hard oblong feeds.
The common wild-fervice grows to the fize of a
pear-tree, and the trunk is covered with a whitifh
fmootli bark, but the young branches are covered
with a brownilTi red. The leaves are placed alter-
nately, and ftand on pretty long foot- ftalks ; thcfe
are cut into many acute angles, with fevcral fmall
indentures on their edges ; the flowers are white,
and produced in large bunches towards the extre-
mities of the branches ; the fruit is like thofe of the
hawthorn, of a brownifh colour, and if kept fome
time has a tartifli agreeable flavour.
They are reckoned good in all kinds of fluxes.
The wood is hard and white, and is ufeful for
many purpofes ; but particularly to mill-wrights.
CRATCHES, in the manege, a fwelling on the
partem, under the fetlock, and fometiniirs under
the hoof; for which reafon it is diftinguifhed into
the finew cratches, which afFed the finew, and
tho(e upon the cronet, called quitter-bones.
CRATICULA, a kind of grid-iron, or chemi-
cal inftrument, made of fquare pieces of iron, of
the thicknefs of one's finger, placed in acute an-
gles, about half a finger's fpace diftant from one
another. It ferves in making fires to keep up the
coals.
CRAY, a diftemper in hawks, proceeding from
long feeding upon cold ftale meat.
Cray-Fish, the Englifli name of the larger
long-tailed fquillse. See Squilla.
CRAYON, or Pastil, among painters, im-
plies a compofition of colours, reduced to the tex-
ture of chalk ; and ufed dry, in the form and man-
ner of pencils, for painting on paper.
CREAM, the fat part of the milk that fv^ims
upon the furface. See Milk.
CREAr.^ of Tartar, called alfo cryftals of tartar,
in pharmacy, a preparation of tartar made in the
following manner :
Take any quantity of crude tartar, boil it in wa-
fer, till the parts which are capable of folution be
entirely ditlblved ; filter the liquor whilft hot thro*
a flannel bag into an earthen pan, and evaporate
till a pellicle appears, then fet it in a cold place,
and fuffer it to ftand quietly two or three days : af-
terwards decant the fluid, and the cryftals will be
found adhering to the pan : fcrape them off, and
evaporate the fluid as before, and fet it again to
cryftallife, and repeat the operation till the cryftals
are formed. Cream of tartar is a gentle purge. It
attenuates and refolves tough humours, and is good
againft obftru<Stions of the vifcera, and in cacheftic
complaints. It is alfo a good adjunct to chalybeate
medicines.
CREAT, in the manege, an uflier to a riding-
mafter ; or, a gentleman bred in the academy, with
intent to make himfelf capable of teaching the art
of riding the great horfe.
CREATION, the producing fomething r.at of
nothing, which ftri£tly and properly is the effect of
the power of God alone, all other creations being
only transformations, or change of (hape. Crea-
tion, fay the fchoolmen, from no pre-exifting fub-
je£t, may be underftood in dift'erent fenfes. i. That
is faid to be created out of no pre-exifting matter,
in the produdion of which no matter is employed ;
as an angel. 2. Although matter may be employ-
ed in the produdtion of a thing, it may be fo pro-
duced as that both its matter and form are caufed
by the fame agent at the fame time. In this man-
ner were the heaven and the earth created, in the
opinion of thofe who deny that God made the chaos.
3. Although matter may be the fubjedl in producing
a thing, yet that thing may not depend on matter
either with refpe£t to its future or prefent exiftence.
Such is the human foul, for although it is created
4 in
C R E
in pre-exifting matter, it is not created out of pre-
exiiling matter, but of nothing, and therefore is
no ways dependent on matter for exigence. See
the article World.
Epocha of the Creation. See the article E-
POCHA.
Creation, in the Romifh church, the re-pro-
du6lion of the humanity of Jefus Chrifl in tiie eu-
charift, by the words of the confecration.
CREDENTIALS, letters of recommendation,
and power, efpecially fuch as are given to ambafTa-
dors, or public minifters, by the prince or ftate
that fends them to foreign courts.
CREDIBILITY, a fpecies or kind of evidence,
lefs indeed than abfolute certainty or demonftration,
but greater than mere pofllbility : it is nearly allied
to probability, and feems to be a mean between
pofllbility and demonftration. See the article Evi-
dence.
CREDIT, in commerce, a mutual truft or loan
of merchandize, or money, on the reputation of the
probity and fufF.ciency of a dealer.
CREDITOR, a perfon to whom any fum of
money is due, either by obligation, promife, or
otherwife.
Creditor, in book-keeping. See the article
Book-keeping.
CREED, a brief fummary of the articles of a
Chriftian's belief.
CREEK, the part of a haven where any thing
is landed from the fea.
CREEPER, in ornithology, a name given to
feveral fpecies of ifpida, otherwife called certhia, or
certhius, and in Englifh, the ox-eye.
Creeper, in naval affairs, a fmall inftrument
of iron, having a fhank and four hooks or claws,
and fomething refembling a grappling. It is ufed to
throw into the bottom of any river or harbour,
with a rope faft:ened to it, to hook and draw up
any thing from the bottom. See Grappling.
CREMASTER, in anatomy, the name of a
mufcle of the tellicle, of which there is one on each
fide.
It arifes flefhy from the loweft and fore-part of the
OS ilium, and upper part of the ligamentum pubis : its
fibres running parallel with thofe of the oblique
afcendens, and almolt encompaffing the procefs of
the peritona-um, defcends with it, and is inferted
into the tunica vaginalis, upon which it fpreads in
fevera! diftindl portions.
CRENATED, among botanifts, is faid of leaves,
the edges of which are furniflied with indentings,
contiguous to each other, and neither inclining to-
ward the point nor bafe. Of thefe fome are acute,
others obtufe, &c,
CRENELLE, or Imbattled, in heraldry, is
ufed when any honourable ordinary is drawn, like
the battlements on a wall to defend men from the
enemies fnot.
35
C R E
CREPIS, in botany, a genus of plants, whofc
flower is compound, uniform, and imbricated; the
proper flowers are monopetalous, ligulated, and in-
dented at the top in five parts, each containing live
fhort hairy filaments, topped with cylindraceous an-
thera;. 'I'hc feed is oblong, folitary, and crowned
with long feathery down.
CREPUSCULUM, in aftronomy, the fame
with twilight ; by which is underftood the time
from the firft appearance of the morning until fun-
rife, and from fun-fetting until there be no remains
of day.
The crepufculum, or twilight, is chiefly caufed
by the atmofphere furrounding the earth, which re-
fleds back the light of the fun upon us foftrongly,
as totally to obll:ure the iaint light of the ftars,
and thereby render them invifible : for were there
no atmofphere involving the earth, no part of the
heavens would appear to fhine, but that in which
the fun is placed ; and a fpedator, if he turned his
back to the fun, would immediately perceive it as
dark as night, and in the day-time, when the
fun was fliining in its utmoft fplendour, the leaft
ftars would be feen fiiining, as they do now in the
night in every part of the heavens but that wherein
the fun then was.
Moreover, if there were no atmofphere, the fun
immediately before his fetting, would fhine as brifk-
ly as at noon ; but in a monient, as foon as he is
fet, we fhould have the face of the earth in as great
darknefs as it would be at midnight : fo quick a
change, and fo fudden a pafiiiig from the greateft
light to the greateft darknefs, would be very incon-
venient to the inhabitants of the earth. But by
means of the atmofphere it happens, that though
after fun-fettins we receive no direft li^ht from the
fun, yet we enjoy its refleiSed light for fome time ;
fo that the darknefs of the night comes not fudden-
ly, but by degrees. Eor after the earth by its re-
volution round its axis has withdrawn us from the
fight of the fun ; the atmofphere, which is higher
than we are, will ftill be illuminated by the fun ;
fo that for a while the whole heavens will have
fome of his light imparted to it. But as the fun
goes ftill lower under the horizon, the lefs is the
air illuminated by him : fo that when he is got as
far as 1 8 degrees below the horizon, he no longer
enlightens our atmofphere, and then all that part
thereof that is over us becomes dark.
So likewife in the morning, as foon as the fun
comes within i8 degrees of the horizon, he begins
again to enlighten the atmofphere, and to diifufe
his light through the heavens : fo that its brightnefs
does Itill increafe, till the fun rifes and makes full
day.
To make this plainer, imagine the circle A D L
(Plate XXXIX. fg. 5.) on the furface of the earth,
in the plane of the vertical circle in which the fun
is when under the horizon. Let there likewife be
8 K another
C R E
another concentral circle C B M in the fame plane,
including that portion of the air that reflefts the
fun's beams : and fuppofe the eye to be on the
earth's furface ac A, whofe fenfible horizon is A N.
Since no line can be drawn to A between the tan-
gent AN and the periphery AD, by the fixteenth
of the Third book of Euclid's Elements, it is
plain, that when the fun is under the horizon, no
diredt rays can come to the eye at A : but the fun
being in the line CG, a line may be drawn from
him to C, fo that the particle C may be illuminat-
ed by the dire(ft rays of the fun ; which particles
may refle£t thofe rays to A, where they may enter
the eye of the fpedtator : and by this means the
beams of the fun's light illuminating an innumera-
ble multitude of particles, may by them be reflect-
ed to the fpeflator in A. Let the tangent AB
meet with the furface of the orb of air that refledls
the light in B ; and from B draw B D, touching
the circle A D L in D, and let the fun be in the
lineBDatS: then the ray SB will be refleded
into B A, and will enter the eye, becaufe of the
angle of incidence D B E being equal to the angle
of refledion ABE: and that will be the firft ray
that reacheth the eye in the morning, and then the
dawning begins ; or the lafl which falls upon the
eye at night, when the twilight ends. For when
the fun goes lower down, the particles at B can be
no longer illuminated.
The reflexion of the atmofphere does not feem
to be the only caufe of the twilight ; but there is an
setherial air or atmofphere likewife round the fun,
which fhines after the body of the fun is fet : this
orb of the fun's atmofphere riGng fooner, and fett-
ing later than the fun itfeif, fhines out at mornings
and nights In a circular figure, it being a fegment
of the fun's atmofphere cut by the horizon ; and
its light is quite of another fort than that which is
made by the refleflion of our atmofphere. But the
duration of the twilight that arifes from the fun's
atmofphere, is (horter much than that made by the
reflection of the earth's atmofphere, which does
not end till the fun comes to be 18 degrees below
the horizon, or thereabouts. But there can be no
certain bounds fixed for the beginnings and endings
of the twilights ; for their lengths depend on the
quantity of matter in the air which is able to re-
fleft light, and on the height of the atmofphere.
In the winter the air being condenfed by the cold
is low ; and on that account the twilights are fooner
over. In the fummcr the air is rarified by heat, and
therefore being higher remains longer illuminated
by the fun, fo that the twilights laft the longtr :
alfo the duration of the twilight is fliorter in the
morning than at night. We generally reckon that
the twilight begins or ends, when in the morning
the flars of the fixth magnitude difappear, or in the
evening when they firft come to be feen; the light
of the air before that rendering them invifible.
C R E
Ricciolus obferved at Bonania, that the mornino-
twilight about the time of equinoflies, lafied an
hour and forty-feven minutes ; but in the evening
two hours, and did not end till the fun was twenty
degrees under the horizon : but in fummer, the
morning twilight was three hours and forty minutes
long ; the evening twilight fcarcely ended till mid-
night.
Hence if we have the time of the beginning of
the twilight in the morning, or the end of it at
night, we may find the height of the air that re-
flects the light; for then the twilight ends, when a
ray of light from the fun touches the globe of the
earth, and is by the higheft air reflected to our
eyes : for having the time, we can find the depref-'
fion of the fun below the horizon, and from thence
the height of the air. For let S B be a ray of light
touching the earth, which is refleCled by a particle
of air in its higheft region, in the horizontal line
A B ; the angle S B N is the meafure of the de-
preflion of the fun below the horizon : and becaufe
A B is alfo a tangent, the angle A ED at the
center is equal to the angle SBN; and its half,
that is, the angle A EB, is equal to half SBN or
half the depreifion of the fun. Suppofe the depref-
fion of the fun at the beginning or end of twilight
be eighteen degrees ; then the angle A E B will be
nine degrees, which would be true, did the ray SB
pafs through the atmofphere without refraCtion : but
becaufe it is refraCled and bent towards H, we mufl
diminifh the angle A E B by a quantity equal to
the horizontal refraClion, which is about half a de-
gree : and therefore the true meafure of the angle
A E B is 87 degrees. Moreover, A E is to B H as
the radius is to the excefs of the fecant of the angle
AE B above the radius, that is, as 1 00000 is to
1 1 10. Therefore if the femidiameter of the earth
be in round numbers 4000 miles, B H the height of
the atmofphere which refieCts the fun's ra}s, will
be about 44 miles; for as 1 00000 is to 11 10, fo is
4000 to 44.
In a right pofition of the fphere the twilights
are quickly over; becaufe the fun defcends con-
ftantly nearly in a perpendicular ; but in an oblique
fphere they laft longer, the fun defcending oblique-
ly ; and the more oblique the fphere is, that is, the
greater the latitude of the place is, fo much longer
laft the twilights : fo that all they wlio are in a-
bove forty-eight degrees latitude in the fummer,
near the folftices, have their atmofphere illuminated
the whole night, and the twilight lafts till the fun-
rifing, without any compleat darknefs.
In a parallel fphere the twilight lafts for feveral
months ; fo that the inhabitants have either the di-
reCt or refleCl light of the fun for aimoft all the year.
If below the horizon you conceive a circle to
be drawn parallel to the horizon, and at a diftance
from it equal to the deprefilon of the fun at the
end of the twilight : this lefler circle is called the
circle
C R E
Circle wliich terminates the twilights ; for when-
ever the fun by its apparent diurnal motion reaches
this parallel, the morning twilight begins, or the
evening ends, in whatever parallel of the equator
the fun is.
In Plate XXXIX. fig. 6. let HQ^O be the ho-
rizon, Vtf'X the ciicle parallel to it terminating
the twilight, the circle H Z O the meridian, yE Q_rt
the equator. It is manifeft that the more oblique
the equator is to the horizon, fo much the greater
are the arches of the equator and its parallels, in-
tercepted between the horizon and the terminating
circle VrtX. The arches Q,R, da, C e, G h,
K /, are called the arches of the twilights, becaufc
they deteimine the duration : and as each arch has
a bigger or lefs proportion to its circle, fo will the
twilight when the fun is in that parallel, be longer
or Ihortcr. In the circle bounding the crepufcies
take any poinr a, through which pafies a parallel
to the equator d{i ; and though a imagine a great
circle to be drawn as M a N, touching the circle
of perpetual apparition : and fince the horizon like-
wife touches the fame circle, thefe two circles will
make equal angles with the equator and its paral-
lels ; for the meafure of each angle is the diftance
of the parallel from its great circle. So likewife
all the arches of the equator, and its parallels be-
tween the horizon and the circle MaN are fimi-
lar, by Prop. 13. Book II. Theodofius's Sphericks.
This circle MaN (fig. 7.) will cither cut the
bounding circle V i? X in two points, or touch it
in one. Let it firft cut it in two points a and /.• ;
and therefore the arches of the parallels da, G h
are fimiiar : wherefore when the fun by its diurnal
motion defcribes thefe two parallels, the twilights
are equal ; but while he defcribes any intermediate
parallel as C^, the time of the twilight is fliorter ;
for in this cafe Cm the arch of twilight is lefs than
Ce, which is fimilar to the arch d a or Q h, and
C^ and da are defcribed by the fun in equal times.
But when the fun is in parallels that are at a great-
er diftance from the equator than G h, the twilights
laft longer ; for the twilight arch / K is greater than
^K, which defcribed by the fun in the fame time
as the arch of the crepufcle G h.
While the fun is in parallels that are towards the
elevated pole, the twilights do conftantly grow
longer, according as thofe parallels approach the
poles: for the twilight arch op is longer in being
defcribed Q_R, and Y U the (ame way is longer
than op. liut if the fun defcrlbe the parallel S t,
it never will meet with the bounding circle, and
then the twilight lafts the whole night long.
Hence arifes a great difference between the in-
crcafe of the twilight and i:s decreafe, and the in-
creafe and decreafe of days and nights. For while
the fun m.oves from the beginning of cs to the firft
of Capricorn, all that time the days conftantly de-
creafe, and the nights increafe ; but in th'e twilight
C R E
it is ofherwife ; for though the twilight and days
are at the loiigeft when the fun is in the firft degree
of SB, and then they both decrcat together; yet
the times of twilight do not contiually decreafe till
the fun comes to b"? but there is a certain point
between :^ and i^, to which when the fun arrives,
we have the fliorteft twilight. From thence the
twilights will begin to increafe again, and there
will be one arch of twilight fimilar to that when
the fun is in the equa'or, before he reaches '/f :
and if the fun Itould g . farther fouth, even beyond
the tropic, the twilights would ftill increafe, al-
though the days decreafed. And although the days
from the beginning of the fun's entry into Vf do
Conftantly increafe, yet the twilights grow fhorter
till the fun comes to a point between \rr and V, in
which again we have the fhorteft twilight : this ap-
pears plain by what we are here to demonflrate in
the next place.
2dly, Let the circle MaN (fig. 8.) touch the
bounding circle in one point, which fuppofe to be
a, through which draw the parallel to the equator
da ; I fay that M'hen the fun is in this parallel the
twilight will be the fhorteft of all. For becaufe
the arches of the parallels intercepted between the
horizon and the circle M<jN are all fimilar, they
will be defcribed by the fun in equal times : but
becaufe the twilight arches c e and and gh are great-
er than c to or ^ 7, the fun will be longer in mov-
ing through the arch ce than cm, and through the
arch g h than g i ; that is longer than in defcribing
the arch da.^ which arch therefore is the {hortslf
twilight.
1 he diftance of that parallel from the equator in
which is the fhorteft twilight, is thus inveftiTated.
Becaufe the circle MaN and the horizon HO
touch the fame parallel, which is the circle of per-
petual apparition, they will both be equally inclined
to the equator : and therefore the angle a « T of
the equator, and the circle M. a'H, is equal to the
angle F Q_^ of the equator and the horizon. 1 hro'
the zenith Z and the point a draw the vertiele
circle '/.Y a, cutting the e<]uator in the point T.
The fpherical triangles a « T, T Q_Y, are mutually
equiangular to each other, becaufe the angles at a
and Y are right ; and we ha\e fhew^ed that the an-
gles at Q_and n are equal ; alii) the angles at T are
equal, being vertical to each other : thefe triangles
then being equiangular, are alfo equilateral ; and
therefore'T a will lie equal to T Y, or to half the
diftance of the bounding circle from the horizon :
moreover, an is equal io QJ!, by 1 3 Prop, book
II. Theod. for F R and da are parallel, and there-
fore (VQ_ is equal to Q_Y.
In the fpherical triangle TQ_Y recEtangular at Y,
we have the fide T Y half the diflance of the
bounding circle from the horizon ; as alfo the an-
gle Y Q_T equal to F Q_<3', which meafurcs the
complement of the latitude of the place ; wherefore
we
C R E
C R E
we can find Q_Y, and Q_d, which is equal to it.
From th.! point d to the equator draw the circle of
declinaticii d F ; and inthe fpherical triangle dQJ^,
we iUve dQ__ and the angle Q_, by which we
ran find the arch d F, ihe declination of the paral-
lel of the lealt twilight from the equator, which
was to be found.
This problem might have been folved by one
finable analogy. For in the triangle TQY, the
radius : tang. T Y : : co-tang. Q_: fin. Q_Y, or to
the fin. of dQ_: but the fin. of Q_: cofin. of Q_: :
rad. : co-tang. Q. Therefore by the rules of the
fifth Element, the rad. multiplied by the fin. of Q,
will be to the tang, of T Y into the cofin. of Q.,
as the radius is to the fin. of Qd: but in the right-
angled triangle Q^d F, radius is to the fine of Qjl
as the fine of the angle Q_to the fine d F ; where-
fore rad. X fine Q_will be to the tang, of T Y X
co-fine of Q_, as the fine of Q_to fine of ^F ; and
thence, ex aquo, it will be as radius to tang, of
T Y, fo CO- fine of Q_, or the fine of the Lititude to
the fine of the diflance of the parallel from the equa-
tor. Having the declination of the fun, the time
of the beginning of the morning twilight, which
we call break of day, or the end of the evening
twilight is thus to be found. Let « /> be the paral-
lel of the fun meeting with the bounding circle in
p; and draw through the pole the circle of decli-
nation P/). In the fpherical triangle P Z /> we
have all the fides for Z P is the complement of
the latitude, P/> the complement of the fun's de-
clination, and Z/> equal to the fum of a quadrant,
and the difiance of the bounding circle from the
horizon z= Z/ -f- //>. From which we can find
the angle ZP/i, and its complement to two rights
p P V : and the arch of the equator nieafuring this
angle being converted in'o time, will fliew the be-
ginning or end of twilight.
CRESCENT, Crefcem, the new moon, which,
as it begins to recede from the fun, fhews a little
rim of light, terminating in points, called horns,
that are fidi increafing, till it is in oppofition to the
fun, at which time it is full moon, or quite round.
Crescent, in heraldry, a bearing in form of a
new moon.
Crescent is alfo an order of knights, infiituted
by Renatus of Anjou, king of Sicily, about the
year 1448, fo called from the badge of this order,
which was an enamelled crefcent of gold.
Crescent, a term among farriers. Thus a
hcrfe is faid to have crefcents, when that part of the
cofiin bone which is mofl advanced falls down and
prefles the fole outwards, and the middle of his
hoof above flirinks, and becomes flat, by reafon of
the hollownefs beneath it.
CRESCENTIA, in botany, the calabafh-tree.
This plant gtov/s naturally in the Weft-Indian
iflands : it rifes to the height of twenty or thirty
feet, with feveral knots upon the ftem, dividing at
2
the top in many branches, which fpread, and form
a regular head. Thefe are furnilhed with leaves,
which come out irregularly ; and are about fix
inches long, oval, and acuminated ; of a livid green
colour, wiih very (hort foot-flalks.
The flowers are produced from the fides of the
branches, fianding upon long foot-flalks. The
calyx is fhort, monophyllous, and deeply divided
into two obtufe fegments. The corolla is mono-
petalous, and irregular, having a gibbous tube.
The limb is reflexed, and divided into five feg-
ments : thefe are of a greenifh yellow colour,
flriped and fpotted with brown. ^The ftamina con-
fifts of four flender filaments, two of which are the
length of the corolla, and the other much fhorter :
thefe are terminated by double oblong antheras.
The fruit is a large fhell, either fpherical, oval,
or bottle-fhaped, and inclofes a number of flat cor-
dated feeds.
Thefe fhells are large enough to contain three
pints or two quarts of liquid ; they are therefore
made ufe of by the inhabitants of the iflands for
drinkingcups, after being cleaned of their pulp,
the outer fkin taken off, and dried : fome of them
are tipped with filver. They are alfo made ufe of
for divers other purpofes.
The leaves and branches of this tree are alfo
eaten by the cattle in times when other provender are
fcarce, and the wood is hard and fmooth, fo is fre-
quently ufed for making faddles, ftools, and furniture.
Another fpecies of crefcentia is found in Cam-
peachy, which rifes not fo high as the former, and
the leaves, flowers, and fruit, are confiderably
lefs.
CRESS, or Garden Cresses, in botany. See
the article Nasturtium.
Indian Cress. See Trop^olum.
Sciatica Cress. See Iberis,
U'liter Cr^ss. See Sisymbrium.
JFmter Cress. See Erysimum.
CREST, in armoury, the top part of the ar-
mour for the head, mounting over the helmet, m-
manner of a comb, or tuft of a cock, deriving ita
name from crijia, a cock's comb.
Crest, in heraldry, the uppermoft part of an
armoury, or that part of the cafk or helmet next to
the mantle.
Crest, among carvers, an imagery, or carved
work, to adorn the head, or top of any thing, like
our modern corniche.
Crest- Fallen, a fault of an horfe, when the
upper part of his neck, called the creft, hangs to-
one fide : this they cure by placing it upright, clip-
ping away the fpare fkin, and applying plafters t»
keep it in a proper pofition.
CRETA, chalk, in natural hiftory. See the ar-
ticle Chalk.
CREUX, a French term ufed among artifts, and
literally fignifies a hollow cavity, or pit, out of which.
fome-
CRf
COR
COR
fomeihlng has been fcooped or dug: whence it is
ufcd to fignily that kind of fculpture, where the lines
and figures are cut and formed within the face or plan
of the plate, or matter engraved ; and thus it fiands
tn oppofition to rtlievo, where the lines and figures
are embciT-'d, and rife prominent above the face of
the matter engraved on.
CRIB, a frame of wood, wherein moifl things,
particularly fait, as it is taken out of the boiling-
pan, are put to drain.
CRIBRATION, in pharmacy, the pafflng any
fubftance through a fieve, or fearcc, in order to fcpa-
rate the finer particles from the groffcr, vviiether the
body be dry and reduced to powder, or moill, as the
pulps of feeds, fruits, or roots.
CRIliROSUIvi Os, in anaiomy, called a!fo os
ethnniides, and os cribritormc, a bone fituated in-
ternally in the fore-part of the bafii of the fkulL
The ufes of it are to be a principal part of the organ
of fmelling, and to give a very great extent to the
pituitary membrane in a fmall compafs.
CRIC, a machine, otherwife called a jack. See
the article Jack.
CRICK, among farriers, is when a horfe cannot
turn his neck any manner of vvav, but holds it fore-
right, infomuch that he cannot take his food from the
ground without great pain. 1 he cure is to thruft a
fharp hct iron through the ficfh of the neck in feve-
ral places, at three inches difiance, and rowel all of
them with horfe hair, flax, or hemp, anointing the
rowels with bog's greafe.
CRICKET, in zoology, the Englifh name of the
gryllus. SeeGRYLLus.
A/s/f-CRiCKET, the fame with the gryllotalpa.
See the article Gryllotalpa.
CRICOARYTANOIDiEUS, in anatomy, a
name given to tvvomufcles of the larynx, called the
cricoarytEenoides pofticum, and the lateral cricoary-
taenoidcs. They ferve to dilate the glottis.
CRICOIDES, in anatomy, a cartilage of the
larynx, called alio the annular cartilage. It occu-
pies the loweft part by way of bafe to the refi: of the
cartilages ; and to the lower part of it the afpera
arteria adheres.
CRICOTHYROID/EUS, in anatomy, one of
the tivc proper mufcles of the larynx, which arife
2nd terminate in it. It fcrves occalionally either to
dilate, or conftringe the glottis.
CRINGLE, in naval affairs, a fmall hole ma.'e
in ihe holt-rope of a fad, by intertwining one of the
divifions of a rope called a llrand, alternately round
itfelf, and then through the bolt-rope till it becomes
three-fold : the u.'e of a cringle is to fallen the ropes
to, v.hich gather up a fail to the yard, when it
is to be reefed or furled. See Brail, Furl, and
Reef.
CRIME, Crhren, the tranfgrtfiion of a law,
either natural or divine, civil or eciltfiaftic.
CRIMNOIDES, or Crimoides, among phy-
35
ficians, a term fometimcs ufed for the fedimcnt of
urine, refembling bran.
CRIMSON, one of the fcven red colours of the
dyers. See the article Colour.
CRINONES, among phyticians, fmall worms
that breed in the fkin, called alfo dracunculi. See
the article Di< acunculi.
CRINUM, lilly-afphodcl, in botany, a genus of
plants, the flower of which is infundibuliform arxl
monopetalous : it contains fix fubulated filaments,
topped with oblong, linear, incumbent anther*.
The fruit is a fubovated capfule, with three cells,
each containing one or two oval f--:;ds.
CRISIS, in medicine, is ufed in different fenfts,
both by the ancient and modern phyficians. With
fome it means frequently no more than the ex-
cretion of any noxious fubflance from the body.
Others take the word for a fecietion of the noxious
humours made in a fever. Others ufe it for the cri-
tical motion itfelf ; and Galen defines a crifis in
fevers, a fuddea and inftantancous change, either
for the better or the wcrfe, produ£live of recovery
or death. The doflrinc of crifes is very obfcure ;
however, the following are reckoned the principal
fymptoms of an approaching crifis, a fudden ftupor,
drowfinefs, waking, delirium, anxiety, dyfpncea,
grief, rednefs, titillation, naulea, heat, thirfl-, Uz.
after dlgeilion, and about the critical time; and the
fymptoms and efFe£ls of a prefent crifis are after the
preceding ones, and vomiting, loofenefs, thick fe-
diment in the urine, bleeding at the nofe, haemor-
rhoids, fweat, ablcefTes, pullules, tumours, bu-
boes, &c.
CRISP Leaf, among botanlfts, is when the cir-
cumference of the leaf grows larger than the difk
will admit of, fo that the furface is undulated, or
railed in waves.
It is likewife called a curled leaf.
CRISTA Galli, in anatomy, a procefs of the
03 ethmoides, making the upper-part of the fcptum
narium. It takes its name from the fuppofed refem-
blance to the comb of a cock.
CRITHE, in furgery, commonly called the ftyle,
is a tubercle that grows in diflerent parts of the eye-
lids. When it is f nail it comes only on the edo-e
of the eye-lids, or very near it, between the cilia ;
but when it is large it fpreads towards the middle of
the: lid. The cure of this difeafe mull be varied,
according as the crithe is attended with an inflam-
mation, or is hardened and concreted.
CRITHMUM, famphire, in botany, a plant
which grows on the rocks of the fea-fide in many
parts of England. The root is compofed of many
ftrong fibres, which ilrike deep in the crevices of the
rocks. Theifalks, which are flcfhy and fucculent,
rife about two feet high, and are furnifhed witli
winged leaves.
1 he flowers are produced in circular umbels at
the top of the ftalks. Thefe are of a yellow co-
8 L luur }
GlLl
COR
COR
lour; and are compofed of five ovated, inflexed
petals, with five ftamina, which arc fucceeded by
two elliptical comprefled feeds, ftiiated on one
fide.
Samphire is recommended in medicine againft ob-
ftruflions of the vifcera and urinary paflagts ; but is
more ufed as a pickle : it is very agreeable to the
palate, creates an appetite, and is comfortable to the
flomach.
Another fpecies of crithmum grows naturally
on the Pyrenean mountains, which is clafTed by
Tournefort among the parfleys.
CRITICAL Days and Symptoms, among
phyficians, are certain days and fymptoms in the
courfe of acute difeafes, which indicate the patient's
ftate, and determine him either to recover or grow
worfe. A careful obfervation of thefe days is of
the greateft ufe towards the cure of difeafes, left
niifchief be done by unfeafonable adiftance from ait,
as when a phyfician endeavours to expel that which
is not prepared to be evacuated, or elfe hinder the
evacuation of fuch humours, as being fubdued and
toncofled, endeavour to efcape by fome convenient
outlet. According as the violence of the difeafe is
more fwift or flow, the critical days will be more or
leli dift.int from each other: thus in fevers which
do not exceed the fpacc of three weeks, the quater-
nary or fcptenary days are critical ; and befides thefe,
there are in the two firft weeks many more inciden-
tally critical days, as the third, fifth, fixth, &c.
but if an acute difeafe extetids itfelf beyond three
weeks, then the quaternary days no more take place
as critical, but only the feptennary days are fo,
though the efficacy of thefe laft is likewife abolifhcd
after the fortieth day. See the article Crisis.
CRITICISM, the art of judging with propriety
concerning any difcourfe or writing. Though the
ufe of the word is ordinarily rettrained to literary
ciiticifm, we may diflinguilh divers other branches
cf this art : as i. Philofophlcal criticifm, the art of
judging of the hypothefes and opinions of philofo-
phcrs. 2. Theological criticil'm, the art of judging
of explications of dodlrines of faith. 3. Political
criticifm, the art of judging of the means of govern-
ing, acquiring, and preferving ftates. 4. Gram-
matical criticifm, the art of intcrpre:ing the words
of an author, &c. Lord Bacon divides criticii'm,
1. As it regard? the exact corieifting and publiftiing
oi approved authors, by which the honour of fuch
authors is preferved, and the neccfTary affiftance
aiiordtd to the reader 5 yet the miiapplied labouio
and iiiduftry of fome have in this refpedl proved
highly prejudicial to learning ; for many critics have
a way, when they fall upon any thir.g they do not
underdand, -of immediately fuppofing a fault in the
copy ; and hence it happens that the mcjil correfitd
copies are often the leafl correcled. 2. As it re-
fpeiSfs the explanation and illufiration of authors by
notes, coinments, colltctions, £^c. But here a;i ill
cufiom has prevailed, of (kipping over the obfcure
paffages, and expatiating upon fuch as are fufficiently
clear ; as if the defign was not fo much to illuftratc
the author, as to take all occafions of fhewing their
own learning and reading. It were therefore to be
wifhed, fays the noble author, that every original
writer who treats an obfcure fubjeft, would add his
own explanation to his work, and thus prevent
any wrong interpretation by the notes of others.
3. There belongs to criticifm a certain conclfe judg-
ment or cenfure of authors publifhed, and a com-
parifon of them with other writers who have treated
the fame fubjed : in fliort, the art of criticifm,
though reckoned by fome as a diftind: part of philo-
fophy, is in truth nothing elfe than a more corredt
and accurate knowledge in the other parts of it ;
and a readinefs to apply that knov/ledge upon all
occafions, in order to judge well of what relates to
thefe fubjedls, to explain what is obfcure in authors,
to fupply what is defeflivc, and ameiid what is er-
roneous in manufcripts or ancient copies, to corredV
the miflakes of authors and editors in the fenfe of
the words, to reconcile the controverfies of the
learned, and by thefe means to fpread a juftcr
knowledge of the beautiful paflages and folid rea-
foning of authors, among the inquifitive part of
mankind.
CRIZZELING is faid of glafs, which, by rea-
fon of too great a proportion of nitre, tartar, or
borax, is fcabrous or rough on the furface.
CROCHP2S, among hunters, the little buds grow-
ing about the tops of a deer or hart's 'norns.
CROCI, among botanifls, the fame with an-
thers. See Anthers.
CROCODILE, Crocod'dus, in zoology, a fpecies
of lizard, with a two-edged tail and triangular feer,
the lore ones having five, and the hinder only four
toes.
1 hi? animal is the largeft of the lizard kind,
growing to twenty- five feet in length, and about
the thicknefs of a man's body. It is a native of
the torrid zone, frequently found in falt-water livers,
where it lies concealed among the reeds or ruilies, til)
it finds an opportunity to f^-ize men or other animals,
which it drags into the Vi'ater, always taking this
method of drowning them firft, that it may after-
wards devour them without refiftance : its general
food, however, is fifh. '1 he Auicans and Indians
eat its fiefh, which is white, and of a kind of per-
fumtd flavour.
CROCUS, faffron, in botany, a genus of plants
whofe ciiaraflers are, it hath a perennial bulbous
root, with narrow gramineous leaves, which are
annual.
'] he flower atifes immediately from the root,
and conlifts of one petal ; the tube of which is
long, and the border is cut into fix oblong, eiecl,
equal fegments : it l.ath three fubulated fdanitnts,
fljoiter than the corolla, v^hich are terminated with
arrow-
Cli.0
COR
COR
arrow-fliaped antherz. The germen Is placed at
the bottom of the tube, and fupports a filitbrm
ftyle, crowned with three convoluted, fcrrateJ
ftigmas.
The fruit is a roundifli trilocular capfulc, open-
ing with three valves, and containing a number of
roundifli feeds.
There are many varieties of crocus, fome of
which blows early in the fpring, and others in au-
tumn ; but it is from the autumnal crocus that well-
known drug called fatFron is taken.
The flower is of a beautiful purplifli blue co-
lour.
This fpecies is cultivated in divers places; but is
no where railed with fo much fuccefs as in England.
The ufual way of propagating it is by the bulbs, of
v^'hich it annually produces new ones. They are
planted out in July in trenches, at three or four
inches diflance each way, and about the fame depth.
The ofF-fets produce only leaves the firft year; but
in September or Odober, the year following, they
flower. As foon as the flowers open they are ga-
thered, and the upper-part of the piftil or ftyle is
carefully feparated from the reft, and refcrved :
This being the faflFion, the other parts of the flower
is thrown away as ufelefs ; the faftVon is afterwards
dried on a kiln built for the purpofe, prefl'ed into
cakes, and is then fit for ufe.
Saffron is fomewhat moderately heavy, very eafily
C'.:t, of an acrid, penetrating, difFufive fmell, fome-
what aftecUng the head ; but not unpleafant. The
tafte of it is hot, bitterilh, and hi;:hly cordial :
thrown into water, it almoft inftantaneoufty gives a
ftrong, yellow, or redifti colour, according to the
quantity ufed.
Saffron fhould be chofen frefli, tough, flexile, of
a ftrong fniell, and of a high fiery colour ; the fame
within fids the cake as wiiho;!.:.
It is in mar.v places in great e.leem in fauces, and
on many occafions in foods ; but its great ufe is in
medicine, and indeed with us its fole ufe. It is a
high cordia', and a very powerful aperient, deter-
gent, and refolvent. It is almoft of immediate re-
lief againft faintings and palpitations of the heart :
■it alfo ftrengthcns the ftomach, and aftifts dlgeftion.
It is of great ufe in difcrders of the breaft, arifing
f:om the lungs being lor.Jed with a tough phlegm ;
and it foftens the irritating acrimony of a vitiated
f^rum on thofe parts, and by this means is often of
rreat ufe againft inveterate coughs. It opens ob-
ittuclions of the vifcera, and particulaily ia the
liver. It cures jaundices, and promotes the menfes.
It is alfo anodyne ; and occafioiially ferves as a
paregoric.
The dofe is commonly from two or three grains
to ten or twelve ; but we are told of much greater
fj'iantities given by many people ; however, the ufe
of it ought to be moderate and fesfonable ; for
when the dofe is too large, it produces a hsavinels
of the head, and a flcepinefs ; and fome have fallc»
into an immoderate, convulfive I.iughter, vvhicli
ended with death.
Crocus, in chemiftry, denotes any metal calcined
to a red or deep yellow colour : thus we meet wtt!v
crocus martis aperiens and aftringens, or the ape-
rient and aftringcnt crocufes of iron ; aifo with the
crocus veneris, or copper calcined to fuch a rcddiih
powder.
Crocus Mf.tallorum, an emetic preparation
of antimony and nitre, thus made : Take an equal
quantity of each, powder them feparately, then
mixing them well together, throw the mixture
by degrees into a red-hot crucible, where it is to re-
main till melted thoroughly ; this, after being fepa-
rated from the fcori.ie, is to be kept for ufe. By
boiling this crude crocus, firft redixt'd to a fine pow-
der, in water, and afterwards waftiing it with more
hot water, till it comes oft' infipid, is obtained the
wafhed crocus of antimony.
CROE, or Crome, an iron bar with a flat end ;
alfo a notch in the fide- boards of a calk, where the
head-pieces come in.
CROP r, a little clofe adjoining a dwelling houfe,
and ciiclofed for pafture or arable land, or any other
particular ufe.
CROISADE, Crusade, or Cruz ado, a nama
given to the expeditions of the Chnftians againft the
infidels, for the conqueft of Paleirine ; fo called b<»
caufe tlxjfe who engr:<2;ed in the undertakino; wore a
crofs on their cloaths, and boie one on their ftarv*
dard.
CROISIERS, Crucigcitt crofs bearers, a religi-
ous order founded in honour of the invention or
difcovery of the crofs, by the emprefs Helena.
CROISS.^NTE, in heraldry, is faid of a crofs,
the ends of which are faOiioned like a crefcent or
half moon. See Cross.
CROSETTES, in architeiflure, the returns in
the corners of chambranles, or door cafes, or win-
dow frames, called alfo ears, elbows, aniones, &c.
CROSIER, or Crozier, a flicpherd's crooks
a fvmbol or paftoral authoritv, confiding of a gold
or filver ('aff, crooked at the top, carried occa-
fionally before biihops and abbots, and held in the
hand when thev give the folemn benedictions. The
cufton> of bearing a pailoral ftaft' before bifhops is
very ancient. Regular abbots are allowed to ofH-
ciite with a mitre and crofier. Among the Greeks
nt>ne but a patriarch had a light to the crolicr.
Ci^osiER, in aftronomy, four ftars in the foutiiern
hemilphere, forming a crofs. Thefe ftars have too
great foiuhern latitude to he ever obferved at ths
Royal Obfervatory ; and therefore come not pro-
perly in our catalogue : nntv.'iihilanding, as they
are faid to be of great ufe to navigators in fouthern
latitudes, we (liall give their right afccnfion and
declination";, as (hey have been fettled from obferva-
tioni niide by the late Abbe dc la Caille ; whofe
% authority.
catji
COR
atithority, we believe, need not in this cafe be
queftioned. They are reduced to the fame time
with the other ilars in this diftionary, viz. 1770.
1^
.
»^
6
Name.
X
3
J
2
I
a
3
2
2
y
4-
|3
Right
Afcenfion,
1H0.46.05
83.30.00
Declinati-
on South.
5728.11
61.49.28
18445-23 70-5I-34
188.36.46l 58.25.45
Var.ir
Right
Afcen
46.5
48-3
50.4
51-3
Var. In
Dcti..
nation.
20.04
20 01
19.97
19.83
CROSLET, in heraldry, is when a crofs is
rrofied again at a fniall diflance from each of the
fuds, Upton fays it is not fo often borne by itfelf
In arms, as other crolles are, but often in diminu-
tr. cs, that is, in fmall croflets fcattered about the
field.
CROSS, Crux, in antiquity, a fpecies of punifla-
inent, or rather the inftrument wherewith it was in-
flicted, confifting of two pieces of wood crofTing
each other.
Cross, in heraldry, is defined by Guillim, an
ordinary compnfed of four- fold lines, whereof two
are perpendicular, and the other two tranfverfe ; for
fo we muft conceive of them, though they are not
drawn throughout, but meet, by couples, in four
ri^ht angles, near about the fefl'e-point of the
efcutcheon. The contents of a crofs is not always
the fame ; for when it is not charged, it has only
the fifth part of the field ; but if it be charged, then
>t muft contain the third part thereof.
Cross-Jack, in naval affairs, a fail extended
on the lower- yard of the mizen-maff, called hence
the crofs-jack yard. This fail, however, is very
feldom ufed.
Cross-Piece, in naval affairs, a piece of wood
extended over the wimilafs in merchant fhips to
fallen ropes to : the two ends of it are let into the
knight-heads. See Knight-Heads.
Cross-Staff, the fame with fore-ftaff. See
the article Fore-Staff.
Cross-Staff, in furveying, an infirument,
foinelimes made of brafs ; but oftener of wood:
when it is of brafs, it coiififfs of a circle, divided
into four quadrants, by two lines interfecting each
other at right angles in the center; and at the four
points where thofe iiuerfedt the circumference, a/e
fixed four fights, flit with a fine thread in each, in
the fame manner as in the theodilite, and under
each flit, a fmall fight-hole. When it is made of
wood it is nothing more than a perfedl fquare, v/ith
two flits, cut with a faw, in a diagonal manner,
from corner to corner, which it is evident will in-
terfeft one another at right angles in the middle :
and in both cafes it is mounted on a flafF. The ufe
of this inflrutnent is as follows :
COR
Let ABODE (Plate XXXIX. Jig. 8.) be a
field, or piece of land to be meafured ; when you
go into it, look round and confider in what manner
it can be mofl commodioufly divided into trianglej ;
which fuppofe the triangles ABC, C D £, and
ACE: with your chain begin and meafure frojn
A in a right-line towards C ; but when you imagine
you come near a, fet up your crofs, and direft
two of the fights, or one flit (if your crofs be a
wooden one) towards A and C, which being done,
if through the other you can fee E, then are you
fure you are in the point where the perpendicular
E a will fall ; but if you cannot, move it a little one
way or other, as you find occafion, until you can ;
which being done, meafure from your flafF to E,
the perpendicular a E, and then continue your mea-
furing towards C ; but when you come to b, you
mufl obferve the fame dire£lions, with regard to the
perpendiculars B b, as was given for a E, and then
meafure on to C. This being done, will have the
bafe A C, and two perpendiculars a E, and B b of
the triangles ABC, and A EC; whence by the
common rule for meafuring triangles, their content
will be eafily found : and if the fame be obferved,
with regard to the triangle CDE, and the three
areas added together, it will give the area of the
whole piece, if all the fides be right-lines : but if
they be curved or crooked, as the fides A E or C D,
it is evident this method can never give the true con-
tent ; for if it be bent outwards, as C D, it will
give the area of the triangle CDE too much by
the fpace, included between the fide C D, and the
flraight dotted line ; and if it be bent inward, as
A E, it will give the area too fmall, by the fpaie
included between that fide and dotted line A E :
and in either of thefe cafes, another method of
furveying muft be made ufe of by thofe who
would be accurate artifts. See the article Sur-
veying.
Cross-Trees, certain pieces of timber laid a-
crofs the heads of the lower- marts to make a frame
for the top to reft on. The ufe of the top is to ex-
tend the fhrouds of the top-mafts, that they may
fupport it the better.
CROSSELET, a little or diminutive crofs, ufed
in heraldry, wdiere the fliield is frequently feen co-
vered with croflelets ; alfo fefles and other ho-
nourable ordinaries, charged or accompanied wi:h
crofTeleis, Croiles frequently terminate in Cfolle-
lets.
CROTAPHITES, in anatomy, a mufcleof the
lower jaw, ferving to draw it upwards. Its fibres
fpring fron-i the bones of the forehead, the finciput,
fphenoides, and temporale, which meeting, and as
it were entering under the os jugale, whence alfo
this mufcle receives fome fibres, proceed to the pro-
ceflijs corone, into which they are inferted.
CROTCflES, in naval architecture, certain
crooked timbers in the after- holdj on which to focm
the
C R O
he narrower parts of a fliip as flic approaches to the
ftcrn.
Crotches are alfo certain crooked pieces of
wood or iron, fixed in different places of the fliip
to fupporr the fpare-mafts, &c.
CROTCHET, in mufic, one of the notes or
charadlers of time, marked thus ^, equal to half a
minim, and double of a quaver. See the articles
Character, Minim, and Quaver.
A dot added to thecrotcher, thus f-, increafes its
time by one half, that is, makes it equal to a crotchet
and a half.
Crotchet, in printing, a fort of flraight or
curved line, always turned up at each extreme ;
ferving to link fuch articles as are to be read toge-
ther; and ufed la analytical tables, &c. for facili-
tating the divifions and fubdivifions of any fubjedt.
Crotchets are alfo marks or charaders, ferv-
ing to inclofc a word or fcntence, which is dillin-
guilhed from the reft, being generally in this form
[ J or this ( ).
CRO 1 OLARIA, in botany, a genus of plants,
whofe flowers is papilionaceous j and contains ten
ftaniina, joined together.
The fruit is a fliort twigid legumen or pod,
opening with two valves, and filled with renifurm
feeds.
CROTON, in botany, a genus of plants, pro-
ducing male and female flowers. The male flowers
of which being lefs than the female, confift of five
obK)ng, obtufe petals, fcarce larger than the cup,
with ten or fifteen ftamina. The petals of the fe-
male flower are the fame as in the male.
The fruit is a roundifli capfule, with cells, each
cell having two valves, and contains in each a foli-
tary, large, ovated feed.
This is the licinoides of Tournefort.
CROUP of a Horfe., in the manege, the extre-
mity of the reins above the hips.
CROUPADE, in the manege, a leap, in which
the horfe pulls up his hind legs, as if he drew them
up to his belly. Croupades difl:'er from caprioles and
balotades, in this, that in croupades the horfe does
not jerk, as he does in the other two airs.
CROW, or Carrion-Crow, in ornithology,
the Englifh name of a fpecies of corvus, about the
lize ot the largeft tame pigeon, and all over of a
fine deep black colour, with large eyes and reflex
brilHes at the noftrils.
Royjlon Crow, the Englifli name of another
fpecies of corvus, with the body grey, the head,
throat, wings, and tail, black.
Crow, in mechanics, a kind of iron lever with
a claw at one end, and a fliarp point at the other ;
ufed for heaving or purthafing great weights.
Crow's Bill, among fuigeons, a kind of for-
ceps for drawing bullets and other foreign bodies out
of wounds.
J5
C R O
Crow's Feet, in the military art, machines of
iron, having four points, cacli about three or four
inches long, fo made that whatever way they fall,
there is flill a point up : they are thrown upoa
breaches or in pafles where the enemy's cavalry arc
to march, proving very troublefome by running into
the horfe's feet and laming them.
Crow-Eoot, in naval affairs, a certain com-
plication of ropes that fpread outward from a block
to hang the awnings by, or keep the top-fails from
getting againfl the edges of the tops.
Crow-Eoot, in botany, the Englifli name of
the ranunculus. See Ranunculus.
Crow-Staves, the two upright pieces inferted
into the box of a plough, and bored with a number
of holes, by means of which they fupport a tranf-
verfe piece, called the pillow of the plough. Sec
the articles Plough and Pillow.
CROWN, an ornament worn on the head by
kings, foveieign princes, and noblemen, as a maik
ot their dignity.
The Roman emperors had four kinds of crowns,
ftill feen on medals, viz. a crown of laurel, a ra-
dial or radiating crown, a crown adorned with pearls
and precious ftoncs, and the fourth a kind of bon-
net or cap, fomething like the mortier.
Crown, in commerce, a general name for coins
both foreign and domcltic, which are of, or very
near, the value of five fhillings fterling.
Crown, in architecture, denotes the uppermoft
member of the corniche, called alfo corona, and lar-
mier. See the articles Corona and Larmier.
Crown, in afironomy, a name given to two
conflellations, the one called borealis, the other -
meridionalis. See the article Corona.
Crown, in geometry, is a plane ring included be
tween two concentric perimeters, and is generated by
the motion of fome part of a right line round a cen-
ter, the faid moving part not being contiguous to
the center.
The area of a crown will be had by multiplyino-
its breadth by the length of the middle periphery ;
for a feries of terms in arithmetic progreiuon being
n X '—, that is, the fum of the firft and laft
multiplied by half the number of terms, the middle
element muft be "-; wherefore that multiplied
by the breadth, or fum of all the two terms, will
give the crown.
Crown of Colours, certain coloured rings which
like halos appear about the body of the fun or moon,
but of the colours of the rain-bow, and at a lefs
diftance than the common iialos. Thtfe crowns
Sir Ifaac Newton fhevvs to be made by the fun's
(liining m a fine day, or the moon in a clear r.it>hr,
through a thin cloud of globules of water or hail,
all of the fame bignefs. And according as the glo-
8 M buleg
C R U
C R U
biiles are 1 igger or lefler, the diameters of tlicfe
crowns will be larger or rmaller ; and the more ecjual
thefe slobules arc to one another, the more crowns
of colouis will appear, and the colours will be the
more lively.
Crown-Glass denotes the fineft fort of win-
dow-glafs. See the article Glass.
Crown-ImperiaLj in botany. See the article
Fritillaria.
Crown Office, an office that belongs to the
King's bench-cuurt, of which the king's coroner or
attorney is conimonly mafler. In this office, the
attorney-general and clerk of the crown feverally ex-
hibit informations for crimes and mifdemeanors at
common law, as in the cafe of batteries, confpira-
cies, libelling, &c. on which the offender is liable
to pay a fine to the king.
Crown-Post, in architecture, a pofl: which in
feme buildings (land upright in the middle between
two principal rafters, and from it there go flruts or
braces <o the middle of each rafter. It is fometimes
called a king's piece, or joggle piece.
Crown-Wheel of a IFatch, the upper wheel
next the ballance, which by its motion drives the
ballance, and in royal pendulums is called the
fwing-whecl.
Crown-Work, in fortification, an out-work
having a very large gorge, generally the length of
the curtin of the place, and two long fides termi-
nating towards the field in two demi-baftions, each
of which is joined by a particular curtin to a whole
baftion, which is the head of the work. The
crown-work is intended to inclofe a rifing ground,
or to cover the head of a trenchment.
CROWNING, in architeflure, is underftood of
any thing that finifhes a decoration. Thus a cor-
niche, a pediment, acroteria, are called crownings.
Crowning, in naval affairs, the finifliing part
of a knot made by the ends of the different ilrands
of a rope, being artfully intertwilfed amongff each
other to keep the end fafl in fome place afligned for
it.
CRUCIANELLA, in botany, a genus of plants,
whofe flower confifts of a fingle petal: the tube is
cylindrical, and the border is quadrifid and fmall :
it hath four ftamina ; and the fruit is two capfules,
growing together, each containing an oblong feed.
This is the rubeola of Tournefort.
CRUCIBLE, a chemical veflTel made of earth,
and fo tempered and baked as to endure the greateft
heat. They are ufed to melt metals, and to flux
minerals, ores, &c.
The figure of a crucible is commonly that of an
obtufe conoid, with its bafe at the top, and obtufe
apex at the bottom ; whence this conical figure may
be varied, till it comes to the hollow fegment of a
fphere. It is a rule that the lower and wider they
are made, the more eafily the volatile matter flies
4
from the fixed, and that the fire is applied to more
of the furface, both of the whole fubjeiSt and its
fixed part.
CRUCIFIX, a crofs upon which the body of
Chrift is faffened in effigy, ufed by the Roman ca-
tholics to excite in their minds a ftrong idea of our
Saviour's paffion.
CRUCIFORM, in general, fomething difpofed
crofs-wife ; but more efpecially ufed by botanife,
for flowers confifting of four petals difpofed in the
form of a crofs : fuch are the flowers of cabbage,
rocket, wall-flower, &c. See Flower.
From this flruflure of the flower, Tournefort has
denominated one of his clafles of plants cruciformes ;
comprehending all plants with cruciform flowers,
called by Linnsus tetradynamia.
CRUCIS ExpERiMENTUM. See the article Ex-
perimentum Crucis.
CRUDE, an epithet given to fomething that
has not pafll-d the fire, or had a proper degree of
coflion.
CRUDITY, among phyfidans, is applied to
undigefted fubftances in the flomjch ; to humours
in the body which are unconcofled, and not pre-
pared for expulfion ; and to the excrements.
The crudity of the humours or morbific matter
in a difeafe, is difcovered chiefly from a fault '\n the
quantity or quality of the circulating as vi^ell as the
fecreted humours, as of fweat, mucus, faliva, u-
rine, pus, blood, &c.
CRUOR, among anatomifts, fometimes fignifie's
the blood in general ; fometimes only the venoiis
blood ; and fometimes extravafaced, or coagulated
blood.
CRUPPER, in the manege, the buttocks of a
horfe, the rump ; alfo a thong of leather put under
a horfe's tail, and drawn by thonffs to the buckle
behind the faddle, fo as to keep him from cafling
the faddle forwards on his neck.
CRURA Clitoridis, in anatomy, two legs of
the clitoris, which run from the ofla pubis, and are
three times as long as the clitoris in its natural ftate.
See the article Clitoris.
Crura MedulljeOblongaTjE, thetwolar-
geft legs or roots of the medulla oblongata, which
proceed from the cerebrum.
CRUR/EUS, or Crureus Musculus, in an-
atomy, a flefhy mafs, covering almoft all the fore-
fide of the OS femoris, between the two vafti, which
likewife cover the edges of this mufcleoneach fide.
It is fixed to the forefide of the os femoris, from
the anterior furface of the great trochanter, down
to the loweft quarter of the bone, by fibres which,
run down fucceflively over each other, between the
two vafii, and are partly united to thefe two muf-
cles, fo that they do not feem to fomi a diftindl
mufcle.
CRURAL, in anatomy, an epithet given to the
artery.
CRY
artery which conveys the blood to the crura, or
legs, and to the vein by which this blood returns
towards the heart.
CRUS, in anatomy, all that part of the body
contained between the buttocks and the toes ; it is
divided into thigh, leg, and foot. See Thigh,
Leg, and Foot.
CRUSCA, an Italian term fignifying bran, is in
ufe amongtt us to denote that celebrated academy
called Delia C'rufca, eftablifhed at Florence, for pu-
rifying and peifeding the Tufcan language.
CRUSTA V'lLLOSA, in anatomy, the fourth
tunic, or coat, of the-ftomach. See the article
Stomach.
Crusta Lactea, in medicine, the fame with
achor, being fcabby eruptions with which the heads
of children are often troubled. See the article A-
CHOR.
CRUSTACEOUS, an appellation given to ani-
mals covered with fhells made up of feveral pieces,
in contradiftindlion to thofe confifting of a fingle
. piece : the former are known, among authors, by
the name of malacoftraca ; and the latter, by that
of teftaceous. See the articles A4alacostraca
and Testaceous.
CRUZADO, the fame with croifade. See the
article Croisade.
Cruzado, in commerce, a Portuguefe coin;
(truck under Alphonfus V. about the year 1457, ^^
riie time when pope Calixtus fent thither the bull
for the croifade againfl the infidels.
CRYMODES, among phyficians, a kind of fe-
ver attended with a fliivering cold and inflammation
of the internal parts of the body. See the article
Fevkr.
CRYPTOGAMIA, jipuTrrc;, hid, and yaf^o;,
•marriage, a name given by Linnoeus to the twenty-
fourth clafs of plants in his fyilem of botany. This
•ctafs confifts of fuch plants, whofe organs of fruc-
tification is either concealed within the fiuit itfelf,
or fo minute, as not to be perceptible to the naked
eye. The fructification in thefe is alfo of an un-
common ftruiSlure. To this clafs belong the ferns,
niofl'es, flags, mufhrooms, &c. See the articles
"Fern A4oss- &c.
CRYTOGRAPHY, the art of writing in cy-
pher, or with fympathetlc Ink. See the articles
Cypher and Ink.
CRYSTAly, KftraXAo; in natural hiflory, the
■name of a very large clafs of ioffils ; hard, pellu-
xid, ar.d naturally colouriefs.; of regularlyangular
figures, compofed of fimpk", not filamentous plates;
^ot flexible nor elafiic, giving iiie with fteel ; not
fermenting in acid niLtiliiua, and caJciiiing in a
ftrong fire.
Crystal, is alfo uftd for a faflitious body,
caft in glafs-houfcs, called cryftal-glafs ; being, in
£ii5l, no niore than glufs carried, in the cojupofi-
CUB
tion and manufacture, to a greater perfetHion than
the Common glafs.
Crystals, in chemiftry, falts or other matters
fhot, or congealed, in manner of cryftal.
Crystals 0/ Silver, or Lunar Cryjlah, are fi'l-
vcr reduced into the form of falts, by the pointed
acids of fpirit of nitre. Thefe cryftals are like the
folutions of an immediate cauflic : they burn the
fkin on the flightefl: touch.
CRYSTALLI, among phyficians, eruptions a-
bout the fize of a lupin, white and tranfparent,
which fometimes break out all over the body.
CRYSTALLINE, in general, fomething com-
pofed of, or rcfembling cryftal. See the article
Crystal.
Crystalline Heavens, in ancient aftrono-
my, two fpheres, imagined between the primum
mobile and the firmament, in the Ptolemaic fyftem,
which fuppofcs the heavens folid, and only fufcep-
fible of a fingle motion. See the article Ptole-
maic System.
Crystalline Humour, in anatomy, a thicJc^
compadt humour, in form of a flattifh convex lens',
fituated in the middle of the eye, ferving to make
that refra£lion of the rays of light, neccflary to
make them meet in the retina, and form an image
thereon, whereby vifion may be performed. Sce.
Eye.
CRYSTALLIZATION,, in chemiftry, the re-
ducing falts to their proper fpecific or cryftalline
form ; fo called from their refembling crvftals.
CRYSTALLOIDES, the cryftalliiie tunic of
the eye ; a fine membrane containing the cryftalline
humour.
CUB, a bear's whelp. Among hunters, a fox
and a marten of the firft year, are called cubs.
CUBATURE of a Solid, in geometry, the mea-
furing the fpace contained in it ; or finding the folid
contents of it.
CUBE, in geometry, a folid, contained under
fix equal fquare fides. Its folidity is found by multi-
plying the length of one of its fides twice into itfelf :
Thus, if the length of the fide were four inche?^
&c. 4x4X4=64, the folidity required.
CUBEBS, Cuheha, dried berries, greatly^ refem-
bling pepper, but furniflied each with a flender ftalk,-
whence they are called by fome, piper caiidatuin.
They are the fruit of an Eaft-Indian tree, of which
we have no particular account, fnid to relemble the
apple-tree, and to produce its berries in clufters.
Cubic Numbers, in arithmetic, are fuch as are
formed by the multiplication of fome one number twice
into itfelf. Thus 4x4x41=: 64 a cubic number ;
hence by comparing this with the foregoing article,,
it is eaiy to fee the analogy there is between the
geometrical folid, called a cube, and a cube num^
ber in arithmetic.
There are a ^rcat many remarkable properties in
cubic
CUB
•cu"bic numbers, wlMch may be fesn in mofl books
of arithmetic and algebra, but which it is foreign
to our province to take notice of here.
Cubic ^antities, in algebra, wherein any qusn-
.tity, as X is involved to the third power ; that i',
muliiplied twice into itfelf, as was faid of number?,
and it is exprcfTeJ by xxx, or xt ; this is called a
.fimple cubic quantity : a compound one is formed
of the continued multiplication of two fimple quan-
.tities, connefted with the figns -|- or — : as x -\- y
involved to the third power is a-: -j- 3 x'^y + 3 *•/ +
f ; that of *• — y'lsx' — 3 ■**>' -+• 3 ">'' — ^- ^^^
A'lultiplicjtiofi of Algebra.
Cubic Equation, in algebra, is an eq"ation whofe
highefl: power is of three dinienfions, that is, has
the unknown quantity involved to the power, as
x'=za-\-b, or a-' J^- a x"- -\- b x ::=. d.
All cubic equations have three different roots ei-
ther poffible or impoflible ; but any one of them be-
ins; once obtained, the reft may eafily be found.
Thus, for example : The equation at' — 4 v" -f-
nx — 6=;0, has only one real root, which is 2,
and two impoflible ones : Now thofe impoflible ones
may be eafily found from having the real one given
thus. Divide the equation x — 4 .v' -j- 7 a- — 6 =
O, by A' — 2, the quotient A- — 2 .v -f 3, muft cer-
tainly be equal to nothing, fince both the dividend
and d'ivifor are fo ; whence we have a'^— 2 a' = — 3,
and by compleatinfj the fquare and proper reduction,
we get A' := I + ^ — 2lthe two roots required, for
either of thofe being wrote in the equation for .v,
will make all its te:ms deftroy one another, equally
with the number 2, but then thofe are called im-
pofTible roots, becaufe they require the extraftion of
the fquare root out of the negative number 2. Again,
if x' z=.a' was given, wefliould have, befide a-:=: o,
the poflible root ; a- = <? X V ± ^ — il, two other
values of a-.
But it may not perhaps be amifs to obferve here,
that it veiy often happens, more efpecially in the fo-
lution of geometrical problems, that the roots of
equations are poflible, when the cafes to which
they relate, may exhibit them impoflible. As for
example :
Let ABC, (Plate XXXIX. /^.g.) be a circle
■whofe diameter is A C, and let A B be any chord
infcribed in it ; from B, the end of the chord, draw
the line BD perpendicular to the diameter AC j
and let it be required, having given the lines A B
and A C, to compute AD, the fegment of the di-
ameter intercepted between the point A and D the
foot of the perpendicular. Join B C, and call
A Da-: then will the fim.dar triangles A D B and
ABC give the lollowing proportion, to wit, A C
AB»
is to A B as A B is to A D or a- ; whence x ■=. -^-— ;
A L.
therefore a-, the root of this equation, will be e-
qually peflibje, whether A B be greater or lefs than
CUB
A C ; but the problem will not be poffible unlefs the
chord AB be lefs than the diameter AC. Here then we
have an inftance of a problem's producing an equa-
tion whofe root continues to be pon"ibIe, even wherr
the problem ceafes to be fo, on account of the li-
mitation abovemcnsior.ed, to wit, that the problem
AB mufl- be lefs than A C. To explain this myf-
tery, let AC and AB be any Xvio given lines, and
let it be required to afllgn a third propoitional to
them, which we call x: fince then aC is to A B,
A B'
as A B is to A-, we have again *■ =: . „ : but this
problem is as unlimited a: the equation it produces ;
for it is certain the two quantities A C and A B will
admit a third proportional, whether A B be greater
or lefs than A C. The cufe then ftands thus : here
is an equation arifing from a limited problem ;
but ihis equation is alfo intended to folve another
problem that is abfolutely unlimited ; therefore it
ought not to be expefled that the equation fliould
be liable to any reflridion, whatever may be the
cafe of the problem that produced it.
The following metliod of folving cubic equations
by mer.ns of the right-angled triangle ABC (Plate
XXXIX. fig. 10.) as given by the late Mr. Cotes,
we apprehend will be acceptable to our readers. He
confidtis all cubic equations under this one general,
form, viz. A-^ + 3 a^ A- = + aa'^i ; and the trian-
gle right at A, as having always two fides given,
reprefenting the known quantities a and b in the e-
quation.
Cafe I. If the equation be a' -|- 3 fi* a := + 2fl*^,
make AB = fl, hQz=.b\ and let m and n be two
mean proportionals between B C -j- C A and B C
— CA: then will w — « be the onlv poflible affir-
mative root, or n — m the only poflible negative
root in the equation, according as the abfolute term
is 4- or — 2 a* b.
Cafe II. If the equation be a-^ — 3 rt'' *=: J^d^ 1^,
and a be lefs than b ; make AB=:;rtBC=;^, and
let ni and « be the only poflible affirmative root,
and — in — n the only pofTible negative one, accord-
ingly as the abfolute term is -f- or — 2 a^ b.
Cafe III. If the equation be a^ — 3 c^ a- = J^
a^ b, and a be greater than b, make A 6 xi; ^, B C
=1(7, and let ni be the fine of one-third part of the
fum of the two angles A and B, and n the fine of
a third part of their difference, in a circle whofe ra-
dius is 2 B C ; then will the three roots of the equa-
tion be w -}- /;, — m and — n, or -f- ?«, -f- n, and
— m — «, according as the abfolute term is -j- or — ■
2 a* b.
The analogy of thefe three cafes, confifts in this 5
that whereas the two firft cafes are refolved by the
fum and difference of the fides BC and C A, the
laft cafe is refolved by the fum an J difference of
their oppofite angles A and B : and wheress the two
firft cafes were obtained by the trifedion of a ratio,
in
cue
cue
In the laft they are had by the trifcinion of an
angle.
Thofe who are curious to fee a demonftration of
the preceding elegant method of folution, may have
ample fdtisfadion, by confulting Sandcrfon's Alge-
bra, page 719.
Cubic Hyperbola. See Hyperbola.
Cubic Parabola. See Parabola.
CUBIT, in the menfuration of the ancients, a
long meafure, equal to the length of a man's arm,
from the elbow to the tip of the fingers.
Dr. Arbuthnot makes the Englifti cubit equal to
eighteen inches ; the Roman cubit equal to i foot,
5,406 inches ; and the cubit of the Scripture equal
to 1 foot, g,888 inches.
CUBITi¥]US, in anatomy, the name of two
mufcles ; the one called cubitaeus externus, being
the firft of the extenfor mufcles of the fingers, arifes
from the external extuberance of the humerus, and
parting its tendon under the ligamentum annulare,
is inferred into the fourth bone of the metacarpus
that fuftains the little finger : the other is the cubi-
tjeus internus, which arifeth from the internal ex-
tuberance of the humerus, and the upper part of
the ulna, upon which it runs all along, till it pafles
under the ligamentum annulare, and is inferred,
by a ftrong and fhort tendon, into the fourth of
the firft order of the carpus.
V CUBITUS, in anatomy, a bone of the arm,
reaching from the elbow to the wrift, otherwlfe
called the ulna. The cubitus, for the fake of the
more eafy and varied motion, is compofed of a bi-
nary number of bones, called the cubitus, or ulna,
and the radius. The fituation of the ulna is inte-
rior, its length is greater than that of the radius,
and has a motion of flexion and extenfion.
CUBOIDES, or Os Cuboides, in anatomy,
the feventh bone of the foot, fo called from its re-
fembling a cube. It is fituated in the external fide
of the tarfus, where it receives the outer bone of
themetatarfus, and is articulated with the neighbour-
ing bones.
CUCKOO, in ornithology, the Englifh name
of a well known bird, called by zoologills, cucu-
lus. SeeCucuLUS.
Cuckoo-Flo wER, iri botany, a namefometimes
given a plant, more generally called cardamine, or
lady's fmock.
Cuckoo-Pint, in botany, theEnglifli nameof
the arum. See Arum.
Cuckoo-Spit, the fame with froth-fpit. See
the article Eroth-Spit.
CUCUBALUS, in botanv, a genus of plants,
whofc flower confiffs of five petals, the ungues of
which are of the length of the cup. The filaments
are awl-fliaped, and ten in number, topped with
oblong antherae. The fruit is a clofe acuminated
caplule, opening at the top in five parts, and con-
tains a number of rouiidifh feeds.
35
CUCULLARIS, in anatomy, a mjicic of the
fcapula, otherwife called trapezius: it arifes from
the OS occipitis, the fpinofe apophyfes of the neck,
and of the fcvcnth and eighth of the back. Its ter-
mination is at the fpine of the fcapula. It has the
power of feveral very difFercnt motions ; the diffe-
rent courfe of its feveral fibres enabling it, as they
adl differently, to move the fcapula upwards, down-
ward?, or backwards.
CUCULUS, the cuckoo, in ornithology, a ge-
nus of birds, of the order of the pica;, the cha-
raders of which are thefe : the beak is fmooth ; the
noflrils are a little prominent ; the tongue is entire,
and faggitated ; the toes are four in number, two
before and two behind.
The common cuckoo is a bird of confidcrable-
beauty, which breeds with us, but does not remain
all the year.
Its head, neck, and back, are of a hoary colour,.
with fome dark grey feathers ; the wings are of a
brownifh black, the throat of an undulated flefh
colour, and the belly whitifh. The colour of the
female differs but very lade from that of the
male.
CUCUMBER, Cucumis, in botany, a genus of.
plants which trail on the ground, on which the
leaves are alternately difpoled, ferrated on their
edges, and rough to the touch ; they are furniflied
vvi'.h tendrils, and the flowers proceed from where
the leaves join the ftalk. There are male and
female placed at dillances on the fame plant ; both-
are camanulated and monopetalous, and cut into
five ovated roucrh ferments. The male flower
or*
hath three very fhort filaments inferred in the calyx,,
two of which have bifid tops ; thefe are terminated
by fmall linear antherse. The female flowers have
no ftamina, but are furnifhed with three fmall acu-
minated filaments, with a fliort, cylindraceous flyie*
The fruit is oblong, ttilocular, and fleihy, and
contains a number of oval, flat, pointed feeds.
There are feveral varieties of cucumbers, fome
of which are raifed very early in the fpring on hot-
beds, and fo very eager are many narrow-minded
gardeners, to cut a cucumber a day or two fooner
than their neighbours, that they pofTefs themfelves
with a belief, that it is the ultimatum of gardenings
and therefore give themfelves but little trouble wist*
the other branches of their profeflaon, if they excel
in this.
The art of raifing cucumbers early depends upon,
the judgment, care, and pradliceof the perlbn who
undertakes it ; for although many gardeners pretend
to myfteries in this art, it depends v/holly upon the
following rules, viz. to throw up fome new hot
dung for a week or ten days, in order to foment
and evaporate the ftench ; to make the bed where
they are to grow even and true; and v.'hen the ex-
treme heat is off, after the bed is earthed, (whicli
fljould not be too much at firfl, left it ftioulJ burn)
8 N Km
cue
■ta -put the plants out carefully ; to give air to tlie
pJaiits at all opportunities ; but this nuill be done
v.ith great caution, for if too much is let in, the
plants will be deftoyecl, as they are extremely ten-
tier ; and if they have too little, they are either
drawn up weak, or elfe deflroyed by the fteam cf
the dung. It is impoilible to give precife rules for
this regulation, as it iiitirely depends upon the prac-
tice and judgment of the manager. As the plants
continue to advance in growth, they fliould have
more earth added to them, and their extremities
Ihortened, in order to put forth the fooner lateral
fiioots, which produce the fruit, and from time to
time they {hould be kept thinned, otherwife they
would grow in confufion. When the heat of the
bed is beginning to decline, fome freiTi dung fliould
be laid round the fides, obferving not to line higher
than the bed ; upon this barley ftraw, coarfe hay,
&c. may be continued up to the top ot the box ;
when the bed is in good heat they may be watered,
if the earth is dry, taking the opportunity of good
weather. The glaffes fliould be covered at night in
proportion to the heat of the bed and warmth of
the weather, and at the time of blowing, to give as
much air as poiTible, without detriment.
The young plants are raifed from feeds under a
glafs on hot dung, and afterwards, either pricked
out on a bed prepared, or in pots, and plunged in
the fame.
The firft feafon for fowing cucumbers is at Chrift-
nas, or the beginning of January, and the laft is
about the end of May. This is done in the natural
ground, and their produce is made ufe of for pick-
Cucumbers are very cooling and vifcid, and there-
fore apt todifpofe the blood to putrid fermentations.
They do well therefore who drefs them with a good
quantity of vinegar and pepper ; for as the former
helps to keep up the due tenfity and contra<9:ion of
the folids, the other preferves the proper fiuiditv of
the juices, and prevents them from running into
morbid cohefions ; they are likewife pretty well fe-
cured againft the above-mentioned mifchiefs, by
pickling with the like ingredients. The feeds are
reckoned amon^ the four greater cold feeds; thefe
are cooling, and fometimes emulfions of them have
been prefcribed in burning fevers, a fit of the gra-
ve], and heat of urine. To this genus Liunasus has
added the melo, colocynthis, and anguriaof Tour-
nefort.
Wild Cucumber, in botany. See the article
MOMORDICA.
CUCURBIT, in chemiflry, an earthen or glafs
veiTel, fo called from its refemblance to a gourd,
arifing gradually from a wide bottom, and terminat-
ing in a narrow neck.
Blind Cucurbit is a fmall inverted cucurbit, a-
dapted to another in fuch a manner, that the neck
C U L
of the one is inferted in that of the other. The
vtfftl called circulatory is one of this kind.
CUCURBITA, in botany, the gourd or pom-
pion, a genus of plants, whofe flower is a campanu-
lated petal, divided into five fegments, fome of
which are male and others female. 'I'he fruit is large
and flefiiy, and contains three membranaceous cells,
inclofing a number of comprefl'ed, tumid, obtufe
feeds, placed in two rows. The»e are fevetal fpccies
of cucurbita, fome of which produce fruit of a
monflrous fize, either round or long. They are
raifed from feeds, and cultivated here more forcuri-
ofity than ufe, though in America they ufe them as
fauce with their meat. An old dunghill is the beft
place to raife them upon, where they will fpread to
a great diftance, and bear plenty ot fruit.
CUCURBITULA denotes a cupping-glafs. See
the article Cupping.
CUD, fometimes means the infiJe of the throat
in hearts, and fometimes the food that they keep
there, and chew over again : from whence, to chew
the cud, fignifies, to ponder, think, or ruminate
upon a thing.
Cud Lost, implies cattle that fometimes lofe
their cud by chance, fometimes by ficknefs, pover-
ty, mourning, &c. to cure which, take four leaven
of rye bread, and fait, and mixing it with human
urine and baum, beat it in a mortar; then making a
large ball or two thereof, put them down thebeaft's
throat.
Cud-Weed, in botany. See Gnaphalium.
CUE, among ftage- players, an iem, or inuendo,
given to the adors on the ftage, what, or when ta
fpeak.
CUIRASSE, a piece of defenfive armour, made
of plate, well hammered, ferving to cover the body,
from the neck to the girdle, both before and behind :
whence
CUIRASSIERS, cavalry armed with cuirafles,
as moftof the Germans are: the French have a re-
giment of cuirafliers : but we have had none in the
Englifh army, fince the Revolution.
CUL de Lamp, in architecture, a term ufed for
feveral decorations, both of mafonry and joinery,
found in vaults and ceilings, to finifh the bottom of
works'; and wreathed fomething in the manner of a
teftudo, particularly a kind of pendentive in Go-
thic vaults.
CuL da Four, a fort of fpherical vault, like an
oven. See the article Vault.
CuL de Four of a Niche, fignifies the arched roof
of a niche, on a circular plan.
CULDEES, in church hiflory, a fort of monkifh
priefts, formerly inhabiting Scotland and Ireland.
Being remarkable for the religious exercifes of
preaching and praying, they were called, by way
of eminence, Culiores Dei ; from whence is derived
the word Culdees. They made choice of one of
their
CUM
GUP
their own fraternity to be their fpiritual head, who
was afterwards called the Scotch bifliop.
CULLIAGE, a barbarous and immoral praflice,
whereby the lords of manors anciently allumed a
right to the firft night of their vaflals brides.
CULM, among botanifls, a term ufcd to denote
the ftalk of graifes, hence called culniifcrous plants.
Sec the next article.
CULMIFEROUS Plants, in botany, fuch plants
as have a fmooth jointed flalk, ufually hollow, and
at each joint wrapped about with finglc, narrow,
fharp-pointed leaves, and their feeds contained in
chaffy hufks, as wheat, barley, &c.
CULMINATION, in aftronomy, is a term ap-
plied to any one of the heavenly bodies when it is
on the meridian.
Line of Culmination, the fame with meridian
litie.
CULPRIT, a formal reply of a proper officer
in court, in behalf of the king, after a criminal has
pleaded not guilty, affirming him to be guilty, with-
out which the ifl'ue to be tried is not joined. After
an indiflment, for any criminal matter, is read in
court, the prifoner at the bar is afked whether he is
guilty, or not guilty, of the indidlmcnt ? If he
anfwtrs, not guilty, there is a replication by the
clerk of the arraignments fiom the crown, by con-
tinuing the charge of the guilt upon him, which is
exprelTed in the word culprit.
The term culprit is a contraflion of the Latin
eulpabilis, and the French pri/i ; importing that he
is ready to prove the criminal guilty.
CULVERIN, in the military art, a large can-
non, or piece of artillery, for the kinds, weight,
and proportion of which, fee the article Can-
non.
CULVERTAILED, among (hip-wrights, fig-
nifies the fattening, or letting of one timber into
another, fo that they cannot flip out, as the catl-
ings into the beams of a (hip.
CUMMIN, Cuminum, in botany, an annual.
Umbelliferous plant, feldom rifing to a foot in
height; the leaves are divided into long, narrow
parts, like thofe of fennel, but much lefs ; the flow-
ers grow in fmall umbels on the top of the ftalks ;
thefe are fmall, rofaceous, and compofed of five
unequal petals, of a pale bluifti colour, and are
fucceeded by longifli, {lender, plano-convex feeds,
of a brownifh colour, with pale yellowifh flrice.
This plant is a native of Egypt and Ethiopia,
and cultivated in the iflands of Sicily and Malta,
from whence we are fupplied with the feeds.
The feeds of this plant is the only part ufed in
medicine ; they have a bitterifli warm tafle, ac-
companied with an aromatic flavour, but not agree-
able, with a very ftrong fmell ; it is one of the
four greater hot feeds, confifling of very warm dif-
folving parts, and accounted carminative and ftoma-
Chic. They are alfo ufed externally in cataplafms
and fomentations, wherever a warm difcutlcnt is
required.
CUNEIFORM, in general, an appellation given
to whatever refembles a wedge.
The word is formed from the Latin cuneuSf a
wedge, and forma, refemblance.
Cuneiform-Bone, in anatomy, the fcventh
bone of the cranium, called alfo os bafilare, and
OS fphenoides. Sec the article Spiienoides-Os.
CuNEIFORM-BoNES,OrOsSACuNEIFORMIA,
are alfo three bones of the foot, all different in their
fizes, and articulated with the os naviculare, and
with the three bones of the metatarfus, viz. thofe
which fupport the great toe, the fecond, and the
third. See the articles Metatarsus and Navi-
culare.
CUNETTE, or Cuvette, in fortification, a
deep trench, about three or four fathoms wide,
funk along the middle of a dry moat, to make the
paflage more difficult to the enemy.
CUNEUS, the wedge, in mechanics. See the
article Wedge.
CuNEUS, in antiquity, a company of infantry,
drawn up in form of a wedge, the better to break
through the enemy's ranks.
CU'NILA, in botany, a genus of plants, whofe
flower is monopetalous and ringent ; it contains
two filiform filaments, topped with double antherae,
it has no pericarpium ; the cup contains tour minute
oval feeds.
CUNNING, amongft feamen, the art of diieft-
ing the fleerfman to guide the (hip in her proper
courfe : the officer who has this charge is either the
pilot or quarter-mafler.
CUP, a vefTel of capacity of various forms and
materials, chiefly ufed to drink out of.
Cup, among botanifts, the fame with calyx. See
the article Calyx.
CUPOLA, in architedure, a fpherical vault ; ot
the round top of the dome of a church, in form ot
a cup inverted. See the article Do^.'lE.
CUPPEL, or Coppel, in chcmiftry. See the ar-
ticle Coppel.
CUPPING, in furgery, the operation of apply-
ing cupping-glaltes for the difcharge of blood, and
other humours, by the fkin.
The operation of cupping is not confined to any
particular member of the body ; but wherever tl.e
cupping-glafs is applied, it is fixed upon the (kir,
either intire or fcarified, and hence we have a tw^yfold
diftinction of cupping, into diy and gorey.
In dry cupping, the glafs adheres to the fkin, by
expelling or raiefying its included air by lighted flax,
or the flame of a burning candle widiin it, fo ihac
the glafs is prelTed upon the part with a confidcral^le
fcice, by the external air. The ufe of this diy-
cupping is two- fold, either to make a rcvulfioii of
the blood, from fome particular parts aitcCtcd, or
elfe to caufe a derivation of it inty the aftedted part,
upon
CUP
upon v,rhich the glafs is applied : hence we have a
icafon why Hippocrates orders a cupping-glafs to be
applitd under the breads of a woman who has too
profufe a difcharge of her menfes, intending thereby
to make a revulfion of the blood upwards from the
uterus. Dry cupping is alfo ufcd, with fuccefs, to
make a revulfion, by applying the glafies to the
temples, behind the ears, or to the neck and flioul-
dcrs, for the removal of pains, vertigoes, and other
diforders of the head : they are applied to the upper
and lower limbs, to derive blood and fpirits into
them, when they are paralytic ; and, lafliy, to re-
move the fciatica, and other pains of the joints.
The operation in thefe cafes is to be repeated upon
the part, till it looks very red, and becomes pain-
ful.
In Germany, and other northern countries, cup-
ping is much oftener joined with fcarification, than
ufed alone ; in which cafe the part is firfl to be
cupped, till it fwells and looks red, and the fkin
is to be punflured, or incifed, by the fcarifying in-
flrumcnt.
As feveral glaffes, fometimes fi.x or eight, are
often applied at once, the operator muft manage his
bufinefs fo, that fome glafles may be filling while he
is fcarifying, and adapting the others. When the
blood ceafes to flow faft enough, he muft repeat his
incifions, clofe by the former, and re-apply the
cupping-glafles. The operation being finifhed, and
the ficiii well cleanfed with a fponge, and warm
water, it is next to be rubbed over with a bit of
deer's fuet, to promote the healing : but if the
blood flill continues to flow, the fkin is to be waftied
with Ipirit of wine and hungary water, binding it up
with a comprefs and bandage.
The cupping-a,l<ifs and iiiflrument are reprefented
in (Plate XL. /J. i.)
'rhis inftrument confifls of a brafs box, on one
of whofe fides area number of lancets moveable by
a fpring within the box. "When this fide is applied
to the (kin, the fpring is to be raifed by the handle A;
and on deprefling the button B, it caufes the lancets
to pierce the (kin all at once.
CUPRESSUS, the cyprefs-tree, in botany, a
genus of coniferous trees.
The common cyprefs has a flraight thick trunk,
paliHi, and fometimes redifli ; and a very fweet
fmell. It is ever-green ; and the leaves are like
tLofe of favin, the (boots being very fmall, and
(ecmingly covered with fcales. The catkins of
male flowers have very fmall leaves or fcales, which
have each four antherie adhering to their bottom ;
but are deftitute of a corolla. The female flowers
are formed in a roundi(h cone ; and are apetalous.
The germen is fcarce vifible ; but under each
fcale there are hollowed points in the place of
ftyles.
The fruit is a fubglobofe cone, opening with
roandifh and pointed fquamas, under which is con-
4
CUR
tained the feed, being an angular acuminated fmall
nut.
Thefe trees are all propagated by fowlng their feeds
early in the fpring on a bed of warm, dry, fandy
earth, covering with the fame about half an inch
thick. In about two months time the young plants
will appear above ground, and fhould be often wa-
tered : in two years time, they will be ftrong
enough for tranfplantation into a nurfery. The
befl feafon is about the middle of April, in a cloudy
day. They may remain here three or four years,
when they may be planted where they are to remain
for good.
Cypiefs-trees are fo very ornamental to gardens,
that no large garden can be complete without many
of them ; and it is to thefe trees that the Italian villas
owe a great (hare of their beauty : for there is no
tree fo proper to place near buildings ; the pyramidal
upright growth of their branches affords a pic-
turelcjue appearance, and ob(fru<ns not the view of
the building; and the dark green of their leaves
make a fine contraft with the white of the building;
fo that wherever there are temples. Sec. eredled in
gardens, there is no fort of tree (o proper to place
near them as thefe.
The timber of this tree is faid to refift the worm^
moth, and all putrefa(3ion ; and is faid to Jafl many
hundred years. The doors of St. Peter's church at
Rome were framed of this material, which lafted from
Conftantine the Great, to pope Eugenius the Fourth's
time, which was eleven hundred years, and were
then found and entire, when the pope would needs
change them for gates of braf?. The coiBns were
made of this timber, in which, Thucydides tells us,
the Athenians ufed to bury their heroes ; and the
mummy-chefts, brought with thofe condited bodies
out of Egypt, are many of them of this wood.
This tree is by many learned authors recommended
for the improvement of the air, and a fpecific for the
lungs, as fending forth great quantities of aromatic
and balfamic fcents; wherefore many of the ancient
phyficians of the eaftern countries ufed to fend their
patients who were troubled with weak lungs, to the
ifland of Candia, which at that time abounded with
thefe trees, where, from the efFedts of the air alone,,
very few failed of a perfedl cure.
CUPRUM, or Copper, in natural hiftory. See
Copper.
CURATE properly fignifies the parfon, or vicar
of a parifh, who has the charge, or cure, of the
parifhioners fouls.
Curate alfo implies a perfon fubftituted by the
incumbent to ferve his cure in his (lead.
CURB, in the manege, a chain of iron, made
faft to the upper- part of the branches of the bridle»
in a hole, called the eye, and running over the horfe's
beard. It confifts of thefe three parts, the hook
fixed to the eye of the branch ; the chain of S S's, or
links i and the two rings or mailes.
Curb
Pl^tejcl
t/'tm^n^ Current;
CUR
Curb is alfo a hard and callous fwelling, that runs
along; the infidt- of a horfe's hoof, iti the great finew
behind, above the top of the horn, which makes
him halt, and go lame, when he has been heated.
It is to be cured by the like applications as are pre-
fcribed in the fpavin. See the article Spavin.
CURCUMA, turmeric, in botany. See the ar-
ticle Turmeric,
CURDLING, the coagulating any fluid body,
efpecially milk.
CURE cf Souls, a benefice in the Chriftian
church, the incumbent whereof has the dircdion
of confciences within a parifh.
CURETES, in antiquity, a fort of prieRs, called
alfo Corybantes, being, as fome relate, the fame
with what the Druids and Bards were afterwards
among the Gauls.
CURFEW, or Courfew, a fignal given in
cities taken in war, &c. to the inhabitants to go to
bed. Pafijuin fays, it was fo called, as being in-
tended to advertife the people to fecure themfelves
from the robberies and debaucheries of the night.
The mort eminent curfew in England was that
eftablilhed by AViHiam the Conqueror, who ap-
pointed, under f^;vere penalties, that, at the ringing
of a bell, at eight o'clock in the evenintJ, every one
ihould put out their lights and fires, and go to bed :
whence, to this dav, a bell, rung about that time,
is called a curfew bell.
CURIA, in R.oman antiquity, a certain divifion
or poriion of a tribe.
Curio, in Roman antiquity, the chief and
piiefl of each curia, or ward, whofe bufinefs it was
to ofnciate at the facrifices of the curia, called
curionia, and provide for them, the curia fiirnift.ing
him with a fum of money on that confideration.
CURLEW, the Englifh name of a bird, called
by authors, arquata and numenius. See the article
NUMENIUS.
CURNOCK, a meafure of corn, containing four
bufhels, or half a quarter.
CURRAN, or Currant, Ribes, in botany,
a flirub, whofe bark is brown ; but the extream
Ihoots are a(h- coloured. The leaves are like thofe
of the vine, but much lefs ; of a daik green above,
but covered with a foft down beneath. The flowers
grow in bunches, and are rofaceous : and the fruit
is a well known globular berry.
The red, white, and black currant, with a few
others, are eafily propagated by cuttings: when the
leaves fall in autumn, it is the belt feafon for planting
them. They grow in good land very freely, and in
three or four years will produce fruit. Great quan-
tities of the white and red currant-trees are raifed
within ten miles of London, for the fupply of the
niaikets, it being looked upon as guod a crop as
any in general, and but little expence attending
them. They are commonly planted in rows, and
in autumn the ground is dug up between them, and
35
CUR
filled with coleworts : in the winter they fhould hi
pruned, ohferving (o prcferve the fpurs which are on
the old wood, and fliortening the young fhoots. A
very little pra£licc and obfcrvation will diredl their
management.
Red currants are reckoned more wholcfome than
the white ; they are a very agree;ible acid ; and
perhaps the moft falubrious fruit that grows with
us : they greatly aflWage drought, cool and fortify
the ftomach, help digeftion, excite an appetite,
and are good againll vomiting. But if eaten in too
large quantities will caufe loofencfs, attended with
gripes, and are hurtful to the lungs.
Black currant* have a very difagreeable, naufeou's
tafte ; however, a jelly is made of them, which is
faid to be a fp.cific againft the quinfey, if fwallowed
down leil'urely in fniall quantities : it is alfo good to
cure inflammatory diftempers of the throat.
CiJRRANT, or CoUR ant-Money, that money
which paflts in commerce from one to another.
CURRENT, in hydrography, a ftream or flux
of water in any direction.
Currents, in the fea, are either natural and gene-
ral, as arifmg from the diurnal rotation of the earth
on its axis; or accidental and particular, caufcd by
the waters being driven againft promontories, or into
gulphs and ftreights ; where, wanting room to fpcead,
they aie driven back, and thus dillurb the oidinary
flux of the fea.
The currents are fo violent under the equator,
where the motion of the earth is the greatelt, that
they carry veflels very fpcedily from Africa to
America ; but abfolutely prevent their reiurn the
fame way; fo that Ibips are forced to run as far
as the .^o"" degree of latitude, to find a pafiage into
Europe.
In the Streights of Gibraltar, the currents almofl:
conftantly drive to the eaftward, and carry fliips into
the Mediterranean : they are ufuaily, too, found to
drive the fame way into St. George's channel. The
great violence and dangeroufnefs of the lea in the
Streights of Magellan, is attributed to two contrary
currents fitting in, one from the fouth, and the other
from the north fea.
Dr. Hallcy makes it highly probable, that in the
Downs, in the Streights of Gibraltar, &c. there
are under currents, whereby as much water is carried
out, as is brought in by the upper currents. This
he argues from the ofHng between the North and
South Foreland, where it runs tide and half-tide, i. e.
it is cither ebb or flood in that part of the Downs
three hours before it is fo off at fea : a ceitaln fign,
that though the tide of flood luns aloft, yet the tide
of tbb runs under-foot, i. e. clnfe by the ground ;
and fo at the tide of ebb it will flow under-foot.
riiiS he confirms by an experiment in the Baltic
Sound, communicated, to him by an able fcaman
prefent at making it : being there, then, with one
of the king's frigates, they vvent wi'.h their pinnace
SO ■ into
CUR
into the mid-fiream, and were carried violently by
the current. Soon after that, they funk a bafket
with a large cannon-bullet, to a certain depth of
water, which gave check to the boat's motion ;
and finking it ftill lower and lower, thre boat was
driven ahead to the windward, againfl the upper-
current ; the current aloft not being above four or
five fathom deep. He added, that the lower the
b<ifket was \u d^jwn, the ftrongei the under-current
was found.
From this principle, it is eafy to account for that
vaft draught of water continually pouring in with
the current out of the Atlantic into the A-Iediter-
ranean, through the flreights of Gibraltar ; a paf-
fage about twenty miles broad ; yet without any
fenfible rifing of the water along the coafts of Bar-
tary, he. or any overflowing of the lands, which
there lie very low.
Current, in navigation, may be defined, a
certain progrcflive motion of the water of the fea,
in feveral places, either quite down to the bottom,
or to a certain determinate depth, by which a fhip
may happen to be carried forward more fwiftly, or
retarded, in her courfe, according to the diredtion
or frtting of the current, in, with, or againft, the
Courfe of the fhip.
The method of finding the fetting and drift of a
current is thus : they firft fix their boat, by throw-
ing out a triangular piece of wood, with a piece of
lead faflened to it, and tied to the ffem of the boat
with a cord, and letting it fink fixty fathom, or
more ; or fonietimes, by a kettle tied by the bowl,
and funk at the other : by eitiier of thefe means,
the boat is brought to ride as at anchor ; which
done, the log is hove, the glafs turned, and as the
log- line veers out, the drift of the log is fet with the
eonipafs.
This fhews whether there be any current, or
none ; and if any, which way it fets, and at what
rate it drives, obferving, however, to add fome-
thing to the velocity for the boat's drift; for though
Ihe appears to Hand flill, yet, in reality, fhe is
found to move. This addition experience has thus
determined ; if the line fhe rid be fixty fathom, a
third part of the drift is to be added ; if eighty fa-
thom, a fourth ; if an hundred, a fifth.
If a fhip fail along the diredion of a current, it
is evident the velocity of the current muff be added
to that of the vefTel : if her courfe be direiSlIy a-
gainft the current, it muft be fubffraifled ; if fhe fails
athwart the current, her motion will be compounded
with that of the current, and her velocity aug-
mented, or retarded, according to the angle of her
diredion with that of the direflion of the current,
i. e. (he will proceed in the diagonal of the two
lines of diredlion, and will defcribe or pafs through
that diagonal in the fame time wherein fhe would
have defcribed either of the fides, by the feparate
forces.
1
> 9.8448926
CUR
Suppofe a fhip fails NE. 30 miles, in a current
fetting ESE. 20 miles, in the fame time j required
her true courfe and diftance .''
Geometrically.
Having drawn the compafs N E S W, (Plate XL.
fg. 2.) let A be the place of the fliip, and draw the
NE. line A B = 30 ; then will B be the place the
(hip would have arrived at, if there had been no
current. From B draw the line BC parallel to the
ESE. line A:, making it equal to 20 miles, the
current's drift ; then will C be the fhip's true place,
the angle N A C her true courfe, ajid A C her true
diftance.
Arithmetically.
In the triangle A B C are given the fide A B =
30 miles, the fide B C = 20 miles, and the angle
A B C = 112°. 30'. = angle d Ac = diftance be-
tween the S W. and ESE. lines; to find the anele
BAC, and the fide AC.
I. To find the angle A, it will be, Asthefumcf
the fide A B and BC =50 — — 1.69897C0
Is to their difference = 10 — — 1 oooocoo
So is the tangent of the half fum of j
the angles A and C z= 33°. 45'
To the tangent of half their differ- ) 7
ence = 7». 37'. _ _ \ 9-1259226
Whence the angle A will be = 26". 80'. which,
being added to the angle NAB, the courfe fleered,
will give the angle N A C, or true courfe = 71". 08'.
or E N E. a quarter eafterly nearly.
To find the fide AC, the fhip's true diftance,
it will be. As the fine of the angle A =: 26".
°° • — 9.6490203
Is to the fide BC = 20 — i. 3010300
So is the fine of the angle B 1= Ii2'. 30'. 9.9656153
To the fide A C, the dift. required = 414 1. 6176250
Suppofe a fhip, making her way good within 7
points of the wind, is bound to a port lying diredlly
to windward or N N E. diftant lOO miles, and a
current under-foot fetting N. by W. 45 miles in the
time the fhip fails 55 miles; required her true courfe
and diftance on each tack to gain her intended port,
as alfo her diftance fhe muft fail by the log.
Geometrically.
Having drawn the compafs N E S W. (fig- 7..')
let A be the place failed from ; draw the N N E.
line A B equal to joo miles, then will B reprefent
the port the fhip is bound to. Draw the lines A G,
A g, at feven points diftant from the wind line A B,
and make each z=: 55 miles, the diftance filled by
the log during the experiment ; through G and g
draw the lines G D, ^ 4 parallel to the W, by N.
line A m, the fetting of the current, making
each = 45 miles, the drift of the current during
4 ths
CUR
the experiment, and draw the lines AD and A J;
then will D or dy according as (lie failed upon the
larboard or ftarboard tatk, be ihc true place of the
fhip at the end of the experiment, or vvhiic flie fails
55 miles by the log. From B draw the lines B C
and B c, the former parallel to Ad, and the latter
parallel to AC, continuing them till they meet the
lines A C and A d \n Q and c. The problem being
thus conftrufted, the feveral requifites may be mea-
fured by the line of chords and equal parts. For if
the fhip fails firfl on the larboard tack, continuing-
her courfe till (he has failed by the log the diftance
A H, tlien will her true place be C, her true courfe
the angle N A C, and her true diftance A C ; then
getting her (larboard tacks on board, and (landing to
the weftward, when (he has failed by the log the
diftance C « =: A A, (he will arrive at her intended
port ; for then her true [lace will be B, her true
couife the angle N A r, and her true diftance
BC = A f. But if file firft fail on the ftarboard
tack, then muft (lie fail by the log the diftance A h,
whereby her true place will be c ; then getting her
larboard tacks on board, and (landing to the eaft-
ward, till (he has failed by the log the diftance
c p =z AH, (he will arrive at her intended port;
for then her true place will be B, and her true
diftance <r B = A C.
Arithmetically.
1. In the oblique-angled triangle AGD are
given the fide A G z= 55, the fide G D == 45, and
the angle A G D =: 67°. 30'. whence the angle
Gad may be found =z 47^. 40'. and the ftde A D
or diftance failed during the experiment = 56.25 ;
and becaufe the line A C is nearer N, than the line
A G, by the angle DAG; therefore from the
angle N A G =: I o 1 °. 15'. take theangleDAG =
47°. 40'. the remainder = 53°. 35'. or fomtthing
more than N E. i. eafterly, will be the true courfe
on the larboard tack.
2. In the triangle ABC are given the angle
B A C — 22°. 30'. the angle A C B = 9 1 ". 1 1^ the
angle C B A := 57°. 44'. and the (ide A B =
100; whence the fides A C and B|C, the refpedive
diftance on each tack, may be found, the former or
AC =r 85.07, and the latter or B C 3z 51.64.
To find the diftance f.iiled by the log on each
tack to gain the port. — Becaufe the triangles A C H
and A D G are fimilar, it will be as AD = 5624 :
AC = 85.07 :: AG = 55 : AH=z 83.1, the
diftance (he niuft fail on her larboard tack : and be-
cauie the triangles Adg and Ach are iimilar, it
will be, as A rt^ z= 91 : A f = 51.64 : : A ^ =: 55 :
A h =1 31.2 := C n, the diftance (he muft fail on
her ftarboard tack.
CURRIERS, thofe who drefs and colour leather
after it comes from the tan-yard. See the article
Skinn£rs.
c u k
CURRYING, the method of preparing leather'
with oil, tailow, &c.
CURSITOR, a clerk belonging to the court of
chanceiy, whofe bufinefs it is to make out original
writj. In the ftatute 18 Edw. IK. they are called
clerks of courfe, and ate twenty-four in number,
making a corporation of themfelves. To each of
them is allowed a divlfion of certain counties, into
which they iftue out the original writs required by
the fubjea:.
CURSOR, in mathematical inftruments, is any
fmall piece that Aides, as the piece in an equiiwc-
tial ring-dial that Aides to the day of the month ;
the little label of brafs divided like a line of (ines,
and Aiding in a groove along the middle of another
label, reprefenting the horizon in the analenima ;
and likewife a brafs point fcrevved on the beam-
compafles, which may be moved along the beam
for the ftriking of greater or lefs circles.
CURTAILING, in farriery, is the docking or
cutting off a horfe's tail.
This praiSice is no where (>) rrwich ufed as in
England, it being a popular though falfe opinion,
that the taking away the tail, makes the horfe's
chine or back much ftronger, and more able to
fupport a burden.
CURTAIL-DouBLE, a mufical wind inftru-
ment, like the bafToon, which plays the bafs to the
hautboy.
CURTAIN, orCuRTiN, in fortification. See
the article Curtin.
CURTATE Distance, in aftronomy, the dif-
tance between the fun and that point where a
perpendicular, let fall from a planet, meets the
ecliptic.
CURTATION, in aftronomy, is the difference
between the diftance of a planet in its orbit from the
fun, and its diftance from him when referred to the
ecliptic, which is always lefs in the latter cafe tl/an
in the former.
CURTEYN, Curtan.7, in the Bririfti cuftoms,.
king Edward the Confeilbr's fword, borne before
the prince at coronations : its point is faid to be
broken off, as an emblem of mercy.
CURTIN, Curtain, or Courtin, in forti-
fication, is that part of the rampart of a place
which is betwixt the flanks of two baftions, bor-
dered with a parapet five feet high, behind which
the foldiers ftand to fire upon the covert-way and.
into the moat. As it is the beft defended of any
part of the rampart, befiegers never carry on their
attacks againft the curtain, but againft the faces of
the baftions, becaufe of their being defended only
by one flank. See the article Flank.
Ji/g!e cf the Curtin, that contained bctweea
the curtin and the flank.
Complement cf tbfCvKTlH. Sec the article CoM-
plement.
CURVATOR,
c u s
CURVATOR CoccYGis, in anatomy, a name
given by Albinus to a muiclc of the coccyx, dif-
covered by himfelf, and not defcribed by any other
author.
It arifes with a double head, one from the inner,
and the other from the lower and lateral part of the
OS f.icrum ; and defcending, terminates in three ex-
tremities. Hi gave the name from its office, which
is the bending the coccyx.
CURVATURE of a Line, is that peculiar man-
ner in which it is bent, and from which it is known
to be a curve of fome paiticular property.
CURVES, in geometry, are lines continually
bending in different directions, fo as to admit ot
being cut in more places than one by a right line,
and according to the number of times which this
can happen ; as twice, thrice, four times, iiz. the
curve is faid to be of the firft, fvicond, third, &c.
order. For if a line can but be cut once, it
mufl of neceffity be a right line, and then comes
not under this denomination. It mud alfo be ob-
ferved, that as often as the above circumftance hap-
pen in any curve, fo high will the dmienfions of
the higheft povwr in the equation of that curve
run when expriffLd in an algebraic manner.
The doiStrine of curves, and of the figures and
f.iHds generated by them, is very extenfive and in-
tricate, and conflitutes what is called the higher ge-
ometry, and into which they are divided into two
forts, algebraical, or geometrical, and tranfenden-
tal. All or mofl of the latter kind will be more par-
ticularly treated of in this Didionary, under their
refpeiftive names, or the pioperties they are moft
remarkable for : as to the former, their number is
infinite ; and as every one of them require a dif-
ferent way of managing them, it is to no purpofe
to fay more of them in a work of this nature.
CURVET, orCoRVET, in the manege, an air
in which the horfe's legs are raifed higher than the
demivult ; being a kind of leap up, and a little for-
wards, wherein the horfe raifes both his fore legs at
once, equally advanced, when he is going ftraight
forward and not in a circle, and as his fore legs
are falling, he immediately raifes his hind legs, e-
qually advanced, and not one before the other :
fo that all his four legs are in the air at once ; and as
he fets them down, he marks but twice with them.
CURVILINEAL, a term applied to thofe figures
that are bounded by curve lines.
CURULE Chair, in Roman antiquity, a chair
adorned with ivory, wherein the great magiftrates
of Rome had a right to fit and be carried.
CUSCUTA, dodder, in botany, a genus of
plants, whofe corolla confifls of a fingle, ovated
petal, a litlle longer than the cup, divided into
four obtu'e fegments at the mouth : the peticarpium
is flefhy, r^undifl), and bilocular, opening horizon-
tally : thi. f -dj are two in number.
c u s
The ancients recommended it as a purge : how-
ever, we efteem it more as an attenuant and aperient
in obft rudtions of the vifcera, in jaundices, dropfies,
and other chronic difeafes.
CUSPS, in aftronomv, the points or horns of
the moon, or any other luminary.
CUSP, in aftrology, the firfl point of each of
the twelve houfes, in a figure or fcheme of the
heavens.
CUSPIDATED Plants, in botany, are fuch
plants whofe leaves are pointed like a fpear.
Cuspidated Hyperbola, that whofe points con-
cur in the angle of contad, and there terminate.
See Hyperbola.
CUSTOM, a very comprehenfive term, denoting
the manners, ceremonies, and fafliions of a people,
which having turned into habit, and paffed into ufe,
obtains the force of laws; in which fenfe it implies
fuch ufages as, though voluntary at firft, are yet,
by practice, become neccffary.
Cuflom is hence, both by lawyers and civilians,
defined hx non fripta, a law, or right, not writ-
ten, eftabllfhcd by long ufage, and the ronfent of
our anceitors : in which fenle it ftands oppofed to
the li'x fcripla, a hw, or the written law.
Custom of Adercbants. — If a merchant gives a
character of a (trant;er to one who fellb him goods,
he may be obliged to fatibfy the debt of the ftranger
for the goods fold, by the cuftom of merchants.
Customs, in commerce, the tribute or toll
paid by merchants to the king, for goods exported
or imported : they are otherwife called duties. See
Duty.
CusTOM-HousE, an office eftablifiied by the
king's authority in maritime cities, or port towns,
for the receipt and management of the culfoms and
duties of importation and exportation, impofed on
merchandifes, and regulated by books of rates.
Custom-Officers fhall not have any Ihips of
their own, nor may they ufe merchandife, fadforage,
nor keep a tavern, &:c.
CUSTOMARY Tenants, in law, fuch ten-
ants as hdld by the cuftom of the manor, as their
fpecial evidence. Thefe were anciently bond-men,
or fuch as held teniira bandagii.
CUSTOS, in mufic, the fame with moftra or
index.
Custos Brevium, the principal cletk belong-
ing to the court of Common-pleas, whofe bufinefs
it is to receive and keep all the writs made return-
able in that court, filing every return by itltlf :
and at the end of each term, to receive of the pro-
thonotaries all the records of the Nifi Piius, called
the pofteas.
Cus'i'os Rotulorum, an rfficcr who hss the
cuflody of the rolls and records of the (cffions
of peace, and alfo of the commiffion of the pence
itftif.
CUTANEOUS,
CUT
CUT
CUTANEOUS, in general, an appellation given
to whatever belongs to the cutif, or fkin : hence we
meet with cutaneous caruncles, difoidcrs, eruptions,
&c. See the articles Caruncle, Cutis, Cuti-
cle, Itch, Sec.
CUTICLE, Cutkula, in anatomy, a thin mem-
brane, clofcly lying upon the fkin, or cutis, of
which it feems a part, and to which it adheres very
firmly, being aflifted by the intervention of the cor-
pus reticulare.
CUTICULAR, the fame with cutaneous. Sec
■the article Cutaneous.
CUTIS, the Ikin, in anatomy, the univerfal in-
tegument of the body, or a fubltance made up of (e-
veral kinds of tendinous, membranous, vafcular,
and nervous fibres, the intertexture of which is fo
much the more wonderful, as it is difficult to un-
fold ; for their diredlions are as various as thofe of
the fluff of which an hat confifts. This texture is
what we commonly call leather, and it makes the
body of the fkin. It is not eafily torn, may be
elongated in all directions, and afterwards recovers
itfelf: on the pofteripr parts of the body it is thicker
and more lax than on the fore parts; and on the
palms of the hands and foles of the feet, it is both
very thick and very folid. It is generally more dif-
ficult to be pierced by pointed inftruments in the
belly than in the back.
The outer furface of this fubftance is furnifhed
with fmall eminences, which anatomifts call papil-
lae, in which the capillary filaments of the cutane-
ous nerves terminate by fmall radiated pencils.
The greateft part of thefe papilla; is flat, of diffe-
rent breadths, and feparated by fulci, which form a
kind of irregular lozenges. The papilla; of the
palm of the hand, fole of the foot, and of the fin-
gers and toes, are higher than the other parts of the
body ; but they are likewife fmaller, clofely united,
and placed endwife in particular rows, which repre-
fent all kinds of lines. The papillae appear to be
furrounded at their bafes by a foft, mucilaginous
fubflance, called corpus reticulare, or mucoium,
which fills the interftices between them, and repre-
fents a kind of net-work, the mefhes of which fur-
round each papilla; this reticular or vafcular texture
is of various forms and figures in the different parts
of the body.
The inner furface of the fkin is covered by very
fmall tubercles, commonly called cutaneous glands,
and they ar-e likewife termed glandulae miliares,
from their refemblance to millet feeds. Thefe tu-
bercles are partly fixed in fmall foflulae, in the fub-
itance of the fkin, which anfwer to the fame num-
ber of fmall cavities in the corpus adipofum. Their
excretory duffs open on the outer furface of the
fkin. The greatefl: part of them furnifhes fweat,
and others a fatty oily matter, of different thick-
nefs, which M. Morgagni calls fandulae febacese.
36
The late M. Duvernoy demonf?rated to the Royal
Academy, that the flrudure of fome of thefe cu-
taneous glands rtfcmbled the circumvolutions of
fmall intelfines, plentifuly florcd with capillary
veflels.
Btfides thefe corpufcles, there are other fmall fp-
lid bodies, almoft oval, contained in the fubllaiice
of the fKin ; thefe are the roots or bulbs from whence
the hairs arife.
Bclides fcveral confi^Ierable openings in the fkin,
it is pciforatLd by an infinite number of fmall holes,
called pores, whiih are of two kinds ; fome are
more or lefs perceivable by the naked eye, fuch as
the orifices of the milky du£ts of the mammae, the
orifices of the excretory canals of the cutaneous
glands, and the paflages of the hairs.
The other pores are imperceptible to the naked
eye, but vifible through a microfcope : and their
exiftence is likewife proved by the cutaneous tran-
fpiration, and by the efFedls of topical applications;
and from thefe two phenomena they have been di-
vided into arterial and venous pores.
There are different adhefions and folds of the fkin
in different parts of the body.
The outiide of the fkin is covered by a thin tranf-
parent web, clofely joined to it, which is called
epidermis, cuticula, or fcarf-fkin.
The fubftance of the cuticula appears to be very
uniform on the fide next the fkin, and to be com-
pofed, on the other fide, of a great number of very
fine, fmall, fquamous laminae : this fubftance is very
folid and compadt, but yet capable of being extend-
ed and thickened. The origin of the epidermis is as
obfcure as its regeneration is evident, fudden, and fur-
prifing. The epidermis adheres very clofely to the cu-
taneous papillae, but ftill clofer to the corpus reticu-
lare ; and they feem to be true portions or continu-
ations of each other. It covers the fkin through
its whole extent, except at the places where the
nails lie ; it is marked with the fame furrows and
lozenges as the fkin, and has the fame openings
and pores. The epidermis feems to infinuate itfelf
into the fmall pores, in order to complete the excre-
tory tubes of the cutaneous glands. The foffulae
of the hairs have likewife the fame produdfions of
the epidermis ; and it feems to give a fort of coat
to the hairs themfelves : and laftly, the impercep-
tible dudfs of the cutaneous pores are lined by it,
Theufes of the fkin are numerous : i. To fur-
round, cover, and defend the parts that lie under-
neath it. 2. To be the organ of feeling. 3. To
be an univerfal emunflory to the body, cleanfing
the blood of its redundancies, by the means of
fweat and perfpiration ; while thefe, at the fame
time, ferve to prevent the acidity or drynefs of the
cutis itfelf.
CUTTER, in naval affairs, a fmall veffel uftd
to navigate in the channel of England : they have
g-p com-
CUT
commonly one maft, and are rig-ged as floops :
Tome of thefe are fmugglers, and fome vefTels in the
king's fervice employed to catch the fmugglers.
CUTTING, in heraldry, is uled for the dividing
a fliield into two equal f.arts, from right to left,
parallel to the horizon, or in the fefle-way.
Cutting, in painting, the laying one ftrong
lively colour over another, without any (hade or
foftening. The cutting of colours hath always
a difagreeable effedt.
Cutting, in furgery, the operation of extract-
ing the ftone out of the human body by fe<Stion.
Cutting in Wood, a particular kind of fculp-
ture, or engraving, denominated from the matter
whereon it is employed.
The art of cutting in wood was certainly carried
to a veiy great height about one hundred and fixty
years ago : at prefent it is very low in efteem, as
having been long neglcfled, and the application of
artifts wholly employed on copper, as the moft eafy
and promifing province. The cutter in wood needs
no other inftruments than little fharp knives, chif-
feis, and gravers of different fizes.
The firft thing he does, is to take a plank or
block of pear-tree, or box, which he prepares of
the fize and thicknefs intended, and makes it
very even and fmooth on the fide to be cut : on
this block he draws the defign with a pen, or pen-
cil, juft as it ought be printed. Thofe who can-
not draw their own defigns, make ufe of thofe done
by another, which they fallen on the block with
pafte, the iirokes or lines being turned towards the
wood : when the paper is dry, they wafli it gently
over with a fponge dipped in water, which done,
they take off the paper by degrees, ffill rubbing it
a little with the tip of the finger, till there is no-
thing left on the block but the ftrokes of ink that
form the defign, which marks out fo much of the
block as is to be fpared, or left ftanding ; the reft
they cut off, and take away as curioufly as they can
with the point of their (harp inftruments.
Cuttings, in gardening, are branches of trees,
fhrubs, &c. cut off in order for their ftriking root,
and becoming new plants : numbers of plants are
raifed by cuttings. Thofe whicli are deciduous and
hardy, the autumn is beft for tliis operation ; but
evergreen cuttings fhould be planted in the fpring.
In providing cuttings, it is not amifs to leave a
knob of the former year's wood on, particularly of
thofe plants which grow freely. Wiih very tender
and herbaceous plants, the young branches ftiould
be cut juft below the joint, and may be ftuck in a
pot or border, and covered air-tight with a glafs ;
this method will greatly promote their taking root,
and is done in the fummer months. With fome forts
it is neceffary to plunge them in a moderate heat to
facilitate their rooting ; and it may be remarked that
the young fhoots of the Uteft growth are moft pro-
ber for this operation.
CYC
CUT-WATER, in naval architetlure, the fore-
moft part of the prow of a fliip, or that part which
fiift divides the fluid. See the article Stem,
CYANUS, bottle-flower, in botany, a plant which
grows wild in corn-fields ; the ftalks are angular,
hollow, covered with down and branched ; the
lower leaves are finuated, and not much unlike
thofe of dandelion, but the others are narrow and
long. The flower has a fcaly hairy cup, and the
difK almoft flat, but the outer florets round the bor-
der are tubulous and deeply cut ; the colour of them
is generally blue, though there are varieties wi.h.
other colours.
This plant is claffed among the centaurys by Lin-
naeus.
It is faid fo be alexipharmic and uterine, and
the water diftilled from the flowers is of fervice in
inflammations of the eyes.
CYCLAMEN, fow-bread, in botany, a genus
of plants, whofe flower is monopetalous ; the tube
is fubglobofe, double the fize of the cup ; the limb
is large, and turns upwards, and is divided into
five ovato-lanceolate fegments ; in the tube are
placed five fmall filaments, terminated with ftrait
pointed antherae. The fruit is a roundifli berry,
opening in five parts at top, inclofing many round-
ifh angular feeds.
The common cyclamen has a thick, orbicular,
flefliy root,fomewhatflattifti, white within and black-
ifti without ; it has a pungent, burning, difagreeable
tafte. From the root arifes a number of heart-
ftiaped leaves, marked with black in the middle ;
thefe grow on foot-ftalks about fix or feven inches
high. Thefe flowers rife immediately from the
root, with long, flefliy pedicles. When the flower
falls off, their foot-ftalks twift up like a fcrew, in-
clofing the germen in the center, and bends down
to the ground between the leaves, which ferves as a
protedlion to the feed.
In medicine, the root is the part which is ufed ;
it is faid to open and deterge very powerfully, for
which reafon it is recommended in the jaundice,
gravel, and all obftinate obftruiSions. Externally it
hath been ufed to difcufs fcrophulous tumours, ap-
plied in the form of a cataplafm, and for this inten-
tion its acrimony and pungency is more fitting than
for internal ufes.
There are other fpecies of cyclamen, which are
more tender than the above- mentioned, therefore re-
quire to be flieltered in winter with us. They are
all propagated from feeds, which ftiould be fown
when ripe.
CYCLE, in chronology, a certain period, or
feries of years, months, days, &c. which when it
has run regularly from the firft to the laft, returr^
again to the firft, and thus circulates perpetually.
Cycle of the Sun, or dominical letter cycle, is a
revolution of twenty-eight years, after which in-
terval the days of the week return on the fame days
CYC
ef the month of the Julian or old ftyle ; but the
reformation of the calendar, made by pope Gre-
gory XIII. has made a fad breach in this cycle, by
reducing every hundredth year, which in the Julian
flyle was always leap year, to a common one of
365 days.
Cycle of the Mom, or golden number, is a cy-
cle, or period of nineteen years, after which pe-
riod, the fame lunar afpe^ls, with refpeit to the
fun, return on the fame days of the month, which
they did in the preceding period. The principal ufe
of this cycle is for finding the time for obferving
the feaft of Eafter ; and was eftablifhed by the
council of Nice, who at that time thought fo high-
ly of it as to have the numbers fet down in letters
of gold, from whence it had the name of the gol-
den number.
Cycle cf Indlilhn, is a period of fifteen years,
ufed by the Romans for determining the tim^ of
particular payments by tb^ fubjecls of the republic,
and was firfl founded by Conftantlne in the year of
Chrift 312.
CYCLOID, in geometry, one of the mechani-
cal or tranfcendental curves : it is fuppofed to be
generated in the following manner.
If a circle (Plate XL. /^. 3.) in a vertical pofition
rolls along the horizontal line A B (as the wheel of a
carriage does upon the road) till it has made one revo-
lution, that point of the circle, as A, which touched
the plane, will rife up from the line, and be at a
when the circle has rolled half way, having defcribed
the curve Ka, from whence (as the circle goes on)
it goes downwards in the fame kind of curve, till
it comes to touch the line AB at B; the point
C, which was uppermoft at the beginning of the
motion, having been down at c when A was at a,
and now being returned to k when the circle is in
the fame pofition as before its revolution began.
The whole curve ArtB fo defcribed is called a
cycloid, and the circle A. C the generating circle,
and the line A B the bafe of the cycloid.
It is evident from the formation of the cycloid,
that the bafe of the cycloid is equal to the circum-
ference of the generating circle. Several other pro-
perties of the cycloid have been demonftrated by
mathematician?, whofe demonftrations it would be
tedious to repeat here \ therefore we fhall take them
for granted, and mention them as we have occaUon
for them in our conclufions about the pendulum,
and other, the more particular properties and ufes of
this curve.
Let us now invert the cycloid, fo as to have A B
(fig. 4.) the bafe at top, and the cycloid underneath.
it has been demonftrated by feveral, that if from any
point in the cycloid, as E or />, there be drawn a
line parallel to the bafe, and from the point where
that line cuts the generating circle when it has per-
formed half its revolution (that is, when it is at G)
there be drawn a chord fuch as e IX or j D, the in-
CYC
terceptcd arc of the cycloid, .as E D or ;) D will fie
double the chord ^ D or tjD ; and fo one half of
the cycloid, as A D will be double the diameter GI)
of the generating circle. Now it has been fhewii
by feveral that a body will fall in the fame time in
the diameter G D, and in the chords q D, e D, a
body niuft fall in the arcs A D /) D and f D in equal
times ; becaufe each of them is the double of the
above-faid lines G D, qli and^D; fo that whea
a pendulum fwings in a cycloid ; all the vibrations,
however unequal, are ifochronal.
Before we quit this fubjecf, it may not be impro-
per to mention a remarkable property of the cycloid,
which is this, viz. that it is the line of the fwifteft
defcent ; that is, if a body is to move from A to D,
there is no line of any kind which can be drawn
from the upper to the lower of thofe points, along
which a body will defcend fo faft as in the femi-
cycloid A D J neither an arc of a circle, nor even
the ftraight line A D, though it be fo much (horter ;
for the body at firft fetting out from A defcends in fo
fteep a dire6lion (that is, is fo much a£fcd upon by
gravity ) that it acquires a great velocity, fo as to carry-
it the more fwiftly in the lower part of the curve
which is Icfs fteep : and a circular arc which would
be more fteep at bottom is lefs fo at top. If an in-
clined line as A F, be drawn from A beyond t!ie
loweft point of the cycloid, and a body goes down
that line, whilft another runs from the fame point
along the cycloid, the greater celerity of the body
in the cycloid will appear more evidently. This
property, and that of having the defcent of a body
from any part of the (inverted) cycloid to the bot-
tom, exadlly in the fame time, will be illuftratedi
by the following experiments.
Experiment I. Plate XL, fig. 5.
The machine B H M D D, reprefented by the
figure, is made of wood about ten inches high, two
foot long and two inches thick. From I to t it ii
cut into a channel as wide at bottom as at top, hx
the form of a femi-cycloid inverted, the lowefl:
point being at F, from whence the channel is con-
tinued horizontally for the length of a foot from P
to G, the walls of the channel being H H and II,
and this channel is very fmooth and divided into two
channels by a thin upright brafs partition L L from
the top between H and I to the farther end at G.
Upon the partition are marked divifions, which from
F to G are equal, but unequal from F to I, in fiich
manner as to denote equal heights, H the begin-
ning of the channel is nine inches above the level of
F, O O are two wooden flops for tho channels,,
and to be fixed in any place by means of a Ikrew at
the end of each of them. The whole inftrumeat
may be fet upright and horizontal by means of three:
ikrews fuch as C, C, and the plummet N M.
Two brafs balls, of half inch diameter each,,
are to move in the two channels.
CYC
Fix the two flops exaiRIy at F, and the biafs
balls, though you let tliem go from different parts of
their refpeftive cycloidal channels, will ftrike iheni
at the fame time ; which will alfo be very fenfible
to any one who holds a finger in each channel at F,
whilft another perfon lets the balls run down from
unequal heights.
Now let the flops be fhifted, and one of them be
fixed four inches beyond F towards G, and J;he
other fix inches beyond F ; and let the two balls fall
at once, the one from the height of four inches, and
the other from the height of nine. That which falls
from four inches in height, will go four inches be-
yond F ; and that which falls from nine inches in
height, will go fix inches beyond F, each ftriking
the obftacle in its own channel exactly in the fame
time as the other. Four and nine are the fpaces
fallen through, whofe roots two and three exprefs
the refpeilive velocities of the balls, which are
fhewn by one of them running four inches in the
horizontal part of its channel, the other runs fix
inches in the other horizontal channel.
Experiment II. Plate XL. fg. 6.
'" A E C i is another machine with a cycloidal chan-
nel, wherein the whole cycloid is hollowed in from
B to ^, its lowed part being at C. There is a
freight channel A a moveable round the point A as
a center to apply on the back-fide of the cycloid as
the machine flands upright, fo that its channel may
be in the plane of any chord drawn from the point A
to any part of the cycloid. Let this trough or chan-
nel be firft fet in the line AC ; then let one of the
balls fall from B in the cycloidal channel, whilft the
other begins at the fame time to fall from the fame
level in the ftreight channel, and you will obferve,
that the ball running down in the cycloid will be a
good way beyond C, when the ball running in the
llreight channel is jufl got to it; as may ftill be
made more fenfible by fixing one of the flops above-
mentioned (in the explanation of the laft figure)
over-againft C in the ftreight channel, and the other
between C and h in the cycloidal channel. If the
flreight channel be fixed beyond the point C as at
A (7, the ball in the cycloid will come from B to Zi
and be down again at C when the other is come
from A in a ftreight line to G.
^CYCLOIDAL, of, or belonging to a cycloid.
CYCLOPEDIA, or Encyclopedia. See
Encyclopj^edia.
CYDER, orCiEER, an excellent drink made of
the juice of apples, cfpecially the more curious table
kinds ; the juice of ihefe being efteemed more cor-
dial and plealant than that of the wild and harfh
kinds.
CYGNUS. See the article Swan.
Cygnl'S, in aftronomy, a conftellation of the
northern hemifphere, confifting, according to Pto-
lemy's catalogue, of 27 ftars, Tycho's 19, and in
C Y L
the Britlfl) catalogue of 107 ; but in the following
of 81.
The fabulous hiftory of this conftellation, accord-
ing to the poets, is thus related. Jupiter falling in
love with Lffda, the wife of Tyndarus, king of
Oebalia, and not knowing in what manner to fa-
tisfy his luftful defires, without expofing himfelf,
procured Venus to transform herfelf into an eagle,
and himfelf into the form of a fwan ; therefore fly-
ing from the eagle as from his natural enemy that
earneflly purfued him, lighted in the lap of Lsda,
under a pretence of avoiding the eagle : Lsda not
knowing who it was under the fhape of the fwan,
and confequently not fearing or apprehending any
danger, went to fleep, clafping the fwan in her arms
dole to her bofom ; which opportunity Jupiter
feized, and in raptures enjoyed the charms of the
beautiful Lffda; and in memorial of the great plea-
fure he received under the form of a fwan, placed
the figure of this bird among the ftars for a conftel-
lation.
«.
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Name.
J
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287.52,
288.37,
288.51
289.19
289.19
290.13
290.24
290.40
290.40
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291.45
292.26
292.29
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293.52,
293.50,
294.17,
294.20,
295.28,
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296.47.
296.46,
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316.16.58
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CYLINDER, in geometry, a folid fuppofed to
be generated by the rotation of a parallelogram round
one of its fides as an axis. Thus if the parallelo-
gram A B C D (Plate XLI. fig. i.) be fuppofed to
36
C Y L
revolve round the fide A D as an axis, it is manifcft
from the figure that it will dcfcribe the cylinder
E B E C, wliofe altitude is equal to the length of tht
fide A R, and the Ibmi -diameter of its bafe equal to
A B. If the p;uallelogram be a right-angled one, it is
called right; but if it be otherwife, it is called a fca-
lone one. ^
The moft remarkable properties of the cylind^i-
are as foJiow.
1. Every fedlion parallel to the bafe muft be a
circle.
2. Every fedlion parallel to its axis AD muft be
a parallelogram.
3. Every feftion by a plane oblique to its axis will
be an ellipfis.
4. Cylinders of the fame bafe, {landing between
the fame parallels, are equal.
5. If the altitudes of two right cylinders be equal
to the diameters of their bafes, thofc cylinders are to
one another as the cubes of the diameters of their
bafes.
6. Every cylinder is to its infcribed fpheroid as
3 to 2.
7. Since, by the 31ft article, book iv. of Pardie's
Elem. Geo. the area of every circle is equal to that
of a right-angled triangle, one of whofe fides is
equal to the radius of, or the circle, and the other a
right-line equal to the circumference : therefore the
fuperficies of every cylinder is equal to the area of a
parallelogram, one of whofe fides is equal to the fum
of the fides A B and B C of its generating parallelo-
gram, and the other a rio-jit-liae equal to the cir-
cumference.
Therefore puting a = A B, i =: BC, and />=:
the circumference of a circle, whofe radius is one,
we have /> a^ -|- /> a i := the fuperficies of the whole
cylinder. And,
8. The folidity is equal to
fa- b
in words, e-
qual to produ(£l of the area of the bafe into its alti-
tude.
Rolling-CYLiNDER, in philofophy, a cylinder
which rolls upon an inclined plane.
The phasnomenon of the rolling cylinder may be
eafily accounted for from what we have obfctved
under Center 0/ Gravitv.
For let ABED (Plate XLI. fig. 2.) reprefent a
feftion of a cylinder of wood, bialTed on one fide
with a cylindric piece of lead, as B; this will bring
the center of gravity out of the center of magni-
tude C, to fome point G, between C and B. Let
F H be an inclined plane, whofe bafe is FL. It is
evident the cylinder laid upon the plane will no
where reft but there where a perpendicular to the
horizon F L paiTes through the center of gravity G,
and that point of the plane E, in which the cylinder
touches it ; and this in all angles of inclination of
the plane, lefs than that whofe fine is equal to C G,
the radius being C D. This will happen in two
i> Q_ iitwitioiis
C Y L
fituations ABED, and abed', becaufe, when the
cylinder moves, the center of gravity defcribing a
circle round the center of magnitude C, this circle
will meet the perpendicular in two points G and g,
in each of which the center of gravity being fup-
ported, the cylinder will reft : therefore the cylinder
moves from E to ^ by the defcent of the center of
gravity from G to g, in the arch of the cycloid
Ghg.
If thecyllnder ABED (Plate XLI. /^. 3.) in-
fifling on the horizontal line E L in the point E,
has the center of gravity G in the horizontal diame-
ter D B, it will gravitate in the perpendicular G e ;
if therefore z plane F H touch the cylinder in the
point e, it is plain the cylinder cannot either afcend
or defcend on fuch a plane; becaufe G, in any fitua-
tion between e, and H or e, and F, will gravitate
to the left or right from the point in v/hich the cylin-
der touclies the plane ; and lb will in either cafe
bring it back to the point e.
Cylinder Charge, in gunnery, that part of
a great gun which is pofTefied by the powder and
ball.
Cylinder Concave, in gunnery, is all the
chace of a piece of ordnance.
It may not perhaps be amifs to take notice of the
remarkable refiftance in concave or hollow cylinders
to that of folid ones. As for example, if this quef-
tion was afked, which of two fticks equal in length,
and cylindrical, is the eafieft to break upon the knee,
that which is entirely folid, or that which is hollow,
having the fame quantity of matter with the other,
moit people would not hefitate at all to decide that
the hollow flick would be the eafiefl to break.
Neverthelefs it is quite the contrary, as foon as
we confult the principles of mechanicks. When
we reft a ftick upon the knee to break it, we reft
it by fome one of its points, and it is the point dia-
metrically oppofite, which will take a circular mo-
tion about the point of luppart, while the fraciure
is made. Here then is a lever, and this point which
moves circularly, defcribes an arch fo much the
greater, as it is ferthcr diftant from the point of fup-
port, or from the fixed point, and confequently it
has fo much more force to refift the power, which
tends to make the fraflure. A thicker cylinder full
15 then more difficult to break, not only becaufe it
contains more matter, upon wliich v/e muft acr, but
alfo becaufe the diameter of its bafe is greater, and
t'lc exiremitv of its diameter, which moves in the
fiaiture, is farther diilant from the fixed point. U
this cylinder preferving the fame quantity of matter,
became hollow, it is vilible, that its total diameter,
that if, the diameter, as well of the hollow part, as
of the folid, would neccfl'arily increafc, and confe-
quently alfo one of the caufes, which made its force,
and us refiftance againfc being broken.
Every hollow cylinder is then flronger than a full
eylindefj which has cuily the fame quur.iity of mat-
C Y L
ter ; and this, according to all appearance, is one of
the reafons why the bones of animals and the culms
of corn and grafs are hollow.
Galileo, the firft author of thefe forts of inquiries,
has confidered in the full and hollow cylinders, hav-
ing their bafes formed of the fame quantity of mat-
ter, only the inequality of their diameters, and con-
fequently he has eftablifhed, that the refiftance of a
hollow cylinder, is to that of a full cylinder, as the
total diameter of the hollow one is to the diameter
of the full one.
But this confideration is imperfefl in tlii>-, that
the extenfions of the fibres of which the cylinders
are compofed, are not taken in. Thefe extenfions,
and confequently the refiftances of all the particular
fibres, continually increafe from the fixed point to
the moft diftant fibre, which muft break the firft,
and which we may fuppofe in the greateft extenfion
that it can fuffer. It is the fum of all thefe unequal
refiftances that makes the refiftance, which all the
fibres together cppofe to the power, which tends to
break them.
Thus the total refiftance of the cylinder depends
upon three things ; on the quantity of matter that
compofes the bafe; on the refiftance that all thefe
fibres together bring to their extenfion, and on the
magnitude of the diameter of the cylinder.
There remains to determine and exprefs geo-
metrically thefe magnitudes ; and it is this that
M. Parent has done. The circles of the bafe of the
full cylinders muft be made equal, to the full bands
or zones of the hollow cylinders, and we muft find
the infinite fum of the unequal refiftances of all the
fibres, which is a particular cafe of the general me-
thod of M. Varignon.
M. Parent being arrived to a general formula,
which contains all the poffible refiftances of hollow
cylinders, compared to the full, has calculated upon
this formula, a table, where he fuppofes that the
total femi-diameter of a hollow cylinder is always
100 parts; and that the refift.ince of the full cjlin-
der, which contains in its bafe as much mntter as
the other, is alfo divided into ico parts. We fee
by the table,
I. That in proportion as the hollow cylinder, of
which the radius can have but 100 parts of a certain
determinate magnitude, has more void, and confe-
quently Icfs matter, it makes a greater refiftance
than the correfpondent full cylinder. 2. That this
incqi:ality of refiflance always diniinifces in propor-
tion as the hollow cylinder is leG hollow, and con-
tains more matter; that, for example, a cylinder,
of which the void is 99 radius, and i in ihicknefs,
and to which confequently a full cylinder anfwers,
Vvfhich is only 14 radius, has a refiftance, vvliich is
to that of the full cylinder, as 848 to ico, that is,
as 8 \\ to I ; and that the cylinder, wbiJn has 50 vn
void and 50 in thicknefs, and to which a full cylin-
der of 87 radius aafwers, has a refiftance, which
C Y N
IS to tliat of the full one, only as 121 to lOO.
3. That tlie hollow cylinder of 99 void, the re-
iiftance of which, compared to that of the full one,
which is 14 ritlius, would be, according to Galileo,
7y times greater, has one S'.} times greater, accord-
ing to the hypothecs of M. Parent, which is alfo that
of M. Mariotte.
Cylinder Vacant, in gunnery, is that part
of the hollow that remains empty, after the gun is
charged.
CYLINDRICAL, fomething in the form of, or
refembling, a cylinder : thus we fay, a cylindrical
column, cylindrical compafl'es, mirrors, &c.
CYLINDROID, in geometry, a folid body ap-
proaching to the figure of a cylinder, but differing
from it in fome rcfpeft, as having the bafes elliptical,
but parallel and equal.
The word is formed from the Greek, xi/XivJfc;, a
cylinder, and nhi, refemblance.
CYMA, or CvMATiu.M, in architeflure. See
Cymatium.
Cy"ma, in botany, the tender ftalk which herbs
fend forth in the beginning of the fpring ; particu-
larly thofe of the cabbage kind.
CYMATIUM, in architcfture, a member, or
moulding of the corniche, the profile of which is
waved ; that is, concave at top, and convex at
bottom. See the article Corniche.
Tufcan Cymatium confift: of an ovalo or quar-
ter-round. Philander makes two Doric cymatiums,
of which this is one. Baldus calls this the Lcfbian
aftragal.
Doric Cymatium is a cavetto, or a cavity lefs
than a femicircle, having its projefture fubduple to
its height. See article Doric,
Li'jb'ian Cymatium, according to \'itruvius, is
what our architects otherwife call talon, viz. a con-
cavo-convex member, having its projedlure fubduple
to its height.
CYMBAL, xyfifaxrv, a mufical inftrument in
ufe among the ancients. The cymbal was round,
made of brafs, like our kettle-drums, and, zs fume
think, ia their form, but iinaller, and of diflerent
ufe.
CYMBIFORME Os, a bone otherwife called
navicubre. See N.\ viculare.
CYNANTHROPIA, in medicine, the dirtem-
per occafioned bv the bite of a mad dog, wherein
the patient avoids the light and every thing that is
bright, and dreads the water fo much, that he trem-
bles at the fight or even the rcmembiance of it. See
Hydrop'.iobia.
CYNARA, in botany, a genus of plants, whofc
flower is uniform, tu'valated, and compound ; the
calyx is ventricofe, and imbricated, with a number
of fleOiy, roundifh fquamas -, the proper flower is
hermaphrodite, monopetalous, and funnel-ihaped,
litiiated on an ovated mermen, which afterwards be-
C Y N
cornea a finglc, oblong, comprefTed, four comcreJ
feed, crowned with along fefTiledown.
This genus includes the different fpecies of the
artichoke. See the article yXRTiciioKE.
CYNICS, a fed of ancient philofophcrs, who
valued tliemfelves upon their contempt of riches and
Hate, arts and fciences, and every thing, in (hort,
except virtue or morality.
The Cynic philofophcrs owe their origin and in-
ftitution to Antifthenes of Athens, a difciple of So-
crates, who, being afkcd of what ufe his philofophy
had been to him, replied, " It enables me to live
with myfelf." Diogenes was the moft famous of
his difciples, in whole life the fyftem of this philo-
fophy appears in its grcatcft perfection : he led a
moll wretched life, a tub having ferved him for a
lodging, which he rolled before him, wherever he
went; yet he was, neverthelefs, not the more hum-
ble on account of his ragged cloak, bag, and tub;
for one day, entering Plato's houfc, at a tmie that
there was a fplendid entertainment there, forfeveral
perfons of diflindlion, he jumped up upon a very
rich couch, in all his dirt, faying, " I trample on
the pride of Plato." " Yes, ("replied Plato) but
with greater pride, Diogenes." He had the utmoft
contempt for all the human race; for he walked
the flreets of Athens, at noon-day, with a lighted
lantern in his hand, telling the people, " He
was in fearch of a man." Amongft many excellent
maxims of morality, he held fome very pernicious
opinions ; for he ufed to fay, that the uninterrupted
good fortune of Harpalus, who generally pafled for
a thief and a robber, was a teftimony againft the
gods. He regarded chaility and modefty as weak-
neffes ; hence Laertius obferves of him, that he
did everv thing openly, whether it belonged to Ce-
res or Venus, though he adds, that Diogenes only
ran to an excefs of impuJence to put others out of
conceit with it : but impudence was the charader-
iilic of thefe philofophers, who argued, that what
was right to be done might be done at all times,
and in all places. The chief principle of this fecf,
in common with the Stoics, was, that we fhould
follow nature ; but they differed from the Stoics in
their explanation of that maxim, the Cynics being
of opinion that a man followed nature, that grati-
fied his natural motions and appetites ; while the
Stoics underftood right reafon, by the word na-
ture.
CvNic Spasm, a kind of convulfion, whereia
the patient imitates the bowlings of dogs,
CYNOGLOSSUM, hound's tongue, inbotany,
a genus of plants, vvhofe corolia coniifls of a fingle
p^ital, of the length of tl>e cup ; the tube is cylin-
dric, and fliorter than the limb, which is divided
into five obtufc fegments ; the fruit coiififts of lour
roundifh dcpreffed capfules ; the feed is finglc, of
an oval figure, gibbous, acuminated, and fmooth.
C Y S
F
Its root is kept in the fhops, and is efteemed a
pedloral and narcotic.
Some recommend it in catarrhs, the gonprrhoeaj
and fcrophulous cafes.
CYNOSURA, in aftronomy, a name given by
the Greeks, to the conftelktion urfa minor.
This is the conftellation next to the north pole.
CYNOSURUS, dog's .tail grafs, in botany, a
•genus of plants, v.'hofe corolla confiftj of two
valves; the exterior concave, longer, and ariftated;
the interior, plane, without any arifta : the corolla
furrounds the feed, which is iingle, of an oblong
figure, and pointed at each end.
CYON, or CioNi among "gardeners. See the
article Cion.
CYPERUS, in botan}^, a genus of plants, whofe
flower has no corolla nor any pericarpium ; the ca-
lyx is an imbricated fpike with ovated fquamas ; it
contains three fhort filaments, topped with oblong,
fulcated antherae ; the feed is fingle, of a trique-
trous form, acuminated, and having no villi, or
hairs.
The roots of thefe plants are carminative and at-
tenuant ; they promote the menfes, and are good
in all chronic cafes arifing from obftruftions of the
vifcera.
CYPHER, or Cipher. SeeCiPHER.
CYPRESS, Cuprefus, the Englifh name of a
genus of trees. See CuPREsstrs.
CYPRINUS, in ichthyology, a very compre-
henfive genus of fifhes of the order of the malaco-
pytergii, the charai£ters of which are thefe : the
branchioftege membrane on each fide contains three
fmall bones ; the mouth is toothlefs, except that
towards the orifice of the ftomach there are two fer-
rated bones, which ferve inflead of teeth.
This is a very numerous genus, comprehending
the roach, tench, carp, gudgeon, barbel, chub,
bream, bleak, &c.
CYPRIPEDIUM, lady's flipper, in botany, a
genus of plants, the flower of which confifts of four
or five very long and narrow petals ; it hath ten
fhort filaments, topped with ereft antherae. The
^ fruit is an ovate, obtufe, three-cornered capfule,
trivalvular and unilocular, which is filled with a
great number of feeds.
CYRENAIC3, Cyrenaid, a kSt of ancient phi-
lofophers, fo called from their founder, Ariftippus
of Cyrene, a difciple of Socrates.
The great principle of their doflrine was, that
the fupreme good of man in this life is pleafure ;
whereby they not only meant a privation of pain
and a tranquility of mind, but an aflembjage of all
mental and (enfual pleafures, particularly the laft.
•CYST, the bag, or tunic, including all incyfted
C Z A
turnbor^ as the fcirrhus, atheroma, fleatoma, mc-
liceres,'&c..
If in extracting an incyfted tumour, the includ-
..fng cyft: be broke, or wounded, care mufi; be taken
to rempy.e it, otherwife the tumour will fpeedily re-
turn.
Irideed if the tumOjUr be a fcirrhus, farcoma, fte-
atoma, or in a glandular part, the contents arc
hard enough to make a clean'extirpation of it, not-
withftanding its including coats be wounded : but
when the matter of the tumour is foft or fluid, by
its efcaping, the tumour will become flaccid, fo
that it will hardly be poflible to make a clean extir-
pation of the cyil, without leaving fome fragment
behind, which muft in that cafe be brought away
by drefling the abfcefs with digeftives, &c. See
Abscess.
CYSTIC, a name given to two arteries and two
veins, opening into the gall-bladder. The cyftic
arteries, cyjiias gemella, are two arteries proceeding
from the right branch of the ccelfap ; .and that
trunk of the vena porta which goes into the liver
afFords the cyftic veins.
Cystic Duct, Cyjlicus Duiius, a pipe that goes
into the neck of the cyflis, or gall bladder, into
which fome bilious du£ls likewife open, and thro*
which the greater part of the bile is evidently car-
ried into the cyftis in human fubjefts.
Cystic Bile, one of the two kinds of bile,
being diftinguifhed into the cyftic and hepatic bile.
The cyftic bile is very bitter, thicker, and more
coloured than the hepatic.
CYSTIS, in anatomy, the fame with veficula,
or bladder. See Bladder and Vesicula.
CYTISUS, bafe tree trefoil, in botany, a genus
of plants, with a papilionaceous flower, and an ob-
long, obtufe, and rigid pod for its fruit, wherein
are a few comprefTed and kidney like feeds.
The leaves of cytifus are efteemed cooling and
difcutient.
Of this genus the laburnum is a fpecies. See
Laburnum.
CZAR, a title of honour aflumed by the great
dukes, or, as they are now filled, emperors of
Rufl"ia.
Beckman makes no doubt but they took this ti-
tle, by corruption, from csfar, emperor ; and ac-
cordingly they bear an eagle, as the fymbol of their
empire, and the word Cjesak in their arms: yet
they make a diftincfion between czar and cafar,
the firfl being taken for the king's name, and the
other for the emperor's.
The firft that bore this title was Bafil, the fon
of Bafilides, under whom the Ruffian power began
to appear, about 1470.
I
The end of the FIRST VOLUME.
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